Is buying a Civic worth the risk?

[Sijray21]

Also rob consider that when you insure a pos civic hatchback commuter car thats exactly the coverage you're going to get. You wont be covered for the $10k it cost you to buy it with the b18c5 and reeeumz and whatnot. And good luck getting a bankloan for twice what the book says its worth too.

All things to consider.....

also good points :thumbup:

i was thinking the same thing

[Sijray21]

Keep in mind that no car alarm / ignition kill / fuel cutoff can stop thieves from loading the car onto the back of a flatbed truck. If I owned a modded Civic I would invest in all three of the above though, as well as locking wheel lugs, razor blades for certain places thieves like to reach and a gun or two. IMHO that is....

i think the kill switch is absolutely necessary if you own a (mildly to heavily) modded civic

they're easy to steal and i can show you the main vulnerabilities that you can watch out for and help prevent.

[Feersty]

Would you be tracking the car?

Yes I would definitely like to track the car. I did touring laps at Summit and VIR, and I would like the full on experience.

Also rob consider that when you insure a pos civic hatchback commuter car thats exactly the coverage you're going to get. You wont be covered for the $10k it cost you to buy it with the b18c5 and reeeumz and whatnot. And good luck getting a bankloan for twice what the book says its worth too.

Very true, I hope to put up as much money upfront as possible. My parents are also more than willing to help me if I can can get rid of the bike. I don't know if I am ready for that yet.

Sorry for not being specific. It would definitely be a swapped hatch, either a B18C1 or B18C5.

don't.

Why not?

also keep in mind that, although the ITRRRRRRR motor is not super duper ultra mad V-attak fast, it still has a lot of power that you may not be ready for. Perhaps settle for a stocker for a while would be a better choice. Personally, if I had the nerve to actually buy a civic, I'd get one and run the stock motor into the ground before I did a swap.

Eh, I think I am ready. I have driven a whole rack of cars. From the WRX, 330Ci, SC430, 330i, IS300, Mustang GT. I think I would be very capable of handling the 200 bhp. I am going to be 23 in July and I only have one speeding ticket.

Hell you could buy mine when it goes up for sale :wink:

Cuantos?

[JohnC]

also keep in mind that, although the ITRRRRRRR motor is not super duper ultra mad V-attak fast, it still has a lot of power that you may not be ready for. Perhaps settle for a stocker for a while would be a better choice. Personally, if I had the nerve to actually buy a civic, I'd get one and run the stock motor into the ground before I did a swap.

Eh, I think I am ready. I have driven a whole rack of cars. From the WRX, 330Ci, SC430, 330i, IS300, Mustang GT. I think I would be very capable of handling the 200 bhp. I am going to be 23 in July and I only have one speeding ticket.

Ah. Well, with only one speeding ticket, you're well prepared to handle the full array of high performance vehicles available to you :roll: Saying stuff like that is ignorant Rob. That being said, many of us drive higher-powered cars on the street, without incident. I think you'd be fine driving a swapped hatch or whatever - and I would encourage you to push its limits on a track or at an autox. My two cents.

[ScottyB]

Sorry for not being specific. It would definitely be a swapped hatch, either a B18C1 or B18C5.

don't.

why not? because it's not worth the money IMO. those engines are expensive as hell, and even though you've driven alot of cars, you haven't driven them at near their potential. like John said...it will be a quick car. bike or not, it's a huge speed difference from your buick. just tryin to say be careful i guess.

it would probably be wiser to just buy a stock hatch, or maybe one with some suspension. save the engine for later, or boost the stock one. get used to the car in stock form first, then do your major modifications later.

i don't want to discourage you man. do what you want, and have fun with it. but just keep in mind that a swapped hatch will def. be a target for theives, and its quite a jump up from your buick.

[Mike]

i think there is no need for a vtec swapped hatch as a first car... they can be scary fast on track. i'd suggest getting one with a soch vtec d-series motor or an ls swap. my two cents

[ViPER1313]

I went from a car that was slow as hell to a car with much more power - there is a learning curve to any car. I don't think it's a valid argument to say he shouldn't buy a car he wants because it "has too much power." Rob's a big boy - I'm sure he can handle it. Might be scared the first time he floors it, but he can handle it (you should have seen the face of the salesperson when I was test driving the first SHO I went to look at - as it hit the secondaries he yelled "HOLY SHIT" with his thick Indian accent :twisted: )

[Mike]

on the street, yes i'm sure he can handle it, but a 190hp hatch on the track as a beginner is f'ing scary... much more than an sho would be. ask ryan, he's had students with them.

[ViPER1313]

on the street, yes i'm sure he can handle it, but a 190hp hatch on the track as a beginner is f'ing scary... much more than an sho would be. ask ryan, he's had students with them.

I think it's a better idea to buy a faster car, start off taking it slow on track and speeding up as you gain more experience / confidence then to buy a slow car so you can take it balls to the wall. The latter just leaves you wanting a faster car a few months later.

Have power = don't have to use it all.
No power = spend more money to get more.

[Evan]

Ive had students with much more powerful cars first time on track and were great.

Ive had first timers with much less powerful cars who were menaces to everything within a 5 mile radius.

Its the driver, not the car.

With more power I was plenty safe in my WRX as a beginner. I also r0lled the shit out of everything on the track

[Dragon]

I think it's a better idea to buy a faster car, start off taking it slow on track and speeding up as you gain more experience / confidence then to buy a slow car so you can take it balls to the wall. The latter just leaves you wanting a faster car a few months later.

Have power = don't have to use it all.
No power = spend more money to get more.

As Evan says it's the driver, not the car that's the deciding factor. The problem is that a lot of drivers just can't get that whole "don't need to use all the power" thing through their thick skull. They know they have the power and want to use it instead of taking their time to build up the skill to properly control and use that power. Who knows, Rob may be a natural when he gets on the track, he might find his rhythm right off the start and no matter how much power or how little power he has, drive the car right to it's limits.

I think one of the students in group 2 this past weekend at RA put it best. He admitted that he'd been driving past his own abilities and using as much power as possible from his car. He dialed it back down a bit, and found that he was much faster and smoother. It took him the whole weekend though to get himself under control.

Unk will tell you time and time again, start slow, get fast, there's a bunch of people that come here that just have too much car for their skill, and that added to their inability to keep themselves under control makes for a really bad combo.

I'm not saying Rob shouldn't get what he wants, just pointing out what I've observed at the track.

[Andy]

The problem is that a lot of drivers just can't get that whole "don't need to use all the power" thing through their thick skull.

<----------------

Agreed. Very hard to not dog the car. Requires maturity and some experience. I bought the prelude with a blown engine, and modded the hell out of it before I ever drove it. It's no speed demon but I really notice when I dog my friend's 924 or stock civic si, I feel a greater degree of control and comfort from having less power. It's taught me to not drive so hard because frankly, I can't control it.

Feersty, sell that god damn Century for a bucket of chicken, buy anything else, and put these hypotheticals to bed.

[G.Irish]

I wouldn't classify a swapped hatch in my list of 'Dangerous Cars for Noobs'. That list would be stuff like:

*3rd Gen RX-7 (of which I've seen two crash right in front of me)
*S2000
*Viper

There are plenty of cars that are just as fast or faster but these tend to be cars that punish mistakes the hardest.

The right attitude of course is critical to whether or not you will wad your shit up. I think one of the biggest things that gets people into trouble besides the 'Hero' complex (see also 'King Shit', 'Too Much B00st', 'My-Car-Makes-My-Penis-Bigger') is biting off big chunks of speed instead of taking baby steps. Evan or RJ could elaborate on this one.

0G

[Sijray21]

i think there is no need for a vtec swapped hatch as a first car... they can be scary fast on track. i'd suggest getting one with a soch vtec d-series motor or an ls swap. my two cents

vtec's not that scary on the track :wink: , puss

i may not have a hatch and i may not have the power and torque of a b18c1/c5, but i think that's sufficient power to start off with. I will agree that the driver will hold the scariness rating of being on track. I say start off with a nicely powered car and learn to drive it slower than having a slow ass car and driving it fast. If anything track with what you have first (if it's track-able) and work from there. If you're looking for a new car then why not satisfy more power with it? A honda hatch with a stock or near-stock 4-banger power plant won't be too much for the track IMO.

Hell you could buy mine when it goes up for sale

Cuantos?

It'll be on the market as soon as i fix the current oil loss problem and figure out my future plans with the car situation.

[.RJ]

Evan or RJ could elaborate on this one.

the T3 tire wall at summit point agrees

[Dave]

well, i almost cut my power in half when I decided to got with the 240. I like it because it forces me to wring everything I can out of the car. Hence, I have to be a better driver, or else I am slow. This is why I think a semi-stock (read: brake and suspension mods, exhaust, and intake) hatch would be better suited.
In the end, it doesn't matter. Rob, get whatever you want to roll out in, don't worry about the thieves, if they want it, they'll take it. No matter what car you pick, as long as you keep your head out of your ass on track, and keep it well prepped, you shouldn't have to worry about collecting bits out of a tire wall.

[Evan]

is biting off big chunks of speed instead of taking baby steps. Evan or RJ could elaborate on this one.

That makes no sense, son

[.RJ]

It makes sense for me. My ego was writing checks my driving couldnt cash </topgun>

Not sure i am any better now I go off a lot more, just dont seem to hit anything.

[G.Irish]

is biting off big chunks of speed instead of taking baby steps. Evan or RJ could elaborate on this one.

That makes no sense, son

Example: Student has been braking at the 4 marker all weekend and all of a sudden they decide to brake 50 feet later.

[Feersty]

Thanks for the comments guys. Running my new car into a tirewall is the last thing on my mind at this point. I definitely see where y'all are coming from. Matt I especially liked your comment, it definitely changed how I am looking at the transition.