With the funding – or lack thereof – of someone in their early twenties, Yonas bypassed the financial dilemma by going down the do-it-yourself route. Although he didn’t have a mechanical background, Yonas and his circle of friends did things the hard way, spending weekends in the garage and undertaking the modifications themselves. There were plenty of trial and error moments that’s for sure, but saving on labour was the only option he had.
Probably one of the biggest obstacles Yonas faced during his DIY mission was how to paint the car. Having shopped around for many a quote he discovered that all were outside of his budget. Determined to rid the Civic of its factory blue hue, Yonas made the incredulous decision that he’d simply do the panel prep and spray work himself. No one will dispute that respraying a car is right up there on the difficulty scale, and I admit that at the time I even tried talking Yonas out of the idea. It sounded totally insane, compounded by the fact that Yonas lived in an apartment complex, meaning he only had a car space in the communal car park.
Undeterred by naysayers such as myself, Yonas converted his car space into a makeshift spray booth. Tarpaulins and drop sheets were taped together to form temporary walls, gaffer taped was used to provide a perfect seal and pedestal fans employed to help ventilation. It was certainly a sight to be seen. Obviously his neighbours weren’t empathetic to his cause, and after only a couple of days he was besieged with irate door-knocking and the complaints started flooding his letter box. Despite the EPA threats, Yonas managed to finish the job with his Civic emerging in his desired flat grey.
Although the paint colour is totally unique, I think it would be fair to say that Yonas’ creation will never fall under the category of being a showstopper. Only the hardest of hardcore Honda fans would pick up on this EG’s collection of uber rare JDM parts, and so the majority of the modifying community wouldn’t even raise an eyebrow if this pulled up next to them at the lights. This in itself is exactly what Yonas wanted. Those that have laughed this EG off as just another ricer with a canon muffler were undoubtedly given the fright of their lives when the light turned green.
What this little hatch is all about is the punch it packs beneath the bonnet. Staying true to the Honda mantra of all-motor power, Yonas has dedicated himself to injecting as much naturally aspirated power the EG chassis can contain. Proving to be the major catalyst in converting Yonas into a performance freak was his good friend Zi, who had been developing a side business known as JDM Yard. When Zi presented him with the opportunity to join forces and turn it into a full scale operation, Yonas agreed, and from that point on he was plunged headfirst into the aftermarket world.
What this little hatch is all about is the punch it packs beneath the bonnet. Staying true to the Honda mantra of all-motor power, Yonas has dedicated himself to injecting as much naturally aspirated power the EG chassis can contain. Proving to be the major catalyst in converting Yonas into a performance freak was his good friend Zi, who had been developing a side business known as JDM Yard. When Zi presented him with the opportunity to join forces and turn it into a full scale operation, Yonas agreed, and from that point on he was plunged headfirst into the aftermarket world.
Of course being part of JDM Yard meant that he was constantly surrounded by the tastiest, rarest Honda parts, which would affect anyone’s modifying outlook. It didn’t help either that Zi has just built the first of his two K20A-powered EG Civics, which have both been seen in ASM previously.
Yonas’ first serious performance step was to yank out the standard engine, replacing it with a Jap-spec B16A sourced from an EG6 (Civic SiR). Making do with his miniscule budget, modifications to the B16A had to be done incrementally but by the end he had screwed together a formidable NA 1.6-litre. Fitted with EK9 Civic Type R cam shafts (the lumpiest OEM B-series cams available), EK9 valve springs, EK9 LSD gearbox (better final drive and gear ratios), heavy duty clutch, TODA flywheel, Type R intake manifold and throttle body, a full exhaust and a Hondata S100 ECU, it consistently laid down 119kW at the wheels.
Capable of low 14 second quarter miles, Yonas’ EG was certainly no slouch. However with this being his daily driver, Yonas soon grew increasingly bored of it. As each day passed it was getting less exciting; it didn’t send his heart racing; it seemed to be getting slower.
There was only one option: a K-series swap from the new generation of Hondas. Rather than opt for the popular 2.0-litre from the DC5 Integra, Yonas decided on the 2.4-litre from the Accord. Due to the laws of supply and demand, the K24A was significantly cheaper than the sought after K20A.
“I wanted to push the boundaries of what the stock K24A motor can do” Yonas revealed. “I’ve deliberately left the bottom-end standard until I feel that I’ve extracted the most I can from it. I did the exact same thing before fitting the cams; I wanted to push it to the limit first.” Most of us would probably cave under the temptation of doing as many performance upgrades in one go, but Yonas was adamant that he would test the car down the quarter after each aftermarket part was fitted. The reason was two fold: it would give JDM Yard priceless data on how far the K-series elastic band could be stretched, and it would also give Yonas’ wallet time to recover from each hit.
“I wanted to push the boundaries of what the stock K24A motor can do” Yonas revealed. “I’ve deliberately left the bottom-end standard until I feel that I’ve extracted the most I can from it. I did the exact same thing before fitting the cams; I wanted to push it to the limit first.” Most of us would probably cave under the temptation of doing as many performance upgrades in one go, but Yonas was adamant that he would test the car down the quarter after each aftermarket part was fitted. The reason was two fold: it would give JDM Yard priceless data on how far the K-series elastic band could be stretched, and it would also give Yonas’ wallet time to recover from each hit.
The approach to the engine modifications is surprisingly simple yet devastatingly effective: more air, more fuel and minimal restrictions. That’s it. On the intake side there’s a 200mm velocity stack that feeds a custom designed intake manifold. While there are aftermarket manifolds available, JDM Yard weren’t satisfied with the performance or the bonnet clearance, and so they designed their own manifold which are now available off the shelf. Acting as gatekeeper to the K24A head – which has been modified with the 50 degree VTC from a K20A as well as Buddy Club N+ camshafts and valve springs – is an enormous 80mm Wilson throttle body. On the opposing end, JDM Yard also concocted a unique 4-2-1 header design, which is mated to a 3-inch stainless exhaust for street use while for drag racing a Burns stainless megaphone – with optional reverse cone – pretty much means it runs an open-header down the quarter.
The number of passes Yonas has done down the quarter mile would be well into the hundreds by now, and so it’s fair to say he’s mastered the art of launching FWD cars. His 60ft times are down in the 1.6 range with a personal best ET of 11.739. Take a moment to put that into
Power-wise the K24A setup produces a mind-blowing, dyno proven 183.2 kilowatts at the front wheels, living proof that the rumours of the K-series’ untapped potency are true. However to achieve those 11 second passes required more than just power, with Yonas putting the car (as well as himself) on a ruthless diet.
Yonas swore not to cut the chassis, so the spare wheel well remains intact and no sheet metal has been cut. Everything else however, was fair game. Out came the standard seats, carpet, plastic trims and deadening; all things most weekend racers remove. But then he pulled the dash out so the firewall deadening could be removed, and any brackets deemed unnecessary were shown the bin. In fact, all that’s left now is the dash skin held in place with a couple of screws.
The culling didn’t stop there though. Out came the AC, heater box, lines, ventilation ducts. And who needs a stereo? Bye bye headunit, speakers and wiring. Power steering? Deleted. The list goes on: the windscreen washer bottle, the bumper support beams and even the sway bars were unceremoniously removed in the quest to save every gram. Even the engine mounts have also been drilled and chamfered to reduce weight.
Even though the intrusion beams and factory glass remain intact, Yonas has pared the Civic down to a featherweight 858kg. With him onboard the total weight is a mere 920kg, a whopping 100kg less than a standard, occupant-less Civic Si.
Staying true to his goals, Yonas has broken modifying convention where cylinder count and forced induction reign supreme. By employing the traditional adage of more power and less weight – albeit to a rather extreme level – he’s turned a grocer getter into a Goliath killer, with numerous high profile scalps already notched on its belt. It might have taken him over six years to accomplish it, but Yonas has shown that even money is no obstacle. As the saying goes, where there’s a will there’s a way.
No comments:
Post a Comment