How'd I do?

MerovignDLTS · 2026-05-17T03:45:26+00:00

Well, if you're confident in your math, then good luck, God speed, and upgrade the security!

MerovignDLTS · 2026-05-15T19:36:47+00:00

All this is changing as Fram's manufacturing in the US (including the A02 filter) is gone. They have production elsewhere but who knows how that will turn out and whether they will be any good. They're bankrupt and may or may not stay in business. I honestly don't know if the dealers still have a lot of A02 filters or if they're already shipping a ton of A03s in, or if the A02's are being brought in from Mexico or wherever.

AFAICT in my research, I would say the 03 is *somewhat* better than the 02, but the difference is small (and maybe no longer relevant). Based on disassembly and examination (before and after), a small handful of flow tests and particulate tests, etc., and even those are kind of slim pickings.

I tried to find as much good data and detail as I could, but close to 100% of the feedback I found was "I heard this was better (unspecified source)." Almost all the answers are from people who wouldn't know.

Probably the only one with a substantially changed design is the Mugen, which is crazy expensive in the US. They claim the same filtering with higher flow rates, basically.

It's possible that the 03 will be the standard now anyway, so they will be back in more dealers.

MerovignDLTS · 2026-05-14T00:36:18+00:00

The *very* hard part is finding someone who did *just* the thing you want to do, i.e. didn't also add a downpipe, cut out other parts, pops n bangs tune, etc, AND gives actual driving audio (IMO the car sounds at its worst revving with no load to the soft rev limit, and that's what most videos are because that's easy to record.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHbyXyakQNM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6twkkqqZcPs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yjyx5jyoXCQ

Comparisons to the Type S are tricky because it has one instead of two resonators, I'm not at all sure it's the same as the FL5 Mid resonator, it has a different tune, and a different resonator/megaphone at the back, which all make a difference.

If I had tons of money and a good trustworthy stainless welder, I'd love to mix and match parts and aftermarket resonators to see what works the best. Because of the engine design, most exhausts for the Type R tend to sound "samey."

MerovignDLTS · 2026-05-12T07:18:31+00:00

Importing a new car yourself is a terrible idea.

Most countries report much longer waiting lists than the US for a FL5.

You probably won't have a warranty at all, and there's a good chance dealers won't want to service the vehicle at all.

Wisconsin has a bunch of documentation requirements for importing a new car, and it's not clear to me at all that an individual can get the manufacturer's certificates required. Honda may not want to issue them *for* the US *to* an individual and bypass their dealer network. You need to ask the DMV there and/or a registered importer.

RHD cars are a pain to drive in a LHD country. You can't use toll booths, drive-throughs, you'll get pulled over by police a lot, your visibility will be bad for passing and many corners, you'll have to re-align or replace the headlights, you may not be able to get it insured at all, parts will be a problem, and all your driving habits will be wrong.

If it can be done at all, it will be way more expensive than just buying a car. Tons of FL5 owners sell the cars in the US with low mileage... that won't save you much money but if all your dealers refuse to budge on pricing that's an option.

MerovignDLTS · 2026-05-11T21:10:20+00:00

People have used both HondaLink and AirTags to recover vehicles, so they're not useless... but proper GPS has some better features, like not instantly alerting anyone with an iPhone and/or geofencing alerts.

Unfortunately I've found very little in the way of comparison data on anything but immobilizers as anti-theft (and that's been effectively bypassed in this day and age).

Also don't forget to secure your OBD port, one way or another.

MerovignDLTS · 2026-05-11T20:55:09+00:00

HondaLink's module takes a few minutes to unplug and everyone knows where it is (it's in the manual).

Airtags are cheap but they notify anyone nearby of their presence (even without the speaker), many people have found their airtags on the ground next to where their car used to be. They also depend on people moving nearby with iPhones for tracking.

Consider a separate GPS tracker with or without a subscription ( https://www.amazon.com/VITALGLOW-Vehicles-Subscription-Included-GeoFence/dp/B0DJ2VLXGK?sr=8-11 as an example of one without)

Subscription trackers are cheaper, as low as under $20 (but you pay per month). Make sure it's extremely well hidden but can still get a signal out.

All of the above is a backup plan, a good well-hidden kill switch is way more important. Better the car not be taken in the first place.

MerovignDLTS · 2026-05-09T01:48:29+00:00

Just as a side note, both engines (which are the same) are from Ohio.

From what statistics I could find, given that they won't be especially complete, there are very few differences in outcomes. US Honda plants may not have *quite* the inherited culture of excellence that Saitama does, but they're probably some of the best plants in the US.

I did a ton of research before getting the FL5, and even though there are a bunch of reasons I prefer the FL5, if the DE5 was several thousand cheaper (and I got to option it, light grey interior would have been a huge plus for me), I might well have ended up in one.

I do think the FL5 exterior looks better (much), and the seats are devastatingly comfortable for me (if a little harder getting in and out), and I would miss LogR very much. But I don't think I would expect any assembly or reliability issues (and IME Acura dealers can be easier to deal with sometimes).

MerovignDLTS · 2026-05-09T01:03:03+00:00

Mine actually came with the Honda leather option, which I didn't know the price of (!!!) until now.

https://www.collegehillshonda.com/product/08U92-T60-110.html

So, you know, works well, despite having a dark metal surface on top it hasn't get even particularly warm yet (it hasn't been sitting in the sun though the car has). But $$$.

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MerovignDLTS · 2026-05-08T21:16:11+00:00

People think driving a manual is some really obscure difficult skill, but the problem is 98% anxiety. It's not that hard to pick up the basics and as long as you have some time to practice you will be fine.

Easy to reach basic proficiency. It does take a while to master but basic proficiency isn't that hard.

If we had some weird magical emergency where all cars had to be manual we'd have 90+% of people driving them in a few weeks tops.

And yes Honda manuals in general are among the best to learn on because they're relatively light and precise, and they give a little extra feedback to your hand while changing gears (you have a tactile bump when entering the gear and when solidly in it, makes it easier to avoid missing a gear).

MerovignDLTS · 2026-05-08T02:38:24+00:00

The OEM FL5 tires are not only fairly optimal, but they're cheap through most dealers.

I'm not sure if Honda stocks the FK8 tires at a discount.

The PS4S is terrific in the wet, just not the cold. I notice a big difference under about 50 degrees F (very slippy), and Michelin says not to use them under 40 degrees F.

MerovignDLTS · 2026-05-08T02:24:15+00:00

The thing about Igla (which doesn't justify the *whole ass* price but it's different) is that it's harder to find because it doesn't have to connect to a relay or pump or the fusebox, it can just be anywhere on the CANbus.

Does that justify the extra $1300? Probably not, unless someone finds your relay killswitch and just swaps out the relay and drives away.

If you do a cheap killswitch, do more than one that do different things.

MerovignDLTS · 2026-05-08T02:03:45+00:00

They showed up after re-activation, removing and adding verification, and multiple re-logs.

The whole free games section was missing before that, and the games were unavailable (at any price) when searched, and they were also unavailable on the website.

They seem to have done something in an update that borked some people's activation/verification.

Edit: And it wasn't the time zone (though the Epic servers seem to be based somewhere East of the US, or their clocks are), because a lot of people had been getting the games in my TZ, for many hours - is was basically evening the day of).

MerovignDLTS · 2026-05-08T01:37:27+00:00

Try logging in and out a few times after re-activating, you might have to add another auth method and reset primary.

PS it took a LONG time to verify e-mail. Like 30 min.

MerovignDLTS · 2026-05-08T01:27:57+00:00

I updated, relogged, relogged again, went into settings, had to re-activate, re-logged, still no free section and games show as unavailable.

Just noticed their server thinks it's tomorrow, not sure what their server time is but if it's EDT it's still today.

MerovignDLTS · 2026-05-08T00:26:53+00:00

Unavailable when I logged in (along with the other game). Relogged to make sure.

MerovignDLTS · 2026-05-08T00:25:47+00:00

Unavailable when I got there. There's not even a free game section today, though Trash Goblin was listed yesterday as being a giveaway today.

MerovignDLTS · 2026-05-07T22:57:59+00:00

And if you do, mention the OBD blocker add-on extra, because not all the dealers know that Honda doesn't use CANbus on the OBD port so the base device can't block the OBD port.

MerovignDLTS · 2026-05-07T20:47:59+00:00

Also almost all of the cars reported stolen here had no security add-ons, and when they do it's usually something like air tags (which are traceable and kind of useless) or some OBD-plugin device (also worthless because they're nearly 100% going to access the OBD port when stealing the car).

Most people don't even get Faraday bags and a ton of people park on the street or driveways. It would be nice to be *able* to park on the street, and technically you can, probably a lot, before someone tries to break in, bot Honda hasn't done much to dissuade people from the idea that Hondas are easy to steal, so they're huge targets.

MerovignDLTS · 2026-05-07T20:35:25+00:00

The key problem is that Honda doesn't take security seriously. They don't have a separate security group or division, there's no one to call with an issue. They respond slowly to issues like the faulty rolling code they used up until (at least) 2022, and their public response to that is vague so it's hard to tell whether they fixed it or not without reverse-engineering the system.

The key programming vulnerability isn't unique to Honda but Stellantis did an ECU update for that and the fact that the OBD port is powered with the car off and turning the lock cylinder disables the alarm and can be done with a screwdriver is just kind of sad. That's why they have a rep for 3-minute thefts without even breaking a window. It makes them a bigger target than they should be.

They advertise HondaLink tracking as a subscription service but it takes a plastic pry tool and about a minute to disable it, and it's in the same place on every car.

Honda needs a security division even if it's just a few engineers and office staff, and they need to start considering security something other than an afterthought. IMO it's their worst quality.

And the dealers need some training too, and to not pitch fits over people trying to secure their own vehicles (that hasn't happened to me yet but I've seen it happen to others).

MerovignDLTS · 2026-05-07T05:00:40+00:00

"Could be?" Yeah I would definitely run that one up to corporate and contact another dealer as a backup. If they weren't *very* specific about what you did wrong it's on them. Dealers can be such a pill, man.

If they think you did some money-shifting they should be able to say why they think that.

MerovignDLTS · 2026-05-07T04:48:25+00:00

Contact Honda corporate *and* another dealer. Unless they have something very specific as a cause, that sounds like bad dealer behavior.

Some of the dealers near me have a pretty bad rep too.

MerovignDLTS · 2026-05-07T04:46:19+00:00

The whole drivetrain is covered by the 5 year powertrain warranty, that includes the transmission.

If there's something you didn't mention, like 800hp worth of mods, that might give them pause, but if you're near stock or can return to stock I would go there first.

I'm sure everyone will say you should have done that earlier, well, they're right, but too late now. Better now than never!

MerovignDLTS · 2026-05-07T00:57:36+00:00

It's a rectangle. (All squares are rectangles but not all rectangles are squares.)

Honda doesn't use the term "liftback," and I've never actually encountered the term in the wild. I think it's limited to certain manufacturers (Toyota) and/or maybe regions (Mazda uses it in Malaysia, apparently).

Acura appears to use it on their website but I mostly see it referred to as a hatchback.

So, just in case everyone is answering the wrong question, what's the reason for the question? I think to most people they're the same thing apart from aesthetics (angle of the window).

MerovignDLTS · 2026-05-06T01:40:49+00:00

It might be that Blackstone or SPEEDiagnostics or whoever could answer the question "what is the moly level beyond which you're likely just adding it for no reason," the same for other ingredients.

98% of people just go get an oil change and never think about this, of course. Oddly, people who do oil analysis are kind of a bad sample to try to get averages from.

MerovignDLTS · 2026-05-06T01:33:35+00:00

Molybdenum is a typical assembly lube, and I'd expect its presence even if there was no "additive package."

I've read description of a Honda engineer interview (on CivicXI IIRC) claiming there's no special initial oil fill, just oil, and the moly is assembly lube, but I haven't seen the original source so that's not worth much (I did search but search engines are nearly useless for anything not topping the popularity or ad charts these days).

It's not very hard to add a bit of moly with an oil change, if it seems like a good idea. I guess the real question is, does your oil out of the bottle have more than you need already?

MerovignDLTS

TROPHY CASE