By now you’ve probably taken noticed to this green four door Integra sedan that’s been littered across Tunerzine.com numerous times over the past two years. Shameless plugs here and there, mostly to promote poster sales. So what was the story behind this vehicle and where does it reside today? To start off, this car was picked up and built by Tunerzine’s own Jason Siu as a Modified Magazine project car. We decided to take an inside look behind the extent of this build and some of the trials and tribulations that many people do not realize when it comes to building a vehicle where expectations exceed budget.
As far back as he can remember, Jason has always wanted to own an Integra sedan fully equipped with a JDM front end – just something basic and clean. Once you get to the land of Southern California and Honda/Acura customization, it enters a whole new world. Each year everyone keeps raising the bar and going above and beyond with custom fabrication work and helping develop new styles, whether the rest of the world likes it or not. So needless to say when the green light was given to build a new project car for Modified Magazine, Jason picked up this 1994 Acura Integra GS-R and drove it home.
When the vehicle was first picked up, it rode on eBay brand coilovers and had yellow tinted headlights. That’s about it – but the interior was immaculate and oddly enough underneath the hood was a first-generation B16A. The previous owner informed Jason that the factory B18C was pulled to get built, but he just never was able to finish the project due to funds. It would seem like that plague would carry over to Jason as the build began. At first he decided that he would completely strip out the vehicle and head on over to Unique Fabrication to have a fully custom cage done. Working with the Tjin brothers for ideas, it soon developed that the Integra would be rolling on custom painted HREs, something the Tjin brothers had done throughout their previous projects.
At this point Jason also knew that a K-Series would have to be thrown into the bay, paying homage to Honda’s newest form of engine technology. So while the car was residing at Unique Fabrication awaiting the full cage, once the car was completely gutted out, out came the front subframe. Late night one night, speaking with Adam Carpenter, master fabricator at Unique Fabrication, Jason and Adam came up with the idea of converting the car to right hand drive. A quick search on Honda-Tech found a front clip sitting in someone’s backyard. A couple days later it was thrown on the trailer and taken back to the shop. Less than a month later the cage was taking form and the car was converted to right hand drive and the JDM front end conversion was welded on.
Then came the show aspect of the vehicle. As things started coming together, Jason started working within the industry in attempts to having the finished vehicle showcased at SEMA 2006. It seemed far out there for any manufacturer to take on a 12 year old car for a SEMA car, but Jason really thought he’d be able to push the envelope once the project was complete. Everything possible was shaved off the vehicle from inside the interior to its door handles and moldings. They also went to town in the engine bay, removing the stock master cylinder and brake booster and shaving up every hole imaginable. The cage also found its way into the bay, making it extra unique to the scene.
Once all the fabrication work was done, the vehicle was towed off for its paint and body. Jason opted to paint the exterior Desert Sage Metallic, which at the time was the same color as his daily driver, a Lexus IS250. It was a fairly unique color, a greenish shade offset with a gold pearl finish. The interior and the engine bay was painted a minty blue hue while the cage was completely contrasted with a reddish/orange pearl. Once the paint work was completed it was off to Plan B Motorsports where the K-Series awaited along with suspension, brakes, wheel and tires upgrades.
First on was a complete set of Skunk2 suspension components – coilovers, control arms, camber kits, tie bars – you name it, its got it. Then went on the Wilwood big brake upgrade up front, while the rear received upgraded rotors and Project mU brake pads. After that, the K-Series engine with a full wire tuck courtesy of Plan B Motorsports. Bolt-ons for the K-Series came from R-Crew Racing and Skunk2: race header and full exhaust. Fuel delivery was handled with Aeromotive and AEM components with custom fittings and lines snaking all the way to the rear fuel cell.
At this point everyone was anxious to get the car back on the ground. The 18×8-inch +38 HRE C-20 wheels that were match painted and wrapped with 215/35/18 Falken FK452 tires were bolted onto the car. Off the lift it came and down on the ground and everyone felt that the vehicle was nearing completion for SEMA. But time was ticking and less than a week away there was still a lot to do.
The car made its way back to Unique Fabrication for the finishing touches. A full Chargespeed body kit for the Integra sedan was installed along with JDM DB8 visors and taillights. C-West carbon fiber mirrors with custom mounts were bolted onto the side of the vehicle. To pop the doors at the show, Magic Touch door poppers were installed on the front and rear windshield – giving quick access to the cabin with a slight wave of the hand on the sensors. Finishing up the interior, Unique Fabrication made seat mounts for the Chargespeed carbon fiber seats. A Nardi steering wheel on a MOMO hub and a Skunk2 shift knob were finishing touches.
At this point they were a mere few hours away from SEMA load-in so tragically the project never finished with the installation of the custom Wilwood pedals. Stay tuned as we go back in time and take an extensive look at the actual build up process of this project with full build up photos from each stage – beginning to end.
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