hi Guys

I just bought a civic vti 2000 em1. I'm a complete noob to how to use the b16 engine.

Anyway I'm trying to get the vtec to kick in but can't do so. I was told on this car its at 7500 rpm but it seems awfully hard to get it there with normal driving and I imagine you need to be on the motorway already going pretty fast before it kicks in.

1) Am I right in thinking I am not going to be vteching in the city(even when theres not much traffic) or around corners because you will already be going to fast for these places.
2) I imagine even for the race circuit you need to have tuned your car so it revs a lot to constantly be in vtec, is this correct and is it more of a straight line/drag type thing?
3) In order to get to vtec i was told u need to floor it in gears 1 and 2 so you can get the higher rpm and this will not cause any clutch wear, however in trying that Ive noticed rubber smell on coming out of the car. If you can rev in any gear to the moon like i was told, i should never be smelling rubber but i am. is there a maximum rpm for each gear because i must be doing something wrong to smell rubber. What might it be?

Thanks

 

VTEC is set at a certain RPM to engage. You will hear the difference in sound the motor makes and you will feel the difference after engagement even on a stock motor. Now, VTEC has a few safety precautions that it checks and shuts off VTEC engagement if these are not working properly. First and foremost check your oil, if it's too high or too low it will not engage. VSS (vehicle speed sensor) must be working unless it's chipped and feature for it is shutoff. VTEC solenoid usually if it's leaking won't hold the pressure necessary but can still engage if not so bad. Also, car must be warmed up (operating temperature) if it's too cold it won't engage. This is just a few.

many things can be wrong with vehicle and VTEC will not engage and it's a good thing that it won't so it doesn't mess anything up. Check the ecu (Engine Control Unit aka the computer), I have seen several times that people will change out to a computer that can run the engine enough to where someone who doesn't know about cars in general won't be able to tell it's not running at optimal performance. If it is the stock (original) computer it should be the P2T. The computer is located beneath the glove down to the right hidden my a pop-off cover. Start there to make sure you didn't get ripped off and we'll work our way through everything else.

 

As for your smelling rubber, you might be spinning the tires or burning the clutch. Burning the clutch won't smell like burnt rubber exactly but it's a nasty smell nonetheless.

 

Your clutch will wear out during driving no matter what. The harder you drive the car the quicker it will wear out. VTEC should engage in ANY gear that you reach the RPM that it's set it at.

 

And just to bust your chops these were some very noon statements you were making that someone told you lol. But it's ok we'll help you figure out what's wrong. If I can't someone else will.

 

Well yeah, it didn't smell like rubber exactly but it was nasty and me and my mate thought it was closest to a clutch smell. In any case how do I prevent this, cos I was going by the view that you can rev to to the moon in any gear except 1st(which goes to 5000rpm) without burning the clutch.

But you also seem to be saying you can reach 7500 in any gear so therefore except for first, there's no such thing as overeving and so shouldnt be any nasty smell?

 

Can anyone tell me what gears should go with what mph. I normally drive like this:

1st gear moving off
2nd up to 20 mph
3rd up to 21-29
4th 30-39
5th 40 upwards

or should it based on rpm in which case what is the rpm range for each gear? Cant find the owners manual online either.


Thanks

 

MIne isn't stock, but you can rev it out quite a bit more than that before shifting.

 

B16 have short gears, but not that short. If stock ecu the rev limit should be around 8450rpm. Honda's are high-rev motors and some see 10k when built. If the ecu is stock, it will stop you from going passed 8450rpm which you don't want to constantly hit all the time but don't be afraid to punch it and let it tell you when to shift until you get used to shifting right before rev-limit.

 

Dont be scared to drive it. Your motors is made to rev high !

 

Ok Guys I went to the guy who sold it to me and apparently the vtec is kicking in however it just sounds different to when I heard it in the test drove or when Ive previously been in a dc2. before the guy sold the car to me he removed all mods and returned it to stock. According to him there was a whales penish which makes the vtec more pronounced and when I heard it on a dc2 that also had the whales *****. So it seems I have been getting vtec but it just doesn't sound as distinct or loud as before though it is still noticeable. Does this sound right to you?

He also said if I remove the plastic tube where the whales penish was that would restore the sound. Is this true and if so, wouldnt removing this disconnect the system from the air filter which would in turn potentially damage the system since unfiltered air can go through or is it ok for me to move it, according to him it is.

Thanks

 

Also regarding the revving issue, I found the manual which shows you can rev quite high e.g. 1st gear to 35mph, 2nd gear to 54 mph and so on. I find that you can do this however the mistake I was making wasnt with upshifting, it was with downshifting. When downshifting I was going into gear 1 at 30 mph since this is the range I thought the manual gives. However it just occured to me these ranges are for accelration and not when downshifiting hence it feels like it gets locked up or the clucth burns.
What is the best way to know when and to what gear I should down shift, at the moment I just downshift when the speedo goes DOWN like this:
5 mph or less:1st gear
20 mph or less: 2nd gear
21-29 mph: 3rd hear
30-39: 4th

Of course thats downshifting when going up you can rev it to red line I it seems.

So when downshifting do you guys use the mph I have just listed as your marker or do you use an alternative way e.g. rpm? how do you do please detail since that maybe the better way to do it.

Also I have been flooring it in 1st gear constantly and then upshift at around 40mph. I know constantly flooring will wear clutch sooner but is this car designed to tolerate constant flooring for longer or do you guys accelerate smoothly? How many miles can I expect the clutch to last in terms of miles with constant flooring vs gradual acceleration? I don't want to buy a new one every week but hell the sound from flooring and vtec is just awesome.

Thanks

 

The more aggressively you drive (e.g. flooring it, and downshifting) the faster you are going to wear out your clutch. Doesn't matter what the car is designed to do.

Sounds like you need to learn how to drive a stick shift....

 

Hi

I have the stock speakers and they don't sound great.

Can anyone recommend any speakers that will fit the em1 and sound alot better. currently it has no oomph if you know what i mean. i'd want to spend £50-100 I guess.

Also would they be straighforward to install? I can see its easy to remove em1 speakers.

Also why do german cars sound so great, do they have bigger speakers what do i have to do to get my civic like that.

'Thanks

 

 

Easy swap, go find speakers you do like. 6.5" up front and 6x9" in the rear. German cars sound better for a multitude of reasons, higher quality components, built in amplifiers and sound deadening is by far the biggest factor in better sound quality

 

Are the stock speakers 6.5"(16.5cm)? I measured them and they seemed to be 15.5.

Is there any aftermarket 6.5" speakers that are known to be a lot better/maybe worth getting asI'm not sure what speakers are good.
However I could take the speakers from my hyundai coupe and put them in. Will it be difficult to connect the cables though?

Also might it be the system and connecting cables that are giving the poor quality sound in which case I need to change those or is it definitely the stock speakers?

thanks

 

ok guys so after I bought my em1 i checked the engine oil and dipstick was showing just under min. i added a bit of oiland it went inbetween min and max. Next day I check it oil is now slightly above max line. Today I check it its gone to mid again.

Could this be a sign of something serious? should I stop driving?

Also what engine oil should I be using, it list many in the manual e.g. 5w30, 10w40 and so on with some temperatures. im in london, uk its summer now what brand and number should I be putting in?

Also when I accelerate hard or high rpm, vtec etc i can sense a burning smell, what might that be?

Thanks

 

It is almost certainly the stock speakers that make it sound bad. Take the door panel off, measure the speaker, (it may be a 5.5" or 6.5", but you can put 6.5" in there regardless, I've done it to my civic) and buy some quality (Alpine, Polk, Pioneer, etc) speakers. You probably still won't have enough bass, in which case you'll have to buy an amplifier and a small subwoofer in an enclosure, (10" would probably suffice unless you really want it to bang) and probably a new head unit with connections for a subwoofer and amp, some wiring, etc.

Cliffnotes:

Buy good 6.5" speakers x2
Buy good 6x9" speakers x2
Install.
Judge sound, proceed further if desired.

 

Are you making sure to check it with the vehicle parked, not running, on level ground each time?

 

Not enough details to go off of.

 

you don't have to remove door panels right? on em1 you just pull out speaker covers from door panels then unscrew the speakers. Am I right?

 

Correct. I just put some JBL's in the doors and rear. The rear fit fine, but the doors needed an adapter to fit correctly. I have seen other speakers that have a more universal fit than the JBLs and those you could probably get away with no adapter.

 

then

 

ok jokes aside, have been on here for a week already and just introducing myself.

london, uk. love the hondas. had an ls before always wanted to upgrade to a vtec, never had the money, finally got one. great first week though not anymore. Might have quite a few repairs coiming up. Anyway i'll continue to dream, hopefully theyll be powerful enough to outdo any finanial or life threatening obstacles I may encounter.