Mark Pollard’s first Civic was totaled before anyone could photograph it, sideswiped on the shoulder of a highway during a test run with a freshly installed turbo setup. The car he replaced it with is the one you’re looking at here, shot for the July 2006 issue of Hot Compact & Imports (HCI), and it’s the third ATS Garage Civic to run on Tunerzine after Neema Tabrizi’s EK and Ron Ibay’s EG.
Rather than start over with a stock car, Pollard went looking for something that was already partway through a build. A local shop called Modacar had a Civic project that had been sitting for close to a year, already prepped for Northern California track events, and since Pollard knew the shop he made an offer on it and took it home. He started pulling parts off and swapping his own on almost immediately, beginning with a gunmetal respray that added some character without drawing much attention. An Invidia carbon fiber hood went on, and the rest of the front end came from a Civic Type R: the lip, fitted with a pair of ARC side splitters, the grille, and the headlights, enough that from the front the car passes for a JDM CTR. Out back, a set of Type MC sport mirrors and a carbon fiber rear spoiler continued the Spoon Sports theme, Japan-spec thin side moldings and window visors were added, and a CTR rear lip finished the exterior.
Inside, the audio side was skipped in favor of safety equipment, starting with an Autopower four-point roll cage. Recaro seats and Takata harnesses went in with it, and a MOMO steering wheel sits on an Esses quick-release hub. More Type R pieces followed inside, including the gauge cluster and door panels. With the rear of the car gutted, Pollard moved the battery into the spare tire well, sealed it in a Taylor battery box, and wired it to a cut-off switch.
Because Modacar had built the car for track use, the suspension was already sorted when Pollard bought it. Tein RA coilovers handle the ride, comfortable enough for the drive to the track and firm enough once there, and a Comptech rear sway bar and tie bar combination works with SPC rear lower control arms and toe links. The brakes got more attention. The car originally had four-lug hubs with rear drums, so a USDM Integra Type R five-lug conversion went on first. Pollard then added a set of Spoon Sports calipers in the blue that anyone who follows the brand would recognize from a distance, plus Power Stop cross-drilled rotors front and rear, Hawk HP+ pads, and Earl’s brake lines.
Under the hood is a B18C5, which would have been plenty for most people but wasn’t left alone here. The bottom end was rebuilt with 11.1:1 Wiseco pistons and Eagle rods at the factory 84.5mm bore. The head received a port and polish, AEBS head studs, Skunk2 retainers, Toda valve springs, cam gears, and a timing belt. A ported Integra Type R intake manifold and a 65mm Edelbrock throttle body handle intake, air comes in through a Comptech Icebox, and exhaust exits through an AN-R race header into a Spoon Sports N1 exhaust. Fuel runs through an Edelbrock fuel rail and RC 310cc injectors, with an AEM fuel pressure regulator and an Autolink fuel pressure gauge to keep an eye on it. Dyno tuned, the engine made 207 hp and 148 lb-ft of torque, respectable for a naturally aspirated car that gets driven every day.
The original story’s take was that Pollard had taken over someone else’s unfinished project and still made it his own, and that anyone at a Northern California show or track event would probably run into him and the rest of the ATS Garage crew before long.
GalleryPhotos by Gene Tjin
