We’ve teamed up a bunch of major players in the automotive aftermarket for this cutting-edge Street Touring contender. BFGoodrich and Honda have lent us their SEMA show car for the 2002 Solo II season. We’ve enlisted the help of Stillen, Comptech, Koni, Mackin Industries and Eibach to create the ultimate in street-tired autocross cars.
The new Civic Si in stock form is a fun car (see our June 2002 issue), but it lacks the bite needed for serious autocross fun. Luckily, everything that this car needs is legal in the SCCA’s Street Touring class. More grip, less body roll and a smidge more power from the 2.0-liter i-VTEC motor is just what the doctor ordered
Starting with BFGoodrich g-Force T/A KD tires, the car rides on super light and strong Volk TE-37 wheels. From there, we added a set of Koni adjustable shocks, Comptech springs (spec’d for the normal Civic and will be revised by Comptech for the new Si) and a new Comptech adjustable rear anti-roll bar. Using ST-legal camber adjusters, we dialed in 2.5 degrees of negative camber in the front and 1.5 degrees in the rear to start. Toe was set at zero front and rear. We will need to revise the suspension somewhat in the months to come as the current set-up doesn’t have much suspension travel and the car winds up cornering on its bumpstops.
On the horsepower side of things, we spent some time on Comptech’s dynamometer developing the car’s engine. A prototype cat-back exhaust from Comptech boosted the Civic from 143 hp at the wheels to 147, while a CARB-legal header upped the ante to 154. Further development will include a cold-air intake system.
The car’s debut was at the San Diego National Tour on March 16-17, 2002. Since the new Civic was not yet available in the dealers, we ran as exhibition only. Our times, however, were in the trophies in this tough 15-car class. With some additional chassis development, the car will be an excellent showcase for what can be done with current street tire technology.
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