Honda Civic Type R (EP3) Track Car Build
Discussion
Hi All,
In July 2015 a friend and I kicked off a shared track car project. This thread is to track the build and keep a record of the progress. I am also very interested to hear any advice you all have.
I will be updating the thread from time to time, but you'll recognise the first update is 8 months in!
The first track day is Mallory Park on 7/4/16. After this we will be looking at other track days, a trip to the Nurburgring and possibly the odd hillclimb (if the car survives past Mallory!).
My friend and I work for a UK based OEM. He works in Engineering and myself in Commercial. Not surprisingly then, he is more experienced in this area, however, it has been and continues to be an interesting learning opportunity for me. Where possible we are doing the work ourselves.
Our Current Cars
A quick note on our current cars.
I have a BMW E92 330i as pictured below:
My friend has a new generation Ford Focus ST and a Honda S2000 (with 26k on the clock!) as below:
Picking a Car
Our main criteria were:
- Fairly cheap and readily available
- Easy to work on
- Good availability of parts
- A good engine
Best case would have been a E36 or E46 M3, but the budget didn't stretch. Therefore, we decided to opt for a Honda Civic Type R EP3.
I had previously owned a facelift EP3 as below:
The car we ended up with was in considerably worse condition than the car I had previously owned. It is a pre facelift 2001 vehicle (build number circa 600) in Milano red (/a faded matte pink in some areas). The car has 107k on the clock and showed signs of a minor parking bump on the front, but overall appeared to be an honest car and came with a full FSH and a vast array of paperwork. Plus it had a new clutch in the last 10k.
After some negotiation with a private seller, we paid £2k for the car. It was slightly below market price, according to our research, and considerably less than advertised for. The gentleman we purchased it from was expecting a third child and the leading theory is that he wanted rid of it, to avoid ongoing abuse from his missus for having a 3 door which would not be able to transport the whole family.
It looked like this after a quick clean and polish:
In July 2015 a friend and I kicked off a shared track car project. This thread is to track the build and keep a record of the progress. I am also very interested to hear any advice you all have.
I will be updating the thread from time to time, but you'll recognise the first update is 8 months in!
The first track day is Mallory Park on 7/4/16. After this we will be looking at other track days, a trip to the Nurburgring and possibly the odd hillclimb (if the car survives past Mallory!).
My friend and I work for a UK based OEM. He works in Engineering and myself in Commercial. Not surprisingly then, he is more experienced in this area, however, it has been and continues to be an interesting learning opportunity for me. Where possible we are doing the work ourselves.
Our Current Cars
A quick note on our current cars.
I have a BMW E92 330i as pictured below:
My friend has a new generation Ford Focus ST and a Honda S2000 (with 26k on the clock!) as below:
Picking a Car
Our main criteria were:
- Fairly cheap and readily available
- Easy to work on
- Good availability of parts
- A good engine
Best case would have been a E36 or E46 M3, but the budget didn't stretch. Therefore, we decided to opt for a Honda Civic Type R EP3.
I had previously owned a facelift EP3 as below:
The car we ended up with was in considerably worse condition than the car I had previously owned. It is a pre facelift 2001 vehicle (build number circa 600) in Milano red (/a faded matte pink in some areas). The car has 107k on the clock and showed signs of a minor parking bump on the front, but overall appeared to be an honest car and came with a full FSH and a vast array of paperwork. Plus it had a new clutch in the last 10k.
After some negotiation with a private seller, we paid £2k for the car. It was slightly below market price, according to our research, and considerably less than advertised for. The gentleman we purchased it from was expecting a third child and the leading theory is that he wanted rid of it, to avoid ongoing abuse from his missus for having a 3 door which would not be able to transport the whole family.
It looked like this after a quick clean and polish:
Edited by P1H on Monday 28th March 23:06
Edited by P1H on Tuesday 29th March 17:26
Wheels, Stripping and Service
First we fitted Enkei 17" wheels, which I believe are standard on a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 5. The wheels are space grey, came with spacers and Nankang NS-2Rs, which has been used once (albeit around the Nurburgring). The tyres are 215mm, which is an additional 10mm over the standard wheel/tyre size and spacers were provided.
Once fitted, the car looked as below. Clearly some modification was required to the ride height!
Next we completed a service, consisting of:
- A new air filter
- A new oil filter
- A new radiator
- Engine oil replacement
- Brake fluid replacement and bleeding
- Other general maintenance
We stripped the majority of the interior, leaving only the IP and centre console (which has subsequently been removed):
Considering the age of the car, it looked fairly reasonable after a wax:
We also cut some holes in the front bumper to improve air flow:
First we fitted Enkei 17" wheels, which I believe are standard on a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 5. The wheels are space grey, came with spacers and Nankang NS-2Rs, which has been used once (albeit around the Nurburgring). The tyres are 215mm, which is an additional 10mm over the standard wheel/tyre size and spacers were provided.
Once fitted, the car looked as below. Clearly some modification was required to the ride height!
Next we completed a service, consisting of:
- A new air filter
- A new oil filter
- A new radiator
- Engine oil replacement
- Brake fluid replacement and bleeding
- Other general maintenance
We stripped the majority of the interior, leaving only the IP and centre console (which has subsequently been removed):
Considering the age of the car, it looked fairly reasonable after a wax:
We also cut some holes in the front bumper to improve air flow:
Edited by P1H on Monday 28th March 23:30
Seats, steering wheel and harness purchase
We replaced the standard seats with far more supportive Corbeau seats, capable of facilitating 6 point harnesses. We have two of these as we will both be in the vehicle.
We replaced the standard wheel with a deep dish OMP which was an improvement.
Despite the fact it was an impulse buy without any ergonomic consideration, it turned out to be a good one.
The harnesses are 2 X 6 point Luke Harnesses, kindly donated to the project by a generous colleague.
Excluding harnesses and the second seat, the interior looked as follows:
We replaced the standard seats with far more supportive Corbeau seats, capable of facilitating 6 point harnesses. We have two of these as we will both be in the vehicle.
We replaced the standard wheel with a deep dish OMP which was an improvement.
Despite the fact it was an impulse buy without any ergonomic consideration, it turned out to be a good one.
The harnesses are 2 X 6 point Luke Harnesses, kindly donated to the project by a generous colleague.
Excluding harnesses and the second seat, the interior looked as follows:
Coilovers, Engine Bay and Cage
We fitted BC Racing BR RA coilovers. Taking off the existing suspension was an arse, considering it has seemingly been untouched for 14 years! These were the coilovers:
Pre-ride height adjustment, these were a considerable improvement and seem to be extremely stiff. A few pictures:
We purchased a OMP 6 point bolt in cage. In retrospect, it would have been far more sensible to pay for a weld in cage. The 'bolt in' part implied relatively easy fitment, however it required a) fabrication of box mounts b) fabrication of plates and c) cutting and welding the door bars.
Once we realised this was beyond our capability we enlisted the help a of a Motorsport Services company who currently support the BTCC. They did a fantastic job of fitting the cage and the service was brilliant.
The cage pre fitment:
The car and cage loaded for transport:
Post cage fitment:
Tegiwa induction kit fitted:
Rocker cover painted:
We fitted BC Racing BR RA coilovers. Taking off the existing suspension was an arse, considering it has seemingly been untouched for 14 years! These were the coilovers:
Pre-ride height adjustment, these were a considerable improvement and seem to be extremely stiff. A few pictures:
We purchased a OMP 6 point bolt in cage. In retrospect, it would have been far more sensible to pay for a weld in cage. The 'bolt in' part implied relatively easy fitment, however it required a) fabrication of box mounts b) fabrication of plates and c) cutting and welding the door bars.
Once we realised this was beyond our capability we enlisted the help a of a Motorsport Services company who currently support the BTCC. They did a fantastic job of fitting the cage and the service was brilliant.
The cage pre fitment:
The car and cage loaded for transport:
Post cage fitment:
Tegiwa induction kit fitted:
Rocker cover painted:
Had one of these myself mate, looks really good for a '51 plate!
Only thing I would say is get a proper induction kit on there, that pod filter is only going to get hot and heatsoak is a real issue on these things. Tegiwa do an excellent carbon fibre air box which you will be able to get fairly cheaply these days I would have thought! That or an AEM V1 style one which relocates down into the area in behind the front bumper. with a couple holes drilled it gets brilliant airflow. The tegiwa has a wee intake scoop that screws onto your scuttle panel btw.
Here's my old one, KPro'd decatted and mapped to 232hp at the fly with a Tegiwa intake, lowered on BC coils and Evo 8 wheels. Good god I miss it!
Only thing I would say is get a proper induction kit on there, that pod filter is only going to get hot and heatsoak is a real issue on these things. Tegiwa do an excellent carbon fibre air box which you will be able to get fairly cheaply these days I would have thought! That or an AEM V1 style one which relocates down into the area in behind the front bumper. with a couple holes drilled it gets brilliant airflow. The tegiwa has a wee intake scoop that screws onto your scuttle panel btw.
Here's my old one, KPro'd decatted and mapped to 232hp at the fly with a Tegiwa intake, lowered on BC coils and Evo 8 wheels. Good god I miss it!
Tam_Mullen said:
Had one of these myself mate, looks really good for a '51 plate!
Only thing I would say is get a proper induction kit on there, that pod filter is only going to get hot and heatsoak is a real issue on these things. Tegiwa do an excellent carbon fibre air box which you will be able to get fairly cheaply these days I would have thought! That or an AEM V1 style one which relocates down into the area in behind the front bumper. with a couple holes drilled it gets brilliant airflow. The tegiwa has a wee intake scoop that screws onto your scuttle panel btw.
Here's my old one, KPro'd decatted and mapped to 232hp at the fly with a Tegiwa intake, lowered on BC coils and Evo 8 wheels. Good god I miss it!
Thanks Cameron, I'll look into that. Only thing I would say is get a proper induction kit on there, that pod filter is only going to get hot and heatsoak is a real issue on these things. Tegiwa do an excellent carbon fibre air box which you will be able to get fairly cheaply these days I would have thought! That or an AEM V1 style one which relocates down into the area in behind the front bumper. with a couple holes drilled it gets brilliant airflow. The tegiwa has a wee intake scoop that screws onto your scuttle panel btw.
Here's my old one, KPro'd decatted and mapped to 232hp at the fly with a Tegiwa intake, lowered on BC coils and Evo 8 wheels. Good god I miss it!
To try and solve that problem, we have a cold air feed which we will attach to the front bumper, but we will need to see if it is fit for purpose.
232hp is great without a cam uplift, nearly S2000 territory.
Looks like a good project, I will bookmark this one. 
EP3s should come with 215/45/17 standard BTW - not sure why most come with 205/45/17. Must be cheaper or perhaps some people think it looks better. That isn't a Tegiwa induction kit either by the way, hope you didn't pay a proper price for it! The Tegiwa ones are a copy of the (discontinued) GruppeM.
Are you doing anything with the gearbox? I have a plated 1.5way LSD in mine with a 5.1 final drive. It's a JDM 'box too so the gears are slightly "sportier". If you can get your hands on a K20a box and fit a 5.1 you'll be laughing. That or a 5.33, I run 16s so the gearing is more equivalent to that with your 17s on.
EP3s should come with 215/45/17 standard BTW - not sure why most come with 205/45/17. Must be cheaper or perhaps some people think it looks better. That isn't a Tegiwa induction kit either by the way, hope you didn't pay a proper price for it! The Tegiwa ones are a copy of the (discontinued) GruppeM.
Are you doing anything with the gearbox? I have a plated 1.5way LSD in mine with a 5.1 final drive. It's a JDM 'box too so the gears are slightly "sportier". If you can get your hands on a K20a box and fit a 5.1 you'll be laughing. That or a 5.33, I run 16s so the gearing is more equivalent to that with your 17s on.
The silicone tube from the throttle to the filter is a tegiwa part, but the actual filter could be anything.
My old one came with a similar setup and the roar in VTEC sounded awesome. However, the prevailing thought is that with it right next to the engine block, and sat up high it lowers peformance. As all it does it suck in hot air.
My old one came with a similar setup and the roar in VTEC sounded awesome. However, the prevailing thought is that with it right next to the engine block, and sat up high it lowers peformance. As all it does it suck in hot air.
29/3/16 Update
Today we started to fit the harness mounts. Long term we will consider a horizontal welded bar on the cage for looping the harnesses, but for the time being we are using eyelets. 2 of the eyelets per harness can be threaded straight into the threads of the previous rear seat belts, however, for the others we have drilled through the floor to bolt in.
The next task was ride height adjustment using the highly technical process of counting the number of threads visible on the coilover (probably how the factory BTCC teams do it). The ride height is as below, we will then adjust further depending on performance. Whilst there we replaced the track rod ends which were slightly damaged during coilover fitting.
The next steps are:
- CV boot replacement
- Full wheel alignment
- Completion of fitting harness mounts
- Attach roll cage padding
- Fit tow hooks
Today we started to fit the harness mounts. Long term we will consider a horizontal welded bar on the cage for looping the harnesses, but for the time being we are using eyelets. 2 of the eyelets per harness can be threaded straight into the threads of the previous rear seat belts, however, for the others we have drilled through the floor to bolt in.
The next task was ride height adjustment using the highly technical process of counting the number of threads visible on the coilover (probably how the factory BTCC teams do it). The ride height is as below, we will then adjust further depending on performance. Whilst there we replaced the track rod ends which were slightly damaged during coilover fitting.
The next steps are:
- CV boot replacement
- Full wheel alignment
- Completion of fitting harness mounts
- Attach roll cage padding
- Fit tow hooks
Callorfold, kiethton - Yes, it is a good laugh!
dannyDC2 - No plans for the gearbox yet. We have looked at a DC5 gearbox/LSD or a Quaife unit but this is fairly low on the current agenda. Your DC2 looks great.
DMN, dannyDC2 - Fair points on the Induction Kit. We are going to put in some fairly robust cold air feeds and make a call on whether it does the job or needs to be replaced.
dannyDC2 - No plans for the gearbox yet. We have looked at a DC5 gearbox/LSD or a Quaife unit but this is fairly low on the current agenda. Your DC2 looks great.
DMN, dannyDC2 - Fair points on the Induction Kit. We are going to put in some fairly robust cold air feeds and make a call on whether it does the job or needs to be replaced.
It's very surprising how well these engines respond to tuning, assuming its a track only car(?) also not sure on your budget but for my decat mani (DC Sports), fitting, kpro(could get a K100 quite a bit cheaper) and map I was just under £1k for ~30hp. Not many other N/A cars will give such a return! And really for that sort of outlay and the difference it made was amazing! Drove and pulled so much harder, would be excellent on track. you also get a real 9k red line instead of the fake over-enthusiastic standard rev counter figure 
HybridAero said:
Amazing project, top work! Bet it'll keep up with some much more powerful metal on track. How much all in has the build cost if you don't mind me asking?
Cheers. Not at all - we have spent under £5k to date, including car purchase, all parts and the first track day. If we had needed to buy the harnesses and were not able to do the work ourselves (cage fitment excluded), I expect this would be considerably more.
Tam_Mullen said:
It's very surprising how well these engines respond to tuning, assuming its a track only car(?) also not sure on your budget but for my decat mani (DC Sports), fitting, kpro(could get a K100 quite a bit cheaper) and map I was just under £1k for ~30hp. Not many other N/A cars will give such a return! And really for that sort of outlay and the difference it made was amazing! Drove and pulled so much harder, would be excellent on track. you also get a real 9k red line instead of the fake over-enthusiastic standard rev counter figure
For the first track day at least, we will be using a trailer. However, in the future we will be making it road legal. In any case, it would be great to have an extra 30bhp, I hadn't realised it was so accessible without more serious engine work. I think we need to get on the track and see where it is lacking before we decide where/if we are best spending more money.
P1H said:
For the first track day at least, we will be using a trailer. However, in the future we will be making it road legal.
In any case, it would be great to have an extra 30bhp, I hadn't realised it was so accessible without more serious engine work. I think we need to get on the track and see where it is lacking before we decide where/if we are best spending more money.
Quite right. And I would wager it will be on the brakes In any case, it would be great to have an extra 30bhp, I hadn't realised it was so accessible without more serious engine work. I think we need to get on the track and see where it is lacking before we decide where/if we are best spending more money.
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