Today we’re going to move forward with the build coverage of Atuki’s EG6 build as it nears completion. The car was finally coming back together after being down for a majority of the year and once the guys from Tactical Art got the Civic running again, it was time to do some testing on a road course. For the most part, the motor has remained the same internally but the major addition after the rebuild was the individual throttle bodies. The Civic would need to be re-tuned so they wanted to get the car out on the track to make adjustments to the motor and management system with a laptop computer. Before all that happened however, Atuki still needed to wrap up some sections of his Civic build that required his attention. It was also necessary to make adjustments to the suspension. The vehicle needed to be re-aligned completely being that the entire chassis was basically gutted bare including the removal of all major steering components…

What I really hoped for was that they were able to capture some in-car video of the testing but unfortunately there wasn’t. It wasn’t important to them to really document it on video since it was more of a shakedown session than a series of competitive laps. There are some quick 15-second videos of it that their friends captured for Instagram but you really don’t get a very good grasp of how it performed that day. I’ll attached the videos later in the coverage when I have a chance to pull them up. From what I hear, they had some issues with the motor but that isn’t exactly a surprise. The car has been in pieces for so long with the motor out of the car that they just haven’t had time to really fine-tune the set-up yet. Hell, they barely just put it back together. I think in the coming months there will be more progress made as far as tuning goes. I’d like for them to maybe get on board with an AEM Engine Management System but they just don’t have anyone to tune the AEM software in Japan. I am not 100% sure what they are running currently but with the previous set-up, they were just on an APEX’i Power FC which is a bit dated by today’s standards. Just from looking at a screenshot of their laptop I can already tell that it is likely Power FC still. HKS F-Con VPro would be a good upgrade also. They just need to maximize the potential of their motor and I think the software might be holding them back. Anyways, this is something that I’ll probably discuss with them when I see them in January. Everything else looks pretty good. I love how the exterior came together and how they really took the time to clean up the entire chassis. Like someone mentioned to me a couple days ago, it is almost “too clean” now for circuit racing, haha…

If you missed any of the previous sections documenting the build-up of the Tactical Art Circuit EG6, click the links provided below to learn all about it…

Exclusive Content: A Look At Atuki’s EG6 Build From Tactical Art…

Exclusive Content: The Latest Developments On Atuki’s EG6 Build From Tactical Art…

Exclusive Content: The Tactical Art EG6 Circuit Build Nears Completion…

We will pick-up right where we left off with yesterday’s post. Atuki was still hard at work on his Civic and finally found some time to get a look around under the carbon vented hood…

Atuki using a metal feeler gauge tool to make adjustments to the valvetrain of his motor…

With the valve cover off it was time to do some routine maintenance and clean-up…

The factory B-series crank pulley is removed since he won’t be running any accessories like power steering or air conditioning…

It is replaced with a crank pulley that runs only the necessary belt to drive the alternator…

The spark plugs were showing some wear and tear so it was time to replace those as well…

That custom fiberglass/foam fender piece is completed and coated in flat black…

With the exterior completed and the motor back together, it was time to push the car out so it could finally catch some sunlight…

Compressed air is blasted on the chassis to remove dust and particulates….

A glimpse of the cockpit through the rear hatch…

One more shot of the custom dash before they call it a night. The following morning, it was time to get a proper alignment on the car…

Since they planned on giving the EG a good thrashing on the track, it was necessary to make sure that the car drove straight after being on a lift for almost a year…

With the Civic on the lift, Yasutaka captured a couple of good photos that really show off the rear of the car. Here you can see the Tactical Art dampers, custom gas filler neck, FCS fuel cell, and Tactical Art custom titanium exhaust….

One of the digital alignment machines hooked onto the 16×9 +11 Work Meister S1R wheels…

The view from inside the office…

Once the suspension was aligned, it was time to go back to Tactical Art for final preparations before hitting Central Circuit…

Here’s what the rear view mirror looks like with the custom mounting brackets and all…

Atuki’s office…

Adjustments to the management system are made to ensure that the car starts-up properly, idles, and has the proper air/fuel mixture…

It’s alive!…

Tying up some loose ends before calling it an evening…

…then they loaded the EG on their flat bed trailer, stuffed it in the shop, and got some rest…

The next morning, everyone got up before the sunrise to head over to Hyogo Prefecture for the test and tune….

Yasutaka mentions that they arrived at Central Circuit so early that the gates didn’t even open yet…

It seems like forever since we’ve seen this car in one-piece but I love its current and latest incarnation…

Finally a proper side-profile shot in some natural light….

Even with the low-leveling flat bed, wood was still required to help get the EG6 off the truck to prevent damage to the front end….

Wiping off the moisture on the windows and chassis…

All cleaned-up and ready to get dirty again on the track…

They had some problems with the Nagai Denshi MDI simultaneous ignition system so they switched back to the traditional coil, cap, and rotor ignition set-up…

While they waited for the car to warm-up in the paddock, Yasutaka captured a shot of this FEED FD3S RX-7 that was also there was some testing….

They didn’t have anywhere to keep the laptop securely mounted since the whole interior is gutted so they decided to tape it to this plastic box, haha….Kind of ghetto but it serves its purpose….

Above is just a quick clip of it that they captured of the car at idle…

The driver for the day making sure his driving position is good and ready…

Leaving the pits…

I’m glad to be represented proudly by Tactical Art…

Safety is important, especially when piloting a gutted EG with carbon doors and roof…

Not sure why Atuki didn’t drive that day but it was good to just see him out and about. The last couple times we’ve documented the Tactical Art/Team Madame guys out at events, he hasn’t been around…

Getting buckled into the Bride seat and Takata harness…

…and we’re off…

After its first initial lap, they ran into fuel problems and the car was stumbling beyond 5,000 RPM so they returned to the pits to assess the problem…

Turns out that they were having a problem with the fuel pressure gauge as it was somehow damaged so they simply removed it and went about their day. There were some ignition issues as well that was causing the car to bog down and that too was corrected…

After some quick fixes, it was time to get back out there…

Love how aggressive the interior looks with all the fabrication work and the pure rawness of everything. The inside of the car is equally as aggressive as the exterior…

The shakedown runs continue…

As I mentioned, I wish we could have had some onboard camera footage or video but here is a quick fly-by clip that Yasutaka captured…

Make sure to turn up the volume, haha…

A little Mitsubishi Pajero Turbo 2-door pulls the Tactical Art EG6 back into the pits after some laps around Central Circuit…

Cool capture of Atuki chillin’ at the track while on a phone call and enjoying a cigarette…

All in all, they had a good day. The Civic had its share of minor issues but that just comes with making shakedown runs after the car has been in pieces for such an extended amount of time. There isn’t anything glaring that needs to be repaired as the motor isn’t in any risk but there definitely are improvements that can be made. They said the car ran “fairly well” and you can’t ask for much more than that for the time being. There’s no rush so Atuki and crew will have plenty of time to get the EG running to its maximum potential…

Well that’s all for now. Hope you guys enjoyed the in-depth look at the Tactical Art EG6. Not sure when is the next time we will encounter this build again but I’m thinking it’ll likely be in January when I return to Japan for Tokyo Auto Salon 2014. I’ll be sure to keep you guys updated if there are any major developments. Thanks for looking and huge thanks to Yasutaka Shimomukai and the Tactical Art crew for providing us with this great coverage…