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Modification Recommendations

EP3 Dave

EP3 Dave

Messages
125
Hi all,

Seeking advice on engine mods, What you guys recommend etc.
(I'm willing to spend a fair bit if its really worth it, but I'm not a millionaire! Haha)

First off; intake (cone? Guarded cone? Cold air intake or air box?) and specific products :)

Manifold I was thinking japspeed??
Downpipe I was thinking japspeed sports cat??
Unsure on exhaust so throw some ideas at me :)

Finally (for now) cams, TODA or Skunk2?

Cheers guys
Dave
 
Hi Dave, always try to get the best parts specially with intake and exhaust because you want your car running efficiently which will give you the best proven performance and also a very good investment should you want to sell the parts at a later stage so here it goes:

Intake/Filter:
Gruppe M Ram Air system- the best money can get you IMO second hand examples sometimes pops up now and then for a lot cheaper than new and you will get good solid performance gains as your intake air temperature will be a lot lower(no heat soak)

Exhaust manifold/ Race header: For emission testing you can get the Piper Manifold with sports cat not cheap but when combined with good catback system the gains are quite decent. Alternatively you can get a good second hand DC Sports manifold then get a good exhaust shop to remove the flexi section and buy a hi-flow sports cat and integrate it to the manifold and upgrade engine mounts with inserts or billet aluminium mounts so everything is solid with minimal movement/ stretch .

Catback exhaust: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Civic-Typ...arts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item337ec29c4d I looked around for you and found this piper Catback exhaust for a very good price actually less then half price when new just copy and paste link to browser.

Valve train : the choice is plenty and would recommend speaking to a good tuner what your plans are. Upgrade your valve springs and retainers as some camshafts can be a bit too aggressive with very high lift, I would do this first then install Integra DC5 cams as these are very good and are genuine Honda parts,should I want a more aggressive set up then I would intall Skunk2 or DragCartel but it's a compromise as some affect the way the car drives specially in traficc stop and go speeds but would discuss this with tuner.

There's a saying: for more power and torque get a bigger displacement engine or forced induction(K24 bottom end/Turbo/Supercharger) it might be cheaper to mate a K24 with K20 head and the gains will be excellent with good torque figures.

Hondata K-Pro/K100 is a must for tuning your set-up.

Everyone will have different opinions but you have to sit down and work all the figures like costs ect vs power and then decide which set-up suits you the best as you can save yourself a lot of moneys!!

Tuner advice and guidance is a must for a sweet set-up remember that!

Good Luck for your project in achieving your goals.
 
Interesting thread this, in a similar situation myself not 100% knowing which is the best way to go even though my car has a few bits already fitted....... good read above! :wink:
 
Would agree with a lot of what Vteker has written except the bit below.

Vteker said:
Valve train : the choice is plenty and would recommend speaking to a good tuner what your plans are. Upgrade your valve springs and retainers as some camshafts can be a bit too aggressive with very high lift, I would do this first then install Integra DC5 cams as these are very good and are genuine Honda parts,should I want a more aggressive set up then I would intall Skunk2 or DragCartel but it's a compromise as some affect the way the car drives specially in traficc stop and go speeds but would discuss this with tuner.
Click to expand...

Do not waste money upgrading valve springs and retainers if you are going to be putting DC5 cams in. They work 100% fine with OEM springs and retainers.

Only if you then decide to venture outside of the realms of Drop-In Cams (DICs) should you contemplate upgrading valve springs and retainers. You should also then contemplate upgrading the cam chain tensioner and maybe the chain to something a bit more substantial, depending on how agressive the cams are that you go for. I've had an OEM tensioner fail 7k after a cam swap, although this was because I naively didn't get the cams set-up properly with adjustable cam gears. Lesson learnt, so yeah think about adjustable cam gears too!

In addition to what Vteker has said, if you do go for some DICs, stage 2 or stage 3 cams, Toda/Skunk2/Drag Cartel etc, seriously think about getting a larger throttle body and swapping the inlet manifold for a RBC and getting it port matched to the throttle body. This will maximise any gains you will get from more aggressive cams.

I've had Skunk2 Stage 1 cams which even though they are Stage 1s still need springs and retainers, and I'm now on some tuner produced A3s. Both are fine on a daily drive, idle smoothly at 900 rpm and both have a torquey low lobe. **** gets mental on the VTEC lobe though! :)
 
Hi Loxy, hi agree and disagree with you on somethings,as it's never a waste of money in IMO to have the valve springs replaced by good quality double valve springs and titanium retainers, you're only increasing reliability. DC5 cams rev higher than the ep3 and make more power so in a way they're abit more aggressive by nature.What about if you miss shifting going up or down the gears at high rpm? for sure your gearbox will hate it and so will the head when valve springs are bouncing like mad Kangaroos let alone the block.Now(personally speaking) if I'm gonna put aftermarket cams in have you thought of doing some serious work to the way that cylinder head flows alone?Agree with Loxy for port matching intake manifold and throttle-body and to me that's what complements a good set of camshafts and throttle-body/ies ect. We all know its a costly upgrade but why not get a spare cilinder head plus all the bits that you need and then build it up overtime? As to me that makes a lot of sense, IMHO I would never cut corners to try and save money here and there because you will get what you pay for.The car wont perform to its full potential with that set-up!!I'm fortunate to have a garage with ramp at my disposal so no labour costs and can save lots and lots of monies!!!
But that's the great thing about us all Vtec junkies out there,we are not the same and we all have different opinions about things.i do things the way I was thought to do them. I've learnt my lesson and it cost me a cylinder head but just the one!!!!!!
 
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I got 229 bhp with a piper sports cat and mani, rbc, itg induction kit and supersprint silenced mid pipe on my old ep3.

This was dyno'd at eurospec which is well known to be conservative. Had this been at a roller up north, it would have been pushing 240 bhp
 
Excellent knowledge coming through here guys, Im thinking Skunk2 stage2 cams with skunk2 valve springs and retainers and 1mm oversized skunk2 valves (not sure whether to get high or standard compression!) and a skunk2 intake cam gear. This way everything cams/valve wise is bigger better and stronger?!? Looking at an ACT lightweight flywheel as well the 11.4lbs one :)

also took a look at a TODA manifold what are the opinions on these with an HKS 409 cat back?
Im getting a closed box gruppeM intake for definite :)

Keep the info coming makings of a good helpful thread!
 
Spoon or Skunk2 for throttle body? and Ill get round to a Skunk2 inlet manifold at some point later on (if it wont have bad effects on the car not doing it right away) thanks guys
 
I personally wouldn't bother with the valves. OEM ones will be fine.

Skunk2 throttle body is a true 70mm where the Spoon is a tapered 70mm, so in theory the Skunk2 should be better.
 
Like Loxy said I wouldn't bother with oversized valves either unless you're increasing bore size etc,as there's more of a demand for more oxigen and fuel. Skunk2 all the way as I've used skunk2 parts on my eg civic d16z6 turbo and worked very well!!!
 
Awesome, Skunk2 it is, and I want the engine bored and ported/polished as well give maximum air flow, is this still helpful for non turbo engines? Im looking to get the car to 250-260BHP for now, anything else you guys suggest to hit that target will be great! :)

P.S where will I get a Kpro or K100 from?
 
The better the flow the better the engine breathing ,specially when in N/A mode as engine won't be gasping for O2 on the top end and better torque across the whole of the rev range, on a boosted set-up even better!
 
Awesome, do you know cost of port polish/ bore out for the k20 and what about the cost of a Kpro and where do I get one? Thanks guys
 
The cost for reboring and hone its not that bad but you have to factor in cost for rebuilding the whole engine(parts+labour) if you want it done right and have a reliable power plant!! I say that because while the engine is apart you might as well do it all in one go and I mean the cylinder head too, all valve stem seals replaced, fit new bronze valve guides ect, ect, as you want to spend your precious money once and get the job done in one go!!
When I get my engine forged I will definitely get a spare one and do that one properly over time as it could cost a few grand to get it properly done, but that's me I'm just too fussy and like to do things right first time!!
For Kpro3 and tuning try cpl racing, tdi north. Eurospec as kpro and k100 prices have come down by a bit!!
Just google it I'm sure you'll find the sites on there and you might even get a discount on group buys!!
Good Luck
 
Ill probably give that a miss to be honest I'd love to get it done but I can't afford like 5k for a rebuild, got any other stuff I can get to boost BHP to around 250? Ill be doing weight stripping as well lexan back 3 windows, carbon fibre doors and boot (sprayed black to match the car) what you guys think?
 
I have RBC,dc5 cams,aem cai,4 2 1 manifold,spoon bpipe,standard exhaust,kpro tuned at tdi and i got 245.5bhp so if you went for something similar but with a full catback am pretty sure you would get 250 at least.


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