CurlyBandit’s Awesome Honda Performance Engine
It is always great to see someone take their own personal engine and squeeze every bit of power out of it. It’s made even more extraordinary when the success is shared among so many members who contribute to a project. Honda-Tech member CurlyBandit did just that with his Honda Civic d16z6 engine.
For those looking to nerd out on the power specs and modifications he has made to this engine, check out the list below, from his Dyno-tuned NA d16z6 build thread. Before that, read a bit about CurlyBandit’s progress on this engine, in his own words:
This motor has been a work in progress for the last couple of years. Last year I had the bottom end built with a stock head and level 2 Bisi camshaft. It made 130whp on 94 octane and was tuned using Crome.
This year I had a z6 head built and built a short-geared transmission. It made 156whp (155.6) and 115wtrq on 94 octane following a tuning session on a Mustang Dyno. This time it was tuned using Neptune. We ran it up to 8000rpm and it stopped making power at around 7500rpm. The tuner did an amazing job, considering his system was showing that the thermostat wasn’t working properly. He was able to work around it and still get some fantastic numbers.
Undoubtedly the work on the head and the Rocket Motorsports camshaft and valve-train made the biggest difference in creating the power. Together they freed up almost 26whp over last year’s build. The high compression pistons, the free-flowing head and camshaft worked beautifully together and the tuning helped to show what they can do.
I’m really happy with the results. But there are a few more horses lurking in there. Due to time limitations that I had (not the tuner) we never got to dial-in the cam-gear. I think I’ll be setting up another session to see if we can get a little more power.
When you’re standing next to the engine like I was, the VTEC cross-over is intense. The audio in the video doesn’t nearly do it justice.
But you still get a pretty darn good idea of what we’re dealing with here:
Here are the engine details, which are extensive, to say the least:
Exhaust:
– Megan Racing 4-2-1 header
– Magnaflow high-flow catalytic converter
– Tanabe Medalion 2.25″ exhaust
d16z6 block:
– resurfaced 0.004″, rebuilt: Top Line gasket kit
– bored to 75.5mm
– P29 pistons (Nippon Racing) – 75.5mm
– NPR piston rings
– ACL race bearings
– ARP rod bolts
– crank journals resurfaced
– Innovative Mounts AT-MT passenger side mount 60A (red) Polyurethane
– Innovative Mounts rear side mount 75A (black) Polyurethane
– Innovative Mounts driver’s side mount 75A (black) Polyurethane
– 11.4lbs Competition Clutch flywheel
– miscellaneous parts (i.e. water pump, belts, etc) all Honda OEM
d16z6 head:
– ported and polished
– resurfaced 0.004″ (IIRC)
– Rocket Motorsports stage 4 camshaft (re-grind of stock d16z6)
– Rocket Motorsports valve springs
– Rocket Motorsports titanium spring retainers
– AEM Tru-Time camshaft gear
– ARP head studs
– Cometic 75.5mm head gasket
– Denso spark plugs gapped and supplied by Rocket Motorsports
– d16y8 intake manifold – ported to 60mm and polished inlet and runner outlets ported to match head intake ports
– OBX plastic intake manifold gasket cut to match head intake ports
– 56mm d16z6 throttle body with KMS FITV block-off plate
– generic short-ram intake
– generic cotton air filter
Miscellaneous:
– Mishimoto aluminum radiator
– B&M fuel pressure regulator
– B&M fuel pressure gauge
– chipped P06 tuned on Neptune
– Walbro 255lph fuel pump
There’s much more on the thread, so check it out, then let us know what you think.