Greetings from Japan.
Where do I start... I'll try to keep this post short, but it's a long intro!
In 1999 I bought a Mugen tuned CR-X SiR a year after moving from the UK to Japan, which I used as a daily-driver in & around Tokyo. Have great memories of the quick progress that could be made with that car.... It was my first V-Tec, of several.
Its raucous nature and small proportions made an indelible impression on me, as well as other memories of a particularly quick EF8 with a B18C in it, that would lap Tsukuba in 1.02's.
It begun to meet the end of my tenure when one morning, whilst late to get to my work - pushing it hard on the motorway, the radiator's plastic top shattered / exploded. Being a hot summer's day I topped up the rad with drinking water I was carrying inside and very slowly made my way to a DIY centre, where I bought a fibreglass repair kit and patched it up enough to continue with my day.
3rd synchro was weak and one of the driveshafts had begun to get noisy.
Time to move on and so I did, to an RX-7 (which I still have to this day!) - the dark side.
But the CR-X had sown a V-Tec seed inside that I didn't know would keep growing. It's not always about maximum power, but the driving experience...
A few years on, I bought a mildly modified NSX. Looked great, sounded awesome with it's tubular artwork exhaust, but aside from attract attention, it didn't do anything better than the RX-7 and I knew it would cost a LOT to build the engine to a better spec. So I sold it.
I then had a 2003 S2000, as another daily which I really enjoyed... But I got a fiance and my border collie wasn't going to fit with her, so the S2K had to go.
A few friends & I got together, developed then endurance raced (Street legal class) a Prelude between 2009-2010. Handled not so well to begin with, but by the end of its development it became a quick car, able to give JIC's higher classed DC5 (non road legal) a run for it's money.
Had fun with that... still have it parked in a corner under several covers.
Can't sell it as it's just had too hard a life, but it's never missed a beat, except losing reverse on several boxes (from botched shifts of some of the lesser skilled drivers!).
A couple of years ago I bought a mint CR-X SiR Glass top. Very close to standard, zero rust, unmarked interior, etc. I knew it would rise in value but put it away & started collecting parts for it.... more on this later.
Last year an Italian customer friend sold his '99 DC2 back to me, as he'd had it 3 years and wanted to sell. I knew how good a car it was because I'd fitted all the parts to it, before it left Japan - so when he told me it was for sale, the deal was done...
It's currently in Portugal, stashed away with family there - so we can use it this summer. Rental cars suck.
I got a 2002 Insight 5 Speed Manual Coupe 6 months ago because I thought it might be fun to see how bad I could get the economy. Quite liked it. Would do a little over 100 mph and I could get 15km / L at worst.
Lent it to one of our staff for a week and he got 26...
Liked it so much, asked me if I'd sell it to him, which I did...
So now I was left with no daily driver... Then I remembered the CR-X and a smile spread across my face.
Finally I had the inspiration needed to make that hidden CR-X something a bit special - that would feed my need for an entertaining, but (slightly?) sensible car.
Where do I start... I'll try to keep this post short, but it's a long intro!
In 1999 I bought a Mugen tuned CR-X SiR a year after moving from the UK to Japan, which I used as a daily-driver in & around Tokyo. Have great memories of the quick progress that could be made with that car.... It was my first V-Tec, of several.
Its raucous nature and small proportions made an indelible impression on me, as well as other memories of a particularly quick EF8 with a B18C in it, that would lap Tsukuba in 1.02's.
It begun to meet the end of my tenure when one morning, whilst late to get to my work - pushing it hard on the motorway, the radiator's plastic top shattered / exploded. Being a hot summer's day I topped up the rad with drinking water I was carrying inside and very slowly made my way to a DIY centre, where I bought a fibreglass repair kit and patched it up enough to continue with my day.
3rd synchro was weak and one of the driveshafts had begun to get noisy.
Time to move on and so I did, to an RX-7 (which I still have to this day!) - the dark side.
But the CR-X had sown a V-Tec seed inside that I didn't know would keep growing. It's not always about maximum power, but the driving experience...
A few years on, I bought a mildly modified NSX. Looked great, sounded awesome with it's tubular artwork exhaust, but aside from attract attention, it didn't do anything better than the RX-7 and I knew it would cost a LOT to build the engine to a better spec. So I sold it.
I then had a 2003 S2000, as another daily which I really enjoyed... But I got a fiance and my border collie wasn't going to fit with her, so the S2K had to go.
A few friends & I got together, developed then endurance raced (Street legal class) a Prelude between 2009-2010. Handled not so well to begin with, but by the end of its development it became a quick car, able to give JIC's higher classed DC5 (non road legal) a run for it's money.
Had fun with that... still have it parked in a corner under several covers.
Can't sell it as it's just had too hard a life, but it's never missed a beat, except losing reverse on several boxes (from botched shifts of some of the lesser skilled drivers!).
A couple of years ago I bought a mint CR-X SiR Glass top. Very close to standard, zero rust, unmarked interior, etc. I knew it would rise in value but put it away & started collecting parts for it.... more on this later.
Last year an Italian customer friend sold his '99 DC2 back to me, as he'd had it 3 years and wanted to sell. I knew how good a car it was because I'd fitted all the parts to it, before it left Japan - so when he told me it was for sale, the deal was done...
It's currently in Portugal, stashed away with family there - so we can use it this summer. Rental cars suck.
I got a 2002 Insight 5 Speed Manual Coupe 6 months ago because I thought it might be fun to see how bad I could get the economy. Quite liked it. Would do a little over 100 mph and I could get 15km / L at worst.
Lent it to one of our staff for a week and he got 26...
Liked it so much, asked me if I'd sell it to him, which I did...
So now I was left with no daily driver... Then I remembered the CR-X and a smile spread across my face.
Finally I had the inspiration needed to make that hidden CR-X something a bit special - that would feed my need for an entertaining, but (slightly?) sensible car.