The work has begun (long)
Thread Starter
Joined: Oct 2001
Posts: 87
Likes: 0
From: San Jose, CA, US
The work has begun (long)
For those that I haven't told already, my car is now in the shop for its major overhaul. I am getting several things done at once to save on the labor. To think this all started with the possibility that I would need a simple valve job and/or ring job.
The engine in my Sol is being completely torn apart. In addition there will be some bolt on stuff changing. Here is a list of parts being installed:
Skunk2 Stage 1 cams
Skunk2 Low Compression Valves
Skunk2 Valve Springs
Skunk2 Ti Retainers
Skunk2 Adjustable Cam Gears
Skunk2 Intake Manifold
AEM Fuel Rail
AEM Fuel Adjustable Fuel Pressure Regulator
B&M Fuel Pressure Gauge
OEM PR3 +.25 pistons and rings
ACT Heavy Duty Pressure Plate
ACT Street/Strip Friction Disc
OEM ITR Flywheel
DC Sports 4-1 Ceramic Exhaust Header
Skunk2 (RS*R Invidia) Cat-back Exhaust
Energy Suspension Engine Mount Inserts
Apexi VAFC
In addition to all these parts there will be some machine work done:
Cylinder Head:
Port & Polish
Pre- and Post Flowbench test
3-angle valve job
milled .020"
assembly with new parts
Block:
bone and hone
deck .010"
balance all lower end parts
reassembly
Of course there will be all new gaskets, seals, and rod and main bearings.
All this stuff came together after much research and talking to the great people at Skunk. I would like to thank Steve (Skunk2 mechanic) for his help on the piston decision. And I would like to thank many people here for their help as well.
Some quick explainations about things I am doing that brought indecision among people:
1) Milling the head. While I recieved some very strong opinions against this, I got betterreason for doing it. The idea being that the block and the head are deisgned to have material removed when imperfections are detected. So if Honda made it so that you can remove material safely, why not do it? In addition, it will add about .3 to my compression ratio. This makes it a bit higher, but still in the safe range for California gas.
2) OEM PR3 pistons. For those who know what these are you are probably thinking I am dumb for going to all this work. For those that don't, they are USDM B16A pistons, exactly what is in my engine now. Okay, now that you all have the same look on your face, let me explain. Again, I go back to what Honda designed for this engine. My first thoughts were to get CTR pistons, but there are so many questionable issues around using those in a B16A that I decided against it. I could have used aftermarket pistons and raised my compression ratio that way, but then I would have spent 3 times the money and not have OEM reliability. A couple respected engine builders both suggested using these OEM pistons for my application.
Beyond that, I went with the Skunk2 exhaust because of the great recommendations. I really dislike the look of a huge exhaust tip but I figured if I am going to have one I'm going to get a product that I can trust. Besides, it has a silencer that I am sure will never come out.
That's about it. The car will be in the shop for two weeks and I will be riding light-rail to work while it is in the capable hands of Diablo Autosports and the affiliates they are using to do the precision work.
Feel free to ask questions about this stuff. I'll be sure to post more info after I have the car back, and after I get the car tuned and dyno'd again.
[Modified by RosebloodSol, 6:36 AM 3/5/2002]
The engine in my Sol is being completely torn apart. In addition there will be some bolt on stuff changing. Here is a list of parts being installed:
Skunk2 Stage 1 cams
Skunk2 Low Compression Valves
Skunk2 Valve Springs
Skunk2 Ti Retainers
Skunk2 Adjustable Cam Gears
Skunk2 Intake Manifold
AEM Fuel Rail
AEM Fuel Adjustable Fuel Pressure Regulator
B&M Fuel Pressure Gauge
OEM PR3 +.25 pistons and rings
ACT Heavy Duty Pressure Plate
ACT Street/Strip Friction Disc
OEM ITR Flywheel
DC Sports 4-1 Ceramic Exhaust Header
Skunk2 (RS*R Invidia) Cat-back Exhaust
Energy Suspension Engine Mount Inserts
Apexi VAFC
In addition to all these parts there will be some machine work done:
Cylinder Head:
Port & Polish
Pre- and Post Flowbench test
3-angle valve job
milled .020"
assembly with new parts
Block:
bone and hone
deck .010"
balance all lower end parts
reassembly
Of course there will be all new gaskets, seals, and rod and main bearings.
All this stuff came together after much research and talking to the great people at Skunk. I would like to thank Steve (Skunk2 mechanic) for his help on the piston decision. And I would like to thank many people here for their help as well.
Some quick explainations about things I am doing that brought indecision among people:
1) Milling the head. While I recieved some very strong opinions against this, I got betterreason for doing it. The idea being that the block and the head are deisgned to have material removed when imperfections are detected. So if Honda made it so that you can remove material safely, why not do it? In addition, it will add about .3 to my compression ratio. This makes it a bit higher, but still in the safe range for California gas.
2) OEM PR3 pistons. For those who know what these are you are probably thinking I am dumb for going to all this work. For those that don't, they are USDM B16A pistons, exactly what is in my engine now. Okay, now that you all have the same look on your face, let me explain. Again, I go back to what Honda designed for this engine. My first thoughts were to get CTR pistons, but there are so many questionable issues around using those in a B16A that I decided against it. I could have used aftermarket pistons and raised my compression ratio that way, but then I would have spent 3 times the money and not have OEM reliability. A couple respected engine builders both suggested using these OEM pistons for my application.
Beyond that, I went with the Skunk2 exhaust because of the great recommendations. I really dislike the look of a huge exhaust tip but I figured if I am going to have one I'm going to get a product that I can trust. Besides, it has a silencer that I am sure will never come out.
That's about it. The car will be in the shop for two weeks and I will be riding light-rail to work while it is in the capable hands of Diablo Autosports and the affiliates they are using to do the precision work.
Feel free to ask questions about this stuff. I'll be sure to post more info after I have the car back, and after I get the car tuned and dyno'd again.
[Modified by RosebloodSol, 6:36 AM 3/5/2002]
Sounds like you did your research... good luck and I hope that you are more then satisfied. Keep us updated!
Junior Member
Joined: Oct 2001
Posts: 995
Likes: 0
From: Maple Valley, WA, USA
Re: The work has begun (delsolguy)
What are the questionable issues w/using CTR slugs in your B16A? I'm running them in my B16A and they are great. 5,000 miles on the motor running 11.6:1ish compression via a machine shop screw up head milling. No probs so far with with crower 63402 cams.
Thread Starter
Joined: Oct 2001
Posts: 87
Likes: 0
From: San Jose, CA, US
Re: The work has begun (RedlinedVTEC)
The issues that came up are clearance issues between the pistons and the valves. After talking to a couple people I found that the CTR pistons actually come out of the block about .023". As well, I decided on using the B16A USDM pistons on the recommendation of the mechanic at Skunk2.
While there are many people running the CTR pistons without problems, it just wasn't a risk I was willing to take with my engine, as I want it to last for another 10 years.
While there are many people running the CTR pistons without problems, it just wasn't a risk I was willing to take with my engine, as I want it to last for another 10 years.
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