Nnovation - Xue’s Phoenix Yellow ITR

To start, Xue always had a soft spot for Integras. When I first met Xue, he owned a very minty and clean GSR that he actually put a lot of work in. He repainted it, and converted as much parts as he could source to replicate the ITR he now owns.

The suspension had been upgraded and it was dressed with numerous ITR parts (kind of like how my late EM1 was almost entirely equipped with CTR/EK9 parts). So when I think of Xue with a car, it would always be himself with an Integra. This thought also goes to show how quickly he sold a black Civic he owned prior to this ITR.

Well, anyways, it was a pleasant assurance to me that he still had the automotive motivation in him. I almost doubted him for a second, just because he was so busy with his academy training and chickens.

However, when he finally finished his academy training and graduated, he knew it was time to invest his leisure time into a car he genuinely desired and to finally halt Kong and Brian to stop bullsh!ting about how and why he sold the Civic they both broke their back in helping Xue slightly mod , in prior to the ITR. LOL!

When Xue began his journey in search of right ITR (because we all know how high they’re priced), Xue was suppose to purchase a Championship White 1998 ITR (with a JDM front conversion), but in the end, things didn’t work out and the seller backed out. Therefore, he had to start back from square one and begin his search anew.

Do you ever get that thought or feeling in the back of your head that when it’s the right car and moment, everything will just work out? Well, that’s exactly how Xue obtained this beautiful and well kept PY ITR.

Upon posting up an inquiry in wanting to purchase an ITR, the seller of the vehicle contacted Xue and asked to see if Xue will be interested in coming to check out the car. According to Xue’s experience, the seller didn’t even get a chance to create a “for sale” post yet at the time, in lieu, he directly messaged Xue.

During this time, Xue was still working in the the bay area. So one day, after he got off work, Xue made the trip to Daly City to inspect the ITR in person. After much contemplation, Xue made the right financial decision to purchase the ITR.

In courtesy of the transaction, the buyer even offered to tow the ITR to Xue’s house. That shows a lot of character! I am sure Xue greatly appreciated that very much. I know I would!

Xue mentioned that the ITR was his own graduation present for himself for finishing his academy training. A very well deserved incentive for his hard work and efforts! Extremely proud of him and his decision.

Upon purchase, the ITR was completely stock and unmodified. Like how Honda would have sold it from factory, that was pretty much what Xue acquired when he also purchased this ITR; now under his ownership.

Xue knew exactly how he wanted to elevate the ITR to the next level. He envisioned the ITR to not be heavily modified. He still wanted to keep the identity of the ITR close to OEM as possible. Some nice OG wheels and minor details throughout the Integra, and he would call it a day!

One of the initial purchase made by Xue to make the ITR his own were the substitution of the amber/orange turn signals. He swapped them out to clear ones.

In my opinion, was so much cleaner. A miniature exchange could really bring out a vehicle to a whole new light, just like how these clear turn signals have served Xue.

(Keeping the stock OEM wing in the back was the right decision. I have seen various ITR at car shows rocking a Mugen Gen. 1 or 2 wing. So it’s actually nice to see the OEM wing to hold the true essence of an factory ITR.)

(I think my Honda knowledge is not superb, but I think its sufficient to call myself a Honda fanatic. I initially thought the red badges only came from Factory for JDM ITR’s, not USDM ITR’s. After a quick confirmation from Xue and Simon, they both informed me that all USDM ITR’s do in fact, came with red Acura badges. I guess you learn something new about Honda’s everyday.)

Some more content to appreciate about Xue’s ITR is his controllable ability to retain the personality of the ITR. Trusting in the OEM parts, his ITR is not heavily modified, simple, and extremely clean!

(The ITR decals were stamped onto the lower sides of both the quarter panels. Another decal was stamped right behind the right side of the tail light, further representing the distinction of the ITR from GSR’s/LS’s/RS’s.)

The next move was to purchase a set of Function & From Type 1 coilovers and a set of wheels to alter the ITR’s appearance. With the help of Kong and Mee, they both assisted Xue in dialing in his preload on the coils alongside the height.

Shortly after that, before Kong had an opportunity to post up the OG Desmond Regamaster for sale on Facebook Marketplace, he reached out to Xue if he was interested in purchasing the wheels. With no doubt and chasing a Spoon Sport theme style, Xue quickly purchased the wheels and faithfully utilized them till this day.

Just shortly after the purchase of the wheels, a pair of Spoon twinblocks were already on their way to Xue’s house. In my personal opinion, the Spoon twinblocks just goes so hard on a PY ITR. It’s almost as if the ITR came with the twinblocks from factory already.

(The wheel specs are 16x8 +35 OG Desmond Regamaster EVO’s. Redone in flat black to represent the Spoon Sw388’s, the yellow Spoon Sport decal was added onto the spoke instead of an EVO decal. A nice touch to display the Spoon theme from the suspension to the wheels.)

(The Regamasters are wrapped with some Falken RT615k+ rubber. May I also add that the OEM mud splash were an ideal and better move than to put on a pair of the ITR rear valence.)

(To complete the wheel fitment and setup, the Regamasters are locked down by a set of Muteki lug nuts in a burnt/neochrome finish.)

Like I have mentioned from my previous blog, a good initial move to transform the appearance of vehicle whilist maintaining OEM body lines is a good set of aftermarket wheels. Xue knew exactly what he was chasing after and figured out that move rather rapidly.

One of the last modification to set off the ITR was the need for an aftermarket exhaust. What will be best to compliment the theme that is already traveling throughout the chassis? A Spoon N1 exhaust!

Also accompanied by the Spoon crane logo on top of the exhaust can probably hint other drivers from a distance that the exhaust is also of Spoon as well. A nice and not so terrible touch. The more I look at it, the more I actually like it how Xue wisely placed the decal in that specific area of the car (instead of how it’s usually under the side door right underneath the side mirrors).

As Xue neatly completed the exterior of his ITR, he worked on the inside right after. Switching out the ITR OEM seats, he is now embraced by a pair of Recaro Sr4 (black in yellow stitched). If you further investigate the interior, Xue actually got a few interior pieces of ITR reupholstered.

(The red stitching have been removed and been replaced with yellow ones to represent the Phoenix Yellow seen outside the car. )

(I personally think it’s a real nice touch to detail. I could be wrong, but I believe not just the stitching were redone, but the seats are reupholstered as well.)

(Like me, when Spoon doesn’t offer something you want modified on your car, the next brand to look at would be Mugen, or vice versa, if you’re a Mugen head. On here, the stock pedals have been replaced with Mugen pedals. Not captured here, but the plastic dead stop pedal have also been replaced to a silver one, almost identical to the Mugen gas pedal that is shown here.)

(As you stepped into the interior of the ITR, you are welcomed by a huge logo that is embroidered onto the floor mat to continue representing you’re not just settling into a GSR, but an Integra Type R. These floormats can fetch a pretty penny. Xue is quite fortunate to find a seller who was willing to include the floormats along with the purchase. Great integrity resides in every true automotive enthusiasts, right? )

Something to further appreciate about the ITR compared to the other Integra’s in the market is the dry carbon bezels and parts seen throughout the interior of a ITR. As we dive into further details, Xue have also replaced the OEM ITR steering wheel. The replacement was with a MOMO black/yellow stitched wheel (which I also believe have been reupholstered).

(The center console pieces have been finished in a dry carbon finish. Minor details counted and Honda made sure to put some attention to the interior of an ITR interior to give it some more racing aesthetic.)

(The dry carbon traveled vertically to the climate controls and air vents.)

(The dry carbon is also seen on the cluster of an ITR as well. Unlike the CTR/EK9, the CTR/EK9 cluster has an CIVIC TYPE R logo on the speedometer. )

(EVEN the driver side air vent is in dry carbon. It reminded me of how Honda designed the Honda S2000 (AP1/AP2) interior. It’s a driver’s car that all the radio and air ventilation controls are all facing toward the driver only. Like the ITR, Honda probably only cared for the driver and finished the driver side vent in carbon fiber; while the passenger side is not.)

(Another detail to note was the badge that is located on the center glove compartment of the vehicle. Only the ITR’s had a badge with it’s own serial number to represent and distinctively separate it from it’s peers.)

Another substitution done onto Xue’s ITR was the shift boot. Gifted from Kong and as a memory of his late ITR, now the Type RX yellow stitched shift boot resides in Xue’s ITR in completion of a wholesome black suede and yellow stitched interior.

To finish off the meticulously modified interior, the final piece was a yellow Mugen rear view mirror cover. I didn’t spot this on Xue’s car, until the end of the shoot, when Simon have identified it. Otherwise, I would have never realized it to bother capturing it.

Finally, as we finish up the exterior and interior of Xue’s ITR, we made our way to the engine bay, that still relied on an OEM+ style. You could easily see the mixture of tasteful parts inside the engine bay. All the OEM lines were visibly seen and cleaned as well.

(First off, the valve cover is no longer in the factory wrinkle red finished. Instead, now dipped in yellow to resemble the Spoon Sport valve cover, the spark plug wire cover have also been replaced to a J-Blood carbon kelvar cover.

(Resided next to the Mugen air box was a pair of Spoon Sport radiator hoses.)

(Spoon Sport accessories continued to traveled throughout the engine bay like the: reservoir covers and radiator cap.)

It was a pleasurable moment to be able to capture great content of Xue’s ITR with the quick hour I was given before Xue headed off to work. What I enjoyed most about Xue’s ITR was what I kept mentioning in repetition that he kept the ITR in mint condition.

You all know how legendary the Integra Type R is! To find one in low miles and with a clean record, you’d probably end up paying at least $50,000! It’s a well sought after Acura that retains it’s value extremely higher than it’s original price. Worth every investment of your paycheck!

After the shoot, Xue drove the ITR back to his house and then headed off to work. As for me and Simon (who tagged along with us to the shoot), we met up with Kong in his garage to see his build shenanigans with the Civic hatchback he picked up awhile back. Let me just say, you’ll be in for a treat. After some small bullsh!ting in Kong’s garage, we all departed to meet up with Brian and ended the day with a brotherly date over sushi!

These type of the days are the best! Hanging out with people important to you in your circle and eating as much sushi as you could, and then driving home with a food coma back home.

Thank you for reading another Xplicit Projects blog! See you on the next one!