f22a 101

[alb_accord]

ok guys list the top 21 HP power gain upgrades for less than $$250 that everyone should do to their f22a engine....
and be specific....

get me some numbers on
unorthodox alluminium pulley
SR/CAI
headers/exaust(different types of exaust systems)
air filters
etc

[owequitit]

The most noticable increase that I have seen on the cheap is the A6 mani/cam/ecu swap. The only one that made a large noticable increase (the ECU is only necessary if you intend to activate the IAB with the comp. I personally highly recommend this, but some people on here don't see eye to eye with that.

Next would be the exhaust system. I got a noticable increase out of the Carsound cat, but it was the final link in the exhaust system. When you take the DC Header, Cat and RS*R Exmag, there was a good increase, but not for anywhere near 250.

I have also put AEM pulleys on there, and they don't really make a difference at all. The alternator doesn't create that much drag and the power steering is in bypass mode by 15-25mph anyway. They are less than $250 though.

As far as intakes go, I used to have an AEM cold air, but it didn't make a noticable improvement over the stock system. I now have a modified stock airbox that does better than both. It is a little louder than stock, but not much. Sort of like a Comptech Icebox.

[HondaFan81]

ok guys list the top 21 HP power gain upgrades for less than $$250 that everyone should do to their f22a engine....
and be specific....

get me some numbers on
unorthodox alluminium pulley
SR/CAI
headers/exaust(different types of exaust systems)
air filters
etc

I'd first suggest a tune-up on your existing motor (if that's the one you're upgrading).

- air filter (unless your getting aftermarket intake)
-fuel filter
- NGK or Denso spark plugs
- spark plug wires
- distributor cap & rotor
- change motor oil
- change transaxle oil or ATF
- coolant flush
- change thermostat

possible upgrades for your <$250 price range (gotta pay to play homeboy):

- intake & filter
- bored throttle body (www.maxbore.com)
- intake manifold work (www.chrracingproducts.com)
- camshaft regrind (www.deltacam.com
- cam gear for tuning
- header
- exhaust (crush bent, welded muffler)
- remapped ECU
- Hondata intake manifold gasket (bypass TB coolant lines)
- remove A/C
- remove P/S
- weight reduction at your discretion\

get creative and research....you'll find improvements that can me made at your price range, but don't expect anything outrageous as I see your price range not being practical....save up $250 X 2 , etc and you can spend more

[alb_accord]

i created this thread for the future noobs... many of the hp gains are covered in different threads and are not so easy to find....that is one of the reasons that i did this thread

$250x2<<<< well for that kind of money u can go to the junk jard and pic a 5th gen ex engine lol....

[JaK FRoSTWhiTE]

The most noticable increase that I have seen on the cheap is the A6 mani/cam/ecu swap. The only one that made a large noticable increase (the ECU is only necessary if you intend to activate the IAB with the comp. I personally highly recommend this, but some people on here don't see eye to eye with that.

I would like to add on that.
If you dont have enough money to get aftermarket header or exhaust,
go to the junkyards or the classifieds section here and search
for F22a4 exhaust manifold. It is said that its better than both
a1 and a6 E-Manifolds.
You can get the manifold between 30-50 bucks.

So:
a6 Intake Manifold
a4 Exhaust manifold
a6 cam
a6 ECU *optional

[owequitit]

The A4 manifold is pretty much as good as a header. It is basically the same as the stock H22 manifold, only for our cars. I didn't notice much of a difference with the DC header, although the collector design is better. As a note, the bottom section of the manifold is the same on the A4 and A6.

The A4 manifold can be had for relatively cheap, but the A6 cams are usually cheap too, and will make a larger difference if used with the intake manifold. It is much harder to change though, so that is a tradeoff too.

[alb_accord]

keep it coming guys.

[93EXaesthetic]

nice thread

nice thread..."gotta pay to play"


Full synthetic Oil --ran since day 1 nothing less

AEM CAI V1 or V2 (noticed change in acceleration faster...got to 120mph top speed increases)

NGK iridium spark plugs---car accelerates faster

magnecore 8.5 mm spark plug wires --car idles smoother..acceleration increase

89 octane gas


each of these upgrades made small but significant changes when i did them but add up



future plans
DC header for EX
f22b swap
greddy exhaust
high flow cat converter
unorthodox pulleys or aem version

[owequitit]

The other thing I was thinking of that would be a good booster all around for cheap is a ground wire kit. Especially with the age of our cars. It is near the top on my to do list. You can either buy them from someplace like SCO, or you can go and get good stereo wiring and make one yourself. This will improve everything all around, including gas mileage and can usually be done for well under $100.

Also, just a note on sythetic oil. If you plan to run a longer interval between oil changes, then it might be a good idea because that is where the advantage is going to come in on our cars. If you change your oil every three thousand miles, it is actually a waste of money, because the lubrication properties on synthetic oil aren't that much better than conventional oil that is in good shape and conventional oil isn't going to break down signicicantly in 3K miles. Synthetics are more resistant to high temps, but unless your F22 is turbocharged, your oil temps aren't getting high enough to justify the temperature durability.

Case in point, I have used Castrol GTX since I bought the car almost 140,000 miles ago. I have over 200K very very hard earned miles, and my compression checks in higher than many engines with 1/2 to 2/3 the miles on it. I also live in the hottest part of the country where the air temp routinely passes 125 and sometimes 130 degrees.

If you look at it on a cost basis, you generally have to run the synthetic at least 8,000 miles to get the same cost per mile as a conventional oil change. Do you really feel comfortable leaving the oil in the sump for 8-10K? If you just change conventional oil every 3,000, you will get almost 3 oil changes to 1. Not saying don't use it, just be aware of what the actual real world advantages are, and when they will benefit you.

The other thing to consider while on the topic of changing manifolds, would be to put an H23/F22B intake manifold on an F22A. They have a larger plenum which will benefit high RPM operation, while maintaining the dual stage setup so you don't lose much torque down low. You could consider a larger throttle body with this setup as well, but neither would really be better without at least an A6 cam.

Also, keep in mind that all of these mods won't do any good at all without routine maintenance. I have assumed that anyone doing these mods will also be doing their scheduled maintenance (especially filter changes, valve adjustments, and distributor cap/rotor/sparkplugs). An engines ability to perform is only as good as the weakest link, and it would be a waste to do any of the above with valves that are so out of spec, the engine can't breathe properly anyway.

[1993sE]

89 octane thats te cheep stuff why not get 93...?

[gloryaccordy]

$250? That's weak. You want to do the most for cheap? Here is what my plan of attack would be for a mild F22A...

A6 manifold w/mild porting
Megan Racing header (works on the H23, 10HP!!! True story)
Any CAI (although I think a 5th gen AEM V2 would be best)
Delta regrind
Straight exhaust w/resonator and OBX muffler
*OPTIONAL*- Head milling for ~1-1.5 point compression bump

All that stuff goes for less than a G total (maybe less than $700 if you know the right people) and should make a significant difference (especially the regrind+head milling). No joke, maybe 20-30HP at the wheels, or a little less than a second in the 1/4.

Haven't they cracked our ECU? I'd add Uberdata tuning to lean out the WOT board a little if they do.

[93EXaesthetic]

89 octane thats te cheep stuff why not get 93...?

i find you get the most power at 87 octane than 93 octane....i find 89 to be the best of bost worlds..and my car runs better. when i run 93 i feel like my car doesnt have enough umph....and it burns faster for some reason...

[1993sE]

ohh ic thats cool

[92ex]

I dont really see the need for 93 octane in a stock motor. Our compression is low enough to run 87, and even if you do run higher, the ecu doesn't have the capabilities to advance ignition variably. 87-89 is plenty.

[owequitit]

Octane is a flame inhibitor, and a gallon of 87 will actually release a little bit more energy than a gallon of 91 or 93 (Diesel has more energy still) but obviously isn't as resistant to detonation. Your ECU is actually calibrated to run on 87 octane, with a margin for error in case you get bad gas. Since the F22 doesn't have a knock sensor, it is unable to compensate for increased octane by advancing the timing, which means the extra octane doesn't do any good unless you have changed something major (like compression ratio) or the temps are super hot. I usually have to run 91 in the summer time because it gets so hot, my car starts to ping on 87. In the winter I run 87 though with no problems.

As a demonstration of the amount of energy in a gallon of gas, Car and Driver did dyno testing on a bunch of different cars. One was a 2002 Accord EX V-6 which is also calibrated to run on 87 octane and has no knock sensor. It actually made a couple more horsepower all the way across the board on 87.