$600 worth of glee

I searched around on Craigslist for a bit today and found a few deals that I decided to jump upon.� First up is a freshly tuned ZC package for $600, pictured to the right.� It came with the following goodies:

• front crossmember
• DC sport ceramic header
• shift linkage
• new axles
• Si transmission + intermediate shaft
• AEM ram air intake
• motor mounts (with polyurethane inserts)
• virgin pm6 ecu (now I have two, I suppose I could tune one specifically for smogging)
• tuned (fuel map and raised redline) pm6 which probably won’t tune worth dirt

 

24 Hours of Lemons

If you haven’t already heard of it, the 24 hours of lemons race is a parody of the 24 Hours of Le Mans race.  I have decided to participate next year, and will most likely be sporting a 2nd-gen CRX.  I need an inexpensive 2nd-gen CRX though (something under $500 total).

The basic rules I have to abide by are:

1. The cost of the car combined with the cost of parts to get the car running and racing cannot exceed $500 (not including safety gear like seats, roll cage, and safety harnesses).  That means getting receipts,
2. The car that “wins” the “People’s Curse” award gets their car crushed halfway through the race.  Congratulations.
3. The car must survive all 13 hours of racing (it’s over a course of 24 hours).  If it doesn’t, you’d better hope that some other kind driver is willing to push you the last few laps.

Now, the search begins for a damaged (salvage, possibly damaged frame) CRX that comes with an engine or two for under $500. Since I can recoup initial costs by selling parts from the car, I’ll probably be selling the fenders and interior.

 

Turbocharging 101

Establish Starting Point

As with any project, the first thing you should do is establish your goals.  This is going to require a bit of math, but we’re going to determine the ideal target crank hp gain for your vehicle.  A good rule of thumb is that every 10hp you make with a gas engine requires a pound of air per minute delievered into the intake manifold. For example, to transform a 100peak horsepower (php) naturally aspirated engine into a 200php turbo engine, you’re going to need a turbocharger capable of flowing 20lbs of air per minute at a realistic boost pressure. You’ll need to compute the basic engine airflow rate in CFM as follows:

Airflow=(cubic inches displacement * rpm * 0.5 * volumetric efficiency(V.E))/1728

The *0.5 is there because a four-stroke engine only breathe every other revolution, while 1728 converts cubic inches to cubic feet per minute

If you were to insert 83 percent for V.E for a typical 2.0L Honda engine’s 122CID * 7000 * 0.5 * .83/1728=247 CFM

At 83 degrees ambient temperature at sea level 247CFM converts to pounds/minute follows: lbs/min=CFM * .07

Therefore 247CFM * .07 = 17.29 lbs of air per minute.

Using this rule of thumb this 2.0l engine should produce approximately 173 NA HP.  Now let’s see what we could do with that number using a compressor.

 

You want a B16a1

The b16a1 ROCKS.

The b16a1 is the holy grail of CRX motors.  It boasts true vtec, aggressive dual overhead cams, a high safe redline, a lsd-equipped close-ratio cable-driven transmission, and a very tuneable ecu.  It really is as nice a fit for the CRX as Honda ever made.

All b16 motors are good choices because of the aftermarket available and the near-perfect rod/stroke ratio, but the b16a1 is particularly suited to the ED chassis (88-91 CRX and Civics) because it’s obd0 and uses a cable transmission.  If it came from a CRX SiR, the transmission will be LSD-equipped.  If it’s from an Integra XSi, it will come without an LSD.

However, there are downsides.

Because the b16a1 was only available in Japan, and was only produced in the CRX and Civic SiR, getting one requires contacting an importer (who will generally buy one from a running car because of modern Japanese smog restrictions).  You will not know any of the history of the motor, but if the shop is worth spending time on, they will offer a full test run on the engine (dyno run and leakdown test) to ensure that it’s in working condition.

The other problem that arises is finding replacement parts.  The B family of Honda motors benefits from a large aftermarket parts availability, but stock parts are difficult to find because they need to be imported directly.

Final Thoughts

Overall, the b16a1 is a great choice to put in the CRX.  As long as you find a reputable dealer that offers a “complete swap” (axles, ecu, wiring harness, intake manifold, throttle body, exhaust manifold, etc) and the motor and transmission are both in good repair, expect to spend roughly $3,000 USD on this swap, assuming you will be installing it yourself.

More Info

That’s just the beginning.  There is a wealth of information available for the b16 series.  Here’s a good start for your hunt for more:

• Identify a b16
• Ryans CRX
• B16a1 Nitty Gritty
• Wikipedia B-series

 

LS

The LS engine is the least expensive way to break into the performance-oriented b-series engine family.  The b18a1 was produced from 1990 and 1991 in an obd0 model and 1992 to 1993 in obd1, then the b18b1 was produced from 1994 to 2001 as an obd2 engine.  All models were available on the USDM market, and continue to be readily available in salvage yards.  Any Acura Integra RS, LS, or GS will come equipped with an LS motor in one form or another.

The LS gained its name for being the only b-series engine to come without vtec from the factory, but LS/VTEC hybrids have enjoyed some popularity since their inception.

Installing an LS motor into a CRX engine bay is the simplest of b-series swaps, as it requires minimal wiring modifications (especially if using an obd0 model).  My full b18a1 writeup is also available on this site.

 

d16z6 and d16y8

d16z6

d16y8

The d16z6 and d16y8 amount to the same gains.  Both are economical single-cam true-vtec engines.  Both are common in salvage yards, available in 1992-2000 Civic EX and Si’s, and some models of Del Sol.  Power output is roughly 130hp for each model, but a frankenstein of the two is reputed to work best.  The d16z6 has a better-flowing head and the d16y8 has a better-flowing intake manifold, so putting the two together on top of any d16 block will yield some power gains.

The most notable difference between the two is the onboard diagnostics.  The d16z6 is an obd1 engine, while the d16y8 is an obd2 engine.  Both can be converted to obd0 easily enough, or your wiring harness can be converted to obd1 (obd2 is not recommended for engine tuning other than specific applications). During the wiring harness conversion, the vtec solenoid should be wired into the ECU (automatic ECUs are particularly useful for this modification).

Availability of parts and relative ease of engine installation make both these engines excellent candidates for any CRX.

 

d16ZC

The ZC is a smal but venerable 1.6l engine that shares motor mounts with all other d-series engines.  It is also obd0, making it a simple plug-and-play swap from a previous MPFI engine.  If you have a stock CRX DX, you’ll need to convert the wiring harness to MPFI and use the ZC ecu.

The ZC is one of the most difficult Honda engines to identify, so the folks over at jdmcars put together this pdf:  zc_identification for your reference.  Power output is generally ~130hp, and is a very strong candidate for boost.

For further information regarding the ZC, read here:

d-series.org

 

Anger Project upgrades to a 570z

I’ve relocated to the new house in San Leandro, and finally got the 240z in my garage.  I’ve gutted it, removed the gas tank, rear light panel, and am in the process of removing the engine and wiring to replace both.  I’m trying to decide what brake lights to end up using, or just fabricate a new light panel for the Z, but I’ve been strongly considering the Mach 1 Mustang style tail lights, similar to those pictured.

 

Custom gauge install

Happy Independence Day!  Calicab wrote this great howto on fabricating a gauge cluster in a DIN slot.  Enjoy!

(edited by Mad Scientist)

I did this on a 1991 CRX but this writeup applies to any vehicle with a standard DIN slot.
these are cyberdyne volts and air/fuel ratio gauges

Shopping List:

a large piece of plexiglass( you will make mistakes):)
a scoring tool
tape measure
sharpie marker
flat black paint
gauges
and drill and hole saw

this is plexi

 

Making the world a faster place, one car at a time

I’ve been busy with a whole slew of things this month, but my computer’s keyboard is getting pretty dusty. These are just my excuses for not updating the page this month, but I feel the need to let everyone know what’s been going on.  Many of you aren’t interested in this particular post, so feel free to just cruise on past and skip it.  Good articles are coming up soon.