Don't ever walk up to a Mugen engineer and refer to his company as a tuner. You'll likely be bitch-slapped in the most polite Japanese manner before being sent on your way. That was my mistake. And what also turned a simple visit to Mugen's headquarters into an inquisition headed by a board of engineers and PR staff. My simple assignment to shoot and maybe drive some of Mugen's cars clearly wasn't what they had in mind. Their agenda was to set America straight on what Mugen is all about.
For us Americans, with our grandiose obsessions of squeezing obscene amounts of useless power out of our lawn mower-sized import engines, Japan's top tuners, like Mugen (who prefer being referred to as a manufacturer), might seem like something of an oddity. When it comes to street cars, they clearly don't share our aspirations for massive turbos, Frankenstein engines or questionable head work. Yet we have great respect for these companies because of the quality and pedigree of the machines they crank out, even though most of the parts found in their catalogs are simple bolt-on pieces that, on our shores, are dismissed as tips of the iceberg.
Having never experienced a full-blown Mugen street car, we set out to find just what these bolt-on parts are all about and tried to sneak a peek at its engineering and manufacturing operation. With some luck, we thought we might even be able to put one of its production cars through its paces. That turned out to be wishful thinking, due to the phenomenon we call the Mugen enigma.
Mugen, or (more properly) M-Tec's Japanese headquarters consists of several buildings in a small industrial park just outside Tokyo, not far from Honda. Small by US standards, the collection of secretive buildings constitutes the R&D headquarters for M-Tec's racing and street programs, along with Honda's laboratories around the corner. We only saw the reception/showroom, walked through an immaculate cafeteria and spent prolonged hours in a conference room hidden deep within a maze of sanitary, hospital-like hallways. But the professionalism and efficiency of M-Tec's operation is clearly evident, rivaling that of many OE operations.
Our access to Mugen's cars was similarly limited. It was more like visiting a petting zoo: the patient staff shuffled the Mugen Integra Type-R, Fit Sport, Euro Accord-R (or Acura TSX, as we call it) and the JDM Civic around the rear parking area-just enough for photography, but not enough for the temp needle to even budge from dead cold.
Each car followed a similar tuning template of upgraded intakes, suspension, brakes, cat-back exhausts and, in some cases, headers and radiators. All were fully equipped with complete, aerodynamically functional Mugen cosmetic packages. Of the four, the Integra obviously had the sportiest and most highly developed platform. In addition to the usual bolt-ons, the driveline was bolstered with a clutch-type limited-slip diff and more aggressive clutch, as well as new engine management, suspension bushings, racing oil pan, bucket seats and bolt-in roll cage-all of which are available from Mugen's retail catalog.
The DL5 Integra Type-R was the only car we were given a brief ride in. Our ass-based impression was highly positive, based on the limited number of parts Mugen found necessary to change. Clearly the Integra is lighter, with an engine far more responsive to go-pedal inputs. Even on the small cam lobe, before the i-VTEC kickover point , the car accelerates without the asthmatic feel of our K20 units. With Mugen piping and brains, the engine now reacts to the slightest change, bringing out the true nature that Honda intended for its cars. Ride-wise, the sports suspension was clearly track-capable in terms of spring rate, roll rate and steering response, though probably too stiff for our roads. To say any more would require a telepathic ass.