Despite what you may think by reading the bold letters set on the title line of these pages, this isn't about a heated rivalry between two owners, from the same coast or from the same car crew. In fact, the ATS Garage crew is tighter than ever. Throughout the years they have had a fleet of heaters that are all worthy of mention in their own right. The "feud" as we have stated, is not between two men, it's a battle between ideologies. Let's call it a "friendly" debate within the Honda community between the B-series loyalists and the enthusiasts who have taken to the power and new technology of the K-series.
Ryan Der's 1999 Honda Civic DX
This is a tale of two very different builds. Anh Truong, the newest member of ATS, has been an Integra-lover as long as he can remember. He was once a B-series guy until he was seduced by the power of the K. Ryan Der, has had his Civic for the past eight years and would never imagine putting anything in the bay other than a B.
"I love the way the motor sits in the engine bay, it just looks 'right' to me." Ryan explains. "I've always been a big fan of the B-series and I feel it just has the right look and feel inside a Civic."
Though he's perfectly content with his B18C, he's also had his fair share of issues. It wasn't necessarily due to the motor itself, but the parts he had on it. "Prior to having my ITB set-up, I used to track my car quite often at Thunderhill, Infineon and Willow Springs. After I installed them I never tracked it. It was cool to have them on the car but I never felt comfortable driving it. I didn't think it would be reliable enough to last a 20-minute session at full throttle. It was tuned and all but it would just smoke and bog a lot so I just scrapped the whole ITB set-up."
"I wanted full reliability and a fresh start. I ditched the old ITR motor I had and went with a unmolested 98-spec JDM B18C," Ryan says. "I just decided to run an intake, header and exhaust, and keep the setup simple. My goal was to be able to drive 150 miles to the track, another 100 on the track, then drive back home without any problems. A stock ITR engine provides enough power for the track and I feel that it's really balanced in my car. It's not too much and not too little. Balance is very important to me and the B-series provides just that."
Despite its pristine show car appearance, this Civic is very capable on the track. It goes with that "balance" Ryan set out for in the final incarnation of his 8-year long build. "I used to just buy a bunch of replica parts when I first started out. I had the mindset then that they were the same as the originals. After awhile, I started realizing that they just weren't up to par and nowadays I just save up and buy what I really want. I've done so much to this car over the years and I knew that this was going to be the last time I would rebuild it-so I went all out."
"I got tired of the car being black so I figured I would just strip the whole car down and start from scratch. I sold everything I had so that I could get exactly what I wanted. Being that this was the final overhaul, I wanted parts that I would never have to upgrade again."
Ryan credits the J's Racing FD2 Civic as his inspiration behind the two-tone paint scheme. The popular thing to do within the past year or so has been to have a different colored bay than the exterior. He flipped the script and went a different route - like his J's Racing muse, he had not only the bay but also the entire interior re-sprayed. "I know two-tone paint schemes are getting kind of played-out in the Honda scene, but no one has really done it that way."