Thanks to Apple, CD’s have become obsolete in my Integra! Several weeks ago I completed a custom iPod installation that taps into the car stereo. Like last years Valentine One project, this was also a personal brainchild of mine. Two of the biggest perks of this setup include skip-free music and 1,000 songs of hand picked music at your fingertips. My iPod mini is actually silver. As you probably guessed, I added a little color to the homepage pictures with Photoshop.

How it works: The iPod is securely attached to the armrest underside via the belt clip. I fabricated the iPod remote to fit the empty slot adjacent to the e-brake. From the iPod remote, a 7 foot 3.5mm-to-RCA Monster adapter cable feeds into the backside of the Nakamichi CD-400 head unit. All wiring is discreetly located underneath the center consol. The remote controls the track selection, pause feature and power, while the volume can still be controlled via the head unit dial.

In order for this setup to work in your car, you need a head unit that features an Auxiliary-In. The final product is exactly how I had envisioned it from the beginning – providing awesome convenience and functionality. For more pictures and a detailed look into the fabrication process of this project, check out this Honda-Tech thread of mine.

Keep watch for next months detailed look into weight reduction!

The ITR Expo was, again, an awesome experience! It began with the Chicago caravan meeting at the Pancake House for breakfast on Thursday morning. One of our crew drove all the way from California! From Chicago, we headed out on our 500 mile journey to Beaver Run Pennsylvania. Half the fun was simply driving to the destination.

The highlights of the trip included shooting aerial photography of the Type R group picture, getting a ride in a supercharged NSX for a 30 min track session and simply hanging out with the Chicago guys. Thanks to Trey (the organizer and somehow a bigger Type R enthusiast than myself) the entire event went off without a hitch! If you own an ITR and did not attend – SHAME ON YOU.

Because I’m super lazy the picture gallery has not yet been updated with pictures from the event. However you can check out this Honda-Tech post with the best shots. The Canon 10D SLR was awesome for capturing the action shots on the track and from the air.

Currently, I am working on a custom install for the new IPod Mini. Check back soon to see picture and details of this project.

Special thanks to Dennis at CBR Stereo for your service! Since Nakamichi of Japan was extremely slow at returning my CD-400 head unit, Dennis went out of his way and sent me a new one from his own inventory. Their customer service was above and beyond what I expected – thank you! If you are considering purchasing audio equipment for your car, this is the place.

The 2004 Integra Type R Expo is just a few days away! The banquet will be Friday, July 23rd and the track session will be Saturday July 24th at Beaver Run Pennsylvania. I will have the Digital Canon 10D SLR. I’m working on recruiting the same pilot for another round of aerial photography since last year was so successful. The picture quality should be phenomenal and will be posted here soon after the event concludes.

My Type R is running great with 76,000 miles. Several weeks ago I purchased a Braille Auto lightweight battery through a honda-tech.com group buy. This new generation lightweight battery is awesome. The stock battery weighs 26 pounds and the Braille battery is only 12 pounds! 14 pounds of weight savings from an already lightweight car is always appreciated. The UPS box was so small that I could not believe the battery was inside! Check out this thread for more details and specifications until the modification section is updated.

Spring is finally here! The 2004 Integra Type R Exposition will be held at Beaver Run Pennsylvania again this year. The gathering will be July 23rd through the 24^th. It was so much fun last year I want to make sure everyone who can attend will register ASAP. If you own a Type R and live in the Midwest you have no excuse for not attending. Besides it is only $36 for the banquet cost if you are not racing! These are pictures from last year’s event - world record gathering of 100 Type R's. Click here to visit ITRCA.com and signup. It was great meeting many itrsport.com fans last year and I hope to do the same this year.

The Type R is running great with the exception of my Nakamichi CD-400 head unit (tear rolls down my face). It was having problems playing CD’s, cutting in and out frequently. Fortunately the one-year warranty is still good through CBR Stereo so I had it shipped back for repair. They were very helpful with the return process. Hope it comes back soon since I have a habitual tendency to turn up the volume only to remember there is no CD player! I still love this CD player as long as it gets fixed.

Currently I am doing freelance web design and photography full time. If you are looking to construct a website for personal or business use please contact me. I would really appreciate your help if you can forward me some business! Give me the details of what you have in mind and I can provide an estimate.

Thanks to Photoshop the site has been updated with a new look!  I’m also in the process of making the site more polished and user-friendly. For example, there are now custom pop-up windows for images. When you click a thumbnail (or a link with a picture) the image will appear in the same browser window. Click one of the thumbnails on the left for an example – pretty cool, huh? Let me know if you like the new graphic scheme or if you have any suggestions for other improvements.

It has been full-fledged-winter here in Wisconsin so that rules out working on the car. Fortunately I have the Nokian winter tires installed so getting through the snow has been no problem. The Volks are sitting in the basement, waxed and ready for spring.

Integra Type R #547 has reached the end of development. From performance to appearance to audio upgrades this car has been customized to my exact personal preference. Amazingly I am completely content with the car in its current state. I never knew that the “modification fever” would ever subside. Future expenses will be simply maintenance related.

Once summer time rolls through I will be looking for a new vehicle. There are a handful of affordable sports cars now on the market. The two vehicles, in particular, that are in my sights include the Mitsubishi Evolution Lancer and Subaru WRX STI. The fact that they are so different from the Integra Type R makes them appealing (AWD and Turbo Power). Do not worry - the type R is not going anywhere. The Type R was my original dream car, consequently it cannot be replaced – it’s a keeper! I wish Honda would release a new hardtop sports car in the 30k range so I could stay brand loyal.

On Saturday night I received a one hour ride in my favorite car of all time! A 1992 Ferrari F40! Quick overview – the entire vehicle is hand constructed and is comprised almost entirely of carbon fiber and kevlar. It heart is a 478 HP twin turbocharged V8. The F40 will rocket to sixty mph in 3.8 seconds and the top speed is 201 mph.

The owner has been an acquaintance/friend of mine for several years. On Saturday night I crossed paths with him at the local burger hangout, as I often do. During our conversation I enthusiastically said, “I’d love to get a ride in your car some day”. He smiled and said, “I’m going to head downtown and check out the Harley Davidson crowd. You are welcome to come along.”

There’s no way I can accurately explain in words what went through my mind at that instant. It was simply hard to believe I was finally going to get a ride in this amazing car.

So at about 12:15 A.M. I carefully crawled into the passenger seat. Since the car is so low, you need to strategically “fall” into the seat. When standing next the car the top of the vehicle comes up to about my belly button (44.3 inches to be exact).

Once the door was closed and my seat belt was latched we proceeded to leave the parking lot. I must have been pretty excited since I remember having tunnel vision before the car even started moving! Fortunately my vision came back to normal… at least for a couple minutes while we “taxied” the F40 to the downtown expressway entrance ramp.

During this time I was able look around the cabin and observe Italian design first hand. As expected, the interior is simple and free from instrument clutter. There’s no radio, no door handles (cable actuated), and no upholstery covering the beautiful carbon fiber doors. This is a street legal race car and all items that do not make the car faster are not included.

While admiring the dash, I took note of the deeply recessed green glowing gauges. This characteristic made it impossible for me to see the max speed on the speedo from the passenger seat. However, I was mesmerized by the universal logo for BOOST in a gauge just right of the steering wheel. At the 12 o’clock position on this gauge I see the number “12” indicating twelve pounds of boost! I’m thinking, “oh my, 12 pounds of boost on a V8!” Then I tilt my head over slightly to get a better view - my eyes widen even more when I see the number “22” at the 3 o’clock position!

Several moments later we approach the clover shaped downtown entrance ramp. We stopped momentarily at the yield sign to let a few underpowered vehicles in front of us get out of or way. Then we were off! With the sifter in first the F40 surged forward and quickly made its way around the bend. The car stayed flat without any noticeable body roll. Just prior to merging, Jim aggressively gets on the gas. I glance over at the boost gauge and see the needle quickly surpassing 12 pounds. My body is pinned back into the deep Kevlar seat. The trust of the acceleration was breathtaking! The massive rear tires begin to spin and Jim nonchalantly counter steers back and forth to keep the car going straight. He then shifted gears and the exciting procedure was repeated.

I was a bit surprised to experience the progressive power of the turbo engine to be remarkably smooth. The huge twin turbo’s give the impression there is a jet engine thrusting you forward. Even with a race suspension the drive downtown was not uncomfortable. The carbon fiber body provided a unique road feel unlike steel frames. The loudest element of the car was the brakes. They are extremely loud, especially just prior to a stop light. The high pitch screeching sound you hear at the train station is almost identical to the sound made by the F40’s ceramic rotors and carbon brake pads. If the eye popping red paint on this low slung Ferrari did not catch people’s attention then the brakes did the job.

Our trip took us to the lake front and then back through the busy downtown streets of Milwaukee. Even though it was after midnight the streets were packed with people because of the 100 year Harley Davidson anniversary. During our visit with the F40 we temporarily stole the show from the bikers. Jim, the owner, is a kid at heart and would regularly stomp on the gas! In addition he would race ANYBODY, even if it was some 16 year old in his Cavalier who wanted to run.

I have NEVER seen a vehicle that gets this much attention (and so it should with a sticker price exceeding $400,000). Nearly everyone would turn, smile, and point at you.

The most memorable part of the trip was downtown, while when we stopped at a red light (first row) between two outside restaurants. Dozens of people were lining both sites of the street just walking, mingling or eating. Nearly everyone turned their head to gawk at the car. Of course I was looking up at everyone, grinning ear to ear. You could hear a bunch of people compliment the car or just give you thumbs up.

One individual Harley owner with long hair, big grey beard, and a leather jacket soon stood out from the crowd. He started yelling, “Light ‘em up!” And while doing so he kept walking closer and closer. Soon this big guy was in the middle of the one way street just outside my door. I was a little uncomfortable but not worried. He said, “there are guys here with $50,000 Harley’s that have done burn outs so you can do it too” This guy would was on a mission, on a mission to instigate breaking the law (I did not object to this idea).

Moments later the light turns green and it felt like I was launched off an air craft carrier. There was no smoke just acceleration. We reached about 80 mph in an instant and all I saw were the blurred images of parked cars whizzing by on both sides of the street. We were doubling the speed limit in a blink of an eye. Although there was no smokey burnout I was sure that the persistent Harley rider and crowed were entertained.

It was a great experience to ride in such a famous and already classic Ferrari. It’s too bad that I did not have my camera along.

Lots of new things to report! First and foremost, the 2003 Type R Expo was a huge success. I doubt it's possible to fit more fun and excitement into one weekend. The most memorable was probably my plane trip to photograph over 100 Type R's on the Beaver Run race track.

Pictures from the event will be posted in the gallery soon. Check out this Honda-Tech post with a few of my sample pictures.

Here is a short video from the Expo, created by Evan Panek.
Right click and choose "Save Target As" (2003 Expo Teaser)

My car is now faster, thanks to a new Comptech 4-2-1 stainless steel header. Top end power and especially the midrange is noticeably improved. This new header is about one third the weight of the heavy stock cast header. I strongly recommend this modification if you want your Integra to make more power. New Pzero Nero tires have also been installed a couple days ago.

During spring break I found a great deal on a slightly used Mugen Lowdown suspension. Here are a few pictures from the previous owners vehicle (1 2 3 4). This kit lowers the Type R exactly 3/4 of an inch and has a 5 way adjustable dampening system.

The suspension has been on my car for about a week. The car definitely eats up the corners faster. High speed cornering is confident with nearly all body roll eliminated. Shock dampening is currently set to 2 at the front and slightly stiffer in the rear at the 3 (1 soft / 5 hard).

The 2003 ITR Exposition is one week away! One hundred and fifty Type R's are scheduled to attend this record breaking event at Beaver Run raceway in Pennsylvania. Pictures and video will be posted right here following the event.

The “Ultimate Driving Machine” has been added to the family! My Brother purchased a new 2003 BMW M3 coupe. The best part was that he let me take delivery while he was at work! I had the opportunity to drive it for about 100 miles this past weekend. The car is phenomenal in every respect, from performance to appearance to luxury.

The break in period is 1,250 miles so I can not give any impressions of its true brute power yet. However, with 333 horse power and a blistering zero to sixty mph time of 4.8 seconds it will be scary fast. Be sure to visit the gallery for a great collection of pictures of the M3.

Here is a direct link to new pictures from the fall photo shoot. These were taken two weeks ago in Indiana.

There were six Type R's and tons of nicely equipped civics, some with engine swaps. Pictures have been posted in the gallery under the "Meet" section.