K24A1 head swap

tonylombrana — Sat, 09 May 2026 18:01:45 GMT

looking to do a cam and rocker swap on my K24A1

i have an automatic K24A1 in my 2004 CRV which is due for a rebuild. during the process i figure i want to do a head swap for � real � VTEC just to help it get up and go. from my researched i�ve found a viable option to be as follows

K24A1 long block

K20A2 camshafts

K24Z3 rocker arms

would i be able to run this abomination on a stock ecu or would i need to invest big money into something like a hondata ? am i better off using a complete K24A2 head and assembly ? in the end im looking for cheap power out of my honda, any help is appreciated.

K-serie throttle body gasket question

TimiK — Sat, 25 Apr 2026 05:45:58 GMT

Hey, does this kind of throttle body gasket cause any problems with stock throttle body and RBB intake manifold?
OEM gasket is all the way closed but this leaves that upper airway open (on the left).

Skunk2 Alpha Big Bore Throttle Body ANTI-STICK Recipe/How-To

oyacteen — Sat, 25 Apr 2026 02:43:23 GMT

Hey guys,

I've got a K24A swapped S2000 with a Skunk2 Alpha B series 70mm throttle body. These B series style throttle bodies are very popular to run on K24s with the K20 oil pump, as the engine makes some pretty bad vibrations that tends to kill the stock K series TPS sensor. Using a B series TPS sensor on a B series throttle body tend to be more reliable. Plus, this engine with the K20A oil pump, 50 degree cam gear, and K Power intake manifold does seem top benefit power-wise from this throttle body, gaining about 5hp with this setup vs the OEM S2000 throttle body.

However, I had issues almost immediately with my throttle body that I've since learned is very common with these big bore aftermarket throttle bodies: Sticking. This would cause high idle and sometimes rev hang for me until I revved the engine to snap the throttle back home.

Just adjusting the stop screw for the closed throttle position and greasing the spring fixed the issue for a few thousand miles, but then it came back.

I decided to try getting another 70mm Skunk2 Alpha, as well as an OEM B20 CRV throttle body and taking them apart to see if I couldn't get the Skunk2 throttle body to stop sticking for good.

There's a number of issues with this and other aftermarket throttle bodies that cause them to stick.

1. After receiving my new Skunk2, I found that it and my old one both had sharp butterfly valves that seemed to catch the sides of the bore. You see the valve closing on one side of the bore but leaving a gap on the other side. The shaft that holds these butterfly valves on have a small amount of side to side play, so during operation under vibration the butterfly valve shifts to one side of the bore or the other, the valve can catch on the bore causing it to stick. When opening and closing the throttle body by hand, you can actually feel the throttle body catching on one side. .

2. The Skunk2 Alpha only uses one return spring on the side with the cable wheel. The OEM Honda throttle body uses two: One on the cable wheel, and one on the TPS sensor. This does two things: One, it gives more spring tension to return the throttle home and two, it provides a redundancy for safety where if one spring fails at wide open throttle, there's still another spring to close the throttle. You can also see that the Skunk2 spring is thinner than the OEM spring, which makes the skunk2 throttle body feel a little touchy at times (especially on a car with stiff suspension).

So here's how to fix the sticking issues on these throttle bodies:

1. Get yourself a throttle body from any car with a B16/ B17/ B18/ B20/ D15/ D16/ F20/ F22/ F23/ H22 and H23 engine with a cable throttle. In my case, I got a dirt cheap Honda CRV B20 throttle body to savage parts off of. As a bonus it came with a TPS sensor, which is a great part to keep as a spare on a K24, as they tend to kill these sensors with the lack of balance shafts in the K20A oil pumps. If you're using your old throttle body and aren't on a standalone ECU, then be sure to note the resistance across the first two pins (ground and signal pins) in the closed position. It should be something like ~500 - 1,000 ohms. You'll need to clock the TPS sensor to the same resistance reading when the throttle is closed in order for your car to idle properly after installation.

2. Cut slots into the safety screws holding the TPS sensor on in order to remove them with a flathead screw driver. If you can't do that, then carefully grind them down with a Dremel until you can remove the TPS sensor. Note the indentation at the bottom of the TPS sensor hold where the spring sits.

Indentation that holds the spring on the OEM throttle body.

The Skunk2 throttle body also has this indentation weirdly... It just doesn't have a spring for it (for now).

3. Use an 11mm wrench to remove the cable wheel and spring from the OEM throttle body. Use a 13mm wrench to do the same on the Skunk2. Note that the cable wheel on the Skunk2 has a washer and lock washer under the nut holding it on. Then, remove the screws on the butterfly valve itself. Be careful with these, as they are mushroomed at the other side intentionally to keep them from backing out. Also don't forgot to mark the butterfly valve top and bottom before removing, as some of these throttle bodies don't have symmetrical designs (I don't know if the Skunk2 does or not, I just marked it just in case).

4. With the butterfly valve, TPS sensor and cable wheel removed from the OEM throttle body, you should be able to pop the shaft and TPS side spring out the side of the throttle body. Take the OEM TPS spring and put it to the side.

5. Don't try and remove the shaft of the Skunk2 Alpha the same way as the OEM throttle body. In order to get the TPS spring onto the Skunk2 throttle body, you'll need to slip it on like a key ring. Be sure to align the bottom of the spring on the indentaion meant to hold the bottom of the spring in place. Otherwise, you may end up with too little or too much spring tension when assembling the throttle body again.

6. Use 200 grit sandpaper to sand the edges of the butterfly valve. You don't necessarily want to remove any material from the butterfly valve, but you do want to smooth the edges down so that they aren't so sharp.

7. Reinstall the butterfly valve. You may find it helpful to use the cable wheel temporarily to help align the shaft slot with the butterfly valve. Then, remove the cable wheel so that the butterfly valve closes completely against the bore with tension from the TPS side spring. This is how you'll secure the butterfly valve to the shaft perfectly centered to the bore. I personally used the screws from the OEM throttle body for this as well, as they weren't as mushroomed out as the Skunk2 screws. Don't forget to soak these screws with red thread locker before installing; You don't want your engine ingesting these screws (I used Loctite 271. Higher temperature rating over 272 works well under the hood of an S2000).

8. Reinstall the cable wheel with the Skunk2 spring. You could try using the OEM spring, but I found it to be a little too heavy. Skunk2 cable wheel spring + OEM TPS spring was the winning combo for me. Use blue thread locker on the cable wheel nut and don't forget the lock washer.

Finally, a perfectly centered butterfly valve...

9. Take the gasket for the MAP sensor off the OEM throttle body (hopefully you have it) and reuse it on the Skunk2 throttle body if you need it. In my case, I'm running a K series MAP sensor off the intake manifold, so I threw on a vacuum reference block off plate from 1320 instead. You could use this reference for a boost gauge, a fuel pressure regulator or anything else that needs a reference to manifold pressure. I also have all my evap stuff deleted, so I blocked off the evap line into the throttle body (if you leave this open, the throttle body will pull in unfiltered air).

10. Install the TPS sensor with blue thread locker. If you're on a standalone ECU, just throw it on and calibrate the TPS in the tuning software. Otherwise, clock the TPS sensor until the first two pins (ground and signal) read the same resistance with the throttle closed as the value you recorded off of your old throttle body.

11. Clean the throttle body with brake clean and a rag to make sure all the metal and dirt is removed from it.

12. Install the throttle body to the intake manifold with the provided gasket. Use blue thread locker on these bolts and torque to 16 ft lbs. Apply some grease to the cable side return spring if you want the throttle to feel a little smoother as the spring binds on itself during use.

And that's it! The pedal feel is definitely heavier than before, and feels to me even a little heavier than OEM. I personally like the added weight, as I find it makes the throttle a little easier to modulate mid corner when going over bumps. No more sticking issues as well (for now at least).

Honda-Tech - Honda Forum Discussion - K Series

K24A1 head swap

K-serie throttle body gasket question

Skunk2 Alpha Big Bore Throttle Body ANTI-STICK Recipe/How-To