# Honda Civic Type R - FN2 GT



## James_R (Jun 28, 2007)

It didn't take long for me to feel lonely without a car once I sold the CR-Z. 

The CR-Z was bought as a bit of a sporty car but with great economy in mind to get me to and from work everyday, racking up 17k miles a year in the process.
3.5 years later and there was no need for it any more.

Back in a company car again and I thought the money would be nice in the bank.
...it stayed there for 2 weeks and I've gone and bought this...







Got it home first night and in the cold light of (dry) day it looked like it needed quite some love.

Test drive and viewing was in heavy rain.
And the rain can hide a lot when looking at a car as we all know.


----------



## James_R (Jun 28, 2007)

First thing to do was sort the keys out.



New Honda red 'H' key back ordered and fitted


----------



## turbosnoop (Apr 14, 2015)

Nice choice, you know I've had mine over a year now, and I think the longer you have them, the more you enjoy them, and learn to get the best out of them.
Be good to know your thoughts on the fn2, good or bad.


----------



## James_R (Jun 28, 2007)

A big detailing day last week for the exterior

Pre wash with BH Autofoam
Shampoo AG Bodywork Shampoo
Rinse
Tardis
Bilt Hamber Korrosol
Rinse
Bilt Hamber Auto Clay medium
Shampoo again
Werkstatt Prime started cleansing duties, but quickly changed to DDJ Lime Prime as Werkstatt was dusting a lot.
Correction no massively required on this car, so Lime Prime left things looking really good.
Applied by DAS 6 Pro+ and PC7424
Wheels cleaned with VP Bilberry and a stiff cheap brush, then shampooed with wheel woolies.

LSP used was Polish Angel Master Sealant x 2 coats
Black trim polished using DDJ Lime Prime and sealed with PA MS.

Left it looking like this


----------



## James_R (Jun 28, 2007)

Interior was ready for a bit of love too when I picked it up


----------



## James_R (Jun 28, 2007)

The alcalntara bolsters end up bobbling after a while like this





Sorted them out with this (£10 in 2006)



And left them like this



Got the Megs APC bottle out, Megs triple detail brush, Autoglym MF Interior pad and cleaned the whole of the interior.
Door cards and all plastics cleaned with APC and then protected with 303 Aerospace

Had a few hours on it and left it like this














Temperature control on the passenger door is cool













Tucked it away in bed for the night, and the footwell lighting looks great with the new red Honda mats









Looking a bit more like one of my cars now


----------



## James_R (Jun 28, 2007)

Takes me back to days when I had this...


----------



## Spike85 (May 22, 2016)

Stunning car mate and some great work with the detailing


----------



## James_R (Jun 28, 2007)

Hehe I wondered how long it would take you to see it Spike :wave:


----------



## James_R (Jun 28, 2007)

turbosnoop said:


> Nice choice, you know I've had mine over a year now, and I think the longer you have them, the more you enjoy them, and learn to get the best out of them.
> Be good to know your thoughts on the fn2, good or bad.


Liking it at the moment turbosnoop :thumb:

Had a EP3 for 4.5 years and its a different beast completely
Don't get me wrong, it feels a lot bigger and heavier
But it sounds better, smoother, more powerful (from stock)
And it handles better in my opinion, more in line with what I want from a car now anyway


----------



## turbosnoop (Apr 14, 2015)

James_R said:


> Liking it at the moment turbosnoop :thumb:
> 
> Had a EP3 for 4.5 years and its a different beast completely
> Don't get me wrong, it feels a lot bigger and heavier
> ...


That's good then, the fn2 must be the most underrated car I've owned, yet actually the best IMO. I always wanted an fn2 over an ep3 (I love both though!) due to the sound they make from stock, the interior and the exterior styling. Cracking cars. I find rev matching on downshifts really helps to get the most out of the car, being VTEC, I guess you may have done that in your ep3. Its quite jerky going from one side of the rev range to nearer the other without a throttle blip between gears. 4th to 3rd at about 60mph, with a throttle blip in between always feels good


----------



## Tricky Red (Mar 3, 2007)

Looks a sweet ride that chief - can't wait for a spin in it.


----------



## Soul boy 68 (Sep 8, 2013)

My oh my James, that's a lovely lovely Type R, still like these cars very much and in your capable hands it's looking great already,what is that device that you used on the Alcantara?


----------



## James_R (Jun 28, 2007)

Soul boy 68 said:


> ...what is that device that you used on the Alcantara?


Its great - its a sweater de-fuzzer, or lint remover.
You can get them off amazon or ebay for about £5 now. :thumb:

Safer and more accurate than a razor blade on your interior


----------



## James_R (Jun 28, 2007)

Tricky Red said:


> Looks a sweet ride that chief - can't wait for a spin in it.


I'm sure you'll like it :thumb:
Bring some earplugs


----------



## Spike85 (May 22, 2016)

you guys are just teasing with these fn2s


----------



## Zetec-al (Feb 28, 2011)

Great looking car James, looks very tidy now you've cleaned her up


----------



## James_R (Jun 28, 2007)

Spike85 said:


> you guys are just teasing with these fn2s


Come join the club Spike :driver:


----------



## James_R (Jun 28, 2007)

turbosnoop said:


> I find rev matching on downshifts really helps to get the most out of the car, being VTEC, I guess you may have done that in your ep3. Its quite jerky going from one side of the rev range to nearer the other without a throttle blip between gears. 4th to 3rd at about 60mph, with a throttle blip in between always feels good


The trick is to get the revs right up to the redline, then change and the next gear is still in the high cam position or vtec zone as I'm sure you know.
8k rpm in the EP3 always used to drop me back to 6k rpm in the next gear up.
Hence remaining in the sweet spot.

I think its easier to keep the revs spinning in the zone in the FN2 as the VTEC crossover point is earlier than the EP3 at 5400rpm (as opposed to 5900rpm)

This is easy to see (and hear lol) when the VTEC indicator dot lights up on the dash (if enabled)

Very much liking the car at the moment :thumb:


----------



## Spike85 (May 22, 2016)

Give me a few weeks  see what Santa brings


----------



## James_R (Jun 28, 2007)

Spike85 said:


> Give me a few weeks  see what Santa brings


FN2 with snow tyres 

...and miss out on all this summer driving?


----------



## Spike85 (May 22, 2016)

Ok ok maybe an early early Xmas present. Mine sells next weekend so it's shopping time.

Got a few to view and one that's promising if the price is right


----------



## turbosnoop (Apr 14, 2015)

James_R said:


> The trick is to get the revs right up to the redline, then change and the next gear is still in the high cam position or vtec zone as I'm sure you know.
> 8k rpm in the EP3 always used to drop me back to 6k rpm in the next gear up.
> Hence remaining in the sweet spot.
> 
> ...


Your right there buddy. I normally wait for all the shift lights to illuminate then glance down to the rev meter , and try to catch it just before the limiter, then shift. Then watch the lights again....


----------



## James_R (Jun 28, 2007)

turbosnoop said:


> Your right there buddy. I normally wait for all the shift lights to illuminate then glance down to the rev meter , and try to catch it just before the limiter, then shift. Then watch the lights again....


Sounds like a plan :thumb:


----------



## James_R (Jun 28, 2007)

Bit of an update.

I had the usual Honda wiper arm issue.
Corrosion on the arm, bubbling up and looking an eyesore.



Did look a bit of a mess



And a tiny bit further down



Easy enough to remove, I stuck some masking tape under where the wiper blade was touching the screen so I could line up the splines correctly when putting it back together.
Pop the plastic nut cover off and remove the nut with a 17mm socket/spanner

All I used to clean up the corrosion and bubbling was P1000 wet and dry paper (used dry)



Disposable seat covers made for a nice protective sheet on the garage floor.
Another one wrapped around the rest of the wiper arm as I only wanted to paint the bottom bit where it bolts on.



Neat bit of masking so theres no horrible paint lines



First coat drying.



I used Hammerite Satin spray paint, and applied 3 coats at least 15 minutes apart, this gave a really nice finish, though I should have probably applied slightly more on the final coat.
Whilst I was waiting for it to dry I removed the HKS panel filter and replaced with a genuine Honda one.



I think the HKS had done its job, and was ready for a change

I'm not dead keen on the flange of the HKS



Whereas the Honda one has a rubber seal around it above and below



Hung the wiper arm on the washing line for a couple of hours


----------



## James_R (Jun 28, 2007)

Finished results back on the car









Quite happy with this tidy up for £8.


----------



## James_R (Jun 28, 2007)

APC'd and 303'd the rubber boot liner



And hoovered and APC'd the carpet mat that fits inside it.


----------



## turbosnoop (Apr 14, 2015)

Tidy job done on the wiper arm :thumb:


----------



## Spike85 (May 22, 2016)

spot on that mate


----------



## AdamC (Jan 31, 2013)

Improved the overall look so much already. Looks great.


----------



## ibiza55 (Feb 22, 2008)

I don't think the corrosion on your wiper arm is just down to honda motors, it affect many other makes too, nice work and nice finish with your paint spraying, lovely jubbly matey.


----------



## Tricky Red (Mar 3, 2007)

You've got too much time on your hands dude. 

NOW COME AND DO MINE!

:driver:


----------



## James_R (Jun 28, 2007)

Tricky Red said:


> You've got too much time on your hands dude.
> 
> NOW COME AND DO MINE!
> 
> :driver:


Lol yeah I've got loads of time on my hands. 
Only for the car though.

Bring yours over one day. 
Should have a day out in convoy mate


----------



## Tricky Red (Mar 3, 2007)

James_R said:


> Lol yeah I've got loads of time on my hands.
> Only for the car though.
> 
> Bring yours over one day.
> Should have a day out in convoy mate


I know you're busy chief. Would be good to do a little country blast


----------



## James_R (Jun 28, 2007)

Been out past Mansfield today and via the A38 to Oakerthorpe and headed off past Whatstandwell, over to Cromford and then all the way out to a little village called Crowdecote and had lunch at The Pack Horse pub.

Very very friendly, last time we went in the yellow Caterham and got talking to the owner who has a TVR T350c

Brilliant home cooked food, nice atmosphere, nice people, warmly recommended

http://www.thepack-horseinn.co.uk

Amazing roads around there too.
Headed out to Flash and surrounding area and then came back via Monyash, Bakewell and Chesterfield way.

Not bad I bought the Type R as a knocking about car for a bit of enjoyment and I've used £40 of petrol in the last 3 days lol


----------



## pt1 (Feb 8, 2014)

Looks a really nice clean car pal


----------



## dillinja999 (Aug 26, 2013)

VTEC for me is 3800-8600


----------



## James_R (Jun 28, 2007)

dillinja999 said:


> VTEC for me is 3800-8600


Show off


----------

