buying 240 for autocross

[FutureSil]

hey guys whats up im new to this board so kinda bear with me

right now im driving a 98 honda prelude 5spd lowered on eibachs with remus exhaust.....ive really gotten into autocrossing lately and i want a lighter and RWD car....therefore im getting a 240

im looking at a 97 or 98 SE or LE 5spd. my first mods are going to be totally redoing the suspension. after this i wanted to do exhaust here is my question though.

i plan on doing a sr20det swap near the end of summer with the difference in $ between the lude and 240 and the money i make during the summer.

changing the suspension will be no problem but if i get a catback setup wont i need a new one/dif one when i get the 240? if i got a apexi n1 or hks hiper or drag (both turbo models) would they be ok....

1. would the larger diameter screw me up while still NA KA-engine?2. would the catback even fit when i got the SR20?

thanks, cant wait till i get my car and get more active on the site

[BuudWeizErr]

The SR20 and the KA use the same exhaust. If you get one now for the KA, it will work with the SR20. Also, there are several members who have 3" piping on their KA's and haven't mentioned a huge loss in power. A friend of mine put a GReddy PE 3" on his 98 and didn't feel any low end difference. That is... until he gets SR power.

[FutureSil]

yeah alright then i guess ill just get a turbo setup and can change the engine on down the road with no problems.... so basically a KA with a turbo 3'' pipe will just be about the same low end

did he notice any change in the mid-high end powerband?

[jmillheiser]

yeah the KA should maintain its low end pretty good considering the displacement and bore and stroke.

just be aware doing the SR swap will dump you into street mod. you are going to need at least 350hp or so to be competitive and your going to need a fast responding turbo that will put out that kind of power.

i would look at something along the lines of an HKS GT 2530 or GT 2835, or a garret GT30.

you will absolutely need some camber adjustment as well.

if you run street mod its street tire only in SCCA (other sanctioning bodies allow race rubber in SM)

[96_S14_SE]

I second the whole SM issue, as it is a main concern if you are buying a 240 for auto-x purposes. I love seeing jay (psi240 or the guy running a 11.9 in a KA-T ) smoke em when he gets his *** out there. He runs SM as well hehe.

If you want to auto-x and are bent on a 240 I would get a s13 coupe, as the s13's are slightly lighter, with the coupe being the lightest of the s13's. I would stay away from the LE s14 as its one of the heaviest of the bunch. Also keep in mind if your tall not to get the sunroof, as you might be bashing your mellon cover against the roof alot. I dont have the sunroof but recently rode as a passenger in one with it and had very very minimal clearance to the roof with my helmet.

While the 240 is a great car its not the fastest cone dodger. It can be made and pushed to be damn fast but it will take some time in it and some work to do so.

We have one guy here running a sm2 I believe SC miata that is a beast. If I was building up a car with only auto-x in mind I would look at the stout platforms like the miata, and old / new mr2 platform first as they are great in stock form even.

edit: also with the N1 I noticed no low end loss. I noticed very little mid to highend gain as well. But like with any mods I see barely any hp making it to the wheels, as Im equipped with an auto hahaha Youll be fine with it along with many many many others who have run 3" before you.