FootworkThe Mugen Sport Suspension Kit is a pre-matched spring-and-damper set that lowers the TSX by 1 inch. Spring rates are 12-percent stiffer in the front and 25-percent stiffer in the rear. Rear-roll stiffness is augmented with the fitment of a 22mm anti-roll bar from Comptech. Sticky Bridgestone Potenza RE050 tires mounted on Mugen Mirror Finish NR wheels fill the fenders visually and literally, cradling huge 12.9-inch Stoptech brakes in both the front and the rear.
AeroAll of Mugen's aero products are wind tunnel tested, and anyone who enjoys their TSX at legal-in-Deutschland speeds is guaranteed the car will remain planted, thanks to the negative lift generated by the aggressive front bumper with partial splitter and rear under-bumper diffuser. These are combined with aero side skirts and a rear wing to complete a visual package that does much to complement the TSX's taut, defined lines; you won't find this magazine lauding body kits often.
The kit isn't cheap at around $4K for everything, but OEM-like fit and finish is worth every penny if it means a minimum of body shop time.
ComptechComptech knows how to armor Hondas for battle and win, building everything from Indy 500-winning mills to championship-owning Integras. Given the company's resources, the products Comptech releases for production vehicles reek of racecar development. This particular TSX was built as personal transportation for Tom Elliot, Executive Vice President of Honda America.
As such, performance modifications were balanced with the need for total streetability and comfort for a sensitized corporate rear. This means a couple of performance tradeoffs, like the use of all-season tires and lowering springs on stock dampers.
PowertrainAt idle and cruising, the TSX does nothing to betray the prototype Eaton MP62-based roots-type supercharger strapped to the Comptech car. Comptech has had great success fitting similar systems to the NSX, RSX and TL/CL/Accord, supplementing the standard Honda powerband where it needs it most.
Comptech installed a prototype black box called an ACM (Advanced Control Module) to alter fueling, rpm, and VTEC parameters, and act as a knock filter. Hondata provided an ECU reflash to provide more camshaft advance. The blown engine takes full advantage of the larger primaries of the Comptech 50-state-legal 4-2-1 stainless header, which dumps into a Comptech stainless-steel exhaust that uses dual highly-polished mufflers and tips, which are very visible from the back of the car.
FootworkComptech Sport springs, which drop the car a little over an inch, combine with dished 18-inch Volk GT-C wheels and Michelin Pilot Sport tires to create an imposing stance.
Suspension pickup points are tied together by a titanium upper-strut-tower brace in the front and Comptech's 22mm anti-roll bar in the rear. Big, red Brembo calipers, part of the 13-inch big brake kit, peer out of the front wheels, and the rear is fitted with a 12.7-inch kit using a caliper relocation bracket made specifically for use with the front kit.
AeroOther than the slathering of highly polished factory red paint, the Comptech car is dressed only with an attractive rear decklid lip from Phase Racing, a Japanese manufacturer from whom this part is apparently no longer available.
By Henry Z. Dekuyper
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