<center style="color: rgb(0, 204, 0); font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; ">[h=1][FONT=Arial,Helvetica]I found this on another site and thought it would be appreciated here. "High tech" Honda engine VS. "Low Tech" V8[/FONT][/h]</center>[FONT=Arial,Helvetica]A lot of Honda enthusiasts say it is easy to build a 500 HP Honda engine. Sure it is if you have enough money! Buth then with enough money, you could make a lawn tractor outrun a top fueler.[/FONT][FONT=Arial,Helvetica]The April 1998 issue of Hot Rod magazine featured 2 engine buildup stories: one a "high tech" turbo Honda engine built by JG Engine Dynamics, and an "old tech" Buick 455 V8. Hot Rod, unlike most "sport compact car" magazines, gets into the details of the engines in featured cars and the costs to build. Both made 500 horsepower, but the Honda cost almost 3 times what the Buick cost . Basically, they threw away the bottom end of the Honda, since in stock form the Honda cannot withstand the pressures of making 500 HP. They basically rebuilt the block with ductile iron cylinder sleeves and closed the open block deck by welding in a deck plate.The pistons and rods were replaced with expensive aftermarket pieces.[/FONT] [FONT=Arial,Helvetica]The "low tech" Buick used nearly all stock parts with the exception of ported stock heads, an aftermarket cam, aluminum intake manifold and headers. The Buick's short block uses a stock rods,crank, and block. It will make 500 HP using ordinary premium pump gas, while the Honda needs expensive racing gas to make the full 500 hp.[/FONT] [FONT=Arial,Helvetica]The Buick engine was installed in a large 3950 lb. Buick GS and ran the quarter mile in 11.59 secs. It would be much quicker if the engine was put in a lighter car, like a Nova, Skylark, or Ventura. According to JG Engine Dynamics, their Honda engines usually run low 11sec. - quarter-miles in a 2500 lb.Civic.[/FONT] [FONT=Arial,Helvetica] Keep in mind that the Buick 455 is not even a popular engine to modify; parts for Buick engines are more expensive than more common Chevys. But for the same price as ONE high-strung, grenade-waiting- to-detonate Honda engine, TWO mild, more durable "old tech" Buick V8s could be built with money left over. In fact, you could build the Buick engine and pick up a fairly nice car to put the Buick engine in for less than the cost of the Honda engine alone![/FONT] [FONT=Arial,Helvetica]So unless you have a rich mommy and daddy, or don't mind maxing out your credit cards or taking out a 2nd mortgage, Hondas engines are not great to modify for drag racing if you want to go fast for a reasonable amount of money The link contains the article plus the chart for side by side comparison. http://members.tripod.com/~juan_espero/engine.html[FONT=Arial,Helvetica] [/FONT][/FONT]
It's easier to reach 500HP with an engine with four times the displacement! Say it ain't so! :eek2::eek2: I'm not a Honda fan, but they do make fine cars and I don't quite see the point of the article. It's a rather poor way to discuss the virtues of the engines we like.
Thank you for the sarcasm. Clearly the article wasn't about illustrating everything about our engines but rather the cost one runs into in this scenario. Leaving an overtone of why would one choose to build a Honda over an engine with a more suitable base. The article also only uses HP as its benchmark, but that's all the kids think about anyway. There's plenty more to take into consideration...but that's not the point the article was making. It was the HP to $ ratio.
These late model honda engines are bad ass. any motor that tachs to 8-9k is pretty impressive. They stay together and the power is across the entire rpm range, not above 5k like an old v8 would be. Its exciting to see what they come up with..
A guy I worked with back in college had an Integra with a set of cams in it that were V-tec cam lobes on a regular cam because he didn't have V-tec. In his gutted car (just a drivers seat, no carpet, etc), he said he ran low 12's and got 14mpg :laugh: I told him I could spend $500 on a converter and rear gears and my '69 Firebird would probably go as fast and get better fuel mileage (it had a 700r4 and was getting 25mpg), and look cooler, and be more comfortable to drive. He was dang proud of that Integra.
X2 I am a V8 Rumble kind of guy 100%... But it is pretty darn cool to see the small engines with turbochargers run scary fast... Not my cup of tea but you have to respect the power some of these "ricers" make. 95% of them are all show no go, but there are some out there that break the mold.
"BlackBuick": Please put your name in your signature, we are all here on a friendly first name base :TU: And don't forget to introduce yourself in the Wet behind the ears?? section of the board.
Here is a Ricer that perked my interest: **ONLY WATCH IF YOU LIKE LADIES AND FAST CARS** http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wgeXtucgt1s&feature=related
Sounds like a good article for my neighbor and is Subaru WRX to read. He called me out two summers ago. I beat him from a start. I beat him from a 30mph roll. Then I kept hearing from his father, that he still lives with, that they're building a 700 hp engine for the car. Two years later I'm still waiting. I have no doubt that they can get 700 hp from the engine, but the turbo would have to be so big that by the time it's spooled up, I'll be a quarter mile away.
Horsepower doesn't mean much. The Buick engine can have that same 500 hp but with double the torque and you won't have to rev it to 4-5000 to find it. Put that Honda motor in a 3800 lb Buick and see what happens....it will be a slug.
Ive always had the "to each is own" approach to it. I understand the younger generation (cant believe im saying that at 36) wanting to go fast with what came out in there lifetime. Its kinda like the guys that like muscle cars and dont like old hot rods like model t and stuff. Most all of the cars that i love or want to own were built before i was born but ive always thought i came at the wrong time. The first time i got spanked by an srt4 it stung a little bit but knew that he had a hell of alot more tied up in his car then i do in my regal so i would hope its faster. I think it all just goes in stages. Before you know it there will be something that overtakes the import tuners. I can only imagine with the instand torque the get from electric motors that sooner or later we will be forced to watch cars going 300 mph and not making a sound. now thats gonna suck.
It is amazing that the power doesn't come on until up about 5000 rpm, and then it just spins almost free up to 8000. Scary fast increase.
I can take a 20 ft breaker bar and put 500lbs-ft into my transmission's input shaft. The car is not going to go down the 1/4 mile too well... Power is what moves things. Torque is just a function of how that power is delivered and gearing is how it's altered. If you have a transmission that keeps that 9000RPM honda engine in its proper operating range, it will move the car just fine.
