So I'll be getting a job soon, but I'm still wondering what I should with the money. A lot of it will be going to the car, which is the primary reason i'm getting a job. I've got a few things I can spend the cash on:

Wheels and tires (axis hiros on toyos or falkens)
OEM kit
Lowering springs (eibachs)
CAI (AEM or injen)
Then maybe some more engine stuff or audio stuff. My question is what do you guys think I should start with? I'll probably be getting an intake pretty soon, but beyond that I have no idea what I should get next. What do you guys think?

 

lower + wheels first

 

^ +1

 

cai, lowering, then wheels.

dropping your car will change the look completely

 

I would approach things a little differently, my brother had a 04 Accord EX 5MT at the same time I had a 04 TSX 6MT, the similarities between these cars underpinnings is staggering. I wouldn't waste time with a CAI period, remove the resonator behind the bumper on the driver side and get a K&N air filter if you feel obligated to do something else, a fraction of the cost and you get the same benefit in sound. Unless you go extreme, which I would advice against, this car will never be "fast" that does not mean it can't be fun to drive.

I know I am quite a bit older then you so you may want things a bit differently then I would, but I would consider not lowering the car and putting a larger rear sway bar on it. I had put a comptech RSB on my TSX and to this date feel it was the best mod I ever made on any car, when I traded in my TSX I was curious if it would fit on my brothers Accord. It didn't fit like a glove, but it fit with no modification and the improvements were even more dramatic on his car. So he had much better handling in the twisties with no sacrifice in ground clearance or ride quality. Driving a lowered car in this are doesn't make a lot of sense with winter and the poor roads, your area may be different. Not to mention the terrible ride quality associated with most lowering spring/suspension set ups, low and hard does not always equal good handling. However the look is pretty slick.

I would aim to make your car more fun to drive, I'd start with the free mod of removing the intake resonator and when the stock air filter is dirty replace it with K&N. I'd do a RSB, if you can't find one for an Accord the TSX will fit it with no modifications, it's not 100% perfect. Then I'd do wheels and tires, if you still want more I would lower it and set the alignment a touch on the aggressive side, while this may wear tires a bit more it will make the car much more rewarding to drive.

If you still want more I would see if you can find a header for the car, I had one on my TSX and it made a noticeable improvement in performance and fuel economy. I had sold the header before I had a chance to see if it would have fit the accord. Otherwise my car had a stock exhaust, the tone changed very minimally, but my fuel economy picked up a few MPG instantly, the header paid for itself!

Doing a better stereo is always a nice upgrade, however if you are trying to improve performance you are at odds with car audio because all you are doing is adding weight, in some cases a lot of weight. If you do anything keep it simple, a nice quality head unit and replace the speakers.

 

I don't want to make it "fast" it's a 4 cylinder accord. But it really loses a lot of steam beyond 3000rpm. Just want to remedy that. couldn't give a crap about the sound.

Lots of good stuff here that I haven't thought of. RSB is interesting. Handling is perfectly fine for what I use it for, but hey, better handling is never worse.
That's why I was looking at Eibach springs, it doesn't affect the ride quality that much, and lowers the car a bit. Maybe I'll do both. Definetely something to think about.

Fun to drive is definetely something I want to aim for. What exactly is an intake resonator? Does it affect performance or just sound? Headers will definetely be coming soon.

As for audio, I wasn't going to be doing anything but replacing the speakers. No big sub box in the trunk.


So far, plan is looking like intake resonator immediately, RSB sometime soon, then wheels and tires. If I feel like it, lowering springs may follow, though they're starting to seem a bit unnecessary. Headers, maybe. Then some new speakers. I want to pull off the headlights like in my avatar, but im kinda scared of taking these headlights apart.

Thanks for the help guys, keep it coming, this is great.

 

Sounds like you are on the right track, removing the intake resonator and adding a header(there is only one so no headers ) will help it breath more freely at higher RPM's. The K24 is a great engine but do to its size it does not rev as freely as some of Honda's slightly lower displacement engines, that said it makes up for it with a more usable torque curve.

The intake resonator is what is known as a Helholtz resonator http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helmholtz_resonator virtually every car has one and it allows the engineers to tune the engine sound to whatever frequency suits their fancy. If you go to the first gen. TSX section and search for intake resonator removal you should find LOTS of very helpful posts, pictures, etc... It's a great, free mod. It definitely creates the intake noise, with out the cost or the loss of power, if it increases horsepower it is marginal, but you may notice an improvement in fuel economy.

The RSB is a fantastic mod on this chassis, with a good set of tires the car is very fun to drive on the twisties, assuming you have a good set of tires. While it made a large improvement in cornering on the TSX, I think the improvement was more noticeable on my brothers Accord(and it was the same sway bar). You may not notice the improvement when casually driving the car, which is good, but when you push it into a corner the car will remain very flat, body roll will be significantly lower. The car as a whole just feels more "tight" which I like a lot. The only concern is in wet conditions, snow, etc... or with poor tires it can cause the car to oversteer if pushed too hard, if you ease into pushing the car I don't think this is a problem. But oversteer on a FWD car when you are not expecting it is a recipe for disaster! In the snow it made the car a blast to drive, when I got used to it.

 

(1) resonator delete
(2) RSB
(3) coilover / spring shock combo
(4) dedicated summer tires

 

I started with an AEM V2 CAI and it all went down hill (in a good way of course) from there. I caught the mod bug once again after I heard the sound of the intake. I always start with the intake first then move to exhaust and eventually wheels and suspension. Although I agree with iTimmy in the sense that modding the stock intake is a very cheap and easy way to get a similar sound as an intake, I have to say there really is nothing like the sound of a V2 other than getting a V2. I'm in love with that damn intake lol!

Suspension-wise the TL rear sway bar is what you want. You can either go either with the 17mm or 20mm, depending on how stiff you want it. I have an '03 Accord too, but mine's a V6 6spd, so my suspension is a bit tighter from the factory than yours, but I still went with the 17mm because I'm a little older like iTimmy and more conservative now-a-days. It did make a great improvement over stock though; less body roll and bouncing out of corners. Definitely a great first or second mod due to low cost (about $40 for everything), they're OEM parts and it's simple to install.

I also definitely suggest if you're going to lower it and don't want to slam it but just rid it of the 4x4 wheel gap and maintain the stock comfortable ride, to go with Eiback Pro-Kit springs. I've had them on mine for well over 6k miles on the stock struts and they've been awesome. Great ride quality, just enough drop and no weird noises or handling issues from them whatsoever.

I've done most of my performance mods so now I've moved onto the asthetics of mine. Upgraded the headlights with blackhoused versions, did an HID conversion and will most likely go with some nice toned down LED taillights next. I got the wheels before the Pro-Kit, which I would advise against. The car looked so stupid with the huge wheel gap and nice aftermarket wheels.

By the way I started an "Offical Honda Accord Thread" so there's lots of good info and pictures of other member's Accords in there, so you should check it out and post some picts up. There's a link in my sig.

Happy modding!!!

 

Seems like a lot of money to put into a 6 year old 4-cylinder Accord.

I'd do Rims/Tires, suspension, CAI, Exhaust... maybe some stereo stuff.... then start putting the rest in a savings account. At 16 i put money into cars as well.. but I also didn't go overboard and saved quite a bit. Plus, in this economy it's not a bad thing to put money away instead of putting into a depreciating asset.

Choose your mods wisely, don't go overboard, and you'll be able to have your cake and eat it too!!

 

Please don't tell me your doing just springs as far as suspension goes.

 

I'd hate to rain on your parade, but save your money for University. You'll have way more fun with your money like that. Even if you have someone helping you pay for school still save your cash, cause there will be those times when you want to go on spring break in panama or Cancun or whatever, and you won't be able to go cause you bought springs instead. Those times and experiences you'll never get to have back, Springs you can buy whenever you want.

 

Indeed so true!!! Me and 5 other friends were planning on going to a cruise to Mexico last spring break. We all ended up buying car parts and went broke. Our spring break ended up driving canyon roads and exploring Socal.

 

shocks, springs and short shifter (if possible) = more fun to drive.

 

Me and three other friends were gonna go on a Eastern Caribbean cruise this past christmas break, but one of my friends didn't ask his parents. His parents are dips, but he was stupid enough to never get on the ball so it fell through.

But
Don't blow through every last dollar.
It's good to save some, whether that be for later times to have fun with, or as a safety cushion (which you should always have; but being you're 16, you probably don't need much of one...it's a good habit to practice for later in life though)

 

@ iTimmy: thanks for the help, right now it's looking as though I'll get rid of the resonator and headlights whenever I have the time and get the rsn in soon if they're really that cheap.quick question about the headlights: did you just get a can of paint and spray some sections? Or was there some sort of kit that came with it?

@ juniorbean: I understand completely what you're saying. I'm gonna save up a bit first before spending anything major. These modifications are going to be spread out over a year. Not every paycheck will be going straight to the car.

@ TS eXspeed: well there's the rsb. I don't feel like dropping a grand in suspension though.

@ the dougler: this job will probably see me through Uni, but I'll still make sure I have a cash cushion for anything. Doubt I'm going to be going to places like cancun, springs or not

@ onebadna1nsx: that doesn't sound too bad to a Canadian right now

@ dicorp: thanks for the suggestions. Fun to drive is the ultimate goal

Thanks for the help guys keep it coming. The cheaper the better.

 

Here's how I would do it on your car, in order:

Speakers. an aftermarket radio is hard to pull off because IMO it looks out of place in that gen Accord. If you really are an audiophile but would like to keep your factory radio (for your car I'd recommend this route) try adding a QUALITY (not that Earthquake garbage) EQ like Rockford Fosgate's 3sixty or the JL Cleansweep. It doesn't matter whether you're driving hard or taking your grandma home, whether the road is rough or smooth... your system will always make a difference.

CAI or resonator delete. as mentioned its mainly for sound but damn does it make a difference. I LOVED to heeltoe in my Integra after I got the CAI.

springs/shocks. Consider revalves designed for lowering springs, AFAIK almost every non-adjustable aftermarket shock out there is designed for stock springs and thus will not be able to properly control the springs over bumpy surfaces, and may also affect reliability of the shocks due to inadequate amount of travel.

RSB. Will make a big difference on your car, you'll notice the car is more effective in getting the rear end to come around in the corners. get the 20mm, that's just me... I'd also recommend getting a new one with all the bushings and mounting hardware included

Wheels/tires... try to get a set of wheels that are lightweight, and some quality rubber. Tires make a big difference in off-the-line acceleration, handling, braking and comfort/NVH.

headers, then catback. Not certain what would be ideal for your car in particular, but you can't go wrong with Magnaflow

then bodykit last. only difference is looks and its harder to drive around without scraping.



I tried to list it in order of bang for your buck & effectiveness. Anything beyond this will either make little difference or cost a lot.

 

I'm glad I stopped modifying my car after I put an AEM V2 CAI, Apexi grounding kit, 6mt TL front and rear sways, tint, and replaced rear 6x9's with JL Audio speakers. At one point I had money ready to spend on a set of TSX Tein CS coilovers (as someone stated, TSX suspension parts are interchangable), Work wheels, cat-back exhaust, Mugen door visors, and fully upgraded audio system. Something told me not to and I saved my money. I am very glad I did so since my car still has enough power to satisfy me. OEM looks to keep cops from hassling me, and keep others from tempting me into bringing out the ricer in me.

I don't receive financial aid and recently became unemployed. Had I not saved my money you'd be looking at my part-out threads right now.

As nice as it may be to have a heavily modified car, I can wait to play with the big boys after I graduate and get my career straightened out.

 

@ I Go To Costco: I can do without aftermarket speakers for now. The Accord's system isn't bad when you're in the car, but I like to roll down the windows and play anything while I'm washing the car with better SQ. Resonator will be gone whenever I get both the time and know-how. I'll search for some DIYs. RSBs might be the first purchase because they're cheap. If they really are around $40 then I might get front sawy bars as well. Suspension will probably limited to springs right now if anything, shocks are a nice chunk of money. But I know that Hondas have a problem for blown shocks, so we'll see.
I absolutely hate putting on any weight on the car. that's the reason I'm not putting in a box in the trunk. weight is a priority when it comes to picking wheels. I've looked at some Enkei's and SSRs, but they're pricey. I'll probably just get a header first.

@v6cord2k5: The modifications will come in relation to the money I make. No money no mods.

 

put a 17mm rsb. I have an gen7 accord also.

I have intake, rsb 17mm from a TL, lowered on kb agx n GC coilovers, Also got hid retro. All I need are some rims and i am done.

 

lowering springs FTL

 

looks like wheels and tires are last because they're just so freaking expensive.

What's the difference between 17mm and 20mm rsb's? stiffness?

 

4x4 wheel gap FTL.

lowering the car is the greatest mod you can possible do. bar none.

unless you got thousands of dollars to spend on an engine build.

 

coilovers, rsb

mild sound system, oem kit, hids, debadging, intake resonator removed, exhaust tips, wheels.

 

The bigger the diameter, the more the stiffer it is, yes. The more stiff it is, the more it will resist body roll.... and for the rear, the stiffer it is, the more the car will want to oversteer.... which is a GOOD thing on a front-heavy FWD car. It really helps to turn the rear of the car around.

Stiffer is not exactly better though. But with 20mm you can't go wrong.... I think GTI sway bars are 22mm stock IIRC