The Difference Noticeable


Spudski

Active Member
Joined
Mar 1, 2011
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1,411
Hi there,

I have owned my EK4 VTI for just over a month now and well and truely got the Honda bug as they say. Always wanted a VTI since I started driving at age of 17 but couldn't insure one, now I own one at the age of 20 as my 2nd car as a toy and love it. However I have always loved the look of EK9's which is partly why I joined this forum aswell as all the helpful info.

The main question or reason of this thread is in August I turn 21 and am thinking of selling both of my cars and purchasing an EK9. I have seen the thread with the differences on paper between the EK4 and EK9, what I want to know is do you think or do you people that own a 9' think there is a major noticeable difference between the EK4 and EK9? I.e performance wise, handling etc. Also what are they like to use as an everyday car as I believe they have less sound deadening aswell as no power steering, although I suppose with no power steering you will get more of a 'racey feel' and a better feel for the road.

Any opinions on this would be appreciated, I am pretty set on the decision of getting one at the moment but I have a few months to decide.

Thanks

Nick
 
power wise, my vti was alot quicker than my ek9 and some of the lads i no who had vti's and 9's said the same but time you just get a quick car and a slow one depending on the life its had, i.e drivin hard or easy, well serviced or not etc, driving wise there the same i think depending on the way its set up. but for me i'd rather the 9 as it comes with all the wee extras like the kit, interior, tint and the rarity of them compared to vti's...
 
power wise, my vti was alot quicker than my ek9 and some of the lads i no who had vti's and 9's said the same but time you just get a quick car and a slow one depending on the life its had, i.e drivin hard or easy, well serviced or not etc, driving wise there the same i think depending on the way its set up. but for me i'd rather the 9 as it comes with all the wee extras like the kit, interior, tint and the rarity of them compared to vti's...
Like

Thats suprising, were the VTI's standard? I thought the 9 would have more torque with it having the B16b and on paper its over a second quicker, I suppose as you say depends on the life its had and the driver comes down to it aswell. I do like the kit on the 9' aswell and interior, my EK4 VTI has the 9' front red recaros, door cards and rear seats fitted.
 
If your EK4 hasn't been majorly modded you will feel the world of difference driving an EK9. Speed wise there is not much in it, but handling and feel are completely different. EK9 will feel more "raw". Great suspension set up and high reving engine still impress me everytime I drive my 9.

As an everyday car they are fine, not the most comfortable for long motorway driving though. Sound deadening won't really be an issue unless you have an aftermarket exhaust. Potholes feel horrible on EK9 suspension though

If you can get an EK9 do it...you will definately notice the difference :nice:
 
Thats suprising, were the VTI's standard? I thought the 9 would have more torque with it having the B16b and on paper its over a second quicker, I suppose as you say depends on the life its had and the driver comes down to it aswell. I do like the kit on the 9' aswell and interior, my EK4 VTI has the 9' front red recaros, door cards and rear seats fitted.

both me and my friends vti's just had induction kits and a de-cat pipe, thats it. the one i had was well looked after but was drivin hard by previous owners and me :naughty: it could beat ep3's no bother, its the only car i've regretted selling
but if i knew were it was, i would buy it again.
 
Hi mate. Ek9s do have power steering but there was an option not to have it...I think. Ek9s are better handling in my opinion. I used to use mine as a daily drive (until my ban) and it was absolutely superb. Always put a smile on my face and my highlight of everyday was the drive to and from work :)
 
both me and my friends vti's just had induction kits and a de-cat pipe, thats it. the one i had was well looked after but was drivin hard by previous owners and me :naughty: it could beat ep3's no bother, its the only car i've regretted selling
but if i knew were it was, i would buy it again.

All im gonna say here is that a VTi with an air filter will never be able to beat an EP3

I put a B18C6 in my VTi and the difference wasnt massive

Power to weight

VTi 160bhp ~1100kg = 145bhp per tonne

EP3 197bhp ~1203kg = 164bhp per tonne

VTi + B18C6 (210bhp @ Fly) ~1100kg = 190.9bhp per tonne


Bear in mind the EP3 has bag loads more torque and 6 speed box with relatively short gears.

Real life driving is always different than statistics but they just dont lie - i have experienced them ten fold.





My opinion is an EK9 is a lot more of a car than an EK4 as standard in terms of straight line speed (which is all most people care about) the difference isnt ground breaking but EK9 should win every time.

EK4 may feel torquier lower down but higher up the B16B has no problem out pacing an EK4 with B16a2.

Just to name a few differences that makes an EK9 a much better car:

Bigger brakes
Better suspension 10 x the R & D put into it
Bigger anti roll bars
Rear subframe brace
Racaro's (full interior is sexier)
Comes with the splitters / spoiler / grille (without the EK9's kit half the Civics you look at and go wow wouldnt be worth a second look)
Rear tints
Thinner Glass on the windows
Lighter weight than EK4..........................................

The list could go on

Having an EK9 is like buying a part of Honda's history and special but an EK4 is just another production car made by a manufacturer (bloody good one but meh).


You CAN make an EK4 better than a stock EK9 but it still wont be as special IMO.
 
I'm well impressed with my ek9 over any vti I have driven.
Everything about the ek9 just seems better and more solid, hard to explain but if you drive the two cars back to back you'll see what I mean.

Some people don't think the ek9 is worth the extra cash over an ek4 but once you add up how much extra you'd have to spend on an ek4 to get it the same feel as a standard ek9 you won't be saving much money.
 
Thanks for the info guys, Im pretty sure I'll still go down the route of getting one. Part of the reason is that they are more special been the Type R andmore exclusive. I am very impressed with my EK4 VTI its had a few bits done to it but from what people have said im sure the EK9 won't disappoint. Like mentioned alot of people are just interested in straight line and top speed but I want something that accelerates quick, puts the power down well and will go round the bends and corners quick aswell.
 
All im gonna say here is that a VTi with an air filter will never be able to beat an EP3

thats your opinion so far enough but it did happen and a better one than that,one night i raced one with 2 other people in the car and i still beat it, people from around my area all no that car was a real flier and still do this day when me and the lads are havin a conversation about cars, they still always bring up how fast it was, you dont have to start telling me about figures as i've been into cars since i was wee and im always reading and researching about cars, just because to you the figures say the ep3 is faster that doesn't mean it is, if you need reassurance about my little story ask leek9, i haven't known him that long but since he lives near me he could ask around and confirm what i said is true, i'm not making this up incase you think i am, thats just sad but it did happen....
 
I think the biggest difference is how it goes round a corner and mainly how it makes you feel. As someone said above, EK4 is just a nice nippy car, but there's nothing too special about it, it lacks the glamour of the EK9. The nine is as raw as it gets really, I've not had mine long, but there's nothing that I have driven that gets anywhere near it. The steering is so much better, you can really feel how much traction there is on the wheels. The turning circle is rubbish, steering is heavy in a good way. Every bit of the 9 is screaming - I was designed to be driven hard, I am a road going race car! There's a lot you can do to improve a standard EK4, but there's very little to be improved on a 9. Go for a 9, you won't be dissapointed!
 
I currently own both.
EK4 on 40k.
EK9 on 80k.

The EK9 is way better in every way.
You cannot compare them.
They just look similar.
I drive my EK9 rarely, but everytime I get in it I understand why the EK9 is so special.
 
thats your opinion so far enough but it did happen and a better one than that,one night i raced one with 2 other people in the car and i still beat it, people from around my area all no that car was a real flier and still do this day when me and the lads are havin a conversation about cars, they still always bring up how fast it was, you dont have to start telling me about figures as i've been into cars since i was wee and im always reading and researching about cars, just because to you the figures say the ep3 is faster that doesn't mean it is, if you need reassurance about my little story ask leek9, i haven't known him that long but since he lives near me he could ask around and confirm what i said is true, i'm not making this up incase you think i am, thats just sad but it did happen....

I can't comment on whether your story is true or not, but it is possible. Every single car is different, even if you had 2 same cars - the same model, same engine, same spec - there will be a difference between them. How was the car driven by previous owners, what tyres you're using, there's so much stuff. Everyone knows that if you drive hard all the time your engine will suffer, some engines cope better than others, but even B16B driven hard every day won't last as long as B16B driven hard once a week round a track and the rest just on the motorway. The same applies to not driving your car hard at all - engine that never goes over 3000rpm suffers a lot as well. Maybe he just didn't maintain his car well, when I bought my old EK3 couple years back, I got home and gave it a good service - oil, spark plugs, filters, standard stuff. It went 100% better, when I took the old spark plugs out I was surprised the car was running at all, that's how bad they were!
The point I am trying to make is that based on one observation it is difficult to judge - maybe another EP3 would smoke your vti. Maybe your vti went etremely well and the EP3 was just a dog. Maybe you will find it again, good luck! :nice:
 
thank you oifovo for your input, thats a very sensible comment which is appreciated :nice:, it couldn't be more clear what you are saying, it can happen :D
 
thats your opinion so far enough but it did happen and a better one than that,one night i raced one with 2 other people in the car and i still beat it, people from around my area all no that car was a real flier and still do this day when me and the lads are havin a conversation about cars, they still always bring up how fast it was, you dont have to start telling me about figures as i've been into cars since i was wee and im always reading and researching about cars, just because to you the figures say the ep3 is faster that doesn't mean it is, if you need reassurance about my little story ask leek9, i haven't known him that long but since he lives near me he could ask around and confirm what i said is true, i'm not making this up incase you think i am, thats just sad but it did happen....

I believe you, BUT

A standard EK4 vs standard EK9 in a straight line. EK9 should win. If the EK9 has had a rough life it will be closer and maybe an EK4 could edge it.

However, if your was EK4 is consistently keeping up and beating EP3's it is far more likely that your EK4 had more mods than an air filter. Manifold and a map? Maybe it even a b16b or b18 in there :D

I completely understand that a well looked after car will have an edge on an abused EK9. But because your car had a reputation for being fast, I'd imagine it was because it was and not just that everybody else had poorly serviced cars.

Don't take this comment the wrong way, I believe what you are saying. Just I think that your car was faster than an air filter and decat, or you are a lot better at driving than your friends. ;)
 
I agree with much of what's been said but won't re-write it.

I think for the money a properly tidy VTi would be you'd be able to get an EK9 for not a hell of a lot more - especially given some of the bargains that have been in the classifieds lately. Might be worth waiting a few extra months and being 100% happy than having the nagging what if.
 
For me it was a no brainer unfortunately, because we are in the middle of totally rennovating our house erm I mean buidling site I had to scrape the pennies together and get a cheap ek4. I'd love a tidy ek9 but that would be around £5k wheras I picked the ek4 up for £1,700 which was just about manageable. Funny think is though I've already painted the rocker cover, fitted a Mongoose cat-back, about to fit a supersprint set of headers, facelift + 9'd tail lights etc. Basically I can see that a 9 would be cheaper overall......but then I have the fun of trawling ebay for upgrades a sensible prices and then the fun of fitting them whilst planning what little mods to make / buy next!
 
I believe you, BUT

A standard EK4 vs standard EK9 in a straight line. EK9 should win. If the EK9 has had a rough life it will be closer and maybe an EK4 could edge it.

However, if your was EK4 is consistently keeping up and beating EP3's it is far more likely that your EK4 had more mods than an air filter. Manifold and a map? Maybe it even a b16b or b18 in there :D

I completely understand that a well looked after car will have an edge on an abused EK9. But because your car had a reputation for being fast, I'd imagine it was because it was and not just that everybody else had poorly serviced cars.

Don't take this comment the wrong way, I believe what you are saying. Just I think that your car was faster than an air filter and decat, or you are a lot better at driving than your friends. ;)

i a sure you thats all it had, a standard b16a2 with just over 100000miles on the clock, induction kit and de-cat, not even a jap b16a, no manifold or fancy ecu or cams or even exhaust, the 2 owners before me always drove the car hard. a car thats had a life like this is going to be more freed up than a car that has been drivin easy so naturally the hard drivin car will be faster !! do any of you guys ever drive your car with out vtec for a few days, then the day that you give her a good blast it wont feel as quick, my car was the opposite...
 
Thought id drop my 2 cents into this thread...

I owned my civic jordan for a year and packed up and bought my ek9, Jordan had a aem filter, decat, backbox, different b pipe, well looked after, 9 was standard when i bought it bar the j's racing induction kit and the ek9 caned it in a straight line and on the b roads...

If a b16a is smoking ep3's there is seriously some other mods in there... simple
 
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