Tools Required:
CT provided tool for removing the white ball at the end of the shifter
Phillips Head screw driver
hair dryer
pliers
Vaseline

Step 1: Removal of the center console. Open the top pocket just below the radio, then place your hands on either side inside the console and pull straight back, once the pocket is free remove the LED clipped to the top and set the pocket aside.

Using your hair dryer warm the outer edges (top, left, right, bottom) of the center console trim, this will make the plastic more supple and less prone to cracking. Once the plastic is warm open up the bottom pocket then press your fingers against the top ledge of the center console and pinch in towards yourself and gently pull up. Once these clips pop free slide your fingers down the side of the console gently releasing the rest of the clips. Now reach under the front and disconnect the seat warmer harnesses.

Remove the shift knob, you’ll need to use your pliers to hold the lock nut still while you twist the shift knob. Be sure to wrap the ends of your pliers in a few layers of duct tape to make sure you leave no unsightly scratches behind. Now the center console with the shift boot should slide right off, you will need to disconnect a small metal clip at the base of the e-brake boot to get the boot off with the console.

Using your phillips head screw driver unscrew the 4 screws holding the bottom pocket in place, then all 6 of the screws holding down the center console. Now open the bottom drawer of the armrest, remove the non-skid insert and unscrew the two phillips screws holding it down. Once all of the screws are removed slide your fingers under the back of the armrest and pull up and back towards the passenger seat and the center console is now removed.

Step 2: Removal of the shifter. Refer to the CT diagrams for this step, however you will most likely have to cut the zip ties holding the cables to the side of it, just user regular zip ties to attach those cables when you reinstall to prevent little rattles. Also the large U shaped bracket at the front of the shifter will require you to use your pliers, remove it while gently pulling up and wiggling side to side.

Step 3: Removal of the white ball and install of the CT short shifter adapter. Now that the shifter is sitting in your lap you need to remove that white ball at the base of the shifter. Heat the ball with your hair dryer and then use the CT provided tool for its removal, careful it could just pop off into the air and if you loose it you’ll need to get a new one. Now to install the CT adapter, wipe down the stock shifter with the Loctite that CT provides, now slide the CT adapter on to the end and push until you hear a little click, then tighten the hex wrench screws with the hex key CT provides. Now heat the white ball again and apply vaseline to the ball on the end of the CT adapter, now snap the ball back on.

Step 4: Re-install. Just follow the CT instructions and these in reverse and you’re good to go, enjoy your 38% reduction in throw.

If you have questions feel free to post up a comment, I’ll do my best to answer all of your questions. If you found this pose useful or helpful please use the social bookmark links below and share this post with your friends!

*CT Engineering rear sway bar will only clear the OEM or CT Engineering exhaust. Progress will clear ANY aftermarket cat-back and will install the same way as this DIY shows

Tools Required:

• Metric and standard socket set
• Metric hex key set
• Metric crescent wrench set
• Floor jack with stands
• Silicon grease if needed

Step 1:
Raise the car up and position it on stands. There is a jack point in the middle of the car I believe either just before or just after the gas can, I can’t remember at the moment. Look under the car and you can’t miss it. Use the OEM jack points on either side of the rear passenger for your stands.

Step 2:
Now under the car remove the endlink nuts. You’ll need your hex key set here, simply insert the proper sized hex key into the bolt, then use your crescent wrench to twist the nut while holding the bolt secure with the hex key. The nuts could be pretty well siezed on if you have a high mileage car or live in a climate where they use salt or other de-icers. Just use some WD-40, PB Blaster, Silicon spray lubricant, or whatever to free up the nuts.

Step 3:
Remove the two bolts that hold the driver side muffler in place, this is what will allow you to clear the exhaust when removing the OEM rear sway bar and installing the CT rear sway bar. Be careful not to strip the nuts/bolts and not to damage the gasket. Make sure the exhaust is cold before attempting this.

Step 4:
Remove the OEM brackets that hold the sway bar in place and let it rest on the exhaust. Be sure to keep these bolts because you’ll be reusing them.

Step 5:
Slide the rear sway bar to the front of the vehicle, then down the passenger side, then angle it and slide it between the exhaust where we detached the driver side muffler. I cannot explain this in much greater detail, but trust me it works. It would help to have a friend with you on this to keep the muffler and the exhaust pipe seperate while you slide the sway bar through.

Step 6:
This is the same as step 5, only opposite and with your new rear sway bar.

Step 7:
Re-attach the endlinks to your new rear sway bar but do not torque them down yet. Lube up the bushings supplied by CT engineering and use their supplied brackets and the OEM bracket bolts and attach the rear sway bar to the mounts. Do not torque these down yet.

Step 8:
Make sure the bar is even between the brackets and side to side (with Progress there are two washers welded to the bar so you don’t have to do this part) and torque down the endlinks to the specs provided by CT.

Step 9:
Torque the brackets and re-install the driver side muffler. Double check the torque on your brackets and endlinks then lower the car back to the ground.

Step 10:
Gently bounce the rear of the car to ensure there are no squeaks and your all set.

ALWAYS refer to the supplied instructions when installing any parts.

Tools Required:

• Power Drill
• Phillips Head Screwdriver
• Hair Dryer

Step 1:
Remove the large pocket just below the radio by placing your fingers on the inside bottom of the bin and pulling towards you. This should not require much force so if you pulling with all your might you must be doing something wrong.

Remove large center console pocket

Step 2:
Remove the shift knob. This is fairly straight forward, righty-tighty and lefty-loosy. If you a manual tranny driver you need some pliers to hold the lock nut tight under the shift knob.

Step 3:
Open the bottom pocket and take a hair dryer and heat up all of the center console trim (around the shifter, e-brake, etc…), this will make the plastic a bit softer and easier to work with. At the top of the trim (in front of the shifter) take both hands and put your fingers behind the ledge and pinch inwards towards the shifter. Gently pop the front clips of the console trim and then run your fingers along the sides of the trim popping the rest of the clips. Be careful here, you can put stress marks or cracks in the trim if you aren’t gentle.

Remove the center console trim

Step 4:
Remove the 4 phillips head screws that hold the bottom pocket in place to remove it, disconnect the auxiliary power from the back much like the seat warmer harnesses. Remove the rest of the philips screws that hold the console down. Don’t forget the two in the armrest! They are covered by a non-slip pad. Once you have all of the screws removed pull up the back of the console and this should free the clips holding it to the dash.

Step 5:
Using a power drill, drill 1/4″ hole inside the armrest to route your auxiliary cable through, be sure this hole is toward the very bottom of the console.

Drill a 1/4" hole in the bottom of the armrest

Step 6:
Drill a 1/4″ hole into the not an ashtray spot from behind, if you look closely you’ll see a perfect spot for this.

Drill a 1/4" hole into the not an ashtray area

Step 7:
Insert your auxiliary wire and reassemble the center console.

Hook up the iPod dock auxiliary input to your cable and rest it in the not an ashtray spot, you’re all done! Congratulations!

Complete - TSX Poorman's iPod

Speaking of Tein, I have ridden on basics and SS, the basics were in a 2006 TSX and the SS where on a 2007 TSX and 2004 TL, the latter having EDFC. For the basics I was not to impressed, first they seem to have a chronic issues with developing a squeaking issue in the rear on TSX set-ups and second, they have no dampening force adjustment. Granted, Basics are an entry level coil over and at around $750.00 +/- $100.00 they are a fairly good budget choice.

The SS on the other hand I have to admit are much nicer than my K-Sports. Softer and smoother rebound, very nice spring rates and dampening force adjustment via EDFC or the old manual method. This should be expect of a coil over system costing over $1000.00 on average. The ability to use EDFC even though listed as incompatible with TSX SS applications is a definite convienience.

The K-Sports offer a wonderful middle of the line coil over, I’d say falling somewhere between Tein Basics and Tein SS. Another advantage to the K-Sports is you can adjust the shock body for ride height as opposed to adjusting the spring perch seen with most Tein set ups (to see how this works read the K-Sport manual by clicking here). This allows you to keep the full amount of suspension travel and lower your ride height to a near bagged appearance.

Over the course of my two weeks of ownership I have dropped another half inch for a total of about 3 inches of drop (7.62 centimeters) and still have about another inch and a half (3.81 centimeters) to go before the K-sports are tapped out. With this now lower stance I have noticed a bit of fender rub over bouncy corners at a higher rate of speed, to remedy this I have adjust the dampening force to be firmer to compensate for the added body roll of a hard turn into a bump.

Adjusting ride height with the K-Sports is fairly simple and straight forward. Raise the vehicle up and place it on stands, remove the wheels (you can get away with leaving the font wheels on), take a flat head screw driver (K-Sport suggests a brass punch), and a hammer then tap the base collar counter clock wise to loosen it. Adjust the collar up to the amount of drop you would like to add, now grab the collars and spring in your hand and turn clockwise until your base collar is pressed against the shock body. Take your hammer and screwdriver and tap the base collar clockwise to lock it and check to make sure the spring perch collars did now loosen. That’s it. It took me about 45 minutes to adjust all four corners.

Overall; these coil overs are impressive for their price and should be considered by anyone looking for a decent set of coil overs on a budget, because lets face it, we can’t all afford a $1600.00+ set of coil overs but would sure like to have some of the high end coil over adjustments.

First impression out of the box was that the K-Sports seemed to be built of fairly decent quality regardless of some drivers calling them “K-Mart” coil overs. I would say the quality of these coil overs rivals that of Tein Basics, Tanabe S-OC Type II, and DropZones. I have yet to hear a negative review of K-Sports for the TSX. Also, these coil overs sport the ability to seriously drop your car. Right now I have mine adjusted to leave just a half finger width fender gap and I still have well over 3 inches of thread left to go.

The other nice thing is the base of the shock or the mounts will actually thread up to that 3″ of gap leaving the full amount of suspension travel possible. Most coil over kits only adjust the spring perch and eliminate a lot of suspension travel in the process. This extra travel lends to a smoother rebound rate giving the feel of less “bounce”.

With 36 levels of dampening force adjustment, the K-Sports leave a lot of available options that price competitors like Tein Basics just don’t have. Granted, basics are a great coil over set up, but for the price point, lacking the adjustable dampening force puts K-Sport out ahead. I have yet to try the full range of adjustment, I have just kept them at one full turn off of soft in the front and two full turns off of soft in the rear. I have noticed a significant reduction of brake dive and torque steer alike. The car really hugs the corners well and the rear end is not apt to step out on you.

It’s hard to say how these coil overs will hold up over an Oregon winter with di-icer and salt on the roads, but from the looks of them now they should hold up as well as any set of Teins, Tanabes, or Buddy Clubs out there.

So far I’d rank the K-Sport Kontrol Pro’s for the TSX a 8 – 10. Why not the full 10? With the lack of any kind of electronic dampening force adjustments like Tein EDFC, it’s just a pain to make an adjustment, also these coil overs may be a little stiff for some, even on the softest settings.

Upon first inspection of the exhaust the welds are meticulous, the polished look on the mufflers is amazing, no finger prints from shipping, no digs, no dents. At install the Comptech exhaust fit like a glove. No modifications or “strategic hammer bops” to fit, the hangers were spot on with OEM, and the tips even hang perfectly level in the back without poly hangers. Fired it up, no leaks, no hissing, and a nice quiet tone.

By no means is the cat back by itself loud, in fact it’s not much louder than stock. Under load you can hear it a bit in the back and outside but that’s about it. Unfortunately; that’s about all an exhaust for the TSX is good for. Comptech only promises a gain of 3 horsepower with the addition of the exhaust and most other manufacturers offer the same gain. All in all you are looking for improved sound and little bling on your rear end.

After about 6 months of owning the exhaust I added on the Random Technology (RT) cat to the mix and the exhaust got substantially louder. The tone retains that deep quality but a little bit of rasp is added. To some including myself, this raspy sound is nice, sounds like a nice free flowing exhaust. The RT cat did definitely add some power that the butt dyno could pick up on, but that’s for a different post.

After about 3 months with the RT cat I added the Comptech header as well. Now the exhaust is fairly loud, but there is no drone on the highway and very little in cabin resonance accept under load. A little more rasp was added to the sound but the resonator and mufflers on the Comptech exhaust handle the noise well and suppress it to nice deep grumble as opposed to your typical Honda civic “fart can.”

I would rate the Comptech Cat-Back 10 – 10 for excellent fit and finish and wonderful sound.

*Note: Comptech is now known as CT Engineering

CT Engineering (formerly Comptech) – CT Engineering TSX Catback Exhaust

Comptech Cat-Back – Acura TSX – OEM Header/Cat

First the facts on the springs:

TEIN High.Tech springs utilize the latest spring and material technology to optimize comfort, performance, and quality. Designed and tested in North America to be used in conjunction with OEM or similar shocks for excellent ride comfort and slightly increased handling. The line is produced with Vanadium (SAE9254V), which is durable, lightweight, and has properties to retain more spring stroke. High.Tech springs are designed for those seeking a slightly lowered stance while maintaining high ride quality at a reasonable price. Most vehicles will attain a 1.2 inch drop for a more attractive appearance, added performance, and excellent comfort. Includes a one year limited warranty.

• Chrome Vanadium SAE9254V Construction
• Progressive Spring Rate Design
• Includes Silencer Rubber on certain applications
• Gold Powder Coat Finish
• Developed to be used in conjunction with OEM or OEM replacement dampers
• 1-year Manufacturers Defect and Sag Warranty
Covers over 5mm sag, breakage, deformity, and noise.
Does not cover powder coat finish and rusting.

Spring Rate (F/R, kgf/mm): 5.7/3.4, Lowering F/R: -1.1/-0.7 Inches.
*sourced from Tein’s Web Page

The springs do provide the specified drop, 1.1″ in the front and .7″ in the back, or approximately those numbers. In laymans terms your stock CL9 (TSX) has an average of about 3 – 3.75 finger widths of wheel gap, the H-Techs will reduce that gap to 1.75 – 2 finger widths of gap. With the A-Spec lip kit, or Euro-R lip kit this drop may visually appear to be a bit lower. I do get comments from other CL9 owners with H-Tech’s that mine looks lower with the A-Spec kit, which is somewhat true but mainly due to an optical illusion.

I have the H-Tech’s mounted on my OEM dampers and the springs provide a very soft ride comparable to OEM ride quality. Not much bounce if any, they will stiffen up around the corners being a progressive type spring. My 2 year old and my wife never noticed much of a difference with the H-Techs over OEM springs for comfort. However; they are not intended and do not provide the handling results of a more advanced spring/damper combo. There are times if I lay into a corner to hard I can feel the spring get to a point where it no longer compresses and it feels like a bit of snap over steer may occur which can lead to a lack of confidence in the twisties.

Now that about 3 months have passed I can feel my OEM dampers getting a bit strained with the drop. Tein does not endorse the use of any aftermarket spring with OEM dampers, however; a 1″ drop is usually the maximum you can get away with on OEM dampers. I am beginning to notice some knocking in the front and I am not sure if it’s the damper going bad or something else, but the amount of bouncing has increased which is leading me to believe the dampers are on the way out. You’ll have to acknowledge I put the springs on dampers that were already 32,000 miles in to their lifetime which is not suggested.

I would reccomend that if you are in the market to be lower and are looking for the same drop as the H-Tech’s provide then you should also consider a set of aftermarket dampers like Koni Yellow’s to go with the springs. This way you can get adjustable dampening and longer life out of your set up. The koni’s also provide an additional 20mm of drop (~.8 inches) with their adjustable spring perches. You will get a better handling car and still be able to retain close to OEM comfort.

Also consider the Tein CS coilovers. OEM comfort, up to 2.1″ drop, and EDFC compatible, that would be the ultimate set up for seeking a comfortable ride, moderate drop, and an overall good suspension set up.

Overall I’d rate the H-Techs a 8 – 10 which is by no means bad, and would probably be a 10 – 10 if I had ordered aftermarket dampers at the same time.

Drop with H-Techs on my car:

CL9 (accord, TSX, Euro R) on Tein H-Techs

CL9 (Accord, TSX, Euro R) on Tein H-Techs