I am curious why so many of you think that the tranny will blow so easily, and that Honda slush boxes suck?
I don't know what they'll handle, but I can tell you for a fact that four seperate Automatic Accord and Prelude transmissions have had the shite beat out of them by myself and friends. I've also driven about 5 different Civics, with both manual and auto trannies.
My mom had a 1998 Civic EX, and the auto made it slower than shit. At work, for two years, I drove a 1996 manual civic, and it was a quick little fucker if driven right. But I have to tell you, that the impression is quite different in an Accord vs. a Civic. Accords and Preludes have more Torque and HP from the factory than most Civics will ever see. This is to account for the 800 lbs of baggage.
I would ask a transmission specialist for his view, and ask him what usually goes out in overpowered or beat on Hondas. Don't leave it to chance, but why throw out an extra grand needlessly if you don't have insane power goals?