Discovering a hidden Honda gem in the 808
To be completely honest with you, there isn’t very much we
know about the owner of this Championship White 1993 Civic CX. We know that his
name is Joshua Antolin and he hails from the great state of Hawaii and that’s
about it. Instead of going the traditional route of telling you a story behind
an enthusiast’s build, we’re going to try something a little different twist on
what your ’re used to reading. If you don’t know what the hell the “fourth
wall” is, try to remember an episode of Saved by the Bell when Zach Morris
freezes time, turns to the audience and speaks directly to them that’s what’s
considered “breaking the fourth wall”. Still clueless? Clearly you’re too young
to know what SBTB or who Kelly Kapowski is. What I’m trying to do today is
something similar sort of. Breaking the fourth wall usually means that you’re
being pulled out of an imaginary scenario but in the world of automotive
publication, what you’re seeing and reading is very real.
Championship White
1993 Civic CX
In the years that I’ve been writing for Super Street, we’ve
seen it all; all types of cars, different styles of tuning and getting to know
each personality that makes up our crazy world. How these features come
together before they hit print is pretty predictable. We see a car, find the
owner, arrange for the car to be shot and have them fill out various forms, one
of them being the “tech sheet”. These tech sheets open the lines of
communication between the owner and the writers for the magazine and usually
include every important piece of info you’ll need, from knowing which parts
were used, right up to the entire back story on how the car came together. Some
tech sheet are filled out in an incredibly detailed fashion, with every
important aspect of the build documented, but sometimes you get little to no
information at all, with the questions we ask responded to in one or two words.
In those instances, it is our job to get in touch with them to see if they can
give us some sort of story about their build. If for whatever reason we can’t
get a hold of the owner, we then have to proceed to use the power of the
worldwide web to dig up any information we can on the owner and their car
(begin sarcasm) the part we love most (end sarcasm).
If Joshua was planning on living off the grid, he’s done an
incredible job of it because there is little to no information on his Civic. He
doesn’t pursue any internet forums, doesn’t have a cool internet nickname that
people would immediately recognize, and (gasp) the guy is non-existent on any
social media outlet. A decade ago, it would be considered “normal” but in the
information age, the guy is practically a ghost. The age old phone call and
email were email were also extended but with no response. We noticed his car
was spotlighted one other time on a popular car website but after a thorough
reading, they, too, weren't able to squeeze a whole lot of information out of
the guy. To offer you a better understanding, one of the main questions on the
tech sheet was "Why did you build this vehicle?" Joshua's response
was simply, "To be cool." We agree that his Civic is indeed cool but
it would have been great had he tossed us that proverbial bone.
The only other tidbit of info is that he's from Hawaii, and
let's not kid ourselves, you've read plenty features about vehicle builds from
Hawaii. Let's not forget the Cliche play on words to try to manipulate
something Hawaiian into the opening title. All you need to know about Hawaii
is that they produce some great cars and that they've been doing so for years
now. Some of the most inspirational and memorable Hondas from the past have
been from the 808. The island may be small but buried in all that beautiful
scenery are some true gems-you just have to find them.
Devoid of any sort of backstory, all we are left with are
visual depictions of a story left untold. The Civic itself is a very
well-executed build that represents the clean and simple style that Hawaiian
enthusiasts have come to be known for. You'll rarely find extensive race bred
Hondas there because it's not what they are about. Hondas assembled on the
island are built to be clean street cruisers and Joshua's is just that.
Outside, the entire 19 year-old chassis has been massaged, door dings and minor
damage repaired before being sprayed the ever-classic Honda Championship
White. A BackYard Special front lip and rear duckbill spoiler serve as the
only aftermarket additions to the body while OEM J-spec lighting all-around
give it some Japanese chic. Both front and rear fenders have been significantly
altered to house an aggressive set of staggered 16x8/9.5-inch JLine wheels.
Fitting the wheels required some trickery and a lot of help from negative
camber adjustments. Providing the appropriate ride height is essential to
pulling of this type of wheel fitment so Function & Form was called upon
for their Type 2 adjustable dampers.
As stated, an everyday street Honda in Hawaii is rarely
built with a full track car appeal in mind, it just has to function and look
good doing so. Joshua's engine bay reflects that. Under the hood, you won't
find any forced induction components or custom oil catch cans and breathers.
There isn't anything but the bare necessities like your typical air intake,
header, and exhaust. The rest has been stripped down and the only major
addition other than the 2000 ITR motor is negative space. Helping to free this
space is a custom radiator that hides beneath the core support. On the
firewall, the factory brake booster has been eliminated and mounted in its
place is a Wilwood brake master cylinder. The bay was then shaved smooth and
color-matched to the rest of the shell. All electrical connections deemed
unnecessary are disregarded by utilizing a Rywire engine harness. The cockpit
of this CX hatchback mirrors the exterior and engine bay's minimalism. Besides
the MOMO steering wheel and NEXT Miracle X bar, there isn't much to go nuts
about. A near complete JDM SiR interior has been supplemented but only the
Honda-lover with a keen eye would catch that. While the info for Josh's Civic
is sparse, perhaps this story doesn't need to be about a car that's been
stuffed to the brim with as many parts as a given tech sheet can handle. Its
overall simplicity speaks volumes on its own. I'd drop another random Saved By
the Bell reference but my sleep deprivation is starting to kick in; I'd better
end it here.
[Tuning menu]
1993 Honda Civic CX
Owner Joshua Antolin
Hometown Honolulu, hi occupation painter
Engine 2000 Honda 1.8L B18C5; Innovative engine
mounts; Skunk2 Pro Series intake manifold; AEM fuel rail; PLM header; Password:
JDM dry carbon fiber Power Chamber intake; All-In Fab radiator, coolant lines;
shaved engine bay; Rywire engine harness; Odyssey battery DRIVETRAIN Honda S80
manual transmission; Exedy clutch
Skunk2 Pro Series
intake manifold
Engine management Chipped P28 ECU
Footwork & chassis Function & Form Type 2 Coilovers;
Wicked Tuning front camber plates; Blox rear camber plates; Function7 rear lower
control arms; ASR sub-frame brace; NEXT Miracle X bar
Brakes Chase bays brake line tuck; OEM 2000 Civic Si
brake proportioning valve; Wilwood brake master cylinder, cluster master
cylinder reservoir
Wheels & tires 16x8" +5/16x9 +0 JLine
SDMSL2; 205/40R16 Falken Ziex 912; Blox lug nuts
Exterior PPG Championship White paint; BackYard
Special front lip, rear spoiler; Vision TC side mirrors; JDM OEM window visors,
headlights, corner lights, taillights; rolled and pulled front/rear fenders
Interior JDM EG6 SiR front seats, rear seats,
interior panels, instrument cluster; MOMO steering wheel; JDM OEM Gathers head
unit.
