No matter where ever you go, the Honda Civic always turn out to be one of the most popular tuning platforms in the world regardless as a starting point or as a lifetime obsession. When it comes to the EK platform, the EK9 Civic Type R is assumed to be the ultimate but unfortunately it is only available in Japan. For the countries where the EK9 isn’t available, the closest option would be building a JDM conversion on any EK hatch.
In a little pocket in Southeast Asia, Malaysia where EK9 conversions are pretty popular, an EK hatch owner and his mechanic decided to go a step further. Already good friends, the owner, Anuar and his mechanic, Izal of Izal Autoworks started to brainstorm for a new build. Anuar recently purchased a bone stock Civic EK2 early in 2014 from a lady owner located in the town of Johor Bharu. Apparently, it is his first Honda. First thing that came in mind was a street tuned car that is capable to be driven hard on track.
After purchasing the car, Anuar drove the car back to their garage in Shah Alam, Malaysia. From there, these two guys started to brainstorm for a plan for the car. Initially they wanted to build a full EK9 conversion but after much thinking, they scrapped the plan since they feel they can do much more.
His friend, Izal on the other had is somewhat known for building very clean cars and especially known for his K-Swap work in late model Civics. So Anuar referred to him on the plan that he is going to do to his EK hatch. After much referencing from the internet and US-based builds, they decided to drop a K20A in the EK.
Of course, easier said than done. Izal started to hunt for the components. Luckily, he got hold of a Honda Integra DC5 that was bound for scrap in Japan. So after making a few calls, he was lucky enough to bring it in and to salvage parts from the car, especially for the K20A motor. Since it was something he had done many times, the motor was dropped in with Hasport engine mounts without a problem.
From the research they have done, Izal finds that wire tucking is the ‘in’ thing for Honda guys in the US, so he went to see some examples on the internet. So he came across the Ry-Wire website. Based from the pictures on the web page, he was able to make his own wire harness for the K-Series motor. Not only it fits perfectly, it was much cheaper.
Since Izal was able to get a whole car to salvage parts from, he had a lot of other carts that came with the car besides the motor, so they pretty much stripped the interior to be placed in the EK. Things from the steering wheel, shift knob, foot pedals, seats, and carpeting. For the rest, he sourced a meter cluster and door trim from a Civic Type R EK9. At the end it gave a car a fairly clean and OG interior.
While Izal was working on that, Anuar went on Google to find a look that he would like for his car. After a while of searching and browsing, he found photos of the Mugen Aero body kit for the 1996 Civic. How different it looked sparked his interest. So he went out shopping and finally found a full set excluding the fog lamps for a bargain. To complete the look, he got a J’s Racing carbon hood, and a set of TE37 wheels.
After completion, even though only a pretty simple build, but it proves its place in the scene since the build was done right. Not only because of its flawless execution, but also to the ideas and really got the car to step it up a notch. I personally would love to see more builds that are out of the norm regardless if its a simple or complex build. For myself, this is definitely a Honda build that is worth the time and effort.
Honda Civic EK2
Owner: Anuar Mekhtar
Words / Photographer: Mat Canyon
Model: Honda Civic EK2
Location: Shah Alam, Malaysia
Work done by Izal Autoworks located at:
LOT 920B, Jalan Besar
Kampung Bukit Lanchong
40400, Shah Alam,Selangor
Malaysia
Engine mods:
K20A DC5R
Hasport Engine Mounts
PLM Exhaust Headers
3 inch straight flow
J’s Racing 3 inch Muffler
NGK Iridium Spark Plugs
Walbro Fuel Pump
Hondata ECU
DC5R 6 speed manual
Chassis Mods (suspension/brakes/tyres etc):
TIEN FLEX Custom Track Spec Coilovers
14 kg Front 9 kg Rear
EK9 knuckles, discs and calipers
Volk Racing TE37 wheels 15x8jj offset +27 (front); 15×6.5jj offset +25 (rear)
Nitto NT01 205/50/15 F
Toyo Proxes R888 195/55/15 R
Exterior Mods:
Mugen Aero 96 body kit,
J’s Racing Carbon Fibre Hood
Interior Mods:
DC5 Recaro Seats
DC5 Carpet and Floor Mats
DC5 Steering Wheel
DC5 Foot Pedals
DC5 Shift Knob
EK9 Dashboard
EK9 Door Trim
Defi Meters
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