Vvvtec
27-01-2011, 10:27 AM
Hey guys,
This is just a bit of a write-up/review on using the Skunk2 Single Stage Intake Manifold in conviction with an Injen CAI in a DC2. As most of your will know, the VTi-R Integra comes with a variable length (dual stage manifold) intake system. What this basically means is that at a set rpm (6000 to be exact), butterflies within the manifold are activated, closing off one set of intake runner leading to the head, changing the length overall length of the intake. The aim of this OEM design is to provide torque low in the rev range, without having to sacrifice power in the top.
Personally, I am after abit more in the mid-to-high rpm range (for mountain runs etc), so I did sone research and decided to overhaul the entire intake set up on my motor. During my research phase, I read alot of different things regarding the Skunk2 product, both positive and negative. Here is my personal experience with this combination.
As for the new intake setup: VERY happy with it. The Injen CAI alone was money well spent. It's very noticeable in the top end. The change to a single-stage manifold has also been very good. I really can feel that it's breathing much easier and it builds revs easier. It's a good feeling when it pulls harder and harder closer to redline. Next on the list after coilovers will definitely be some good quality header.
For those considering/wondering if the Intake + Manifold option is worthwhile, I can give you a firm YES. I myself was pretty skeptical about the manifold mostly, I read abit about people saying I would lose lots of power down in the low/mid range. Sadly I've only driven the car at like this for a couple days, as i'll explain further on. Here is what I can say from real-life, personal experience:
Pro's:
-Much more haste to reach higher revs when you give it some
-Car is a whole heap more responsive above 2500rpm, pedal feel is very nice
-It's definitely quicker (no, it's not just the sound making me think it's quicker. I can feel there is more power)
-VTEC crossover remains very smooth, but once in VTEC, it really takes off.
-The stock intake is so twisty and just looks so restrictive. It's a good feeling knowing your motor has a plentiful supply of fast flowing cool air.
-Fuel consumption is better. I'm not joking.
-Last but not least, who can go past the sound of VTEC through a CAI? The sound is incredible, it literally screams it's nuts off above 5000rpm. Not to mention the sound of single-stage crossover, it's just soo good. It's also nice to be able to hear the engine ticking away, it's almost like the larger intake chamber amplifies the noise of the engine
Con's:
- Yes, there IS a slight flat spot in power just after VTEC crossing over, from 4600-5500rpm. I'm guessing this is due to the fact that the stock tune was for the completely different OEM manifold. The stock ecu has VTEC engage at 4600rpm. I'm guessing that if it was higher, at say 5500 or 6000rpm, this wouldnt happen. Personally, i'm not bothered as Hondata + a tune is on the way for me.
-Yes, there is a little less response down very low in the range, i'm talking <1500rpm here, nothing really to be worried about. This is inherent with the CAI.
-It's so LOUD! Not that I see that as a negative though, some might but. Just be aware lol...
-It's a CAI. You have to be careful of those deep puddles.
-Be very careful during installation of your knock sensor. Due to the deletion of the Dual-stage Butterfly setup, there is a plug that is let unplugged as the butterfly system is deleted with this new manifold. This plug is on the same wire as your knock sensor. Somewhere along the line, I've stretched my loom (specifically the cables attached to the knock sensor) and pulled/snapped the knock sensor right off. Be careful if you do this, Honda ask $260 trade price for a new one. I luckily found one from Adrian at Toda for MUCH less than that. But yes, with no knock sensor you will get a CEL and after doing the DIY paper-clip OBD scan, I found it was code 23, so I looked in the bay and found my sensor just hanging by the cable. Once that CEL comes on, goodbye performance lol. The ecu has started retarding my ignition, therefore making the car annoyingly gutless. This should be fixed by next week though, and it shouldn't do any harm to your motor.
That's my honest opinion of this combination. It is VERY worthwhile, I myself consider it money well spent. The knock sensor issue is of my own making, so it's not really a negative of the doing the swap, it can be avoided with care.
What may interest some is that I am currently still using the stock VTi-R throttle body! Unfortunately I didn't have the foresight to realise that the Type R TB I was planning on putting on opens the other way of the VTi-R one. To install the bigger throttle body you will need:
-Long Throttle cable from pretty much any other B/D series. The B18c2 one is very short due to the unique intake manifold design on this enginem, and the ITR TB requires a different mounting point and bracket. I will elaborate on this later when I post up some pics. But yes, back to the point that i'm still using the smaller throttle body. I think that after switching to the bigger one I should expect even better throttle respnse and maybe if I'm lucky even a bit more in the top end.
I can't really think of much else other than that... I've driven through a couple QLD storms and I havnt had any problems with the Injen yet lol, although I am alot more mindful of deeper puddles now. And apart from the knock sensor issue which bugs me, I'm very very happy and satisfied with the gains from the parts i've added. I can only imagine how much better it would be with a good tune though...
Pics to come :) Thanks for reading! Hopefully this provides some insight for those who are contemplating the same set up.
Any other questions, please feel free to ask!
VIDEO AND PICTURES
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=guQmbM5Fd1A
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs760.ash1/165114_10150128995945011_628000010_8375991_4209513 _n.jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs796.ash1/168649_10150128996860011_628000010_8376003_1939234 _n.jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs786.ash1/167640_10150128996350011_628000010_8376000_2048544 _n.jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs760.ash1/165145_10150128996150011_628000010_8375997_5751402 _n.jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/hs262.snc6/179072_10150128996470011_628000010_8376002_7028810 _n.jpg
This is just a bit of a write-up/review on using the Skunk2 Single Stage Intake Manifold in conviction with an Injen CAI in a DC2. As most of your will know, the VTi-R Integra comes with a variable length (dual stage manifold) intake system. What this basically means is that at a set rpm (6000 to be exact), butterflies within the manifold are activated, closing off one set of intake runner leading to the head, changing the length overall length of the intake. The aim of this OEM design is to provide torque low in the rev range, without having to sacrifice power in the top.
Personally, I am after abit more in the mid-to-high rpm range (for mountain runs etc), so I did sone research and decided to overhaul the entire intake set up on my motor. During my research phase, I read alot of different things regarding the Skunk2 product, both positive and negative. Here is my personal experience with this combination.
As for the new intake setup: VERY happy with it. The Injen CAI alone was money well spent. It's very noticeable in the top end. The change to a single-stage manifold has also been very good. I really can feel that it's breathing much easier and it builds revs easier. It's a good feeling when it pulls harder and harder closer to redline. Next on the list after coilovers will definitely be some good quality header.
For those considering/wondering if the Intake + Manifold option is worthwhile, I can give you a firm YES. I myself was pretty skeptical about the manifold mostly, I read abit about people saying I would lose lots of power down in the low/mid range. Sadly I've only driven the car at like this for a couple days, as i'll explain further on. Here is what I can say from real-life, personal experience:
Pro's:
-Much more haste to reach higher revs when you give it some
-Car is a whole heap more responsive above 2500rpm, pedal feel is very nice
-It's definitely quicker (no, it's not just the sound making me think it's quicker. I can feel there is more power)
-VTEC crossover remains very smooth, but once in VTEC, it really takes off.
-The stock intake is so twisty and just looks so restrictive. It's a good feeling knowing your motor has a plentiful supply of fast flowing cool air.
-Fuel consumption is better. I'm not joking.
-Last but not least, who can go past the sound of VTEC through a CAI? The sound is incredible, it literally screams it's nuts off above 5000rpm. Not to mention the sound of single-stage crossover, it's just soo good. It's also nice to be able to hear the engine ticking away, it's almost like the larger intake chamber amplifies the noise of the engine
Con's:
- Yes, there IS a slight flat spot in power just after VTEC crossing over, from 4600-5500rpm. I'm guessing this is due to the fact that the stock tune was for the completely different OEM manifold. The stock ecu has VTEC engage at 4600rpm. I'm guessing that if it was higher, at say 5500 or 6000rpm, this wouldnt happen. Personally, i'm not bothered as Hondata + a tune is on the way for me.
-Yes, there is a little less response down very low in the range, i'm talking <1500rpm here, nothing really to be worried about. This is inherent with the CAI.
-It's so LOUD! Not that I see that as a negative though, some might but. Just be aware lol...
-It's a CAI. You have to be careful of those deep puddles.
-Be very careful during installation of your knock sensor. Due to the deletion of the Dual-stage Butterfly setup, there is a plug that is let unplugged as the butterfly system is deleted with this new manifold. This plug is on the same wire as your knock sensor. Somewhere along the line, I've stretched my loom (specifically the cables attached to the knock sensor) and pulled/snapped the knock sensor right off. Be careful if you do this, Honda ask $260 trade price for a new one. I luckily found one from Adrian at Toda for MUCH less than that. But yes, with no knock sensor you will get a CEL and after doing the DIY paper-clip OBD scan, I found it was code 23, so I looked in the bay and found my sensor just hanging by the cable. Once that CEL comes on, goodbye performance lol. The ecu has started retarding my ignition, therefore making the car annoyingly gutless. This should be fixed by next week though, and it shouldn't do any harm to your motor.
That's my honest opinion of this combination. It is VERY worthwhile, I myself consider it money well spent. The knock sensor issue is of my own making, so it's not really a negative of the doing the swap, it can be avoided with care.
What may interest some is that I am currently still using the stock VTi-R throttle body! Unfortunately I didn't have the foresight to realise that the Type R TB I was planning on putting on opens the other way of the VTi-R one. To install the bigger throttle body you will need:
-Long Throttle cable from pretty much any other B/D series. The B18c2 one is very short due to the unique intake manifold design on this enginem, and the ITR TB requires a different mounting point and bracket. I will elaborate on this later when I post up some pics. But yes, back to the point that i'm still using the smaller throttle body. I think that after switching to the bigger one I should expect even better throttle respnse and maybe if I'm lucky even a bit more in the top end.
I can't really think of much else other than that... I've driven through a couple QLD storms and I havnt had any problems with the Injen yet lol, although I am alot more mindful of deeper puddles now. And apart from the knock sensor issue which bugs me, I'm very very happy and satisfied with the gains from the parts i've added. I can only imagine how much better it would be with a good tune though...
Pics to come :) Thanks for reading! Hopefully this provides some insight for those who are contemplating the same set up.
Any other questions, please feel free to ask!
VIDEO AND PICTURES
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=guQmbM5Fd1A
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs760.ash1/165114_10150128995945011_628000010_8375991_4209513 _n.jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs796.ash1/168649_10150128996860011_628000010_8376003_1939234 _n.jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs786.ash1/167640_10150128996350011_628000010_8376000_2048544 _n.jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs760.ash1/165145_10150128996150011_628000010_8375997_5751402 _n.jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/hs262.snc6/179072_10150128996470011_628000010_8376002_7028810 _n.jpg