How to make an automatic faster.

[dcannon729]

So! I have an automatic 1996 Civic EX coupe, and I'm wanting to make some modification's to it. I have a budget, but that ranges to $1,000. I know that isn't a lot, but of course it can be stretched!

Also, I'm looking around and can't find an exact telling of whether or not this chip http://www.performancechipsdirect.com/Honda/Civic-2Dr/ is a correct fit for my car.
I appreciate all interest and information.
Any ideas for making mods and getting it faster? It's an automatic, sadly.

 

[lethal6]

You don't really have a choice. The autos are slow. They always will be. For the most part the transmissions can't handle any real power. Also you have a d-series engine, that was made to be slow on purpose and was built for gas mileage. The ONLY worthwhile ways to make it faster are swap to a bigger motor, boost it, add nitrous, or put a LOT of money into building the internals. None of which your current transmission will be able to handle in the long run so you would need to swap it to a manual.

Also, "chips" for these cars are a marketing gimmic and don't do s**t. Nothing worth a damn anyway. They are a total waste of money.

My advise....sell the car and get something faster if that is what you are looking for. If you want a 6th gen still, look for an EM1 that at least has a good platform to begin with.

Either that or save up your lunch money and do a swap to a bigger motor. K-swaps seem to be all the rage now and can build a lot of power very easily. They are getting popular enough that there is a lot of information out on how to do it and what you need. Hell, places like hmotorsonline.com might have everything you need short of maybe a mount kit to get it all in.

You have a lot of research ahead of you. What you are asking has been asked thousands of times on many forums throughout the web. Google is your best friend with something like this. It's all been documented time and time again.

 

[dcannon729]

Quick question. You say "swap" to a manual. Can I do that while still using the same car? Or do you mean get a new car.

 

[lethal6]

By the way. That "chip" you linked....all it does is plug in between the IAT and the ECU to fool the ECU into thinking that the air coming in is really cold all the time so it dumps more fuel. It tells the ECU to advance the timing and dumps more fuel to compensate for the extra spark, but most of these chips are usually programmed for full throttle to "make the most of the extra horsepower". Or so they claim.

Like I said, they are a gimmick into tricking newbs to drop money on something that works just barely enough that they can get away with saying they work, but will not ever admit to it not working on cars outside of the ones they post dyno records on (which are usually cars that are already fast/powerful in their stock form). Fine print says *results may vary*. That's the understatement of the century.

Quick question. You say "swap" to a manual. Can I do that while still using the same car? Or do you mean get a new car.

I mean swapping out your automatic transmission for a manual one, it's very common. There are at least 3 current members I can think of that have done it to a 6th gen. [MENTION=37536]XpL0d3r[/MENTION] one of our Moderators is one of them. You would need the ECU and the transmission from a manual d-series. Do a google search for 6th gen auto to manual swap. I am positive there are lots of information and write ups on them.

 

[HeX]

An automatic Civic just isnt worth trying to modify for any actual performance gains. You'd be better off selling your current Civic and getting a manual one, then put some money into that one.

 

[XpL0d3r]

I mean swapping out your automatic transmission for a manual one, it's very common. There are at least 3 current members I can think of that have done it to a 6th gen. [MENTION=37536]XpL0d3r[/MENTION] one of our Moderators is one of them. You would need the ECU and the transmission from a manual d-series. Do a google search for 6th gen auto to manual swap. I am positive there are lots of information and write ups on them.

Yeah, here's a parts list, written up by [MENTION=31215]Szady[/MENTION], who helped me with my auto to manual swap.

Price wise, if you have a $1000 budget, it's doable. Cost me about $800 piecing everything together. Took the two of us a full weekend to do. Worst part is was the rustiness we had to deal with.

Honestly though, I would recommend purchasing an already manual car, unless you do a lot of research first. The most complicated part for us was the pedals, the shifter (needed to dremel out some rusty stuff), and the wiring.

 

[The Prestige]

better of just having a decent sound system and at least sound cool...no point in modding these for speed

 

[joe7987]

Just so it's noted, there are companies out there that will build up the automatic transmission so that it can support the power, but it's just not worth it with your budget.

Site for reference - http://www.levelten.com/

That said - for a grand, even with a manual transmission, there's not a whole lot you could do. If you plan on spending more money down the road, start thinking about either trading your car for a manual, or putting in a manual transmission. If $1000 is all you want to spend and that's that, do the basics. Intake, header, exhaust. OR consider suspension options, which will make your car much more fun to drive.