What kind of gains in hp could be expected from either hollowing out the cat or putting in a test pipe? What kind of gains could be expected from removing the power steering. Just trying to decide if it's worth it. I know with the nitrous I would see greater gains from the hollowing/removing the cat than an N/A car, so keep in mind this is for 75-100 shot of nitrous on a d16y8. Thanks for any input.

 

No one has dyno tested this or seen a gain in quarter mile times from these "no cost" mods that they would like to share? I just want to know what its worth because I work downtown Tampa and do alot of parallel parking and enjoy the comfort of power steering and wouldn't take it off if I only expect to gain 1 hp. Same with the cat, if they ever start emissions testing here again, was it worth it to have get under the car again and keep changing out cats? I heard Mista Bone gained .3-.4 of a second in the 1/4 just from adding a test pipe. Has anyone else had similar results???

 

dont hollow out your cat, you will be doing more harm than good, putting in a test pipe would be better, but i wouldnt expect too much from doing this, you will hardly notice. As for the power steering, its up to you, you will see app. 2-4 more hp, but is it worth it? If its daily driven, i dont think it would be worth it. Take out your AC

 

Rather have the A/C than power steering, I live in Tampa it gets ridiculously humid and hot here and my car is about the most dark black looking thing you've ever seen. WHy do you say hollowing the cat does more harm than good? I don't understand how that could be since if you hollow it, it would simply be a straight pipe.

 

well first of all honda cats are high quality and have a high flow. not many people know this, and its a common trick to hollow cats out with domestics, but with hondas, i dont think you will see much benefit. but go ahead if you may....

 

anyone else with some results?

 

When you hollow-out a cat., there is an abrubt change in diameter from small-large-small as the exhaust gasses enter and exit the hollow cat, and this affects exhaust gas velocity and creates turbulance. A test-pipe maintains the diameter of the exhaust system, and thus doesn't negatively affect velocity or create turbulance. As for PS/AC, one of the best modifications I ever made to my car was removing the PS. The AC, aside from adding weight, places very little drag on the motor when it is not engaged, unlike the PS pump. You'll see very little gains by removing the AC, but you always have the option of installing an underdrive pulley on it if you are concerned about the parasitic losses.

 

Thanks, what if i shove a pipe through the cat to keep it a consistant diameter, or is the stock cat not wide enough to really help with my Tanable exhaust and DC Sport headers? My hopes of hollowing it out were just to pass visual inspections, because alot of places don't like to work on a car without cat, say if I had an alignment done or something. If not, then I will just go with a test pipe and maybe weld a heat sheild over it to kind of hide it.

 

yeah power steering on SIs is worthless anyway, they only weigh about 100-200 more pounds than the other models and i certainly never felt like i needed power steering on my std hatch or my old crx dx. power steering is for 5 foot tall girls.

 

Agreed, but if I only gain like 1 hp from it, I'm not going to take the time or effort to remove it right now.

 

The stock cat. diameter is too small to begin with, and the tubing would only decrease that diameter even more, depending on the thickness of the tubing used. You're best bet, if you are set on running a test pipe rather than a high-flow cat., would be to have a proper one made.

 

thanks, my problem is the amount of $$$ to buy a hi-flow cat. It wouldn't be worth it since I think the gains from a test pipe would be better. Or I am I wrong would a high flow cat show better gains?

 

removing the P/S system involves more than just disconnecting the PS pump. I tried this and it was so hard to turn the wheel, even at highway speeds. It was much harder than my friends Fiero that doesnt have PS. You need to convert your steering rack to a manual rack cuz otherwise your stilll pushing fluid around. I dont think you will see much gain here.

 

True - when I said "remove", I was referring to removing the pump, lines, etc., and looping the rack, although the car will still be quite drivable with simply the PS belt removed, and the power gains (approx. 4-5 whp on a B-series) will still be achieved. By removing the entire system and looping the rack, however, there will also be a weight reduction of ~16 lbs., and a resulting steering feel that is, IMO, much better than stock. So for roughly $25 total, removing the PS system provides a 4-5 whp gain, a 16 lb. reduction in weight, and improved steering feel/response. Few modifications are as cost-effective as this one.

 

yeah, i guess if there is that much work involved and so little to gain then it's not worth bothering. but i'm still glad my 88 hatch doesn't have it.

don't the integras have a power steering system that works relative to the speed of the car? is the 91 civic SI setup the same thing?

 

[QUOTE]removing the P/S system involves more than just disconnecting the PS pump.

can't you just remove the belt? i removed my belt and im not sure if i felt any power increase but i felt like i had more control of my car at higher speeds, as far as it being harder to drive on the street, i like having firm biceps.