Frankentegra

This 2000 Acura Integra GS-R was purchased initially as a practical commuter car and was driven stock for two years. Then some bolt-ons were thrown on to the Integra, and Deol could be seen exercising his car's legs. The Acura began to attract attention, the wrong kind of attention. Speeding and fix-it tickets piled up, along with rising insurance rates. I guess that's what happens when you drive around doing e-brake assisted burnouts in your Acura, and rev-ing at every Honda on the street. On top of this, Deol received a rear-ending, numerous eggings, robbings, dents while parked, even more tickets, parts installation problems, he's spent too much money on building and maintenance, and went through four sets of wheels. How does he put up with it all? Deol built himself the car he truly wanted, and he's loving every minute in it.

The lurid tale of the Integra's exterior is full of twists and strife. All those words scare you? How about this: Deol originally had a body kit and a shaved outside, but went through hell to even get that far. Two different shops, two different colors, multiple parts that didn't fit, a broken window, and an egging later, a rear-ending quickly put him out of his misery. Starting over from nothing, Ground Designs was originally sourced for a hood, but Deol walked out with a full twelve-piece Black Widow 2 body kit. The pieces changed include the hood, front fenders, rear wing, front bumper, side skirts and the rear bumper. Unsatisfied with just that, a custom wide-body and fender flares were molded on to the Integra. The doors, trunk, antenna, and all moldings were shaved and the car was shot down by International Autobody of Hawthorne, Calif., in a custom blue made from sixteen coats of paint. Custom fit into all that wide-body goodness is a very distinctive set of Nissan Skyline R34 headlights and taillights with a McCulloch HID lighting system up front. Finishing off the exterior looks is a set of Automatic M3 side-view mirrors, Eurolite underbody neon lighting, Sparco fuel cap and hood pins, and some exterior graphics. Just any piece of vinyl? No, this is a set of graphics from Modern Image that combine with the custom blue paint to conjure images of the Signal Auto 180SX.

The interior work was completed to accent and match the exterior look. A custom fiberglass dash was installed and painted to match the exterior, while the air vents and much of the console was shaved down. A Nology PDA-Dyno and OBD-II scan tool was installed to monitor performance numbers. Additional instrumentation consists of a Pivot Race/Rally tachometer, a Ractive blue carbon-fiber gauge cluster with boost and voltmeter gauges. Ractive racing pedals, Ignited switch panel, Mugen steering wheel, MOMO carbon-fiber shift knob and e-brake cover finish off the interior look. Seating was upgraded with Bride Revs racing seats with Takata harnesses in the front, with black leather seats replacing the rear units. For a car that has every area massaged, the stock head unit wasn't going to cut it. The entertainment system now consists of a Sony CD unit blasting through MB Quart 6.5-in front component speakers with 1-in titanium tweeters and MB Quart 6x9-in rear speakers. Big bass is created by three Hollywood Digital Excursion 10-in subwoofers and panel rattling is held down by a full Dynamat equipped trunk and rear panels. This whole system is powered by a Hollywood Digital 1600d amplifier, an Alpine 4-channel amplifier and two Optima yellow top batteries.

The hard knock life continued under the hood of the Acura also. An undisclosed shop with poor knowledge built the GS-R motor with a 4-psi turbo kit that disabled VTEC, and eventually blew and filled the engine bay with the turbocharger's dying oil. Deol decided to do it right this time, and a T3/T4 Garrett turbocharger found itself blowing through a PWR front-mount intercooler. Boost is regulated with a Turbonetics wastegate and a Blitz blowoff valve before blowing out a dual exhaust with Vibrant Performance carbon-fiber mufflers with titanium tips. The B18C1 then received a Skunk2 intake manifold, Spoon Sports cam gears, and was built to handle the boost with 9:1 compression JE pistons. The engine also received a Spoon Sports baffled oil pan to help cool the stressed engine oil. With the turbo system now working, Deol went crazy. A Nitrous Express 75-shot nitrous oxide system found its way on to the Integra. Ignition duties were upgraded with Nology Hot Wires and ProFire ignition coils. All this power is contained and sent to the wheels through a Clutchmasters Stage 3 clutch and lightweight flywheel with a DC Sports short shifter.

The suspension work was done to fill those now-giant fenders with the perfect drop, without compromising the Integra's inherent abilities. Deol went to Axis Wheels and picked up the second production set of Wheel Site Mesh II rims sized 19x8 in all around. Tarmac grippers consist of Dunlop SP Sport 9000s sized 235/35R19 at the corners. The body was dropped on to these huge wheels with a set of Ground Control coilovers over KYB adjustable shocks. Chassis bracing consists of a Hayame front upper strut bar and a Spoon Sports rear lower tie bar. Braking duties against all that nitrous and turbocharged power consists of Brembo slotted brake rotors up front with Endless brake pads all around.

All that blood, sweat and tears has paid off for Deol. Awards he's won include first place Honda/Acura at IDRC 2002 and at NOPI 2002 Palmdale, Calif., hottest Acura at HIN Del Mar 2003, and best paint HIN Del Mar 2003. With all the help of his parents and his sponsors, including Michael Macare, Craig Liberman of moviecarz.com fame, Jimmy Tchen, Manny Franco, Eli Vasquen and Team Solo, Deol has created a motto: "go big or go home." Looks like this Integra won't be home for a while.