HONDA CIVIC1.7
Drive It All Out The seventh generation Civic was redesigned back in 2001, retaining the exterior dimension, but with increased in interior space, making it one of the more spacious models in its segment. When it first came out, Civic enthusiasts was dumbfounded, trying to figure out what was in the minds of the designers at Honda, changing the appearance of this boy-racer into one that appears more like a mundane looking mid-sized family saloon. Guess they were trying to capture a bigger share of the market by targeting customers from the executive segment. Well, we know for a fact that this marketing strategy did not work as how many of these seventh generation Civics’ do you see plying on our roads? Believe me, the numbers are small.
The LS1 Civic which was equipped with a 1.7-liter engine might be small in numbers (sales wise) and the design might not be everyone cup of tea, but to Yong, the owner of this featured Civic, it was love at first sight when he laid his eyes on one. His beloved ride had been with him since 2001 and at that time it was to him just a means of transport, getting him from point A to B, in comfort.
That was then and this is now, and Yong felt that the D17A2 VTEC engine that produces around 127hp@6300rpm in stock form just wasn’t sufficient to satisfy his hunger for speed. As such, Yong started to mod his car according to his needs.
HONDA CIVIC TYPE-R FD2R
Motec Brain Civic
The Civics can be considered as the platform of choice when it comes to car modifications. Be it the ‘normal’ roadworthy Civics to the Type R performance parts are readily available, competitively priced and affordable as there are a few tuning houses carrying these parts. What we are looking at here is the Type R, whereby before the FD2R came rolling out of the showrooms, the most sought after model in the Civic lineage would be the EK Type-R and there is no doubt it was ‘the’ model to own when talking about high performance, more economical Japanese models.
But with the launch of the FD2R, Honda has pushed the boundaries further in terms of ‘out-of the-box’ performance and there is no doubt in my mind that at present it is also the best in terms of looks by far. With claimed engine performance figures of 225hp@8,400 rpm and 215 Nm of torque peaking at 6,100rpm, the FD2R exceeds its predecessor performance, the EP3 Type-R, which claimed figure is at 212hp@8000 rpm and 202 Nm@7000 rpm. The impressive figures of the FD2R are achieved by the introduction of a larger intake manifold and higher compression ratio. Furthermore, the ‘roar’ whenever the VTEC is engage has been ‘toned up’, giving a better feel towards spirited driving.
HONDA CIVIC TYPE-R FD2R
Motec Brain Civic
The Civics can be considered as the platform of choice when it comes to car modifications. Be it the ‘normal’ roadworthy Civics to the Type R performance parts are readily available, competitively priced and affordable as there are a few tuning houses carrying these parts. What we are looking at here is the Type R, whereby before the FD2R came rolling out of the showrooms, the most sought after model in the Civic lineage would be the EK Type-R and there is no doubt it was ‘the’ model to own when talking about high performance, more economical Japanese models.
But with the launch of the FD2R, Honda has pushed the boundaries further in terms of ‘out-of the-box’ performance and there is no doubt in my mind that at present it is also the best in terms of looks by far. With claimed engine performance figures of 225hp@8,400 rpm and 215 Nm of torque peaking at 6,100rpm, the FD2R exceeds its predecessor performance, the EP3 Type-R, which claimed figure is at 212hp@8000 rpm and 202 Nm@7000 rpm. The impressive figures of the FD2R are achieved by the introduction of a larger intake manifold and higher compression ratio. Furthermore, the ‘roar’ whenever the VTEC is engage has been ‘toned up’, giving a better feel towards spirited driving.
Subaru Impreza Version 7
Monster Scooby
Ever since the second generation Scooby was launch back in 2001, it received mixed response from the public. I am one of the fortunate few who had the chance to attend the Tokyo Auto Salon 2001 and saw the car up close and personal, before most of my friends back home had the chance to see it, let alone touch it.
Gone was the snarling aggressive front end of its predecessor as it was replaced by, well, the infamous “bug eye” head lamps. Maybe the designers have too much sake while designing the car, almost jeopardizing the macho image associated with the car. Thank God, the engineers still maintains the WRC proven EJ-20 flat four boxer engine, making this car still a joy to drive.
Executive Street Tuning
After many hours spend browsing through magazines and web site that was related to the sale of used vehicles, Alwi finally stumbled upon a rare Honda Accord CF4, his dream car at that time. After the purchase of this gem of a car, his dream car turn to a nightmare as he soon found that (only after driving it for less than a week!) the engine, gearbox, and suspension was in dire need of repair. The engine struggles to past the 5000 rpm mark and only manages to develop 120hp, which is pathetic by F20B standards! There was also slippage of gear in the 4th and the ride characteristics was like what one would feel when sailing in a small boat in rough sea.
For consolation he had convince himself with the reasoning that most if not all used vehicles once purchased will be in need of repair, as it is USED, right? With this thought firmly implanted in his mind he had decided to spend some serious RM’s to transform his ride to one that would eventually even outperform the power output and handling characteristics of the standard CF4.
Caldina Test Drive
I hate public transportation.
I hate it even more when I have to commute to Sentul every day. Why? It was a painful four-hour journey commuting from Bangi to Sentul and back everyday. I will now stress on the word “PAINFUL FOUR HOUR”. It was of no surprise later that I finally decided I would be better off polluting our country with tons of carbon dioxide than suffer from the very poor ‘mobile death camps’ we call The Malaysian Public Transportation System, much to the chagrin of many environmentalists alike.
With a budget of about RM140K to spend on, The Toyota Caldina GTFour was not my first choice. My first choice was instead the Mark V Volkswagen Golf GTi which was 50K a tad too expensive, amounting to about RM 190k even when they had a "clearance sale" on their 2007 unit. My second choice was a recond unit of the 5 door 320i M-Sport priced at RM 150K but the used car salesman was not willing to give me a test-drive; which would later prove to be his downfall and totally unworthy of my money
Although initially it wasn't the first choice the Toyota Caldina came in as a winner in a number ways so far. It is a massive car and you have tons of cargo space at the back perfect for hauling Ayden's eddie bauer stroller and for the wifey to carry cartons of minuman sukan simultaneosly. The 3S-GTE powerplant also doesnt disappoint plus that unique silhouette and shape you wont get with any other car in the market right now.
This entry here will be the mark terato.com's long term test drive of the Toyota Caldina GTFour.
Caldina Video
Drift Techniques
There are many different ways to drift a car, including: (NOTE: ABS and TCS should be turned off before attempting to drift. These systems are not made to take into account a driver wanting the car to slide).
Braking drift - This drift is performed by trail braking into a corner so that the car can "set" or shift weight to cause the rear wheels to lose traction, then controlling the drift with proper steering and gas inputs. Having brake bias can be beneficial to the drift depending on the driving style. Usually having bias on rear brakes helps to brake drift.
Power Over Drift- This drift performed when entering a corner at full throttle to produce heavy oversteer through the turn. It is the most typical drifting technique for AWD cars (predominantly RWD). Keiichi Tsuchiya has been regarded as saying he used this technique when he was too scared to drift at certain corners when he was younger. However the chance of this technique leading to a burn-out instead of a drift is possible if executed at a bad angle.
Inertia (Feint) Drift - This is done by rocking the car towards the outside of a turn and then using the inertia of the car to swing it back to the desired drifting line. By going away from the corner, and turning back in hard, you are coming from a much sharper angle. Somtimes the brake will be applied while rocking the car towards the outside to give a better weight transfer; hence creating an even sharper turn. It has been said by many pro-drifters that this is one of the hardest techniques to master as has a high spin-out factor.
Lift Off - At very high speeds, by letting your foot off of the accelerator while cornering, certain cars with very neutral handling, such as the MX-5 or S14, will begin to slide, simply from the drop in torque and engine braking. The drift is controlled afterwards by steering inputs from the driver and light pedal work.
Handbrake/ebrake Drift - This technique is pretty straightforward; pull the handbrake to induce rear traction loss and balance drift through steering and throttle play. Some people debate the fact that if using the handbrake creates an actual drift, or just a power slide, but ultimately, using the e-brake is no different than any other technique for starting drifts. This is generally the main technique to perform a controlled drift in a FWD vehicle. This is one the first techniques beginners will use as their cars are not powerful enough to lose traction using other techniques. Also this technique is used heavily in drift competitions to drift big corners.
Dirt Drop Drift - This is done by dropping the rear tires off the road into the dirt to maintain or gain drift angle without losing power or speed and to set up for the next turn. Only permissible on roads without barriers and lined with dirt or other materials which to lose traction. This is commonly done in WRC rallying.
Clutch Kick - This is done by "kicking" the clutch (pushing in, then out, usually more than one time in a drift for adjustment in a very fast manner) to send a shock through the powertrain, upsetting the car's balance. It causes the rear wheels to slip and enables the driver to induce oversteer.
Choku Dori - This is mainly used after long straightaways to slow the car down and to perform a stunning, high-angled, long drift. The car is thrown into a feint and is swung back the other way at very high speeds, while the driver uses the ebrake to maintain the car's line and to extend the drift.
Manji - This is done on straightaways, when the driver swings the car from side to side across the track. It is mainly used in choreographed drifting such as in events like Big X. Many techniques can be used to initiate this, such as clutch kick and feint.
Changing Side Swing - This technique is used extensively in the Japanese D1 competition and is very similar to inertia (Feint) drift. It is often done on the first entry drift corner, which is often a long double apex turn just before a very fast straight-way. If the straight-way before that double apex is of a downhill orientation, the driver keeps driving on side of the track that is closetest to the corner. Then with correct timing in mind, the driver abruptly changes the car onto the other side. This movement has the car momentum to be altered causing the rear wheels to lose traction. The car is in a drift motion right now. Then the drift is carried over into the corner and through it.
Dynamic Drift - This technique is similar to the Choku Dori. It employs all forms of the above techniques - and not restricted to only one - in combinations to accomplish the desired drift movement.
