Well i just wanted to say that this install wasn't as bad as i thought. Earlier this week, Skunk2nr posted a thread and made the install look like a nightmare. I had nothing but positive experiences with mine. I did NOT have to extend any sensor wires. You are however going to need some spare hoses. Total process took about 5-6 hours. This was our first time installing the manifold though.

Top end power is greatly increased. Low end power feels the same. Midrange power feels is a little worse than with a GSR manifold.

Parts that I needed (and nothing else):

-AEM Type R CAI
-2 feet of 3/8" hose
-2 feet of 5/16" hose
-Hose Clamps
-Hondata Intake Manifold Gasket
-NON-GSR Throttle Pulley
-ITR throttle cable
-ITR throttle bracket
-Vacuum cap for the second coolant spout (on the bottom right of the manifold)
-Vacuum cap for the fpr nipple on the back of the manifold.
-3/8" T-Fitting
-Skunk2 Intake Manifold



This is what it looks like at start




Start with taking off the intake



Then take off your throttle cable



Take off your injectors



Take off all hoses



You're ready to take off the intake manifold, so go ahead and do that. BTW, this is the hardest part of the whole process, so once you're done with this, you're good to go.



Put your new gasket on. Can be OEM or Hondata. The hondata caused me some fitment problems, you'll see later on.



Here is a comparison of both intakes out of the car.




This is what i did about the second coolant hole on the back of the manifold.



Swap all your old stuff onto the new manifold. IE. Throttle Body posts, fuel rail posts.



This is also a good time to swap your non-gsr throttle pulley.



Here, this is where you use your t-fitting. Connect it to the pvc tube (red thingy), and also to the EVAP sensor. The 3rd hose will go to the vacuum nipple at the top of the manifold.




Here is the problem i ran into with the Hondata gasket. Since the gasket is so thick, it didn't leave me with much thread length off the thread. I had to use a different nut.



Install all your stuff and connect all your hoses etc...



Some Vtec goodness


This is the finishing product




Sorry the post was so long. Now that wasn't so hard now was it? I'm gonna go have some fun now. I recommend this mod <IMG NAME="icon" SRC="https://honda-tech.com/forums/images/smilies/emlove.gif" BORDER="0">

This install was for an OBD 2 GSR. For OBD 1, i don't believe you will have to use the t-fitting.


Special thanks to "rockwilda" for answering numerous questions of mine to help me through it.



Modified by StinkyTofu at 1:21 PM 4/13/2005

 

Very nice Review I'm sure many people will refer to this post when they upgrade to Single Runner IM, I know i will.

 

on the install

 

very nice install.... what will a skunk2 IM net in terms of gains?

 

makes me want to do this mod even more... how much was everything total?

 

Did you scrape off your stock IM gasket? If so, how long did that take?

 

Nice detailed post!

 

Good info , BTW what size nut did you end up using?, because there wasn't that much thread left after the hondata gasket was installed

 

nice install

 

when my gasket cracked and i had to scrape it off, that was the longest part of the install hehe... taking the IM off and putting it back on was quick. i had to use a razor blade and it was like 45 min - 1 hour to get it all off cleanly (with periodic breaks cuz my back was freaking hurting)

great pics

 

2lowintegra: Not too sure what kinda gains its supposed to net. But from what i hear and what i've seen, its suppose to add on around 7-10 whp from like 5500 all the way up to redline.

Brasspremier: Manifold = $310, Intake = $220, Hondata Gasket = $65, Misc Junk = ~$50

310+220+65+50 = $645. Sounds very steep, but this is one of my greatest mods i feel. Alot of you guys already have intakes, so you can sell that to make half your money back for the new intake. I did not take any short cuts and i did not search for any "good" deals. Everything i paid for was brand new and legit. So if you can't afford this, look through the classifieds and start piecing yourself a used set up. You could probably end-up spending 200 less then me.

coyotes fan: The manifold didn't need any scraping. Lucky for me, it came off all in one piece and didn't leave much behind on the head. Took me about 1 minute to take off and to clean it up.

B18flip: To be honest, i'm not sure which size nut i used. I think it may have been a 13mm? But don't quote me on that. Just scavenge through your toolbox, i'm sure you'll find something that fits.

I was afraid i'd run into problems with this install. But honestly, its not that bad at all. Nothing went wrong the first time i cranked it. No codes, no leaks, no weird idles.

 

Nice install. Watch for puddles.
gmoore

 

nice write up .

 

Why did you use a type-r CAI with the stock gsr TB? I would think that the GSR CAI would work and should actually work better than the ITR CAI. The diameter from ther CAI to the TB is stepping down and killing the flow right off the bat. I thought that stepping down in diameter would kill the flow. I would think it would be nessecary to use the ITR cai only when using the ITR tB, correct?

 

You're right. If the GSR cai WOULD fit this set up, i would have used that instead. The reason why I got the type R cai is because the placement of the throttle body is different. With the gsr manifold, the throttle body is located further down. The GSR cai simply won't fit the skunk2 manifold.

edit: Look in the beginning and finishing pictures of the post. You can see that the throttle body is way further down as opposed to the location on the skunk2 manifold.


[Modified by StinkyTofu, 8:49 PM 3/22/2003]

 

You cant use the GSR CAI with the skunk2 manifold. The GSR manifold and T/B sits lower than the skunk2/ITR manifold, which is why the CAI is a different design. Its not just the diameter.

I would think the ITR T/B would be a better candidate than the GSR one...but dunno if it would make that muuch of a difference? Anyone?

 

I plan on getting a type R throttle body. But its not really high on my priority list right now. If i do get one, im gonna be getting one for the better throttle response.

 

what kinda gains can you expect with forced induction? i have a 98 ls thats not boosted now but will be soon.

 

sweet

 

GREAT tips and help

 

how close is the strut bar to the CAI? i still have my gsr bar but looks like aftermarket ones might not fit maybe...

and btw, already bookmarked this thread

 

Nice. Glad you didn't have such a bad time with it like we did.



That's EXACTLY what we did. It works great. We even have the same plugs and clamp. haha.


Here's my finished product:






Did you use your stock GS-R Throttle Body?

 

normally this is true. however i have a gsr AEM CAI connected to my skunk2 mani.
my CAI was cut previously for the bypass valve, ( which i took off because bypass valve sucks!) so i was able to connect the two pipes together in an angle that allows me to use the CAI.

but if the CAI is not cut, then it won't fit right.

 

looks great

 

Looks good skunk2nr. Yeah i'm using my stock GSR throttle body. There was a crazy amount of slack, but i tightened it. I will probably upgrade to a ITR throttle body later down the road so i can get eveything the way its supposed to be.

EDIT:

After having all last night to play around with my car, i have an updated review.

Top end = INCREDIBLE amount of gains past 6000. First gear feels like it flies up faster, but who knows, its probably just in my head. It definitely pushes you back in the seat more then before. With the manifold, i was able to peel out 1st-2nd gear shift on an onramp. It scared the crap out of me cause my car has never done that before. For you n/a guys, don't even think twice about getting the skunk2 manifold. GET IT! YOU NEED IT! I can't emphasize how much the gsr manifold sucks compared to this thing.

Mid-Range : My midrange feels kinda funky with this thing. When redlining from 2000rpm, i can feel a dip around 4000. I will be getting hondata tuned, and hopefully i can get that taken out.

Low-Range: As stated in first post, it feels the same.

Other Impresions:
Throttle response is increased and makes "in-between" shifts more smooth (for me anyway). The intake gets incredibly loud near redline. I can actually hear it over my n1 cat-back! I can't say enough great things about this manifold. I just wish Acura put the manifold on this car to start with. WTF were they thinking. I swear, gsr's lucked out on all the good stuff. Damn type r's


[Modified by StinkyTofu, 11:23 AM 3/23/2003]