SLAMMIN' SPEEDER; H&R PROJECT RSX TYPE-S.(News)(H&R Acura RSX Type-S Project )(Product/Service Evaluation)

Byline: MARK VAUGHN

The H&R Acura RSX Type-S Project Vehicle is just plain fun to flog, in a wear-a-kidney-belt kind of way. It has about everything the target buyer, the young auto enthusiast on a budget, wants. And it looks cool. Check out that Mugen rear wing and the perfectly integrated and very shapely Mugen front end. The 18-inch BBS wheels are the ideal choice for this ride and the 225/35ZR-18 Bridgestone Potenza S-03s are so low they look painted on.

Sure, it bounces more than a check drawn on the account of former Iraqi information minister Mohammed Saeed al-Sahaf, and that rear wing will likely provide more aerodynamic drag than a boat trailer, but these buyers love that stuff. And after a week's cruise, so did we.

Depending on how you set it up, the coil-overs lower the front from 1.2 to 2.2 inches and the rear by 0.75 to 1.75 inches. Ours was lowered a little bit more than an inch front and rear, which we thought might have been a problem with the fairly low Mugen front end. Still, we only scraped it once and then just barely. The Mugen body kit was one of the nicest pieces on the car, both stylistically and functionally, as it allowed more air to flow through the radiators.

The car also had H&R TRAK+ Wheel Spacers that moved the wheels and tires 25 millimeters farther out into the fender wells. The TRAK spacers are a popular cosmetic item from H&R, but they also add stability by widening the track. We cannot speak to how it might affect suspension loads.

Underneath, it carries a sport exhaust, header and cold air intake from DC Sports (AW, Oct. 29, 2001). You could see the intake through the big vent in the Mugen hood. H&R hadn't run the setup on the dyno but it sure sounded powerful.

Inside is a complete entertainment system from Pioneer, including LCD monitor, DVD changer, CD player, two sets of separates and a 10-inch subwoofer. The sound performance impresses, but even after we figured out how to work it, we found the controls to be too small, a common trait on high-dollar aftermarket automotive electronics. Plus, the faceplate kept popping off whenever the car banged hard over a bump, which happened every few minutes, after which it hung there ...