The_Honda_Guy

Well, I've started venturing into building my turbo D16Z6. I want to keep this car as daily driver and safe as possible, but still have some fun with it. My ideas so far:

D16Z6 block (will have hot-tanked, Magnafluxed, and measured)
Suzuki Vitara pistons
Eagle rods
Balanced stock crank
Ported stock head
ARP headstuds
Titanium valvetrain
D16Z6 tranny (will rebuild and change a few gears most likely)
Quaffe or OBX LSD (not sure which yet)

I'm not sure on what I'll run for a turbo, manifolds, or piping yet since I'm just figuring out the basics right now. Also, I want to run stock driveshafts because if I do break one, I want to be able to return it to the local store, and my HP goals aren't all that high to need aftermarket shafts. I plan on running premium through it since I want to keep gas mileage at least at 32+ MPG, and because I don't want to have to hunt for E85 if I'm on a trip. My goals are to create a daily driver tune (around 200 HP), and then have a separate tune for track use, maybe around 300 HP. Since this car needs to stay daily driveable I will be keeping A/C, but most likely will ditch the P/S since I'm not a fan of it on small FWD cars (manual feels better to me).

What are my limits as far as power and reliability? I know that 350+ WHP is hard to put to the ground on these cars without modifying the suspension to the point that it becomes uncomfortable. I don't mind it being a little stiff, but I want to keep it that I won't have a problem driving this thing 4 hours at a time (car shows, visiting family, etc.). What are your thoughts?

EDIT: Forgot to add a EMS. I'm thinking of going with a Hondata S300, but am not sure yet. Also, the car is a 94 Civic EX.

The_Honda_Guy

C'mon, nobody?

The_Honda_Guy

Well, I guess I may as well start with the bottom end and work up.

D16Z6 block (Magnaflux, hot-tanked, bored, honed, and measured)
75.5mm Suzuki Vitara pistons
Eagle rods
Balanced D16Z6 Honda OEM crank
Honda OEM main bolts
Honda OEM rod bolts

Now, I've got a few questions here. What rod and main bearings do you guys recommend? Should I just replace with the stock size or a different size? What rings should I run? The ones that come with the new Vitaras? Should I run a different size Vitara piston? Main studs? Rod studs? I know not to bother with a block guard and don't want to use one. Should I modify the crank besides balancing it? Also, I read about special coatings for parts - should I bother with these?

tegman23

As long as you have a good tune you can daily drive a high hp honda...Guys drive 400-500whp cars daily...Your parts list looks good as well

Andr3w

^ Exactly. Its all in the tune young sky walker!

The_Honda_Guy

I know a good tune is the major thing, but I need advice on my other stuff.

I will most likely run the 75.5mm Vitaras, that way I'll have some room to work with the bore and hone and have the cylinders perfectly straight and still have room to rebuild later to the 76mm Vitaras if need be. I thought I read somewhere that those coatings that you can do to the internal parts were essentially a waste since they wear off quickly, are expensive, and don't really help the car that much. I guess if they made much of an improvement you'd see more people using them, but you don't.

I know people drive 400-500 WHP cars daily, but they're also using drag radials, stiff suspension, and don't get 32+ MPG either. I don't want to have to make the suspension and such super stiff just to hold the power and don't want to HAVE to use drag radials. I want to be able to still hook reasonably well with a performance street tire. Also, I don't want to be stressing the motor to the point where reliability decreases and where I'm putting extra stress on parts that would cause pre-mature failure. I figure going much beyond 300 WHP is pushing it for a daily driver that is still a practical car. Also, at that point you're having to run a much larger turbo, which I don't want to. I want something that's at full spool by 4000-4500 RPM and isn't laggy feeling. Quick boost is what I want, especially with it being a street car.

What rod and main bearings do you guys recommend? Should I just replace with the stock size or a different size? What rings should I run? The ones that come with the new Vitaras? Should I run a different size Vitara piston? Main studs? Rod studs? I know not to bother with a block guard and don't want to use one. Should I modify the crank besides balancing it? Also, I read about special coatings for parts - should I bother with these?