General Tech Articles

By: Adam Pilchak B18C5 intake manifold onto a JDM B16A SiR2 The Integra Type R intake manifold is designed to utilize high-end power. It combines a large, high volume plenum with short intake runners to produce high end HP and torque. This item can be acquired from any Acura dealership with the part # 17100-P73-A00, and is a great combination with CTR or ITR camshafts and a header, to increase overall airflow. Start by removing the b16 intake manifold from your engine. This can be accomplished by removing the 10 nuts that hold it to the cylinder head. You also need to remove the intake manifold support bracket; this is a black mount underneath the IM. There are three bolts holding that to the block, and two holding it to the IM...

Okay, after seeing how messed up my tires looked after the 30.5mm drop from the Tein SS coilovers, I decided it was a good idea to get a camber kit and fix my camber problems. I went with a Skunk2 front camber kit (which I got new for $175). The kit is very simple. It comes with two adjustable upper arms. The install is simple enough but Skunk2 does not provide any instructions, so I figured now would be the time to write up a how-to article. :) Here we go: The Skunk2 camber kit [attachmentid=44] you'll need these tools [attachmentid=45] First, jack up the car and take the wheel off. I started on the driver's side (left) first. [attachmentid=46] Look at the tread... ouch [attachmentid=47] A couple pics of the OE upper arm...

How to Remove a Steering Wheel with an SRS Airbag Ok, so today I started my intermittent wiper project. I have read threads about it being a plug and play deal, but IT IS NOT. Ones without the intermitent wipers, do not have the plug in the back of the switch. Now, chances are that it is taped up under the dash, with the power mirror and sunroof switchs, I have seen them, but in my time constraints, I couldn't look around for it. So I will update this when I find it.... This how to can be used to say replace your steering wheel with a new high speed one, or do the intermitent wiper "mod" or just or some maintance under there, but are nervous about playing with your SRS. First step is to disconnect BOTH positive (+) and negative (-)...

Adjusting Cam Gears By: Adam Pilchak This procedure was performed on my 94 del sol with a JDM b16 sir II swap. It will be the same on any b16 engine and you can more than likely follow a similar procedure on any b series engine. First, make sure the car is not SUPER hot. You will need to remove the valve cover to do this job, so make sure the car is cool and all that stuff. Also, click the images for a larger version. First, gather all your tools: 19 mm socket wrench, timing light, 10mm socket wrench, 12 mm wrench, 12mm socket and a good set of Metric Allen wrenches. In order to change the timing on a b series engine with the valve cover still intact, we need to remove it. This can be accomplished by taking off the 8 chrome...

How to: Leakdown and Compression Tests There is some confusion between the leakdown and compression test. They are two different tests that test two different things. In this article, we will explain the basics of how to do each test, and what the results mean. Compression Test: To do a compression test, you remove the spark plug and put in the gauge. Remove all the spark plug wires from the dist or just undo the coil if so equipped. Now turn the key with the throttle wide open and keep cranking the car until the gauge reading rises as high as it seems it is going to go. Repeat those steps for all the cylinders. You want all the numbers to be somewhat close of each other. If some are way low, you know you're losing compression...

Spark Plug Reading Get help learning if your car is running too rich, too lean, too cold or too hot. There is a great website with a load of pictures for each event located here: http://www.dansmc.com/sparkplugs1.htm There's a link on the page to additional 30 images of plug conditions. Spark Plugs While this is a motorcycle site, spark plugs react the same ways in cars.

There are many things you can do to increase the power of your engine. I'll briefly list and explain just a few ways. 1) Decrease air intake temperature --Decreasing the air intake temp causes more oxygen molecules to fit into your combustion chamber, which then requires more fuel for combustion. This causes the combustion reaction to explode with more pressure, and more power. Hot air intake would not allow as many oxygen molecules to enter combustion, hence making a weaker air/fuel combustion reaction. 2) Increase the intake flow --It is very important to let the combustion chambers of your cylinders recieve as much air as possible. With a restricted air flow into the cylinders, it creates more resistance when the crank has to...

alright.. i just got a spare valve cover off ebay and its getting sandblasted this afternoon.. not really sure on what color i should do.. no, i dont want wrinkle red... i was thinking of a gold color.. or an olive green or something.. .. what do you think?? i'll be doing the letters and the spark plug cover black here is a pic of it now.. i will post pics of the progress ok, here it is after being sandblasted got the spark plug holes taped up so no paint hits them and i got the letters sprayed black all the essential equipment necessary to complete the task.. yes, including the Corona got the letters taped off... i got lazy so i only did the DOHC VTEC.. the Honda Motor Co. would have taken forever put on my coat of low...

Computing The Compression Ratio of a Motor By: Dennis Adams Compression Ratio To measure compression ratio of an engine there are two variables you need to be familiar with. One is swept volume and the other is total chamber volume. Swept volume can be thought of as the displacement for a single cylinder or the area a piston travels from bottom dead center (BDC) to top dead center (TDC). Total chamber volume is all the area above the piston at TDC. This area includes the piston dish volume, the piston valve relief pocket, ring land volume, compressed gasket volume, piston to deck volume, combustion chamber volume of cylinder head. Some other factors you'll need to know engine displacement, cylinder bore, and cylinder stroke. The...

editors note: Originally posted by Adam P and edited for cleanliness.. How to Chip a Honda OBD1 ECU Saved here in the forums for preservation USDM OBD1 ECU Chipping So, you want to chip your obd1 usdm ecu. You didn't listen to me tell you to get a Hondata, or if you did listen and you are reading this... good job. On a scale of 1-10, the difficulty of chipping an ECU is a 3. Just follow these simple instructions and you should be revving past your stock rev limiter using your stock valve train and floating valves in no time, because chances you also didn't listen to me when I told you that your stock cams don't make power over 8000 rpm and your stock valve springs and retainers also can't handle the revs. So sit back, chip your ECU...

Heres a step-by-step walk-through of how to change a Head Gasket on your Honda's D-series motor. And btw, sorry for some of the blurry pics... I'm not a photographer :p 1. Start unplugging wires and hoses. Everything attached to the head from the car's body or the block MUST be disconnected. 2. Unbolt your header. I had to pull out my A/C fan to get it to clear the studs on the block. 3. IMPORTANT STEP! Set your motor to TDC (Top Dead Center), where the #1 cyl. is on the Intake stroke. Post if this confuses you. 4. Remove the timing belt. I just slide mine off. Remember NOT to turn the motor OR the Cam-gear after this step, unless you like head-aches. 5. Unbolt your head bolts in sequence. Make sure you have a manual in...

I put this guide together because I'm tired of seeing the SAME threads over and over of simple questions that can be answered in one simple post like this one. This thread is designed to be an end-all, tell-all type thread. Please keep in mind though, that this is still just a general guide. Lsvtec/b20vtec engines are not honda manufactured engines. With that said, there are hundreds of combinations you can build. Also, please be aware that this guide is assembled on an intermediate level, and in my opinion anyone reading this guide can perform all of the steps outlined. I left out things like how to hone cylinders, install bearings, pistons, rings, valve seals, etc. Because honestly, I don't want people attempting it based on my...

How many valve reliefs are in D15B6 pistons? Q: Why does anyone care? A: If you're going to swap the head on an HF engine to a 16 valve D series head, you might need a set of pistons with 4 valve reliefs each. So here we go- courtesy of ryan89crx, who pulled the head on his 89 CRX HF just to see how many valve reliefs he had in his pistons. There are only 2 reliefs per piston. Thanks Ryan!

This will work for usdm OBD-1 ECUs: Read the code on it. The 2nd to last # on an automatic ECU will have a 5. If it is anything but a five then it is a manual ECU. Jdm OBD-1 ECUs: Read the code on it.. if the last 3 digits are 900 or 901 it is an automatic ECU.

Reseting the ECU won't do anything for you. . . you can read the code from the same ECU service connector (passenger side under dash) however to reset the light follow these steps. 1. turn ignition switch off, remove ECU service connector 2. connect (jump) the MES connector (this is 2 pin yellow connector wrapped in yellow plugged in the front of the underdash fuse box) 3. turn ignition switch on 4. SRS light will come on for 6 secs then go out, remove the jumper within 4 secs after the light goes out. 5. the SRS light will come on again, reconnect the jumper within 4 secs after the light has come on. 6. the SRS light will go off, remove the jumper with in 4 secs after the light has gone off. 7. the SRS light will blink two times...

Honda Injector Guide Choosing the correct size injector for you build is a vital part of the process. There's a lot to consider, including, size and type. There are two basic types of injectors that work on Honda and Acura cars and every size for every power need. Let's dive in. Peak / Hold VS Saturated Injectors Peak and Hold: Peak/hold injectors are low impedance, usually in the 1-4 ohm range. When the ecu calls for fuel to be injected, it sends out voltage via the wire clips until a certain current level is reached (the peak part) (varies by injector size, company). For the duration of 1 pulse width, that current is slightly reduced and held (the hold part). Advantages of this design: minimizes the injectors "on" time...

All obd 1/2 B series are 240cc's saturated All obd 1/2 D series are 240-cc's saturated 1992-96 Prelude non-vtec Peak and hold 240cc 1992-96 Prelude VTEC Peak and hold 345cc 1997-up Prelude VTEC Saturated 280cc

Fixing an Erratic Idle By: Adam Pilchack Let me give you some background on my del sol if you haven't been around long. It will be a year ago in March that I put my JDM B16 SIR II into my del sol. Since the day it went into the car, it would not idle correctly. There was always a surge. The following is a list of steps I took to cure my idle problem.. it took me just shy of a year to get it to work properly, but it's done!! 1) Check the voltage on your Throttle Position sensor. Sometimes when doing swaps, you have to use your old throttle position sensor because the one that came with the swap is almost always broken. The Honda ECU looks for .5 volts when the throttle blade is closed and 4.5 volts at wide open throttle. You can...

This is an article I wrote for Civicland way back at the beginning of the year, and have just refreshed for general consumption. If you actually need this to change out your headlights and corner lenses, god help you when you try to perform an engine swap. Aside from that, this might be useful for you, so here it is. ---------- DIY: How to install new headlights and corner lenses in a 5th gen Civic; stock vs Hiper bulbs What you'll need:10mm socket, ratchet, driver Medium sized Phillips screwdriver Your new headlights Your new corner lenses Some towels or newspapers An hour or two Note: If you're only replacing your corner lenses, only follow steps 2 and 6. Here we go... 1. Get your bumper off First, pop your hood...

How to Change your Axle(s) on 88-00 Civic, 90-01 Integra The axle swap only takes about half an hour (for me). If it's your first time, budget out about 1-2 hours. You'll need a 14mm socket, 17mm socket, 32mm socket and breaker bar (for the spindle nut), ratchet and torque wrench, hammer/mallet, pipe wrench (my preference). Get some cotter pins to replace the old crusty ones from your castle nuts too (two total if you take EVERYTHING apart). What I basically do is: Remove center cap from wheel or remove hubcap- this may require wheel removal Have the car sitting on the ground on all wheels Remove spindle nut from end of axle through center of wheel (it's really hard to do with the car in the air) Jack up corner of car Remove wheel...