A fitting description of Eugene Nguyen's 1995 Acura Integra LS is "extensive and expensive." The modifications performed on his vehicle represent a long list of aftermarket products that were installed and gracefully assembled to make this ride fit for a king. Validated by numerous trophies and magazine appearances, the clean design cues of this Acura make it one of the hottest on the show circuit.
Whether it's the Wings West Aggressor front bumper with custom Type III center grill vents or the Han's monster hood scoop, one thing is certain: It turns heads. The wildest and most obvious modification is the headlight conversion that utilizes the headlights from the 2000 Toyota Celica. The headlights create an illusion of width and length, making the nose cone of the vehicle the centerpiece of attention.
The side profile of the vehicle brings the Veilside side skirts to light. For a cleaner flow and complementary look, Nguyen had the door moldings shaved, using sheetmetal rather than 3 lbs of bondo per door. Flowing seamlessly to the back is a Zeal Type II rear bumper with custom side vents that provide shade for the GReddy Power Extreme cat-back exhaust that was originally intended for a Mazda RX-7. The bumper ends a smooth flowing bodyline and is topped with a three-piece Wings West spoiler perched on top of the rear hatch.
Once all body mods were complete, the body was hand-sanded by 2020 Autobody Tech in preparation for platinum silver paint overlaid with blue pearl and a double coat of Glasurit gloss. To ensure a quality finish, the team at 2020 finished the car with a Meguiar's multi-stage polish job.
What good is a car that looks good and doesn't move? It's like a rattlesnake with no fangs. To give his DOHC B18 a little spice, Nguyen contracted Christopher Khankap of Kinetic AutoworX. With the motor apart and ready for surgery, Khankap dropped in a set of JE/SRP pistons with a 9.0:1 compression ratio. The pistons were wrapped with JE/SRP rings and linked to a set of Crower titanium rods. The bulletproof bottom-end was sandwiched to the head with a Mr. Gasket head gasket along with other goodies such as Crower valve springs, Crower LS series cams and STR cam sprockets.
To enhance the fuel system, the stock fuel rail was removed and replaced with an anodized blue STR Speed Lab competition fuel rail that works with an AEM high-performance fuel filter. Spark is administered by a set of Magnecor 8.5mm plug wires, along with a Nology ProFire ignition coil and a JET ECU chip. Close inspection of the engine bay reveals cuts and modifications, which enabled Nguyen to relocate the ABS and battery.
The engine is coupled to an automatic transmission, which houses a B18A1 flywheel. The B18A1 automatic transmission was adapted to a B18B1 block and features fully functional driving modes (D, D1, D2, sport, etc.). From here, power is transferred to the 18-inch Konig Monsoons that are massaged into a set of Nitto Extreme Performance NT450 ZRs. In order to house the huge wheel and tire combo, the wheel housing had to be shaved and remolded to ensure proper clearance.
Bringing things down to earth is the ViS V-Spec Version II adjustable coilovers and KYB gas shocks. The suspension has been fine-tuned for a 2-inch drop in the front and 1-inch in the rear. Completing the suspension setup is a variety of DC Sports products, including a front and rear lower strut bar and rear lower tie bar, along with a carbon fiber lower front strut bar.
The daily commute in Los Angeles can get as old and tiring as the morning news, so the addition of a top-notch system quickly changed the situation. Nguyen's audio system was designed by Tony Nguyen from Clovers Autosound in Garden Grove, Calif. The system is controlled by a motorized, double DIN, Pioneer FH700 that also incorporates a CD and cassette deck.
From here, all signals are channeled to a pair of Precision Power amps, which are mounted in a custom Plexiglas enclosure. The amps, a limited edition PC4400 and PC2600 with Qbass Plus, feed the power hungry Diamond Audio Technology S600a component speakers. While a set of Diamond Audios have been installed both in the front and rear, the bass is supplied by 3 JL Audio 10-inch W6 woofers mounted in a sealed enclosure, complete with a 3D mirror design and a complementing trunk and undercarriage wrapped with Dynomat.
While the system sports heavy-duty equipment from front to back, one can only envy the capacity of Nguyen's CD changer. The Pioneer CDX-P5000 CD changer has a disc capacity of 51 CDs. That's right! Fifty-one! Additionally, the system supports and features a Pioneer CD-VC60 voice commander system and Digital Stinger Capacitors at 1.0 farad, which store reserve power for the hard-hitting bass notes. Another interesting feature is the Bose surround system mounted on the headliner of the vehicle.
Moving to the interior, we find what seems to be a staple item of every show car, the CarCraft makeover. The team over at CarCraft double-stitched the interior in a two-tone Bahama blue and metallic silver vinyl, while adding silver carpet. To maintain consistency, 2020 Autobody removed and treated all body inserts to a three-stage paint process to match the outside paint. Inside, you'll find an assortment of Auto Meter and APEXi gauges to monitor engine vitals, as well as boost. While the boost gauge is in place and ready to go, you might be wondering where the turbo kit is. Currently, a turbo system constructed of a Garrett T3/T4 turbocharger, chilled by an air-to-air XS Engineering core complete with ADF chrome end tanks is in the works.
Future plans include a custom-fabricated, all-steel, wide body conversion for the rear that will be complete with a new body kit and 2003 Mercedes Benz S-Class taillights. And while "all" the specs of his turbo kit have not been disclosed, you can bet his car will dominate what is left of the competition.