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44 MODIFIED.com october ’10
october ’10 MODIFIED.com 45
M
otorsports is constantly evolving. New
technological innovations, adjustments to rule
books, wrecks on the track, changes of heart —
there are lots of reasons why cars come and
go from the world of racing. Other times, a car starts life with
modest intentions and slowly transforms into a full-fledged
track beast. Loi Song of Sportcar Motion is no stranger to racing
Hondas; his latest Civic is a combined result of many previous
builds and learned experiences along the way.
Loi hasn’t always been a Honda guy. Back in the day, the
now famous “Tea Father” was actually a Mustang man. After
tinkering around with a few muscle cars and building one of
the most unique and groundbreaking FD RX-7s of its time, Loi
met a man who changed his automotive life. Matt Rodriguez,
aka Rodrez of Honda Tuning, is credited as the man who got
Loi into Honda for the first time.
“I was always intrigued by FF Hondas, but it wasn’t until
I met Matt that I actually bought one and took the dive. My
first Honda was a turbo (Civic) Del Sol that I was able to get
into the mid-11s as a street car,” Loi recalls.
When the Honda bug bites, it bites hard. Loi has been a fan
ever since and has built many cars over the last decade or
so, ranging from mild to wild. The Civic you see before you
started life with modest intentions. At the time the build commenced, Loi and Sportcar Motion already had two dedicated
time attack cars in its stable: an Unlimited class turbocharged
K20 EG Civic and a NA K24-powered (at the time) Limited
class Integra Type-R. Loi wanted to build his newest Civic as a
true street car, something he could track for fun but also drive
home without attracting the entire San Diego police department to his front doorstep. This idea quickly flew out the window, however, when Loi was contacted by Oscar Jackson and
Oscar Jr. at Kraftwerks to inquire as to whether or not the Tea
Father wanted to use his new “street car” EG as a test mule
for a fully race-prepped K-series supercharger kit. As any true
racer would, Loi obliged and the deed was done.
“We were the test car for the [Kraftwerks] race kit,” Loi
says. “No one else had the kit at the time, and we were really
impressed with how it performed.” Loi’s cars are always
evolving, and at the time of our photo shoot, the car was
powered by a 10.5/1 compression built K24 mated to a K20A2
head. Making just over 440 hp, the EG can certainly move. A
slew of goodies from Skunk 2, Eagle, Earls, Kraftwerks and
Sportcar Motion in-house specials make whatever motor
setup Loi runs a sure winner.
As the car transitioned away from street and toward track,
the decision was made to partially gut the interior and shoot
for the Limited class of time attack competition. Sporting
an Autopower bolt-in rollcage, a Sparco bucket seat and an
Accusump oil accumulator with braided lines in plain view,
it’s immediately apparent that his car is no daily driver. DEFI
gauges keep Renzo Marsano (Sportcar Motion’s race driver)
informed, while a Personal steering wheel keeps everything
on the proper line.
Specs & Details
'94 Honda Civic
Engine Honda K24 inline-4
Engine Modifications 10.5/1 compres-
sion CP pistons; Eagle Rods; stock K20A
head; Skunk Stage 2 cams, 74mm throttle
body, Version 2 intake manifold, Mega Power
K-swap header, exhaust; Kraftwerks supercharger; RC injectors; Koyo radiator; Earl’s
Performance oil cooler
Engine Management KPro
Drivetrain Exedy twin-plate clutch; RSX
Type-S transmission w/ 4.764 final drive;
Kaaz 1.5-way LSD
Interior DEFI gauges; AEM wideband sensor; Summit Racing shift light; Sparco seat;
Personal steering wheel; Autopower bolt-in
rollcage
Wheels, Tires & Brakes Advan RG
wheels 16x8” (f/r); Toyo R888 tires
225/45R16 (f/r); Wilwood Dynapro 6-piston
big brake kit (f)
Numbers 440 hp & 265 tq
Thanks To Renzo Marsano, Tony at Skunk2,
Miguel at Wilwood, Nestor at K&N, Edwin at
Hawk Performance, Philip at TEIN, Oscar Jr. &
Sr. at Kraftwerks, Morgan, Matt Rodriguez,
Cole, Scotty, Tristen, Shawn Moore, Daniel
Butler at Church’s Automotive Testing, Tom
at Port Flow Design, Nick at BDL
Suspension TEIN SRC coilovers; Sportcar Motion
spherical bearings on all suspension parts , Sportcar
Motion front lower control arm, rear lower control arm,
front & rear camber kit, rear trailing arm bushing, toe
kit, roll-center adjuster
46 MODIFIED.com october ’10
october ’10 MODIFIED.com 47
On the outside, the car is all race. It’s also all white. In
fact, Loi always builds white cars — if you take a look at his
past projects, you’ll notice the pattern right away. Why, you
may ask? There’s no secret reason — Loi just likes white
cars! A custom Sportcar Motion front splitter, front canards
and vented hood set the front end off nicely while keeping
function at the center of everything. The exposed oil cooler
and front-mount intercooler remind us of the all-business,
all-the-time mantra that Loi lives by, as does the custom rear
wing bracket. Loi likes downforce, and with a car like this, you
really need it. This ain’t your grandma’s hatchback, this is a
true race car through and through.
“The wing helps keep the rear end planted at high speeds,”
Loi says. “The front end aero package is good for this car because it provides the right amount of downforce to keep the
car stable and handle in a predictable way. The side skirts help
to eliminate side wind gusts and therefore aid in high-speed
stability. The theme here is stability.”
To keep the car cornering like it should, Loi turned to his
long-time friend and partner in crime Philip at TEIN. A set of
off-the-shelf SRC coilovers keeps the EG dialed in and tight
through the twisties, with the added bonus of custom Sportcar Motion spherical bearings and a fully redesigned custom
race suspension setup. The wheel and tire package was a
set of 16x8-inch Advan RGs paired with sticky Toyo R888
tires. “We change the setup depending on the rule book, track
48 MODIFIED.com october ’10
Exterior
Apr rear wing
w/ custom
mounting
brackets;
Sportcar
Motion custom
front splitter,
canards,
custom vented
hood; PCI side
skirts
configuration and weather and track conditions of each event
we compete in,” Loi says. The brake system has also been upgraded and changed several times. With a guy like Loi, who’s
always striving for the next best thing, it’s hard to keep up!
Hard to keep up is a common theme it would seem, as Loi’s
car sets records and wins races regularly. Competing in the
Super Lap Battle and Redline Time Attack series, you can
always spot the Sportcar Motion crew easily. They’re the
white Hondas that go fast, win races and make the AWD guys
scratch their heads in wonder. We can’t wait to see how the
car continues to change and bust records throughout the rest
of the 2010 season and the next.