JDM Wong's '90 Civic SI

It was bound to happen. After giving up my last Honda years ago, it was time to go back. Back to a fix-it attracting, CV boot-tearing, too bouncy and too loud for a 30-year-old, front-wheel drive Civic hatchback. But why a car this old? Why not go with an EG or EK? Well, I've done an EG already and building an EK doesn't seem challenging enough. The EF is already presenting its headaches in the form of finding new OEM replacement parts or tracking down aftermarket parts if they're still in production! This is really going to be a special project in that I'm going to pour all of my effort into restoring and doing it the way I always wished that I could have when I was in high school. No big horsepower K-Series, body kit or matching Bride upholstery; just clean, slammed and fun to drive-at least, that's how I remember my old Civic being. We're going to have lots of build-up features relating to this build and you can follow along more in-depth in our sister title, Project Car, including all the suspension, brakes and the big engine swap it's going to receive soon, so make sure to find a copy at your local newsstand. For now, soak in these pictures of the car in stock form because it's not going to look that way for long.

Step-By-Step
Those of you who want to see every aspect of the build behind our Project EF9 can look to Project Car magazine, where they'll show you step-by-step (and we do mean every step) how to install all the basic upgrades we chose. Essentially, they'll show you the easy how-tos and we'll get into the more hardcore stuff. The current issue highlights TEIN coilovers, Suspension Techniques sway bars and how to swap your U.S. front end for the JDM version. Here's what's coming up in the next couple of months in Super Street and Project Car:

* Paint change with complete JDM exterior
* B16A engine swap
* Old school wheel restoration

Don't forget, when this car's finished, we'll be going head-to-head against Project Car's turbocharged EF CRX to see if the money we spent on a bigger engine was better than the money they saved by taking on the stock motor and adding more power to it.