For people who love cars, some would consider us as full grown kids. As ridiculous as it sounds, there is some truth to that fact. Despite being adults, we still break parts, bend rules and once in a while hoon around just for the sake of a good laugh. But at least it shows we have more fun than the average Joe of the same age. In most cases, the families closest to us still allow us tinkering and have fun with our cars but not many will directly push us like a coach. With that kind of support, who knows what will be the outcome since the possibility is endless.
Some time ago, I was invited by a custom bike builder known as Shawn to come over to his house on the north side of Kuala Lumpur. According to him, he has a Honda Civic Type R in his driveway that he and his dad uses to compete in the MSF Racing Series in Sepang. Previously known as the SNF series, it is a local racing league that mostly cater to privateers who wish to compete in a full on race environment on track. So due to the requirements, a competitor would have a light tuned, street chassis car that is equipped with a race cage.
Shawn first got into serious track racing when his dad first took him to the Malaysian Super Series race in Sepang. Then in 2009, his dad got him into serious racing which brought him to compete in the Yamaha SL Cup. It was from then on, Shawn continues to be nurtured and become the track racer he is today. However, Shawn is more known to be a home based custom bike builder under the name Shawn Seelan Creations. He started Shawn Seelan Creations back in 2014 which primarily revolves around restoring and customizing bikes from Vespas to Honda Cub bikes. It wasn't until the end of 2015, his dad suggested to use the name for their racing team to compete in the MSF series.
The platform chosen was a track ready Civic EK9 that they already started building since a few years back. The chassis they had was still equipped with a B16B motor that came with the car from factory. It took a good 5-6 years for them to source the right parts for the almost empty shell. This probably explains why the EK9 is using a meter cluster from an automatic transmission Civic. The toughest part of the build for them was perfecting the car's performance on track for the last two years so that the Civic is capable to adapt in any condition on track.
Under the skin, the B16B motor is running on a compression of 14.2 with 86 mm CP Racing pistons on the bottom end. The head has also been port and polished and runs on Toda 316 degree full race camshafts. Final drive has also been changed to 4.533. For the handling, the Civic is equipped with JIC Magic coilover suspension and full chassis braces. The chassis is also equipped with a 6 point roll cage and the glass windows have been replaced with lighter perspex. At the moment, this Civic currently holds a personal best track time of 2'37"40 on Sepang.
As of now, Shawn has placed a new target to clock a time under 2 minutes and 36 seconds on Sepang. So in order to hit that target, Shawn plans to get more seat time to improve his driving with the existing car they have. In a case of future plans for the car, there is not much left to do to it with the current setup. However, the team has planned to have the motor swapped for a Honda K-Series motor since they see the potential the car has with the extra power.
After my visit at their family home, it's nice to see a father son team to go together and share the same strong passion they have towards anything that runs on an engine. Not as dysfunctional as something you see on American Chopper but the rides they produce is definitely something they can and should be proud of. Even though custom bikes is what they are best known for, but with the joint know how they have, they can also build one serious race car.
TUNING MENU
Owner: Shawn Seelan
Model: 1999 Honda Civic Type R EK9
Location: Sentul, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
ENGINE:
1.6L B16B Inline-4,
86mm CP RAcing Pistons (14.2 compression),
Stage 3 Port And Polished Heads,
Toda Full Race 316 Camshafts,
Koyorad Radiator,
Custom Overflow Tank,
Works Fuel Regulator,
AEM Fuel Rail,
Bosch Dual Fuel Pumps,
Jasma 4-1 Exhaust Manifold,
Rimus Racing Rear Muffler,
Skunk2 Intake,
GReddy eManage Blue ECU,
DRIVETRAIN:
5 speed manual,
4.533 Final Drive,
Ogura Clutch,
SUSPENSION, CHASSIS AND BRAKES:
JIC Magic Coilovers,
Spot Welded Chassis,
Full Custom Bracing,
6-Point Roll Cage,
DC2 Front Brakes,
Stock Rear Brakes,
WHEELS AND TIRES:
Spoon Sports SW388 15 x 6.5jj Offset +42 (all round),
Silverstone FTZ T5 195/50/15 (all round),
EXTERIOR:
Perpex Windows,
Ganador Side Mirrors,
INTERIOR:
Bride Full Bucket Driver Seat,
Willians Harness,
Autometer Pro Comp Ultra Lite Tachometer,
Custom Switch Panel,
BONUS IMAGES
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