The Tuned CivicX Experience & Reliability Thread (for all models)

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gtman

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litcrayon

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Vehicle: 2020 Civic Hatchback Sport Touring (CVT) (White)

Total tuned time: 9 months

Tuned miles driven: 13500km / 8388 miles (tuned the moment my car hit 1000km)

Tuning device(s) used: Ktuner v2 originally, downgraded to a ktuner v1.2 after a month to keep it plugged in and out of sight, once I installed tunerview lite on the headunit I saw no reason to keep the v2, I keep the v1.2 plugged in 24/7 to have the car remember last used map

Tunes used: Ktuner starter 21, tsp stage 1, phearable 1.5, been using phearable 1.5 since it came out, my favourite off the shelf tune, run map 3 100% of the time. If im flooring the car I obviously want to go fast so I don't think map 1/2 are relevant to me. Otherwise map 3 is very managable for daily driving.

Fuel used: 91 Petro with starter 21 and tsp stage 1, petro 94 with phearable 1.5, had no issues with knock or fuel trims with any of the tunes

Additional related mods: PRL short ram intake (street MAF), type r rear motor mount, resonator delete

Problems/issues: I recently had an issue where the car would lurch/jerk HARD whenever accelerating from a dead stop, the issue persisted after flashing back to stock so I don't think it was the tune. I ended up spray cleaning the MAF sensor and refilling a full tank of 94 petro canada gas and the issue went away immediately. I don't think this issue was relevant to the tuner though. Otherwise everything is perfect. Just wanted to add this in just in case anyway else experiences this. Bottom line is, flash back to stock and if the issue is still there it isn't the tune itself.

Driving style: Mostly very normal, no hard turning or anything but I use the highway every time I leave the house so I probably do at least 1-2 WOT pulls per drive.

Tuning experience notes: I still remember how worried I was before I actually tuned the car but now that I have done it, know many people online and in real life that have heavily tuned/modded their 10th gen civics, it feels like a no brainer. Specially the off the shelf tunes, I think 100% of people that want more power should just do it. Paired with regular maintenance the car will work great. I've brought the car in for service once at the dealership, just took my ktuner out and I was fine. It honestly only takes 5 minutes to flash back to stock so I would reccomend it but all of my friends and I leave the car tuned when we bring it in for service with no issues so far. I would 100% flash back to stock if I went in for an issue not just normal service.

Ive driven CVT civics that are full bolt on, W1 turbo and custom tune, while the difference is noticible in straight line racing, it doesn't feel different unless you're WOT (my opinion). So it's something you have to take into consideration if you dive deep into FBO CVT tuning. You're putting in time/money and potentially setting yourself up for long term issues for just better straight line performance.
 
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Thanks for adding your car and the detailed notes. :thumbsup:

You mentioned the W1 turbo and how it doesn't really feel faster than stock at less then WOT. Fact is, if people are considering upgrading to that turbo, they need to know what they're getting into. If they mostly are driving in the low to mid rpm range, they may be slightly disappointed. Where that turbo shines is at higher rpm.
 
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Fk7Peyton

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Got rid of my EX hatchback and got a Sport Touring Hatch.

Ktuner V2
PRL CAI Race
TSP Stage 1
(Rev9 Intercooler core, not installed YET)

lol so i full sent and tuned it day 1 from the dealership (had to wait for TSP since my ECU# changed along with Race MAF upgrade) I'm at 1600 miles now on the clock and zero issues. Race MAF has slightly higher K.con (0.49-.59 on highway pulls) 0.5-1gal of E85 keeps Kcon pretty close to 0.49. Always running Sunoco 93 unless no top tier is available (then I baby the car)

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Car looks great do you use the artificial knock control elimination with ur Ktuner?
 
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Car looks great do you use the artificial knock control elimination with ur Ktuner?
He uses a TSP1 which doesn't have that feature. Instead, the OTS tunes use a built in workaround involving timing.
 


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In talking to a few top people in the CivicX tuning world, it's pretty clear only a very small percentage of tuned CivicX owners post their cars in this thread. Meaning that 90%+ don't.

I know that filling out the 10 item "tuning survey" does take some time (depending on how detailed you want to make it). But, it's important to do it. Think about when you were deciding if tuning was worth the risk. If this thread helped you feel comfortable enough to go ahead and tune, isn't adding your tuned car here basically a no-brainer?

Pay it forward and add your car. If any other tuning based thread of mine has helped you, help the community and add your car.

On the other hand, I can't force anyone who doesn't want to do it. It's your choice to just read the information here and lurk. Still though, I hope you consider being a part of this.
 
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Current thread stats and info

Total tuned cars submitted: 608

Total tuned miles driven: 8,592,550 (reported)
Car with most tuned miles: choo (101,000+)

Cars with major failures: 15 (2.5%)

Failures by tune type: Base: 7; OTS: 2; Custom: 6
Failures by model: Si: 3; Non-Si: 12; CTR: 0; 2.0 NA: 0
5 of 6 Non-Si engine (rod) failures were hatchbacks

Percentage of cars running reliably: 97.5%

Transmission type: CVT (196); Manual (412)

Hondata used for tuning: 126; Race (109) Carb (17)
KTuner used for tuning: 510; V1.2 (284) V2 (226)

JB4 used as tuning device: 3
RaceChip used as tuning device: 4
Motec used as tuning device: 3

Pro custom tuned cars: 113
Base tuned only cars: 180

Most popular OTS tune: TSP Stage 1 (266)
Other popular OTS tune: Phearable Stage 1.5 (106)
Newest OTS tunes: TSP 1+ (18); Phearable 1.5R (9)

Top rated pro tuners: Derek Robinson, John Vega

Submissions by model: Si (276); 1.5T Non-Si (270); Type R (43); 2.0 NA (19)

Most popular fuel used: 93 octane (315)
Users adding 1-2 gallons E85: 78
Flex fuel kits installed: 63

Cars with no added bolt ons: 193
Cars with at least one bolt on: 291
Cars running full bolt on setups: 124

Upgraded turbos installed: 42
 

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Vehicle: 2019 Civic Type R

Total tuned time: 3 months

Tuned miles driven: 3,000+

Tuning device(s) used: Hondata FlashPro

Tunes used: Hondata custom tune by Phearable

Fuel used: 93

Additional related mods:
  • PRL High Volume Intake
  • PRL race downpipe (catless)
  • PRL front pipe
  • HKS Legamax cat-back exhaust
  • HKS FMIC and piping kit

Problems/issues: None!

Driving style: Street (daily driver), autocross, track

Tuning experience notes:

John Vega at Phearable was local and recommended to me by a trusted friend. He made sure I was comfortable throughout the process and was super friendly with answering all my questions. Really knowledgeable guy. We met up in person for a tuning day and put the car on dyno for him to dial everything in...

I can honestly say that the car is running just as well as (if not better than) stock - except with a ton of power across the board. Delivery is smooth like stock, and but it is way faster all around. Fuel economy has never been better, so many smiles per gallon ?

My car made 386whp/393wtq on a Dynojet. Super happy since I wanted something conservative, I drive it hard with no hiccups.
 
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Thanks for adding your car. Vega is one of the best! :thumbsup:
 

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Vehicle: 2019 Civic SI coupe

Total tuned time: 8 months

Tuned miles driven: 6k

Tuning device(s) used: Hondata Race Flashpro,

Tunes used: hondata +6 psi, TSP stage 1

Fuel used: 93

Additional engine mods: prl stage 1 intake kit, Catless dp and front pipe, ss clutch line, CDV delete

Problems/issues: none with tune

Driving style: heavy footed to grandpa lol

Tuning experience notes: love the tsp stage 1 need to upgrade clutch soon. Want to get turbo upgrade and flex fuel



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Just want to update on build. 11,000 miles on tsp stage 1. Recently just retuned with base map ethanol about 500 miles on new tune. I have added PRL race CAI, ACT clutch 6 puck Sprung, PRL flex fuel kit running E35 on Base map ethanol tune. Injen FMIC, W1 turbo is coming next week and after will get custom tune. Rear mount upgrade as well. Still no issues with anything besides clutch slippage but since clutch upgrade has been great except I kinda with I was more conservative on clutch selection.
 
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Just want to update on build.
I have added PRL race CAI, ACT clutch 6 puck Sprung, PRL flex fuel kit running E35 on Base map ethanol tune. Injen FMIC, W1 turbo is coming next week and after will get custom tune. Rear mount upgrade as well. Still no issues with anything besides clutch slippage but since clutch upgrade has been great except I kinda with I was more conservative on clutch selection.
That's good to know and thanks but all updates really needs to include your additional tuned mileage too. It's a tuning reliability thread after all.
 
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Jrmybrtn

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That's good to know and thanks but all updates really needs to include your additional tuned mileage too. It's a tuning reliability thread after all.
Gotcha I added that as well
 
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2 Month Update

Vehicle: 2020 Hatchback Sport 6MT

Total tuned time: 2 Months

Total tuned mileage: 3000 Miles

Tuning device(s) used: Ktuner V1.2

Tunes used: Tsp Stage 1, Map 1 90% of the time

Fuel Used: 93 Octane

Additional engine mods: 27Won CAI, 27Won RMM

Problems/issues: None

Driving style: Relaxed normally, sometimes have some fun on ramps and passing. Rarely WOT.

Notes: Still enjoy driving every single day with this tune, what a difference it makes.
Update:

Total tuned time: 7 Months

Total tuned mileage: 10,000 miles

Tunes used: TSP Stage 1

Fuel used: 93 Octane

No issues after 10K. Clutch seems to be holding up fine still even on map 3, though I do have BBG enabled for 4/5/6 gears.
 

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Original Post

2021 Update:
  • Vehicle: 2018 Civic Si Coupe (FC3)
  • Vehicle's History: Purchased Brand New w/7 Mi. on the Odometer
  • Total Tuned Time: 2 years, 10 months.
  • Total Tuned Mileage: 29,000 Mi.
  • Tunes Used: TSP Stage 1 (10K Mi) & TSP Stage 2 (19K Mi).
  • Fuel Used: Chevron 91 & BP Fuels E85 (E40 Blend).
  • Additional Mods: See Signature
  • Driving Style: Aggressive/"Spirited"
  • Problems/Issues:
    • Stock Clutch Started Slipping After TSP Stage 1, PRL Cobra CAI, PRL FP & DP
    • Pushed Headgasket/Stretched Head-Studs On TSP Stage 2 w/FBO.
  • Tuning Experience/Notes:
I have been and still am a fan of @D-RobIMW's work on the TSP Tunes. I have had zero issues with it the entire time I've had it. About a year or 2 ago, an e-mail went out for users to get a Revised version of the tune. I emailed back, but I got someone else's tune and was not able to load it. I believe the tune reduced the low-end torque which was causing head-gaskets to push and/or rods to stretch.

A couple months into running the TSP Stage 2 tune, I tracked my car at Willow Springs. After that, I noticed it was sputtering on start (Sounded like a Subaru) and sometimes under load, it would misfire. I looked at datalogs, I chased potential fuel issues, replaced the injectors, spark plugs, etc. and had the same issue. I was in denial, but I was sure I pushed a head-gasket. Long story short, the low-end torque stretched the head-studs and pushed the head-gasket. I replaced the headgasket with a Copper Sprayed OEM Head-Gasket and the MA-Performance (MAP) ARP Head-studs kit. I've had the car for a week and it feels better than ever.

I'd also like to state that I am still on the original TSP Stage 2 Tune. ?
 
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mauiSI19

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Vehicle: 2019 Honda Civic SI

Total tuned time: 3 months

Total tuned mileage: 2,500 miles

Tuning device(s) used: Hondata -RACE

Tunes used: Hondata +6 Hondata +9

Fuel used: 92 octane

Additional engine mods:
  • 27won intake
  • 27won exhaust fp/catted dp

Problems/issues: None

Driving style: Conservative, aggressive when traffic is minimal.
Vehicle: 2019 Honda Civic SI

Total tuned time: 2 Years+

Total tuned mileage: 17,000+ miles

Tuning device(s) used: Hondata -RACE

Tunes used: Hondata +6, +9 Psi, Custom Etune Derek Robinson FBO, 27WON W1 base Map,
Currently in the process of Etuning with Derek Robinson

Fuel used: 92 octane

Additional engine mods:
  • 27won intake
  • 27won race MAF
  • 27won Turbo Inlet pipe
  • 27won W1 Turbo
  • Mishimoto Intercooler w/ charge pipes
  • 27won exhaust fp/catted dp
  • New spark plugs gapped to 0.022"
  • ACT Street organic Clutch+KzCMC+PRL SS braided clutch line.

Problems/issues: threw secondary o2 sensor codes on hard downshifts into 2nd because I didn't have it disabled in hondata. I was running rich and a wide range of LTFT on the 27won w1 base map-91 Oct. I am running 92. LTFT would vary from -4 to -7. -10 on a rare occasion. LTFT shot to -11 when using Hondatas high pressure fuel option. That was quickly disabled but the additional power from it was noticeable. Currently etuning with Derek, LTFT hasn't gone higher then -3.12

If you dont believe a custom tune works. Well look at me. LOL.

Driving style: Conservative, aggressive when traffic is minimal.
Wow I wouldn't think I'd be tuned this long and with this much mods since.
I aim to touch 300hp or 280-290whp. Not building past that. I believe 300 is the magical number on this cars when skirting reliability with a little power.
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