After two weeks the car was done and the freshly painted "Mallard" headed off to Import Power House in Phoenix to get the old motor swapped out in favor of a '99-spec JDM B16A. Along with the new motor came a Spoon Sports exhaust and Carbon Kevlar intake pipe, courtesy of ICB Motorsport. A CTR valve cover was also added for extra JDM bling. By press time, Jason reminded us that the motor would have gone through valvetrain modifications in the form of CTR cams, valvesprings and retainers.
In the final stages of his project, Jason was finally able to install the SiR navigation system. It took him six years but Jason credits Matt at ICB for helping him locate a complete right-hand drive cabin harness and navigation software from Honda Japan. "I did the entire electronics conversion without cutting any wires and everything works perfectly. It took me 16 hours on my back to rewire the cabin but it was worth the pain." In addition to having full navigational ability, the unit also plays DVD movies via a Gathers Media Box. To solve the problem of U.S. radio stations and Japanese tuner frequencies, Jason discovered a way to play 170+ channels of XM Radio by utilizing an XM black box. And with that final touch, "The Mallard" was born.
Bolts & Washers
Jason Buell's 1998 Honda Civic LX
Propulsion
The stock motor is ditched and a '99 JDM B16A sits in its place. Air is pulled in courtesy of a Spoon Sports Carbon Kevlar intake and exhaust gases are expelled by way of a Spoon Sports Street Exhaust and Vision 4-1 header. Headwork includes a complete CTR valvetrain.
Stance
Jason's EJ6 rides on Skunk2 dampers and Skunk2 camber kit. The chassis is reinforced with Skunk2 front and rear tower bars and a Tanabe Sustec lower tie-bar.
Rims & rubber
The Civic rolls on 8 pound 15x7 Regamaster Evo's attached to 205/50/R15 Falken Ziex tires.
Fashion
Exterior
The entire chassis is resprayed in a secret hue of what Jason calls "Mallard Green." Exterior goods include a complete JDM catalog of parts: JDM Ferio electric folding mirrors, EK4 SiR front/rear bumpers, EK side markers, thin side moldings, SiR front lip and badges, CTR front grille and headlights with 8000k HIDs. A rare First Generation Mugen wing sits on the trunk and Honda Access door visors and parking pole also find its way onto the Civic.
Interior
Jason has black JDM ITR front and rear seats from a DB8 Integra. The Momo SRS steering wheel is from an EK9 Civic and sitting inside the dash is a SiR gauge cluster mated to an EK9 carbon-fiber gauge bezel. Spoon Sports supplies the shift knob and no JDM-themed interior is complete without the JDM OEM safety flare.
I.C.E.
The Rockford Fosgate components are controlled by an ber-rare JDM SiR Optional Honda Navigation System. In addition to navigational functionality, the system has a radio, CD Player, lower tape deck and can play DVD Movies via the Gathers Media Box. To resolve the difficulty of using the radio with Japanese FM frequencies, an XM black box transmits 170+ channels of XM Radio into the navigation unit. Jason rewired the entire cabin with a complete JDM RHD harness to ensure proper function.