1992 Honda Civic CX

When Charlie Rhyu made the trek from Palatine, Ill., to do some autocrossing and catch the JGTC (now Super GT) 2004 race event in Southern California, he had no intentions of crashing Best Motoring International's "American Touge Showdown" video production. He certainly never dreamed his '92 Civic CX would later compete in the Showdown and damn near win it.

Rhyu wasn't invited to the event, which put Japanese ber-drivers Keiichi Tsuchiya and Manabu Orido in cars built by America's leading J-car tuners. He couldn't resist attending as a spectator when he learned the BMI guys were filming the day after Super GT, but in the back of his mind he had the idea of competing.

A series of mishaps and chance connections made Rhyu's idea a reality as organizers allowed his hatch of simplified proportions to run alongside some of the best Japanese car tuners in the country. It was nothing short of a flat-out testament to the fruits of his labor.

Aspirations of traveling cross-country and winning races weren't on Rhyu's radar from the beginning, though. He simply wanted a B-series engine swap for his '91 Si.

"I was gonna build the crap out of that car," he says.When he learned that bolt-in engine mounts kits weren't yet available, and that cutting and welding were necessary, he sought out an EG chassis in which the B-series transplant was a true bolt-in affair. After much Internet research, Rhyu's Civic gave refuge to a B18C1 engine and Integra Type-R gearbox.

Not interested in cracking open the engine for more power, the GS-R powerplant later made room for an ITR powerplant. "That did me well ... for awhile," Rhyu says.

Shortly after the RSX's introduction, Rhyu caught wind of a K-series engine that found its way under the hood of an EG. He consulted Dan Phan of Rcrew, who knows a thing or two about the K-series, for guidance. Phan directed Rhyu to a stash of K's in the back room. At the time, little was known of the K-series.

"What the hell are these?" Rhyu asked the first time he saw the K20A. "There's no way- no way-this will work."

Rhyu left Phan's with a JDM K20A Type-R.

His timing was a mixed blessing. K-swap mount kits were still unavailable, keeping the engine's cost in the affordable zone. But unavailability still meant no mounts, so Rhyu waited seven months until Hasport released its kit, then quickly proceeded with the transplant. Rhyu says the K20 is the culmination of everything he felt lacking in the B-series: the square bore/stroke relationship, 2.0 liters of displacement, variable cam timing.

Anxious to debut the swap, Rhyu put out word that he'd be attending an upcoming drag race. The car did well at first, then was sidelined by a broken axle. After a new set of Hasport axles, the Civic posted a best e.t. of 12.28. But as much as Rhyu loves a good quarter-mile pass, he'd long dreamed of road racing the hatch. Having spent most of his money on underhood power, he slowly began to tweak suspension and braking to match the newfound horsepower.