i drive a 98 accord f23a1 and i wanted to know how to get more power from my vtec

 

stickers.

 

a 3ft wing

 

Thanks to both responses before that im sure really helped.

VTEC in our motors is SOHC vtec. You will not feel it since it activates somewhere around 2800-3300 and has a smooth powerband vs. the b,h,k series DOHC vtec motors that have the strong vtec point where it starts pulling and screaming. To gain power in general, a little power, get a cold air intake and exhaust.

 

Just take out the intake resonator. That will get you a factory cold air intake.

 

i'm pretty sure that's incorrect.

F23A1 comes in around 5000-5400rpm. (there is a nice bump in the powerband around 3k but that's not VTEC)

you can do a few things to get more out of VTEC, i can't tell you they're worth it, but they should result in gains. to hear it (which is half the fun, especially with the A1..) aftermarket intake is all you need. if you want good quality stuff at a bargain find an eBay kit for around $15-20 shipped. discard or donate the filter that comes with the kit. find yourself a universal cone filter from K&N or any other company that sells them seperately, and use it insead. these usually run $40-60.

on to the rest... you can go with a mild cam regrind. i wouldn't suggest anything too agressive, but you should have it properly tuned either way to make the most of it. there is also the lowering of the VTEC engagement point via a chipped ecu. again don't get overzealous, 4500 or so should give you a bit more excitement.

my suggestion for any and every mod/upgrade/tinkering is to look at options and prices. write out (or type up) a list of the "total investment." Then see how you feel about $1000 and the possiblity of a week or two total of downtime on your car, for fancy vtec. worth it... of course!!

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by propwdialogue &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">stickers.</TD></TR></TABLE>

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by thabao &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">a 3ft wing</TD></TR></TABLE>

come on now.... everyone starts somewhere...

instead of poking fun, point them in the right direction next time.

 

you could also do the I/H/E combo for better vtec response. get a ebay intake, megan header cause they are cheap and god, maybe a hi flo cat if you like, and a simple bigger exhaust piping.

 

ok now when i get the intake should i go coldair or shortram i heard that coldairs are famous for sucking in water.

 

it's a never ending discussion that we aren't going to get into, if you'd like do some searches and you'll find a lot of talk about each.

CAI...
possibility of sucking in water, but if your careful you should be fine
pulls in colder air from outside the engine bay

SRI...
hard to suck in water since the filter is inside the engine bay
pulls in warmer engine bay air

most CAI can be converted into a SRI for use during rainy/winter months. You just remove the pipe that extends and locates the filter behind the bumper.

 

I beleive that there are 2 kinds of Vtec our F series motors come with the gas saving Vtec and some of the other motors (B,H,K) have the more horsepower Vtec. (correct me if im wrong i would just kinda like to know) so you should get some power gain from a CAI but not CRAZY numbers. My buddy has a GSR and you can DEFFINITLY tell when his vtec kicks in, because it seems like it could break your neck!

 

is there a vtec controller that will help since vtec does not kick in untill around 5000

 

yes, you are wrong. you're hitting around it though.

it's motor-to-motor which is for economy and which is for power. in the end though, VTEC is all about the best of both worlds: economy and power in one package.

untill recently (with the release of the new RL) all single cam VTEC only applied to the intake side. iVTEC and 3-Stage VTEC more often emphasize economy.

the point though, for the case of the F23A1, VTEC is for power. It's just not an increadible amount... maybe an extra 20hp.. i'm pulling that out of my butt.

 

does vtec stop working one the check engine light is on?

 

a vtec controller like the APEXi VTEC Controller ... but lowering the rpm's that vtec kicks in is going to kill your gas ... at $4.00 a gal. for regular id say wait on it ...

 

Apexi VAFC

It's really not that bad, I had one for awhile and had no real gas mileage difference.

I also don't have much of a difference in my mileage with the H22 w/ P28.

I still get 28-30

 

i know it won't work if oil pressure isn't high enough...

i think it would depend on the code behind the CEL. maybe if it's running in safe mode or something it won't go into vtec.

 

Thats actually a good question. Like these guys said, it depends on the code its throwing. But best to my understanding, it can happen if one or more of a couple things happen: 1. The oil pressure switch goes out (not allowing feed back on the oil pressure to the ECU(brain of the car), there for not allowing vtec to kick in. 2. The oil is actaully low not allowing enough pressure to build up and the computer may interpit this a problem and throw a code because it can not engage vtec.

 

Thanks i found a apexi controler

 

i drive a 99 accord 4cyl. coupe and as far as when vtec kicks in it seems to be pressure sensitive with daily driving. I have an Apexi VAFCII hooked up to it but i haven't gotten it tuned yet. I've put my engage point at 3500 and its a more noticeable punch. but i can tell i'm loosing power at the rpm's before engage thats why i notice when it kicks in. but when i put my setting to default (no engage point) i noticed at WOT it kicks in between 2500 and 3000 but you don't notice when it kicks on. (i do notice it because i have an AEMV2 CAI on it because it pushes more air) but when i took it off for winter i couldn't feel/hear a thing. if you're just daily driving sometimes it'll kick in later. But definitely a CAI will help boost your power slightly. I also have a new exhaust on it which helps as well. As far as the VAFCII with this engine, it seems better to not use it at all. of course i haven't taken my car to a dyno but i suspect it doesn't help gain much at all especially for the money. thats just my two sense. figured i have basically the same car might as well state my opinion.