stock '98 ex civic, looking to customize

[Billy.]

you can get your ecu chipped, but it needs to be dyno tuned first in order to get the proper air/fuel ratios. dont fall for those ebay 20hp chips they try to scam people with, get it done professionally.

another option for tuning a stock motor with bolt on mods is a piggy back system. the apexi vafc can tune on the fly, so if you add more parts down the line you can adjust your air/fuel to compensate. this also needs to be done on a dyno however

 

[d2w00t]

ah i c, ive never heard of a piggyback system, whats it do? and having both a chip and a piggyback system, would i see any drastic change in performance? then beyond that, would an intake/exhaust THAN have benefits, or would they still not matter, unless i swapped my engine?

oh yeah, and since im a newbie with cars, what exactly does a racing chip do? ive heard a bit here and there about chips, but i dont know the in depth info on them.

 

[Billy.]

well its not really called a racing chip. its just a chip that overrides the stock ecu's tune. it changes the air/fuel ratio to a more optimum condition and brings out a few horsepower depending on the motor and mods. it wouldnt be practical to have a piggy back and a chipped ecu, seeing as how it accomplishes the same thing. the piggy back, however, can be changed on-the-fly meaning anytime you add or remove a performance mod you can retune the system to accommodate for the changes. a chipped ecu is more or less permanent.

bolt on mods usually only have a performance gain if the ecu is retuned after they are installed. anytime you change how the engine breathes, you need to change how much fuel is going into it.

 

[d2w00t]

oh i see. so to you, how much HP gain do you think i would get on a stocked engine b16y8 (127hp), with a piggyback / intake / exhaust? just a rough estimate to how much you think i would gain (i would think since the ratio of airflow/fuel would be higher, that the exhaust/intake would take a bit more affect then if i didn't get a chip or piggyback). i also heard that intakes can be devastating to b series engines aka blow it up or something (from what ive read on other threads )

also the moral of the chain of these posts, what do you think i could do to my "engine" without swapping, like whats the most i can do "performance" wise without residing to a swap (or turbo). i think we covered it right? basically intake/exhaust (aka NOTHING gained) and the piggyback? point speaking.....i just wanna get the MOST out of this car "performance" wise without swapping! how about a new intercooler? or w/e....that huge grid looking thing visible on ur front bumper lol

 

[redej6]

U can basicly build the block. change the piston,cams rods, etc, along with the headres/intake. if a motor is built than the intake will have better effect, than on just a stock motor. but if your going to do all that just spend the money on a swap. its gonna be the same price.. or cheaper.!

 

[d2w00t]

yeah, that sounds reasonable. what should i do about the parts under the car? like what kinda suspensions, what kinda axle/struts etc etc etc!

 

[redej6]

TIEN FTW. imo. I wouldnt get the cheap ebay s**t.

do you want springs or coilies...? u can do a disk brake convertion as well. I have full 2001 gsr brakes.

 

[Billy.]

a stock y8 with I/H/E and a tune may see 10-15whp increase. i cant imagine much more than that. an intake wont hurt a motor unless the filter gets submerged in water, or the filter leaks dirt into the engine (aka a cheap ebay filter). the best kind of intake is a stock airbox with a drop in performance filter (K&N, Green, Spoon, ect). its reliable, carb friendly, and cheap

an intercooler acts like a radiator for the air charge on a forced induction motor. it helps return the intake air temperature back to ambient air temps after coming through the hot compressor of a turbo. its not practical to put an intercooler on a naturally aspirated motor.

i hate to say it but a stock y8 is just not a motor full of potential. if you want significant power increases, you have to build up the motor and increase the compression ratio to about 11:1, or slap on some light boost. bolt on mods just wont make you happy

 

[Jas0nEK]

By the way, that big grill thing on the front is called a "radiator." Fluid is passed through it and the engine. This process of circulation helps to keep the engine relatively cool. Unless there's something wrong with yours, I highly recommend you leave it alone. Considering your application, there's not really an alternative that's a viable performance part. For an otherwise basically stock Civic, a radiator is just a radiator no matter how you cut it.