hey guys, I am new to hondatech, but I really hope I can get some help.
OK here is what I am thinking. My goal is 350+whp.
H23A1 Non Vtec
Stock Crank
Of course all new bearings
Camshafts- Skunk2 SII or Crower SII? Difference?
Pistons- JE 10:1 or 9:1?
Valve Train- any brand suggestions?
Rods? Crower- any good? other choices?
Sleeves? L.A or Darton? any difference?
Cam Gears- Golden Eagle? Megan Adj? Rage? Aem? Differences?
Throttle Body? choices?
Port and Polished
Not afraid to spend a few bucks to get good quality and performance

Thats for the basic engine, I will be turboing this engine.

O yeah... this is going into a 91 Civic HB

Let me know what you guys think about the parts I listed. Feel free to but please explain what and why you would reccomend or change that.

Thanks guys, appreciate the help. My build is your build.

 

S2 doesn't make H23 cams, I would try some Crower turbo cams if not stock.

Start by reading the Prelude FAQs at the top of the page, then ask specific questions. No one will tell you how to build your engine.

 

If you are running a turbo you need to go with low compression but if you are not you should go with the 10.1 compression but rember you have to run high octane fuel to prevent it from pinging

 

ya i am turboeing, so 9:1 is way better correct?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by h23troici &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">If you are running a turbo you need to go with low compression but if you are not you should go with the 10.1 compression but rember you have to run high octane fuel to prevent it from pinging</TD></TR></TABLE>

you dont need low compression, there are plenty 10+ cr turbo motors out there.....its all in the tune...

and even with 9:1 CR turbo, you still have to run high octane at least 91

 

i dont see a turbo setup, u should probably list that too. and as far as compression ratio's go, yeah 95greenlude is right. the s2000's F20C and F22C are good examples, 11:1 and 11.1:1 respectively. and they've been boosted to over 500whp on stock block.

basically what we need to help you are these-
what's the car's purpose? (DD/drag/track)
what's the budget (realistic figures)
is the WHP goal as far as u wanna take it, do u want to expand later?

the reason for those questions is simply so we can figure out what turbo would suit your goals best. a DD setup aims for reliability, trade-off will be power/efficiency, drag aims for peak power, where the trade-off is spool time (lag). track aims for quickspooling power on tap while maintaining some reliability.

 

It will be a DD and a once in a while drag..
I never listed no turbo set up for I have not looked into one at all... One reason being, I do not know what kind of space I will have in the car.

People keep telling me I need low compression, which makes sense but would a little higher hurt.

I am resleeving the block, using a stock crank, crower rods.. for the bottom end anyways, what about the pistons? 10:1 or 9:1?

My budget is not really set, I would like to stay under 7 grand for the engine swap, build, turbo, and tranny..

 

bump

 

It will be extreme work to get 350 whp from a n/a motor, not too mention really really expensive, probably way more than 7 grand (leaving room for the unfortunate trial and error).

I would go with the boost option. Turbo's are your friend if you have the proper set-up and tuning. With higher compression ratios, you will not have to run as high psi on your turbo to achieve your goals. It is vice versa with lower compression pistons. Either way you have your set-up, excellent tuning is required.

With it being a daily driver, who will definetly need a boost controller, because 350 whp on a prelude is hardly streetable. The stage 3 clutch at least to handle that power, will be a pain to have to drive thought traffic. I'm definetly not trying to discourage anything, I just want the reality of it all to be out there.

Resleeving the block is essential because the frm sleeves that h23 have suck with boost or high compression ratio pistons. Make sure you balance and micro-polish your crankshaft. Forged rods and pistons won't hurt either. Just remember fast and cheap isn't reliable, reliable and cheap isn't fast, and fast and reliable isn't cheap.

 

well I am going to turbo,
Definately balance and micro polish the crank, better bearings than stock to?

Crower Rods, and stage II turbo cams.
Je pistons 10:1
Darton sleeves.

But i do not know about the top end? any suggestions

 

bump, any suggestions on the top end?

 

Bump for curosity myself. Mabey you could up the liters of the motor, to say something like 2.5. But the question there is how.
What would you need.
A bigger oil pan
Machined Crank
Over Sized Bore??

I too also am working on a blue print plan for my h23 build, but im doing lower end work to it.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by evans16 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">bump, any suggestions on the top end?</TD></TR></TABLE>

Leave it stock for now and worry about tuning and getting the car running good. There's no need to start throwing more parts into your head for a turbo build.

Later down the road when the head is a retriction to you making 500whp get into porting and polishing, cams, intake manifold, bigger valves, etc.

 

A good turbo setup will put you at 350hp fairly easily...Tuning it for daily driver is where the fun begins. It takes a lot of tuning to build maps for all the loads etc. and makes it very easy to grenade your motor. I would strongly suggest finding a really good tuner and find out what he tells you would be good for a xxxhp build.
I have known many 2 liter 400+hp car owners and most have gone through 2 or 3 rebuilds before having a reliable car. You can figure on @ 4k for the motor build, another 4k for the turbo setup, and another 1k in tuning. Yes, you can get a 'base tune' for @ 300 but that won't do for a reliable dd, trust me.
A lot of guys may say this is bs, but ask people that have been there, not just have the 'T' shirt.

 

Thanks for the opinion guys.. but I am going to build the engine all at once. I see no point in doing the lower end and not the top. My goal is to have this car done in a year, so no big rush.

I have the bottom end blue printed, but dont have a clue on what brand of valves, springs, etc.

For turboeing, I will definately be getting it tuned by some one really good. By the looks of it, I will be bringing my car down to the states for a tune.

Now I think about it, it wont be a regular DD car. Its more going to be a sunday driver at most 3 or 4 times a week on the streets.

 

sup. I have a 92 H23 boosted and it sounds like your on the right track. As in top end changes Im running crower turbo cams with KMS springs and retainers with new valves also. 9-1 compression darton sleeved spark rods and arias pistons. My car quit making power on the dyno with stock cams at 6300 rpms. They were just floating any higher than that. We were shifting it at 7000. Im running 780 cc injectors when we made this pass with s300 hondata. I made 310whp at 15psi on a mustang dyno. Turbo is a small t3/t4 60ar 63 exhaust with a 57 trim. Since then I put the new cams in it the crowers, did the head work. Did the IAB spacer delete and am running the spec 2 b boost controller because my manual kept spiking. In process of putting car back together to have re dynoed. Oh yah I have atleast 10k in the engine not including my time for doing all of the work. Buy a LSD also because you'll need it.
Just my 2 cents

 

Sounds good.. I will be keeping in touch with you.. I will have mostly a similar set up as you except mayb turbo and pistons.. let me know what you push on the dyno and who does all your tuneing?