building head for more power gains B18c :D !

[joeyybruh]

hey guys , as the title states . Im looking to do some headwork for my b18c7 but am pretty stuck on what to do .
Currently i have a stock b18c7 , only bolt-ons at the moment are Jays racing Carbon intake , Random headers (not sure what brand) and Hurricane exhaust full catback and 2inch aluminium exhaust . Im currently using hondata s200 but is untuned , hence why i also believe my car could be running rich .

other than that , everything is pretty stock . From what i know , if i get camshafts i should also upgrade my valve springs and retainers as they get put under more stress .
I also realised that there are different models such as spec 1 , 2 and 3 . one being moderate , 2 being street/ track and 3 being track dedicated not suitable for street .

I want power gains , a reasonable amount but dont want anything that has too much power that could alter the functions of a daily driver . does that make sense ?
I dont know too much about the in depth technicality of what to do , thats why i thought id ask .

I think ill be getting stage 2 ( unsure of what brand) camshafts , upgrade valvesprings and retainers and get tuner adjustable cam gears .

is there anything else i need to be putting into consideration ?
Am i missing anything ?
whats the difference between double and single vavlesprings ?
In relation to spec 2 or stage 2 camshafts , do different brands offer different power outputs or are they all the same since they are all in the same stage ?

i tried covering what i could so i dont get flamed for asking .
YES i am a noob and love to learn so any input would be great . thanks guys :D !

[u mad?]

Well first off, replace all of those shitty bolt-ons with something half decent. You can't just throw cams in and expect good power gains, you have to have a good combo.


'stages' of cams will vary from manufacturer to manufacturer, just because they are for example, both stage 2, it doesn't mean they'll necessarily have the same lift/duration.

Yes you can have good power gains and still retain good drivability/fuel economy, just need to have your shit sorted, ie good combination of parts and a good tune.

[joeyybruh]

LOOL of course , im planning on changing the "shitty" bolt ons but after i do some headwork seeing as more power is made there . after the head ill be changing my full exhaust , headers and intake . still yet to decide on what to get though .

ahh okay , in terms of lift and duration what do you mean ? i dont know too much about " lift/duration"

ill be getting it tuned once i sort out what i need and what to do , but thanks for the input :D

[u mad?]

from google


Duration refers to how long a valve is opened in relation to crankshaft rotation. This open valve time period is expressed in degrees of crankshaft rotation. So, a cam specification of 220 degrees duration simply means the cam holds the valve open for 220 degrees of crankshaft rotation.

lift, how wide the valves are opened



If you are serious why don't you talk to a good mechanic? toda au on the forums here really knows his shit about b series.

A good (and expensive ) combo would be:

mugen/injen intake
toda header
100cel metal cat
buddyclub/fujitsubo/spoon ect catback
toda b's with all the appropriate valvtrain upgrades to support
cnc port job
thinner head gasket


if you engine is healthy, expect up to 140kw atw

but then again thats nearly k swap money... (i was considering this before i went to k)



inb4 adrian

[dougie_504]

IMO fix your bolt-ons first before you do any headwork. Lightweight flywheel and HD clutch would be a nice addition too. Head work isnt cheap!

[Banana_hammock]

Yeah, What these guys have been saying. I'd try to do as much as I can in terms of bolt-ons before thinking about internals. They're much cheaper and easier to work with while providing noticeable gains

[TheSaint]

Fujita > Injen for CAI

i would fix your bolt ons and get the hondata tuned before messing with the head

would be interesting to see what adrian has to say =)

[joeyybruh]

thanks for the input guys . yeah i was thinking of doing it backwards for some odd reason . head work and fix all bolt ons .

Most likely gonna change my Jays intake for a CAI and change my full exhaust , decent set of headers with a better exhaust .

in terms of bolt ons , any suggestions ?

[stndrd]

CAI, 4-2-1 headers (toda, mugen, j's racing etc) with 2.25 or 2.5in cat back exhaust, 100 cel cat, bigger throttle body match ported to inlet manifold, walbro intank fuel pump & tune

[joeyybruh]

CAI, 4-2-1 headers (toda, mugen, j's racing etc) with 2.25 or 2.5in cat back exhaust, 100 cel cat, bigger throttle body match ported to inlet manifold, walbro intank fuel pump & tune

(Y) thanks . LOL

[dougie_504]

thanks for the input guys . yeah i was thinking of doing it backwards for some odd reason . head work and fix all bolt ons .

Most likely gonna change my Jays intake for a CAI and change my full exhaust , decent set of headers with a better exhaust .

in terms of bolt ons , any suggestions ?


IMO screw internals just swap the block for a B20 lol

[stndrd]

IMO screw internals just swap the block for a B20 lol

+1 then stick a turbo on it. Boost fixes everything

[TheSaint]

or even put on a JRSC - good value for money if u get the kit for around 1k$

[JPR28610]

1k? where can you get it for 1k?

[TheSaint]

usually when the kits come up on ebay they are around the 1k mark ... unless prices have changed in the last 12months

[boboz81]

I was in your exact position OP, I had bolt ons making 110kw and then decided I wanted more, told Adrian my budget of approx 3-4k and he installed toda spec b cams, toda cam gears, toda updated valve springs, toda timing belt and then hondata s300 with tune, car then made 132kw on same dyno

Only bad part I've got are my eBay headers

Car has a lot more mid range and a lot better pull through all gears

[JPR28610]

ebay here i come... :)

[joeyybruh]

I was in your exact position OP, I had bolt ons making 110kw and then decided I wanted more, told Adrian my budget of approx 3-4k and he installed toda spec b cams, toda cam gears, toda updated valve springs, toda timing belt and then hondata s300 with tune, car then made 132kw on same dyno

Only bad part I've got are my eBay headers

Car has a lot more mid range and a lot better pull through all gears

you spent 3-4k and made 132 kw ?

i went to adrian a week ago and had my s300 tuned .. turns out i was making 113.5 kw on an extremely bad tune .

he spent 4 hours tuning it and i came out with 131.2 kw ..

i have bolt ons , ecu and stock internals ..

[mocchi]

you spent 3-4k and made 132 kw ?

i went to adrian a week ago and had my s300 tuned .. turns out i was making 113.5 kw on an extremely bad tune .

he spent 4 hours tuning it and i came out with 131.2 kw ..

i have bolt ons , ecu and stock internals ..

haha so youre the 113 to 131 guy
nice going

[joeyybruh]

haha so youre the 113 to 131 guy
nice going

hahah what do you mean ?! haha howd you know ?

[mocchi]

sami tran told me

edit: on topic.

titanium valves, beehive valve springs, idk what else

[joeyybruh]

sami tran told me

edit: on topic.

titanium valves, beehive valve springs, idk what else

haha ohh okay , yeah :D ill probably do that later down the track .

for now , im still having a smoking issue . think my engine is burning oil . something to do with the vavles i think , still yet to get it diagnosed .

for not sports organic clutch and lightened flywheel will be going in soon , after my vti-r caliper upgrade .

[Bludger]

subscribed.
gonna milk this one for luls.

[Bludger]

haha ohh okay , yeah :D ill probably do that later down the track .

for now , im still having a smoking issue . think my engine is burning oil . something to do with the vavles i think , still yet to get it diagnosed .

for not sports organic clutch and lightened flywheel will be going in soon , after my vti-r caliper upgrade .
I have parts for your rebuild.

see my fs thread.

[connorling]

should spend money on lighten flywheel and shorten final drive.

if you have plans for turbo, dont bother with the header, keep it til u turbo it, same as the intake. expensive intake wont be that much better than a cheap ebay one (i had a ebay one, and swap to a 0-1000 carbon fibre type 2 intake, and it didnt do sh!t.)

2" exhaust seems bit small, i think u should upgrade to 2.5" at least, u can still use it when u turbo ur car.

upgrade your intake manifold and throttle body.

swap out your CAT to a high flow one.



computer is a good investment. get urself a Power FC and tune.

[joeyybruh]

should spend money on lighten flywheel and shorten final drive.

if you have plans for turbo, dont bother with the header, keep it til u turbo it, same as the intake. expensive intake wont be that much better than a cheap ebay one (i had a ebay one, and swap to a 0-1000 carbon fibre type 2 intake, and it didnt do sh!t.)

2" exhaust seems bit small, i think u should upgrade to 2.5" at least, u can still use it when u turbo ur car.

upgrade your intake manifold and throttle body.

swap out your CAT to a high flow one.



computer is a good investment. get urself a Power FC and tune.

thanks for the heads up bro , appreciate it heaps .

exedy sports organic clutch with exedy lightened flywheel are being shipped as we speak .

Will have a look into getting a highflow cat :) .

im running s300 tuned by adrian with the current mods i have and pulled a decent 131.2 kw .

jays racing carbon intake , PLM tri-y headers with cheapy catback exhaust and stock internals .

thanks dude .

[TheSaint]

if you do get headwork do the following things first ...

buy a seal/gasket kit from ebay and replace all of that
get the head skimmed and get a new head gasket
(get a slightly thinner gasket if u want to bump compression)
clean the crap off the valves and combustion chamber
(dremel with wire brush attatchment works well)
re-lap the valves with a valve lapping kit
(takes all day but makes a huge difference)

than start looking at cam upgrades
u dont need to replace the retainers - the stock honda ones are very good

if you want even better gains - buy a full engine rebuild kit and do the whole thing
all the seals/gaskets/rings

you wouldnt beleive how much power is lost over time from bad compression
both from old worn piston rings and valves not sealing properly

once all of that is done you can start with your bolt ons and tuning

[joeyybruh]

if you do get headwork do the following things first ...

buy a seal/gasket kit from ebay and replace all of that
get the head skimmed and get a new head gasket
(get a slightly thinner gasket if u want to bump compression)
clean the crap off the valves and combustion chamber
(dremel with wire brush attatchment works well)
re-lap the valves with a valve lapping kit
(takes all day but makes a huge difference)

than start looking at cam upgrades
u dont need to replace the retainers - the stock honda ones are very good

if you want even better gains - buy a full engine rebuild kit and do the whole thing
all the seals/gaskets/rings

you wouldnt beleive how much power is lost over time from bad compression
both from old worn piston rings and valves not sealing properly

once all of that is done you can start with your bolt ons and tuning

Rep added . thank you , will look very much into this .

[connorling]

With heavier cams, u need more air in, so yer like I said. Throttle body and upgrade intake manifold will bring more air.

[na-118]

hi flow cat vs standard cat all the same
ceramic + steel cat all the same,
been tested and proven, they all work the same, and operate when it hits 300 degrees
a high flow cat is like getting a flat blade screwdriver straight down the middle of catylitc converter

[FAITHLESS]

It's got to be B20, FI or both. The internals on the B18c7 are already very good and it will run pretty rough with most stage 2 cams. Wouldn't be such a great daily. I wouldn't worry too much about improving air flow beyond headers, exhaust and CAI (if going NA). The P73 intake manifold and TB is great on the B18 so your not going to gain much power with alot of money spent upgrading them.
Are you looking at FI at all?
And you def wanna look at that oil burning issue before anything else.

[oopoc]

And you def wanna look at that oil burning issue before anything else.

That all depends where it's burning from. If its leaking thru the valve seats then head work is a must. But yes it shouldn't burn oil. Is it burning oil on start up? When you give it a boot full? Or all the time? But seriously burning oil is a good indicator....usually alloy blocks don't give warnings they just give way.

[zedries]

if you do get headwork do the following things first ...

buy a seal/gasket kit from ebay and replace all of that
get the head skimmed and get a new head gasket
(get a slightly thinner gasket if u want to bump compression)
clean the crap off the valves and combustion chamber
(dremel with wire brush attatchment works well)
re-lap the valves with a valve lapping kit
(takes all day but makes a huge difference)

than start looking at cam upgrades
u dont need to replace the retainers - the stock honda ones are very good

if you want even better gains - buy a full engine rebuild kit and do the whole thing
all the seals/gaskets/rings

you wouldnt beleive how much power is lost over time from bad compression
both from old worn piston rings and valves not sealing properly

once all of that is done you can start with your bolt ons and tuning

^This

From the world of SOHC I have not had the pleasure of many useful bolt on mods and for the rare few found for older holda's they are only ever as good as the internals permit which is why I agree with TheSaint.

The Rods/pistons in this engine are good and there is not really any need to upgrade in my opinion. I would also think twice about springs for the immediate future - or at least until you decide on a cam profile for the type of drive you are going for.

Since you are getting an organic HD clutch and lightened flywheel I would look into soemthing with a moderate duration in terms of cam profiles otherwise I think you will have a machine that will rev crazy fast (which these engines already do stock) and has a lumpy profile. Great for the track but you may want to think about all that unwanted attention the police will give you.

Anyway, once you find soemone to skim your head (.5mm) and deck your bock if you are up for it you will see an increase in compression and with the existing bolt ons plus the suggestiongs above by TheSaint and some good tuning AFTER the cams (maybe look into cam gears too which may help tuning).

Oh and I tend to agree that for your engine a 2 inch exhaust may be restricting flow - look at a 57mm (2 and a quater inch) or even 2.5 inch if you are going turbo down the line which must be mandrel bent and I think that will push out a decent amount more power.

if you are already getting ~132kw, with the above there's no reason you shouldn't push ~150kw with a good tune.

Anyway, that's my 2cents

Good luck

Zaahir