The other day I was on my way home from work, heading north on SRT241 here in SoCal. Came up on a new SI and did a flyby.

He got caught in the middle of a bunch of slower cars and I didn't think anything else about it until later when I approached a steep grade with more slow cars. I quickly glance over my shoulder to switch to an open lane, and who do I see? Same Civic SI about to do a flyby! I didn't see him in time and ended up cutting him off majorly.

We ended up bumper-to-bumper going UPHILL passing everyone else. I managed to slowly edge away from him and by the time we crested the hill I was about 5-6 CL's ahead of him, but it was a tough run with the pedal all the way to the floor.

Those cars are fast and I see them all over the place now! A similar thing happened yesterday with a new Chevy Cobalt.

I have a '97 328is that is stock except for FDM. Can anyone suggest some inexpensive mods I could do to keep up with these newer cars?

Those cars are fast and I see them all over the place now! A similar thing happened yesterday with a new Chevy Cobalt.

I have a '97 328is that is stock except for FDM. Can anyone suggest some inexpensive mods I could do to keep up with these newer cars?

:confused I had a run with a cobalt SS where he floored it about 3CL's behind me, i floored it when he hit my rear bumper, he went past me and i continued to put 2 lengths on him. That was a 40-80 race or close to it.

Get a differential asap. its a whole different car. A diff, M50, intake and exhaust frees up alot on a 328. Close to M3 level with all of that for less than a grand

The other day I was on my way home from work, heading north on SRT241 here in SoCal. Came up on a new SI and did a flyby.

He got caught in the middle of a bunch of slower cars and I didn't think anything else about it until later when I approached a steep grade with more slow cars. I quickly glance over my shoulder to switch to an open lane, and who do I see? Same Civic SI about to do a flyby! I didn't see him in time and ended up cutting him off majorly.

We ended up bumper-to-bumper going UPHILL passing everyone else. I managed to slowly edge away from him and by the time we crested the hill I was about 5-6 CL's ahead of him, but it was a tough run with the pedal all the way to the floor.

Those cars are fast and I see them all over the place now! A similar thing happened yesterday with a new Chevy Cobalt.

I have a '97 328is that is stock except for FDM. Can anyone suggest some inexpensive mods I could do to keep up with these newer cars?

Nice run. If you were 5-6 cl's ahead by the crest of the hill, there's a chance that the Si was in the wrong gear at the start. I mean the Si is lacking in the torque department without a doubt, but the light weight and aggressive gearing compensate for that handicap. Stock for stock, the 2 cars should be good competition. Good driving on your part.

The other day I was on my way home from work, heading north on SRT241 here in SoCal. Came up on a new SI and did a flyby.

He got caught in the middle of a bunch of slower cars and I didn't think anything else about it until later when I approached a steep grade with more slow cars. I quickly glance over my shoulder to switch to an open lane, and who do I see? Same Civic SI about to do a flyby! I didn't see him in time and ended up cutting him off majorly.

We ended up bumper-to-bumper going UPHILL passing everyone else. I managed to slowly edge away from him and by the time we crested the hill I was about 5-6 CL's ahead of him, but it was a tough run with the pedal all the way to the floor.

Those cars are fast and I see them all over the place now! A similar thing happened yesterday with a new Chevy Cobalt.

I have a '97 328is that is stock except for FDM. Can anyone suggest some inexpensive mods I could do to keep up with these newer cars?

He was probably in the wrong gear if it was an Si. I must say though that the 140 HP Civic EX coupe can be easily mistaken for an Si.

From E36 M3 vs New Civic Si (http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?p=10344960#post10344960):


OP can't drive. 197 hp car should not be beating you. Maybe the close ratio tranny helped him....but shouldn't by much.

It's underrated. It puts down 180 WHP, and in some cases (with generous dynos), closer to 190 WHP. It also puts down almost as much TQ to the wheels as it's rated at the crank. WTQ might be low at 135, but it's also completely flat from just above idle to redline. Not to mention it's lighter than an E36 M3 by over 300lbs. Do the math.

http://www.automobilemag.com/features/0610_gti_civic_mazdaspeed3_dyno/honda_civic_si.html

Here's the vid of the dyno session:
http://www.automobilemag.com/multimedia/video/0610_2007_honda_civic_si_dyno/

horsepower sells cars, torque wins races

horsepower sells cars, torque wins races

Who'd win between an F1 car (240 flywheel TQ) and a Viper (500+ flywheel TQ)?

Do you know what TQ multiplication by gearing is? The more revs you have, the more chances you have to multiply TQ into usable power. This is why cars like the S2000 and the Civic have such aggressive gearing and high-revving motors.

If you had said that "TQ forgives sins" then you'd be right. I guarantee you, if you had a driver that knows how to keep the motor in boil in both the 328 and the new Si, the 328 won't stand a chance.

Very true ^

yeah, to tell u guys the truth i have no idea about the physics behind this stuff, but i was just repeating something someone said on z4um from a while back :)

Who'd win between an F1 car (240 flywheel TQ) and a Viper (500+ flywheel TQ)?

Do you know what TQ multiplication by gearing is? The more revs you have, the more chances you have to multiply TQ into usable power. This is why cars like the S2000 and the Civic have such aggressive gearing and high-revving motors.

If you had said that "TQ forgives sins" then you'd be right. I guarantee you, if you had a driver that knows how to keep the motor in boil in both the 328 and the new Si, the 328 won't stand a chance.

i agree with what you said, but its hard to compare a heavy ass viper to an F1 car

i agree with what you said, but its hard to compare a heavy ass viper to an F1 car

The two cars are very close in TQ to weight ratio. However, the F1's high revving nature allows the TQ to eventually equate to 750+ HP.

horsepower = torque * rpm / 5252

While you do have a point, my buddy has an Si, and its not that fast. I dont have a stock 328 either, but its mildly modded and I guarantee you I could pull on him