hi, good that u got a 5 speed. if u want an exhaust, i think magnaflow has one, that makes it sound even better, its a powerful sound, not that loud civic crap. headers i believe u wil have to search for that, but it shouldnt help that much. the sc300's arent much wit natural aspiration. as for reliability, i haven't heard of anyone wit an sc300 having internal problems, like anything else, the power steering pump, timing belt, and bushings should be checked and replaced accordingly. its a great car n have fun. cya