2002 Civic Si

When Eric Moon of Fountain Valley, Calif., purchased his '00 Civic Si, he never expected to become just another statistic. But alas, one fateful day, as he sat studying diligently in his college classroom, a short distance away his hard work was being picked off by a car thief. It only took authorities nine hours to find the car, but in that short time the car had been completely stripped to a bare shell. After the initial shock and headache involved with the insurance company, he had two options: Throw in the towel and give up on Honda cars altogether, or heed that old saying about becoming stronger through hardship, and build another Honda that would surpass his first offering, and satisfy his urge to create something different.

Less than three months after his coupe was found in shambles, Moon had purchased another car to build upon. This time around, he opted for the newer version of his beloved Si, and invested in a used '02 Civic EP. To kick things off, he called Jackson Racing and placed an order for its complete supercharger race kit to improve power and torque numbers from the K20A3 powerplant. Once installed, the thirst for more power kept prodding Moon. He eventually gave in and picked up a Pulley Boys 3.8-inch pulley to push positive pressure up to the 10-pound mark. Calling the shots from the cabin is the well-known Hondata K-Pro management system. Filtering out the bad and bringing in the good is an ARC air filter attached to its aluminum Super Induction box, mounted right next to the Buddy Club battery and HKS ground kit. Gasses are routed to the rear of the chassis via 2.5-inch custom piping, terminating through an A'PEXi GT spec muffler.

The Civic EP is notorious for being somewhat portly in comparison to earlier Civic generations. Knowing this, Moon put his car on an extreme diet in an attempt to further improve the power-to-weight figures. After removing everything from the A/C to the complete rear interior, lightweight Bride Zeta III buckets armed with Simpson five-point harnesses were installed, and flanked by a Cusco six-point lightweight rollcage. The heavyweight factory steering wheel was swapped in favor of a featherweight Momo tuner unit, while an NRG quick release adds another layer of security. To keep a watchful eye on vitals, a Pivot digital water temperature gauge and Defi boost gauge are perched just in front of the CTR gauge cluster. Elements of the Civic Type-R are sprinkled throughout the cabin with red door panel inserts, red carpet and a CTR shift boot and shift knob. A touch of entertainment is provided by a Kenwood head unit and door speakers, and a 7-inch monitor, surrounded by a carbon-fiber trim plate.

Regardless of how light and powerful a car is, without proper suspension, it's just not complete. Moon was in search of only the best for his build, and with some serious research, came across a set of Ohlins PCV competition coilovers located in Malaysia. Wasting no time, the coilovers were purchased and shipped to the U.S. as soon as possible. To complement the newfound stiffness, a Progress 22mm sway and tie bar combo and DC5 LCA's assist the rear. Up front, Moon chose a DC5 sway bar that's attached with a custom linkage setup. To make camber adjustments, Ohlins was once again the brand of choice for its front camber plates, used in conjunction with a set of SPC camber bolts. A Spoon rear strut bar and J's Racing C-pillar bar add even more rigidity to the rear end. Rounding out the suspension changes is a set of DC5 Type-S tie rod ends and ITR metal bushings. Stop and go is improved by 17x8/8.5 Advan Sienna Generation II wheels, and Rotora four-pot calipers, rotors, pads and stainless steel lines up front, with OEM brakes in the rear.