88' Honda Civic EF Rally Car

This is a bit of a run down on the car


1988 Honda Civic EF9 Cup Car / Rally Car – BMN 379J

Ex-works driver Scott Bradshaw owned Honda Civic EF9 Rally Car, team mate of Mark Higgins in the 90’s. Also genuine ex Honda cup car from Japan hence the low mileage. 3rd OA in Isle of Man Rally 2017. Eligible for historic rallying. Requires new seats and harnesses. Has Current MSA Log book. The Ef is an important car of its era as no other manufacturer was producing a 1600cc hot hatch that produced 170bhp from factory and that ultimate 100bhp per 1000cc.
• 18,000 Miles

• 15.09.2017 – Trophy Isle of Man Rally – 2nd in N2 / 3rd O/A
• 11.05.2018 – Manx National Rally – Course Car
• 09.11.2018 – Pokerstars Rally – 6th Class B
• 09.02.2019 – Ormco Stages – 2nd Class B / 17th O/A
• 22.02.2020 – Ormco Stages – 3rd Class B / 12th O/A
Sadly no history on its competition results in Japan as it was a circuit car and nothing like EWRC is available for circuit racing. The Million Card Cup ran from 1991-1995 with the Civic EF and Civic EG

Engine & Transmission / Suspension
• B16A2
• Type r cams
• Type r head
• Aftermarket ECU
• New Belts
• Aftermarket Exhaust
• Close ratio gear kit and FD
• Paddle Clutch
• LSD
• BC Coilovers
• Hardrace Bushes
• Integra DC2 Brakes
Interior:
• Safety Devices Roll Cage
• Brake Bias Valve
• Lightweight Battery
• Fire Eater Extinguisher
• Hydro Handbrake
• Co-driver Foot Plate
• Helmet Box
• Sparco Bucket Seats

Exterior:
• Sump Guard
• Sill Protectors
• Perspex Windows
• Lightened Doors
• Carbon Mirrors
• 12 Rims
• Front Strut Brace
• Period Honda Works Livery

Patiently waiting for the 6th of September for the car to come over. Its been the Manx classic so we have not been able to get the car out. We will chuck tyres on and a windscreen, we have booked to do the stage at RallyDay. Come and say Hi if you see us. Nice to finally get an EF without a sunroof.

Well, the car finally came over from IOM last week thanks to VR Transport Services based out of Northern Ireland. The car was well looked after on its journey over. Maxx the previous owner drove it onto the boat and it was loaded on the trailer this side.

I forgot it's an import and still has the correct dash so actually sits on 18,0000 kms that's just over 11,000 miles lol. First event will be RallyDay doing the stage in the afternoon. Nice and local so will drive the car there and back. I have just sent the Compomotives off for refurb at Pro Alloys in Melksham, two had buckles. Some Hankook tarmac tyres have arrived from JD tyres too which will be fitted by Tech & Tyres when the rims come back. I have removed some of the non-works decals and it will need a polish.










Nothing special about under the bonnet aside from the EK9 Type R top end on the engine. Need a rally legal catch can. The gearbox must have a really low gear set as it looks like it will top out at just above 100mph.




The interior needs a good clean, up to date seats and harnesses as well as a fire extinguisher to make it legal for stage rallies again. Due to the age I can run in historic classes against stuff like Sunbeams and Escorts. One of my mates has sourced me a new windscreen as this one has a crack, only three screens left in the Uk apparently, so he dropped one off from Pilkingtons.




It has Accord Type R brakes which should be more than enough braking power to stop a car that weighs about 400kg lighter. BC coilovers are fitted but with longer rally springs for extra travel.

Few more updates. With only 3 windcreens left in the UK my pal managed to source one and fit it for me. Good to see behind the old screen is rust free but he still painted it before we fitted the new screen.



For UK registration a form needs to be filled out as well as getting an MOT on the VIN number before a UK plate is issued. Luckily, I am pretty sure there is no duty to be paid on the car as Isle of man is technically part of the UK. The car passed no advisories, unsurprising considering the mileage.







Also had a set of the wheels refurbished by Pro Alloys in Melksham. They did a great job on the 15" compomotives. They are ET15 so nice and wide and look the part.

Have to follow any car on a manx reg 

Still twiddling my thumbs waiting for UK reg and DVLA. First application was rejected As I put an extra digit on the VIN by mistake....doh!

With my plan being to do some historic type events with the works livery on I am trying to figure way of covering the livery with a wrap to make it one colour so I can also compete in night nav rallies. It needs to be one colour and have rear seats stuck in it to do so. Local company Wrapped automotive are going to attempt to cover the livery over with a wrap that can be removed again.

I will only be able to afford maybe three decent rally events per year so being able to use the car on nav rallies will mean I use it much more. To give you an example entry to Three Shires rally is £700 + Vat whereas a local 12-car rally on a Friday night is £29 with insurance cover.

Progress to report

The spot lamps have been mounted but we need lamp stays to make sure they are secure. The advert for the lamps says how bright they are.....then they turned up without bulbs hehe so ordered some of those as well.



The new half radiator has been mounted along with black silicone hoses. Can't use the factory fan sadly so ordered a thinner Mishimoto one. Jamtech have isolated the air filter from the engine and fabricated an oil catch tank.



Carpet as also started to go in for the road rally rules, fitted in a way that it is easily removable when we go stage rallying.

Looking forward to seeing this used in anger!

What a fantastic night on the lanes with my northern pal Barry as navigator.

The Driveshaft road rally kicked off from the Pit Stop just off J17 of the M4 near Chippenham. 130 miles of wiltshire lanes over a period of 6 hours. I think this is the cheapest smiles per mile in motorsport and everyone should have a go. They even run a beginner class with marked maps for those having their first few goes in the sport. If you can read a map you can navigate.

We arrived for 6pm sign on and scrutineering with the Civic, the first proper event for the car. We grabbed a coffee and started to mark the map up with any references we were given with our entry pack.







We were car 14 so left MT1 at 8:04pm. The idea is to receive clues at each checkpoint and mark the map with the route to follow to the next checkpoint. The aim is to average 30mph between checkpoint. You get a penalty for arriving early or late. there were some cool retros entered including a Volvo 244 and a very tidy Mk1 Golf GTi.







The first half of the night was spot on and we were arriving to check pints early or on time. The battery light came on after TC3 and our spotlights were clearly too much for the race battery. As it transpired it seems I probably should have just given the battery a good charge before the event as when I attempted to use the light later on in the night the battery light stayed off. Trying to pick out the route ahead with JDM head lights made for some interesting driving but we really only had one moment locking up into a back lane t-junction, I also back up once and hit a bank popping my rear bumper fog lights out and dislocating a mud flap.




The lanes were fantastic, mostly smooth but a couple of really rough lanes towards the end we must have hit the sump guard 10 times, both of us making the "cawww" that hurt the car noise on a number of occasions. Barry struggled with a couple of clues so to ensure we made other checkpoints we skipped one. The Uniroyal rainsports held up ok although on the front they were ripped up a bit from breaking traction a number of times. Many of the lanes had a thin layer of winter mud, gravel and leaves which made for slippery conditions in parts. We finished up at 2am, we were very tired but very much enjoyed the event. we should get results this week.