ApexEight
Senior Member
- First Name
- Anthony
- Joined
- Jul 13, 2018
- Threads
- 31
- Messages
- 917
- Reaction score
- 440
- Location
- Atlanta, GA, USA
- Vehicle(s)
- 2019 Honda Civic Type R
- Thread starter
- #1
Hi everyone, my name's Anthony and this is my 2019 Crystal Black Pearl Type R.
Current pic:
I picked up the car on July 30th, 2022. If you click on my profile, you can see that I've been on this forum since 2018 - I've wanted a Type R for a long time. Before I got mine, I had a 2008 Si. It was Nighthawk Black Pearl, pretty much stock, and made me fall back in love with Hondas and FWD again with my second ever car being a DA Integra and then going through a few different RWD cars (E36 328i, Genesis Coupe, FRS, BRZ). I sold the Si with over 200K miles and it never really gave me any issues - it was a great car. For a while, getting an R didn't seem feasible. Between paying down student loans, getting engaged, getting married, going on our honeymoon, rescuing a dog, buying a house, renovating the house, then having a kid, I started to wonder if I'd ever actually get one. I even started to talk myself down to just getting a 10th gen Si. Eventually, things lined up and I sold the FA5 for more than I bought it for and got what I think is a great deal on the R from an individual up in Charlotte, NC (I'm in Atlanta).
The last pic I have of the Si before I sold it to a teenage kid that was most definitely going to rice it out. Sad, but what can you do.
The first pic I saw of the R.
The first pic I took of the R.
Brought it home.
I never really wanted a black R, or another black car, for that matter. That's what owning a NHBP FA5 will do to you, but I couldn't pass up the deal. One owner, no accidents, stock aside from tint and Amazon all-weather floor mats, low miles, well taken care of, southern car its entire life. I originally wanted Polished Metal Metallic, but over time, CBP has grown on me and I like how its glossy finish contrasts with the satin/matte black plastic around the car.
My driveway is kind of steep so I got these rubber ramps off Amazon to avoid scraping.
I knew I wanted PPF after getting tons of rock chips on the FA5, so I took the car to Atlanta Ceramic Coating and PPF and got the front clip, mirror caps, A, B, and C-pillars, partial roof, door handle cups, door edges, door sills down to side skirts, gas cap door, liftgate spoiler, and cargo deck done with XPEL Ultimate Plus. They did an ok job. My experience was overall not that great. If I had to do it again, I'd go somewhere else, but at least the price was decent.
Back from PPF.
Got some Titanium Gunmetal TE37 SLs. 18x9.5 +38 wrapped in Falken RT615K+ 265/35/18 XL. I coated them, all four brake calipers, and the exhaust tips with GTechniq C5. I also installed front and rear Sukeban rock guards at the same time. I eventually sold the rock guards as I didn't love the way they looked on the car.
Met @JohnInATL who was kind enough to help me change the oil and add a FilterMag, install the Whiteline transmission mount, switch to Amsoil transmission fluid, and flush the brakes with Endless RF-650. I didn't really feel any difference with the Amsoil and was still getting a bit of notchiness from first to second and third to fourth. I have since switched to ACDelco Synchromesh Friction Modified and have felt a small improvement. It's pretty smooth even when cold. I do have some other things I'd like to do to further improve the shifting, but that will come a little later.
Rainy gas station pic.
Installed the Acuity pedal spacer for better heel-toe action, the Raceseng Circuit Cylinder shifter knob, Suma blue convex rearview mirror, and Primitive Performance convex blue side mirrors as well. Ended up selling the pedal spacer and the mirrors. Ultimately, I unexpectedly use auto rev-matching all the time now and also prefer modulating the throttle with the stock positioning. The convex mirrors threw me off despite having them on other cars before and just felt more comfortable with stock. The shift knob is a carryover from the Si and I absolutely love it. Metal core for a little added weight but not too much to take away from feel and a delrin outer sleeve for a nice feel and resistance to heat and cold. I prefer taller shift knobs as I use a "handle" type grip when I shift opposed to a "claw" grip that is used with spherical shift knobs like the stock one.
Pulled the strut tower camber pins and installed Wunderladen Racing strut locks and aligned the car.
It'd be nice if my camber were a bit more even. Maybe I should get some subframe collars or the Honda subframe alignment tool. It'd also be nice to at least be in spec for caster, although a lot of FK8s seem to read low. Maybe I should get an anti-lift kit.
Got a deal on a PRL HVI which added some much needed noise. I actually like the stock exhaust. Not having drone on the freeway is great. A little more volume when getting on it would be nice, but the bypass valve noise keeps me mostly entertained.
Sold the TEs. I wasn't feeling the color. They got really dark when dirty with brake dust and almost looked black. TEs are my dream wheels and these were my first set and if I paid that much for them, I wanted them to stand out lol. They were nice when clean but given their matte texture, they really held onto brake dust, even though I had coated them. I luckily found a local buyer. Kept my tires.
Back on the stock dubs.
Got the same exact wheels, but in Mercury Silver. Also went with black valve stems this time, but not the actual Rays ones because they're overpriced, imo. Shortly after I ordered these and was preparing myself for the wait, Rays released their new silver finish, Diamond Silver. If I had the choice, I would have gone with Diamond Silver. It's similar to Mercury but not as reflective. I prefer that look but am also happy with Mercury. Kind of cool that it's an OG finish too. Coated them with C5 again but also added EXOv4 on top as well.
Wheel selfie.
On. I also removed the red pinstriping. I initially tried to cover it with black vinyl tape but it was hard to get perfect because the stuff I got off Amazon wasn't a perfectly consistent width due to imprecise cutting by the manufacturer. Had to go back with a heat gun and Goo Gone to get the residue off that the stock pinstriping left behind. Happy with how it turned out.
Ass shot.
When I installed the wheels, I wire wheeled the rusty rotor hats and painted the centers of the hubs with Rustoleum black paint. Looks a lot better imo. Heat gun helps speed up the drying process. I'm also using McGard spline drive lug nuts with floating seats which helps prevent the lug pockets from getting scratched. Project Kics Iconix R40 and Rays Formula Nut FN-II use the same design and look cooler, but are much more expensive. I'm fine with the basic design.
Went to my first car meet in years and met @Z06Chris and felt inadequate.
Replaced the all-weather mats that came with the car with 3DMAXpider mats and transferred the Type R emblems over. Best mats ever. Also installed this Amazon tempered glass screen protector onto the headunit and ProClip dash and phone mount.
Just about completed my interior protection/utility initiative with OEM seat back protectors and cargo net. I actually bought the cargo tray from a member on here minutes after buying the car.
Installed the Artwork Bodyshop splitter that had been sitting for a while. Their mounting "solution" doesn't make any sense, so I copied the way the Verus splitter is mounted, just without the splitter rods (not my cup of tea). It's on there solid and has handled speed without issue. Please disregard the super sus jack situation.
And that just about bring us to now. I've got a lot of parts waiting to go on, primarily brakes and suspension, but it's hard to find time to install stuff between work and family life. I want to eventually track the car at least a couple times a year and just improve as a driver really. This won't be an exciting thread, but I've wanted to document my ownership of this car and I'm glad I finally got around to putting it together, thanks for reading.
Current pic:
I picked up the car on July 30th, 2022. If you click on my profile, you can see that I've been on this forum since 2018 - I've wanted a Type R for a long time. Before I got mine, I had a 2008 Si. It was Nighthawk Black Pearl, pretty much stock, and made me fall back in love with Hondas and FWD again with my second ever car being a DA Integra and then going through a few different RWD cars (E36 328i, Genesis Coupe, FRS, BRZ). I sold the Si with over 200K miles and it never really gave me any issues - it was a great car. For a while, getting an R didn't seem feasible. Between paying down student loans, getting engaged, getting married, going on our honeymoon, rescuing a dog, buying a house, renovating the house, then having a kid, I started to wonder if I'd ever actually get one. I even started to talk myself down to just getting a 10th gen Si. Eventually, things lined up and I sold the FA5 for more than I bought it for and got what I think is a great deal on the R from an individual up in Charlotte, NC (I'm in Atlanta).
The last pic I have of the Si before I sold it to a teenage kid that was most definitely going to rice it out. Sad, but what can you do.
The first pic I saw of the R.
The first pic I took of the R.
Brought it home.
I never really wanted a black R, or another black car, for that matter. That's what owning a NHBP FA5 will do to you, but I couldn't pass up the deal. One owner, no accidents, stock aside from tint and Amazon all-weather floor mats, low miles, well taken care of, southern car its entire life. I originally wanted Polished Metal Metallic, but over time, CBP has grown on me and I like how its glossy finish contrasts with the satin/matte black plastic around the car.
My driveway is kind of steep so I got these rubber ramps off Amazon to avoid scraping.
I knew I wanted PPF after getting tons of rock chips on the FA5, so I took the car to Atlanta Ceramic Coating and PPF and got the front clip, mirror caps, A, B, and C-pillars, partial roof, door handle cups, door edges, door sills down to side skirts, gas cap door, liftgate spoiler, and cargo deck done with XPEL Ultimate Plus. They did an ok job. My experience was overall not that great. If I had to do it again, I'd go somewhere else, but at least the price was decent.
Back from PPF.
Got some Titanium Gunmetal TE37 SLs. 18x9.5 +38 wrapped in Falken RT615K+ 265/35/18 XL. I coated them, all four brake calipers, and the exhaust tips with GTechniq C5. I also installed front and rear Sukeban rock guards at the same time. I eventually sold the rock guards as I didn't love the way they looked on the car.
Met @JohnInATL who was kind enough to help me change the oil and add a FilterMag, install the Whiteline transmission mount, switch to Amsoil transmission fluid, and flush the brakes with Endless RF-650. I didn't really feel any difference with the Amsoil and was still getting a bit of notchiness from first to second and third to fourth. I have since switched to ACDelco Synchromesh Friction Modified and have felt a small improvement. It's pretty smooth even when cold. I do have some other things I'd like to do to further improve the shifting, but that will come a little later.
Rainy gas station pic.
Installed the Acuity pedal spacer for better heel-toe action, the Raceseng Circuit Cylinder shifter knob, Suma blue convex rearview mirror, and Primitive Performance convex blue side mirrors as well. Ended up selling the pedal spacer and the mirrors. Ultimately, I unexpectedly use auto rev-matching all the time now and also prefer modulating the throttle with the stock positioning. The convex mirrors threw me off despite having them on other cars before and just felt more comfortable with stock. The shift knob is a carryover from the Si and I absolutely love it. Metal core for a little added weight but not too much to take away from feel and a delrin outer sleeve for a nice feel and resistance to heat and cold. I prefer taller shift knobs as I use a "handle" type grip when I shift opposed to a "claw" grip that is used with spherical shift knobs like the stock one.
Pulled the strut tower camber pins and installed Wunderladen Racing strut locks and aligned the car.
It'd be nice if my camber were a bit more even. Maybe I should get some subframe collars or the Honda subframe alignment tool. It'd also be nice to at least be in spec for caster, although a lot of FK8s seem to read low. Maybe I should get an anti-lift kit.
Got a deal on a PRL HVI which added some much needed noise. I actually like the stock exhaust. Not having drone on the freeway is great. A little more volume when getting on it would be nice, but the bypass valve noise keeps me mostly entertained.
Sold the TEs. I wasn't feeling the color. They got really dark when dirty with brake dust and almost looked black. TEs are my dream wheels and these were my first set and if I paid that much for them, I wanted them to stand out lol. They were nice when clean but given their matte texture, they really held onto brake dust, even though I had coated them. I luckily found a local buyer. Kept my tires.
Back on the stock dubs.
Got the same exact wheels, but in Mercury Silver. Also went with black valve stems this time, but not the actual Rays ones because they're overpriced, imo. Shortly after I ordered these and was preparing myself for the wait, Rays released their new silver finish, Diamond Silver. If I had the choice, I would have gone with Diamond Silver. It's similar to Mercury but not as reflective. I prefer that look but am also happy with Mercury. Kind of cool that it's an OG finish too. Coated them with C5 again but also added EXOv4 on top as well.
Wheel selfie.
On. I also removed the red pinstriping. I initially tried to cover it with black vinyl tape but it was hard to get perfect because the stuff I got off Amazon wasn't a perfectly consistent width due to imprecise cutting by the manufacturer. Had to go back with a heat gun and Goo Gone to get the residue off that the stock pinstriping left behind. Happy with how it turned out.
Ass shot.
When I installed the wheels, I wire wheeled the rusty rotor hats and painted the centers of the hubs with Rustoleum black paint. Looks a lot better imo. Heat gun helps speed up the drying process. I'm also using McGard spline drive lug nuts with floating seats which helps prevent the lug pockets from getting scratched. Project Kics Iconix R40 and Rays Formula Nut FN-II use the same design and look cooler, but are much more expensive. I'm fine with the basic design.
Went to my first car meet in years and met @Z06Chris and felt inadequate.
Replaced the all-weather mats that came with the car with 3DMAXpider mats and transferred the Type R emblems over. Best mats ever. Also installed this Amazon tempered glass screen protector onto the headunit and ProClip dash and phone mount.
Just about completed my interior protection/utility initiative with OEM seat back protectors and cargo net. I actually bought the cargo tray from a member on here minutes after buying the car.
Installed the Artwork Bodyshop splitter that had been sitting for a while. Their mounting "solution" doesn't make any sense, so I copied the way the Verus splitter is mounted, just without the splitter rods (not my cup of tea). It's on there solid and has handled speed without issue. Please disregard the super sus jack situation.
And that just about bring us to now. I've got a lot of parts waiting to go on, primarily brakes and suspension, but it's hard to find time to install stuff between work and family life. I want to eventually track the car at least a couple times a year and just improve as a driver really. This won't be an exciting thread, but I've wanted to document my ownership of this car and I'm glad I finally got around to putting it together, thanks for reading.
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