Throttle Body:

G3 Integra TB:

Sunny Lam

Well, after waiting almost half a year, I finally got it installed.  The Integra TB bolts on perfectly to the D16Z6 intake manifold.  The TB is 4mm larger than the stock D16Z6 one too.  I had the intake manifold matched ported to the TB and had the intake runners dremeled a little as well.  The only problems were with the gaskets.  Just make sure you get the same TB gasket as the TB.  I thought they were same, but when I asked for a Integra TB gasket from Richmond Acura, it wasn't the same as the 95 Integra TB so they may have either given me one from a different year or whatever.  I had to re-use my old D16Z6 gasket, which wasn't really a good idea.  Oh well....As for performance gains....I haven't been to the drag strip since last summer, but from the seat of the pants experience, there does seem to be some improvement in the mid range rpm.  My high rpm range seemed to be reduced, but that could be as a result of me using a stock integra air box since some geek stole my K&N.  Anyways, hoping to hit 15.1's on my next time out to SIR :)  

Header:

Genie Thermal Coated Header:                            

Sunny Lam                          

The Genie header, IMO, is perhaps one of the best headers for the Civic. It gave me noticable power increase in the mid range to high range.  It is a good design, having larger collectors than most of the other brands. The finish is a dark grey.  My only complaint with the Genie header is that some of the coating may chip off.  This has happened to mine and my friend's Genie header. Though this was probably due to a scratch made during install, I wonder if any other people have similar problems.  I chose the Genie header over the DC header since DC supposedly just shifts the power band up into the high ranges, resulting in a loss of low to mid range power. The Genie makes the Civic more drivable with the added mid range power. The Genie header is usually cheaper than the DC header, that and the 3 year warrenty on the Genie header alone is worth checking it out!  

Update:

Recently, there has been some rust developing on the header, along with some chips in the thermal coating. I'll post some pictures when I get them developed.  I have talked Driver's Edge Autosport about it and they too feel that the rust is abnormal and will talk to Genie about repairing or replacing the header.  I have only had the header for about 7 months so I guess I'll have to see if Genie really honors their 3 year warrenty.

Update: Feb 18th

Yeap, my Genie header is just about 65% rusted, mostly on the bottom where the collectors are.  I dented the bottom of the header and that area seems to be the most seriously affected.  Oh well, Genie won't replace it unless the steel is penatrated.  It doesn't matter to me, since I want performance, not looks.  I hope it does get any worse. 

Knee Vuong

I will have to agree with Sunny, the Genie header is awesome. My '94 Civic LX is an automatic. I have consulted with other auto Civic owners who have tried DC's header and they complain of a loss in low to midrange power, which is important to a auto Civic.  I decided to try something new and with this header, I've noticed dramatic increase in the pulling power of my Civic.  I am able to pull up steep hills with ease and acceleration has improved.

Update: Jan 30th

Just like Sunny's header, mine is beginning to rust.  Right now, the rust seems to be only cosmetic.  I don't have the rust on the bottom like Sunny's, but that's probably because I did not dent my pipes.  I guess the Thermal coating on the header isn't as good as DC's Ceramic coating.  

Exhausts:

Genie Stainless Steel catback         

Sunny Lam

Another great product for the Civic.  The Genie cat back exhaust features full stainless steel construction.  Most companies such as Greddy, only have the muffler in stainless steel form, where usually only the muffler casing is stainless while the internals are not. Genie has both stainless internals and externals and is backed by a 10 year warrenty.  I've had the Genie for around 6 months and so far there has been no rust.  Most stainless systems rust at the hangers since they are not usually stainless.  The Genie has a black coating on the hangers which seems to protect it from rust. The exhaust comes with 2" mandrel bent piping, which offers a good comprimise b/w mid range and high end power.  The exhaust tone is a nice deep sound, which does not really drone at cruise.  I've listened to my friend's DC exhaust and the Genie is no where near as loud as the DC.  In fact, most people find my Genie to sound either too quiet or just right.  The muffler is polished and turbo design with a 3.5" tip.  IMO, the exhaust is very stock looking, which I like since this makes my car look like a sleeper, and does not give my car any unwanted attention.  As for performance, I did not really notice THAT much performance, but then again, you don't really get much from just an exhaust upgrade.  With my current setup, the Genie exhaust works perfectly, especially when I use the testpipe.   

Borla Turbo Muffler with Stromung 4.5" tip

Knee Vuong

In terms of performance gains, it didn't feel like it gave me any, since I did not change my stock piping.  This modification was more like for looks and sound.  The exhaust is relatively loud, inside the car and outside.  It drones a little when crusing.  The the construction is decent, full stainless steel and with a lazy S bend inside.  The tip is of SS construction as well.  I think next time, I would rather get a nice engineered cat-back system rather than just cheap out on a custom system.

Air Filters:

K&N Cone Filter:

Sunny Lam

Regarding the best air intake system, many feel the $200+ Icemans are the best.  While some sources have dyno tested these intakes and have found some good power increases, I find they are hardly worth the $200.  I myself use a 8" K&N attached to the stock intake hose.  Most of the polished pipes on the market like the RSA and the DAC are larger in dia. than the stock hose.  This reduces air velocity so you may lose some power.  I also use a 3" aluminum hose that leads from the cone filter to the front bumper fog light dam.  This serves as a cold air intake device, drawing cold air from outside to the K&N.  I have had no problems with the intake drawing in water during hard rain on highways so I don't think that is a problem. With the K&N, I have noticed some increase in the higher gears, such as 3rd and 4th. The cone really amplifies the VTEC growl once VTEC kicks in.  I did feel a decrease in low rpm power, probably since this setup does not have a velocity stack, which smooths out the air flow going into the air intake hose.   I have tried a ram air setup with the stock air box.  The acceleration in 1st and 2nd was AWESOME, but 3rd and 4th was not much different, probably because the stock filter could not take in as much air as the cone.  Perhaps in the future, I could build a box for my K&N so I can get a true ram air setup with the larger filter.

Springs:

OMP Lowering Springs:                  

Perhaps the best modification I have done to my car.  I highly recommend lowering your car with a good quality spring because the driving experience totally changes.  Lowering springs helps the car's braking, acceleration, cornering, reduces body roll and heck, makes the car look better IMO.  The OMP spring is a good quality spring and TUV approved.  While OMP is usually not seen in the import car performance market, OMP is famous among European performance enthusiasts and can be seen on various WRC cars, Ferrari F355 Challenge cars, etc. The front springs are progressive while the rear springs are linear.  They claimed to lower around 1.8" and which is about what I have in my car.  I only have rubbing problems with these springs and my 15" wheels when I have a full passenger load and take a 90 degree turn at 40+km/h. When there is only me in the car, the springs perform GREAT!  I would higher recommend these springs over the ones such as Neuspeed, H&R, and Eibach simple because the OMP springs are either better or equal in quality and performance, and if you're in Canada, especially Vancouver BC, you can get a great deal on them from Driver's Edge Autosport.

Stainless Steel Brake Lines:

Russel DOT Brake Lines:

Well, from what I was told before, SS brake lines give you a better brake feel and the pedal will not feel mushy under hard braking.  After installing them and letting my new pads wear in, I tried some hard stops and noticed that the pedal feel was greatly improved.  It felt more stiffer and did not required me to step harder or further down inorder to brake.  But since SS lines do not help braking, but rather just give better brake feel, I would recommend getting SS brake lines when you have money to burn!