Kesler

Hey Knightryder, I think everyone wants the ECU to be more understanding, get rid of any EMLs, see the improvements of any bolt-ons and fine tune/fettle things to suit the driver. Well, that's what I believe anyway! If everyone just wants more power/faster acceleration tuners could just build a base map for people and be done with it - but hey, I actually know nothing about mapping! Who is Mase? If I were to tune the Honda back then it'll be either Paul or Romain, wouldn't let anyone else touch the ECU. Not sure of a Spencer mate, there are loads of supercharged/turbo Civics out there so I might have said hello but not know who he is!

Sweet mate, let me know

So wheels have turned up, spigot rings turned up, wheel nuts ordered, now need tyres. Also my new rear plate has arrived:

Are we all related?

It really does sound good, can't wait to hear it in person There is a good video of a Milltek setup which sounds great, but Lauren's experience has put me off Milltek somewhat. When you get the 86 mapped, are you also able to focus on certain areas when mapping - like 'I want more on acceleration' or does it not work like that?

That's really good information - thank you! :)

Ah now these sound great too! You guys are spoiling me with exhausts, when my one gives up the ghost I'll come find you guys to educate me some more

I didn't actually realise they existed to be honest, but I'll check them out. Not that I will need an exhaust anytime soon. Wheels on the way

D'oh Rob I'm in Venlo at that time!!

Lauren do you think custom exhausts would be the way to go with these cars? I do like the Hayward & Scott ones they do

This sounds PHENOMENAL!!

I know, Matt (Injection Imports) has helped me out with a few Project Mu stuff in the past. However Japanese exhausts + International freight + Import + The chance of being stung on something I've never heard of = £££ Still, if there are any meets I could attend to soon (to meet everyone ) then perhaps there could be someone with a different exhaust I'd love to hear

That is interesting with the Milltek, after all these years, a big name with a big price - failing on something simple. That's certainly knocked my confidence back and changed my perception of them

Thanks Keethos, are there any other exhausts I could consider in the future?? seems a little limited in the UK. Meanwhile in Japan...

This is great help thanks Lauren, it's always good to know another driver's experience with different setups so it helps me get closer to what I should be expecting These cars are awfully quieter than the Type R's when it comes to exhausts - I like it, but perhaps over time if I find it too quiet then I may go with an non resonated section. Also it looks like the Cobra Sport exhausts are just that much louder even with the resonated section?

Ah thank you mate, will definitely bear this in mind if I experience this!

Small update, HIC rear visor arrived and fitted, looks smart and adds a bit of shape to the rear windscreen: Yes I am Chinese; I do not like to rip off all plastic wrapping until it really is necessary:

Thanks It is quiet, but perhaps allow me to explain why I think it's just right for me; With the EP3 I had prior to this I felt just like the 86 OEM exhaust; it was silent, mostly engine grunt and no exhaust note. I'm not a fan of the 'fark that's loud' exhaust so I went with an unsilenced centre section, which was great and raspy, but fizzled out a little bit - I needed more of a tone. On my birthday I went to a local fabricator to have them make up a Fujitsubo Legalis R shape exhaust for me, and being Jasma rated and JDM, it's very quiet, but with subtle notes. He assured me that's what I'll get. Then come to fitting it, he started the car and it was so loud. SO LOUD. I told him that's not what I wanted, but apparently 'it can't be any quieter'. So I was stuck with it, everyone in Hemel knew where I was thanks to the sheer volume, my boss would know when I'm 'near' the office, etc. Anyway, the car was sold to someone who actually wanted this volume so fair enough. Going back to the 86 I'm still in the same way as I was before; wanting something very subtle but knowing that it's there - I think to achieve this it was down to the Milltek secondary resonated, or an Invidia Q300 (or a replica of). After checking the bank balance I think it's the right choice to go for the Direnza, though I did meet someone with a black/grey 86 at Silverstone (Pistonheads Sunday Service) and I believe he had a secondary cat delete, and Milltek secondary non-res. Sounded the nuts but I am wary of the dreaded motorway drone...

Thanks Nikndel, Phil's place has everything so we can get on with installing things without any delay The Pro-Kit back on my Civic was stiffer, eliminated that crashy feeling over speedbumps and the like, but can also feel a lot harsher if you know what I mean. The Pro-Kit for the 86 - wow, It's just like OEM, but the ride height and ground clearance has been changed by an inch, everything feels as it should, barely feels harsher, it's still a very soft spring so comfort-wise it's absolutely perfect for me, Zero rattles, no creaks, no tapping, it's spot on

Thanks Keethos! I spent a year and a half driving my Civic completely stock back then, then slowly added some modifications. I've had this for about a month and I've done this already so I think I'm slowly understanding what I need to do!

Hi Lauren I can see them - not sure if it's just a loading thing :/

29/04/2015 - A very quick before and after of the exhaust. I may add, that my camera is SUPER sensitive and has made my stock exhaust sound good! It has also made the new exhaust loud - I can assure everyone that this is not the case! The stock exhaust is rather silent, and the new one is just right (for me). It's probably best I do another video, and stand the camera from the side as opposed to directly behind the car. Let me know what you think: ... And now I'm finally up to date!!

Before and after shots: OEM vs. Direnza secondary cat-back exhaust: OEM vs. Eibach Pro-Kit lowering springs (20/25mm) :

With the springs I decided to get stuck in and help too so didn't take many photos. I took off a few retainers from the boot surround, and pulled back the walls to find the areas we needed to work in. Pretty simple stuff to be honest, and as I've noticed - Toyota doesn't make things too difficult. By starting with the rears first, the shocks were out and ready to have the springs removed: With this, the LCA's are hanging around: Rear springs fitted, time to put it all back together: Rears done, we did the fronts. One thing I didn't like were that if the fronts were a little perished (like mine for some bizarre reason) then it doesn't like being undone. Perfect if you were never going to replace parts - but I'm SO going to change things - so this was quite a pain, and we spend a considerable amount of time to sort it out. In the end we did win, so the front shocks came out, new springs in and fitting back on: Before: After:

Exhaust mounts nicked from the OEM system, silicone joint thingy applied, and on goes the new exhaust. I'd say the biggest difference is the OEM system has the pipe coming from the side (shorter side) of the backbox, bending round to join the centre section. The new system comes straight out of the back, and the joining pipe bends around the rear subframe. Different, but hey - it works. Gasket fitting. Phil doesn't always look surprised like this you know, perhaps it's when I went "BOOM PHOTO" right to his face when I took this. Time to use the supplied bolts to fit everything together: And that is when I realised the supplied bolts are a heap of junk, the moment we torqued the bolts up, this: Phil sorted me out with some stronger nuts and bolts and on we went, and then one last check with the exhaust: And voila - we're done! IMG_6670b by Andy Liu Photography, on Flickr