My 98 CRV Build, RT4WD Inside...
 

Hey guys, guess its time to put up some info an pics of the latest Honda i'm working on.. Its a 98, 5spd, rt4wd, and its tons of fun haha! I've got a few goals in mind, and next racing season should be a fun one if things go well enough.

So far mods are:

Exterior:
EDM Front bumper
Yellow EK SI foglights
Window rain guards
Homedepot lip
custom mesh grille
35% tint
OEM Rear spolier

Interior:
Custom shifter/e-brake handle that I made lol
Pioneer CD player
Alpine front/rear speakers
2 Kids Car seats :P

Engine:
2.0 liter ls/vtec
Stock port gsr head, gsr cams, blox intake manifold, skunk2 valves/springs/retainers.
b18 block, JGE sleeves, JG pistons, Scat rods, ARP headstuds, GE headgasket.
stock header, stock exhaust/cat :P
ACT 6puck, ACT flywheel
chipped ecu, ostrich 2.0, hulog, tuned on e85 by me with eCtune.

Suspension/Brakes/Wheels/Tires
Front = 94-01 Integra Koni Yellows, generic sleeves, 500lb, 7" long Skunk2 springs. StopTech drilled/slotted rotors, StopTech Ceramic pads.
Rear = 1g AWD DSM, KYB AGX's, generic sleeves, 400lbs, 8" long Eibach ERS springs
stock sways, stock rear drums.
18x7.5 Nissan Murano wheels + spare ;) 235/40/18 Falken Azenis

trans is the stock 198,000 mile 5spd at the moment, stock transfer case, driveline, TCD unit, rear diff, rear axles are all from a wrecked low mile 03 crv.

Here is some current pics from the Time Attack style event we had last weekend at a semi-local track. A good friend of mine's wife took some cool on track shots of it...lots of people think im nuts for racing an SUV lol. Perfect :P

Let me know what you guys think...I'm currently tearing apart a bunch of the rt4wd stuff and will have some info on modifying the system to be more aggressive...really my only gripe about this car so far is the rt4wd system is weaks0s lol

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Re: My 98 CRV Build, RT4WD Inside...
 

Nice!!!!This one is my favorite pic it looks like its creeping its way on to the track (breaking necks)
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I neeeed a EDM bumper . Not only does it look good but it also makes the crv look newer

Re: My 98 CRV Build, RT4WD Inside...
 

Sweet photos. If I didn't already have too many cars, I'd pick up a 5 speed 4wd model and build it up like that. It seems like a fun car to drive.

Are there any other transmissions that can be swapped which would allow you to keep the 4wd?

Re: My 98 CRV Build, RT4WD Inside...
 

Thanks guys ;) Yea the EDM bumper makes ALL the difference in how this thing looks. When i was contemplating getting a CRV, it was the EDM bumper that sold me on it. I knew the car was what i wanted, but the looks of it were yuck! The EDM bumper was like the 3rd thing i bought for it haha

As far as trans options...the rt4wd 5spd trans and auto trans are the only options. However, once i get my hands on a 2nd 5spd trans (I also have a 93 civic coupe im converting to rt4wd ;) ) I am going to tear it down and see which gears are interchangale with other Honda transmissions...the 1st -> 2nd shift is a killer...1st needs to be longer, or 2nd needs to be shorter. other than that, 3rd, 4th, 5th are super short and makes for a fun car!

Re: My 98 CRV Build, RT4WD Inside...
 

nice you put up a build thread....!!
i think someone did a LS 5th on a 5spd crv tranny i just forgot where i read it, i think we
couldnt really get away w/ the 1st and 2nd gear since it was design as a low speed gear,
for hauling, towing, etc but other than that all gears are great, even the 5th at times if
your stretching the 4th it was closely geared, theres not much significant drop of rpm
compared to a LS...

but as i was comparing the gears before, on my 97 5spd i think the gears are more longer
compared to my other 99 manual V or may be its just in my head..LOL! as far in my white
V, w/c im using as a track car.. i hate the transition from 3rd to 2nd as most of the time im
racing on a technical course and even autocross events i would rarely use the 4th since
the makeshift course every event would be technical(ave. 1min.) i hope you could solve
this..LOL!

good luck on your future mods.. keep us updated!!

Re: My 98 CRV Build, RT4WD Inside...
 

Yea SOMETHING has to be able to be done with the gearing!! I would imagine its interchangable with the regular b-series hydro gears...but who knows. I'm trying to sell a GSR trans so i can pick up another rt4wd 5spd (local junkyard has one for $700 :scared: ) once i have a spare one to tear apart, I will document everything about it. I wish there were more actual measurement specs published by honda on their transmissions. I emailed Gearspeed twice looking for help/information and have gotten nothing in return both times.

At both the local hill climbs, and time attack events, 2nd gear is so long that i have to drop into first when entering a corner, then have to shift back to 2nd just after exit. if i leave it in 2nd, it takes me entirely too long to get back into vtec. Not so bad if i downshift, but 8500 rpms, and having a cable shifted trans that does NOT like to shift gears quickly at those rpms....really puts a big damper on my times.

and btw, the 2.0 liter LS/Vtec is EXACTLY the motor that Honda should have put in these cars from teh factory. its a night and day difference from teh stock b20

Re: My 98 CRV Build, RT4WD Inside...
 

When looking at the ratios on paper this is exactly what I was thinking.. 1st deff needs to be longer, I hope a 3.23 1st from the FWD Bseries will fit cause tha'll mean I can get a Mfactory 3.07 1st in there ;) My car is turbo so I think a 3.07 1st & 1.9 2nd will be nice...

Look on Ebay, you should be able to find it for less, I got mine with Tcase and everything attached to the trans for $427 shipped!

and yes, make sure to document everything!

Re: My 98 CRV Build, RT4WD Inside...
 

I never recieved an email from you but, your welcome to email me at: james@hnatrans.com
You may be emailing an old email addy. Very interested in the build!!

Sweet CRV btw! Love the EDM front bumper...takes the CRV to a whole another level.

Re: My 98 CRV Build, RT4WD Inside...
 

James@Gearspeed, you guys carry Carbon Lined Synchros (1st through 5th) that'll fit the CRV AWD 5spd trans? PM me a price if you don't mind.

Thinking out loud: What'll be awesome is to get Wavetrac to make a LSD for the CRV app..

Re: My 98 CRV Build, RT4WD Inside...
 

Thanks for the good words James! It seems I have been emailing this address "Cody@hnatrans.com" If you prefer not to answer questions here, I can email you what i emailed "Cody".

Basically I'm looking for info on what can/cant be swapped out of the rt4wd manual trans, vs the regular b-series hydro stuff (or even if b-series hydro stuff is compatable...as I've heard that the rt4wd trans uses the H/F series stuff) so just looking for gear compatability info if its available. And also looking to see what products you guys carry for these rt4wd transmissions (like 88ED8 was asking) I will have 2 of these transmissions that will at the very least need bearings, and would like to go with carbon syncro sets if available.

Also has anyone heard of a solution to allow these cable shifted trannies to shift better at higher rpm's???? my trans HATES me when I try to shift quickly at 8,000+ rpms.....and WOT shifting??? not gonna happen lol.

Sooo...this weekend I was mowing over some ideas...I think the first thing i'm going to try to better the stock TCD unit, is to put a .005" shim between the clutch pack "drive gear" that gets pushed on by the pumps "pressure plate", and the first floater ring in the clutch pack. essentially pushing the clutch pack closer together by .005" without affecting the engagement "stroke" of the pumps "pressure plate". It seems the total engagement of the clutch packs via the "pressure plate" is only 2mm. So if 2mm gets me roughly 10% of tq to the rear wheels (# thats always tossed around online) then by shimming the clutch pack, that 2mm movement should get me a net increase in the amount of tq that is applied, by compressing the clutch pack .005" more, with the same 2mm worth of engagement. (PS. I have no idea what any of these pieces are called, so i'm making it up as i go along lol)

Shim will go between these 2 guys....the piece with the cup on it is what i call the "drive gear" and the other piece is the first floater ring of the clutch pack. normally these two are in contact with each other.

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the pumps "pressure plate". this is what the pumps push in, pull out, to engage/disengage the clutch packs.

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take the "pressure plate" off and here is whats behind it.

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the clutch packs sitting on top of the pumps...kinda gives you a feel of how its all assembled.

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for anyone looking, feel free to browse through all my TCD unit pics and offer up any kind of ideas you might have on improving this system!! I uploaded 40+ pics of the entire unit disassembled here...
http://s134.photobucket.com/albums/q...en/TCD%20Unit/

Re: My 98 CRV Build, RT4WD Inside...
 

With a Carbon lined syncro set it should help, the carbon is a more agressive brake vs. brass so it should help a lot from my understanding.

I have been seeing that the Kseries shift box the HR makes works with the H swap as well, I'm wondering if it'll work with the CRV trans??
If I could get the shift box and shift cables from HybridRacing and carbon lined syncros to work flawlessly with the CRV trans I think it'll shift just fine at any rpm...

Re: My 98 CRV Build, RT4WD Inside...
 

ive been having troubles shifting at high rpms... i thought its just that i shift too quick
or my foot and hand coordination messed up, it all now makes sense!

ill e monitoring the tranny talk in this thread, its a good sharing for peeps(me,lol) who
dont have the skills to be around the tranny internals! thanks guys, keep it up!


the most i did on my tranny shifter was to decrease the throw.. i used the fit/jazz short
shifter kit..i thought i messed it up at first then later really realized the difference since
i drive 3 manual crv's alternately...

Re: My 98 CRV Build, RT4WD Inside...
 

Interesting info! I'm new to the whole shift box thing, not gonna lie lol. I would think that as long as the throw of the cables is the same, or at least adjustable at the box, then it shouldnt matter much outside of physically mounting the box in whatever chassis?? idk, just thinking out loud, will do some more research on that for sure! Man it would be sweet to be able to full throttle shift, this turbo i have is going to need it lol.

Re: My 98 CRV Build, RT4WD Inside...
 

well not a huge update...but an update lol.

Essentially the "pressure plate" inside the TCD unit unit moves 2mm from full float, to engaged. problem is, i dont think 2mm (.0787") is engaging the clutches enough...factor in clutch disc/floater plate wear, and that number dwindles. so what im thinking might work, will be to shim the "drive gear" (I have no idea what these parts are called so im making it up as i go along lol) between it, and the first floater plate of the clutch pack. that way the "pressure plate" still keeps that same 2mm stroke, but the clutch pack is already pushed together .006" (thickness of my shim) if it works like i think it should, i will probably add another shim or two, .012, .018) and see if i can get a substantial increase in tq transfer to the rear end without having to modify the hydraulic system. we'll see. gotta buy a 34mm socket tomorrow and I will shim the TCD this weekend to see how it does.

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Oh and finally took some pics of the Civic...I'm going to have a GSR trans for sale here soon, and with the money from that I will try to pick up another rt4wd 5spd trans for it. once that hurdle is crossed, its time to start mocking/mounting up the rear end and figure out the rear trailing arm/hub/disc conversion to 5lug and rt4wd :grin:

just some random pics of both cars :P

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BECAUSE RACE CAR?!?!!!??!!!!! :yes:

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Re: My 98 CRV Build, RT4WD Inside...
 

Don't put too many shims in there, your last plate will want to fall out the drum..
Maybe try a small/ thin shim under the needle bearing thrust washer??

Re: My 98 CRV Build, RT4WD Inside...
 

This thread is kick ass.

Re: My 98 CRV Build, RT4WD Inside...
 

nice build!~

Re: My 98 CRV Build, RT4WD Inside...
 

I totally approve of the low suv sportscar. Also i do think the lawnmower carburetor will be a major asset in making the clutch pack act the way you want it.....

Re: My 98 CRV Build, RT4WD Inside...
 

Thanks!

Thank you as well!

Thanks...too funny! lol...the carb is from my son's dune buggy...we just moved into a new house so i have some room to actually work on a couple other projects that have gotten pushed to the side lol. One is a 50cc dune buggy/go kart thing....the other is an electric Honda Mishimoto go-kart ;)

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I havent had much spare time this last week to mess with the TCD with Halloween and all. Hope to get some work done on it this week.

Re: My 98 CRV Build, RT4WD Inside...
 

def going to keep an eye on this thread.
i wanna make my crv go fast also! i have a 57trim im gonna throw on my stock b20 get a clutch for it and hopefully do some drag racing LOL

Re: My 98 CRV Build, RT4WD Inside...
 

love this thread very interesting

Re: My 98 CRV Build, RT4WD Inside...
 

Thanks!

I guess I have a bit of an update....

Over the weekend I shimmed my TCD unit with 2, .006" thick shims...I was thinking of all of you here on h-t and took lots of pics of the process (in case it worked lol) and unfortunately, I left the damn camera on the back bumper of the CRV.....and remembered it AFTER I drove over to my son's school and did about 30 tire sqeeling circles :facepalm: so in other words, the camera is long gone and so are the pics of the install....epic fail.

So one thing i noticed, is the clutch discs are different in an 03 crv rear end vs 98-01. the actual pattern of the organic clutch material is different. in the 98-01's you can see they are little "blocks"

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in the 03 crv TCD unit I have in there now, they are in a criss cross pattern and the "pads" themselves are much longer. I thought that was very interesting on Honda's part. (epic fail for not having pics.)

All in all I put the shims where I said I was going to...and so far (I havent really "tested" it, other than lots of circles) it sure does feel like the rear end is engaging more. my front tires are pretty worn from teh last Time Attack event I ran, so they spin pretty easily in a turning condition and launching. In a turning condition I can for sure feel the rear end more...LOTS less pushing, and lift oversteer is predictable and consistant....before it was kind of hit and miss...and not nearly as obvious as it is now. Under launching conditions....still the same amount of "lag" (too much tire spin from the front wheels) and not much change in that aspect. I think modifying the hydro system will be the key to that.

Overall I think it had a positive effect...think im going to add 2 more shims and see what happens.

Re: My 98 CRV Build, RT4WD Inside...
 

epiccccccccc

Re: My 98 CRV Build, RT4WD Inside...
 

So you think a 02-06 CRV clutch pack will fit in a 98-01 rear? I see my self needing clutch packs so it'll be nice to know how interchangable everything is between all the years..

Re: My 98 CRV Build, RT4WD Inside...
 

Im not 100% on the 05+ CRV stuff....02-04, crv and ALL elements...FOR SURE, will fit (its what im running, and Honda part numbers for TCD match the 98-01 crv TCD) but the problem comes from the part numbers for 05+ crv's. TCD part number is different. So I cant be 100% sure on the clutch packs.

I am running a TCD and driveline from an 03 crv in my car right now, and it was 100% bolt on. I did have to do some swapping of the metal "rings" that seal the axle to the TCD housing (more like dust shields) because one is bigger than the other (side to side, and bigger as in diameter) because I THINK, in the CRV the axles are flipped side to side (right axle on 98-01 crv, is left axle on 02+ crv....I didnt pay enough attention to what came from what side when I took the stuff off a wrecked 03 crv...but the differences in the TCD casting tell me thats true.) and the corresponding "cutouts" for the dust shields in the casting of the TCD unit are swapped side to side. I need to get some pics to explain this more, but once you get all the parts in front of you, it makes sense. no modding is required, just flipping stuff from left to right...axle lengths are the same. (both axles are not the same length...one is longer than the other...but left axle from 98 crv is same as right axle from 03 crv, hope that makes sense.)

one thing i did find odd, was the 98-01 axles had the ABS rings pressed onto the axles themselves...but the 02+ axles didnt...assuming they are part of the spindle. again didnt pay that much attention when removing the parts from donor car. (im also running the 03 axles) I just had to beat them off the 98 axles and push them onto the 03's. nothing major.

From Honda...

1998-2001 crv tcd = 41011-PNZ-307
2003-2004 crv tcd = 41011-PNZ-307
2005-2011 crv tcd = 41011-RRL-020
2003-2011 element tcd = 41011-PNZ-307

whats really interesting is that the elements up to 2011 all used the old style TCD, but 05+ crv's changed....wonder why?