88' LX-i, needs more power

[02GTP]

hello all. new to hondas and this site. my 12.7@112 car is having some issues now so i picked myself up a 88' LX-i. 5spd, fuel injected. the body is a bit rough but the engine is perfect. makes 130psi compression across the board, no probs with leak down, doesnt burn a drop of oil, new timing belt, plugs, wires, cap and rotor.

ive done simple stuff like remove the cat, CAI, timing advance and some weight reduction but i want to make it faster. the clutch is going so i will be doing that and a light weight flywheel, but is there anything else i can do for cheap? i dont want to do a motor swap. i know 0 about these cars so i was hoping u guys could help me out, thank you.

and yes iam mechanically inclined, i work in a shop and have done many projects. just not hondas.

[MessyHonda]

http://www.3geez.com/forum/showthread.php?t=61469

[02GTP]

thanks for the info, but a few more questions. if i put in a cam, how much power will i get with stock tb/intake mani/head? and also if i put in a cam, do i have to tune the car or just put it in and go.

[skycam_313]

hello all. new to hondas and this site. my 12.7@112 car is having some issues now so i picked myself up a 88' LX-i. 5spd, fuel injected. the body is a bit rough but the engine is perfect. makes 130psi compression across the board, no probs with leak down, doesnt burn a drop of oil, new timing belt, plugs, wires, cap and rotor.

ive done simple stuff like remove the cat, CAI, timing advance and some weight reduction but i want to make it faster. the clutch is going so i will be doing that and a light weight flywheel, but is there anything else i can do for cheap? i dont want to do a motor swap. i know 0 about these cars so i was hoping u guys could help me out, thank you.

and yes iam mechanically inclined, i work in a shop and have done many projects. just not hondas.

and your 12.7 @112 is a ?????

[02GTP]

its a 2002 Pontiac Grand Prix GTP. it puts about 350whp down and has run a best of 12.65@109 on street tires in 3000 foot DA. it has also trapped 112 in better wether. it has a new setup now that should be low 12's/maybe high 11's@114ish.

[MessyHonda]

thanks for the info, but a few more questions. if i put in a cam, how much power will i get with stock tb/intake mani/head? and also if i put in a cam, do i have to tune the car or just put it in and go.



well i noticed alot of top end when i installed my stage 2 tri-flow colt cam.....it also killed the gas....i get 21-28mpg.... not worth it on a daily driver. i fill up my car every week

[02GTP]

1. did u have to run premium?
2. did u have to change valve springs?
3. did u have to tune it?
4. what rpm did u shift at after install?

[02GTP]

i talked to the guy at colt cams today. he said the stage 1 will be better for a DD and better for city driving. its cool the motor will handle 7500rpm but the intake manifold wont flow up to that. unless u guys know of a good swap for cheap i will be getting the stage 1.

[cygnus x-1]

If you don't mind a bit of dremel work you could use a B18A or B18B intake manifold from a '90s Integra. Lots of them at the junkyard by me. A B16 intake would be even better but harder to find. You'll also want a header too. Pacesetters are cheap and available. Not the best but ok.

C|

[Vanilla Sky]

For cheap mods, grab yourself a Pacesetter header (actually, there's a DC header in the marketplace I believe), a better intake manifold, and the stage 1 cam. Since you're pulling the trans, find one from a 1987 Prelude Si. Swap the 5th gear from the Accord to the Lude trans and reinstall. The Prelude trans has rather better gearing than the Accord trans.

You could pick up one of the adjustable cam gears from nswt8. I have mine sitting here, and it's nice.

Here's the trading post listing for the Lude trans and the DC header:

http://www.3geez.com/forum/sr_classifieds.php?do=ad&id=98

[MessyHonda]

1. did u have to run premium?
2. did u have to change valve springs?
3. did u have to tune it?
4. what rpm did u shift at after install?



yeah i only run shell premium gas on it.
no i didnt change the valve springs...my engine only has like 150k
yeah i had the car dyno tuned with crome(obd1 swap)
i have a set of shorter gears and new clutch and flywheel and i shift around 3500

i would go stage one....stage 2 is over kill for a stock engine.

[02GTP]

i appreciate all your help, this site has good info on my accord. due to limited funds im going to leave the intake mani stock but here is my mod list.

1. Delta 272 Cam (about $85 cheaper than colt and i can wait till instal to send core)
2. Header (not sure which brand)
3. catless 2.25" exhaust
4. custom CAI
5. timing advance
6. clutch and lightweight flywheel.

that should give it some kick. and do u guys know where i can find a light weight flywheel?

[87roach]

The only two I know of are:

Unorthodox
http://www.unorthodoxracing.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=060610800&Category_Code=accordultraL

and Clutchnet

http://www.clutchnet.com/product.php?productid=21716&cat=0&page=1

[AccordEpicenter]

aasco used to make one but from what ive heard they dont exist anymore. I have one and i like it very much. There was a rumor that clutchnet=aasco but im not really sure about that

[MessyHonda]

clutchnet makes all there flywheels...i have one...i like it but i really dont think its worth that much on a stock engine....i only paid 275 also...so now its more of a rip off

[02GTP]

ive been doing some more research and is it true that the 87's A20A3 only had 110hp and the 88-89 had 120hp?

[Vanilla Sky]

Yup. Different intake manifold, different exhauat manifold (4-2-1), different cam, slight bump in compression, and a different fuel map are what brings the power up another 12HP.

[02GTP]

good to know, thanks for the info. im hoping with a weight of 2675 with me in it, Delta 272 cam, header and full exhaust with timing advance, CAI i will be able to get a mid 15 with a decent sixty foot.

[labeledsk8r]

what have you done for weight reduction?? everything from pulling the rear trunk paneling and sound deadner , puling the CC, pulling a/c (if non functional) all ads up to some weight... you also might want to think aobut going with atleast a blaster 2 coil and new wires/plugs to help smooth out its responce...

[02GTP]

everything from the front seats back. the cruise, ac, horns(very rusty and broken) headlight motors (one didnt work so i just removed them and now they stay up right). without me and not much gas it was just under 2450. and it already has new coil, cap/rotor, wires and plugs.

[MessyHonda]

sounds good. one day il have to take out my ac....looks like spaghetti in the engine bay

[02GTP]

i just got another 45lbs out of it today. took out the evap core, a/c fan and crash beams in the doors.

question- has anyone here ever converted their power windows to manual windows in the interest of weight savings? and if so was it a pain in the ass?

also my ps pump is getting noisy so im debating weather to remove it or get a new one. what do u guys think?

[bobafett]

hey whatsup....

good job on all the weight reduction, i have done many of the same things.

removing PS and AC is great, there are lots of heavy parts like the bracket that get to leave when you pull it all out. its very worth it imo. yeah its harder to turn the wheel when in slow speeds (1st gear) but other than that the feel is actually better.

as for the power to manual windows swap, its sort of a pita, i am in the middle of doing it now. i found that the lengths of the brackets that bolt to the window are different, so you end up needing to drill a hole in the rail so that the stock bolt on the window will line up. minor modification, but still sort of a PITA. i also converted to a manual side mirror on the drivers side, and the carbed mirror delete on the passenger side.

i would love to weigh the car, but i'm sure its still really heavy!

[02GTP]

thanks for the info. ill probably remove the ps but as long as my power windows still work, i think i will leave them in. im in a cash bind right now and dont want to spend money on new regulators, door panels unless necessary.

[Vanilla Sky]

The power windows don't really weigh that much more than the manual windows.

I also would have left my crash beams in place. Without those, these cars don't have much side-impact protection.

Flyin' Miata has a good how-to on depowering a steering rack. Since our cars use a substantially similar rack, the steps still apply.

http://www.flyinmiata.com/tech/depower.php?x=1

A B-series intake manifold is going to be lighter than your stock one. The stock 88/9 Accord intake manifold is a dual runner manifold, so it has a LOT more material, and thus weight. Keep an eye in the junkyards, or even Honda-Tech. Pulloffs are common, and I've seen them being given away on H-T.

Oh, and that header will give you a fair amount of weight reduction, as well. Those stock cast iron manifolds are heavy as shiat.

[02GTP]

thanks for the info. has anyone ever took off the upper piece of the intake manifold and took out the butterfly valve? im sure the low end would suffer a bit but the top end would gain a bit. im curious if anyone has ever messed with that.