vtec loves to be driven hard?

**Rice_4_life** · 04-01-2007 08:02 PM

quik answer: yes. ur engine does enjoy a thrasing, if i had a b18cr in my civic i would giv it wot it wants everyday:
1) a good thrasing now and then <- note the now and then :P
2) make sure u hav it mechanically maintained.

that is it. treat it well and it'll treat u well. my 2cents

**Mrrevolution** · 04-01-2007 08:09 PM

How about oil pressures and engine seals. I used to own a corolla manual and after driving it hard for a year oil started leaking. How do the honda engines hold up to high revving and low gear load constantly ? Is it common to see oil leaks for engines with 100k on the clock ?

**Rice_4_life** · 04-01-2007 08:14 PM

as long as u maintain ur engine it should be all good. but as for seals and the likes they do start deterioating at a certain point in time. nothing lasts forever.

**Jazzdude** · 06-01-2007 11:08 AM

I have a Jazz Gli and I never trash it. Should I trash it once in a while? Also mine is an auto, so how to best trash it? Just floor it?

**aaronng** · 06-01-2007 11:27 AM

Originally Posted by Mrrevolution

How about oil pressures and engine seals. I used to own a corolla manual and after driving it hard for a year oil started leaking. How do the honda engines hold up to high revving and low gear load constantly ? Is it common to see oil leaks for engines with 100k on the clock ?

Hondas don't like low gear loads. Most small displacement engines don't like low engine load. That's why your engine seals started to leak.

**AsH_** · 06-01-2007 11:47 AM

i think an occassional thrash is fine for the engine...

otherwise why have vtec?

**aaronng** · 06-01-2007 12:12 PM

Originally Posted by AsH_

i think an occassional thrash is fine for the engine...

otherwise why have vtec?

VTEC is for fuel efficiency.

Anyway, engine life is calculated by the number of revolutions. Using high RPM does shorten the lifespan of the engine, but it will still be long enough to last over 200,000km as long as it is maintained regularly.

Other engines like those in Holdens were designed to be driven around at low to medium RPM. So the cyclic (no. of rotations) lifespan does not need to be long. That's why you most Holdens engines that were revved constantly would drive not as good as one that was driven gently.

Honda engines on the other hand were designed with a higher RPM for normal driving. The number of rotations it can last is much longer. That's why when you test an engine that has been revved most of its life, it still drives as well as an engine that has been pampered. Of course, the lifespan of the revved engine is still shorter.

For example, say you have an engine designed to cruise at 110km/h at 2500rpm and last 300,000km. Then you have a Honda engine that was designed for 110km/h at 4000rpm and also last 300,000km. That means the "normal" engine was designed for about 410 million revolutions. The Honda engine on the other hand was designed for about 655 million revolutions.

Say you find an engine that hypothetically has been driven at a 6000rpm redline at 110km/h for 100,000km of its life. The normal engine would have gone through 327 million revoltions out of its design of 410 million. That's 80% of its cyclic lifespan. Then you find a similar Honda engine that was driven at 8000rpm at 110km/h for 100,000km. You'd expect the Honda engine to be in worse condition than the other because it has been driven at 2000rpm higher than the normal engine. But when you calculate, although at 100,000km it has gone through 436 million cycles, it is still only 67% of its design capacity. So eventhough the Honda has been thrashed harder than the normal engine, it is still at only 67% of the lifespan compared to the other engine's 80%.

**marcus** · 06-01-2007 12:31 PM

Originally Posted by Mrrevolution

How about oil pressures and engine seals. I used to own a corolla manual and after driving it hard for a year oil started leaking. How do the honda engines hold up to high revving and low gear load constantly ? Is it common to see oil leaks for engines with 100k on the clock ?

i have the same problem tooo...btw hw to prevent oil leaks at the seal?or hw much to repair it or etc...

**aaronng** · 06-01-2007 12:44 PM

Originally Posted by marcus

i have the same problem tooo...btw hw to prevent oil leaks at the seal?or hw much to repair it or etc...

Did you drive at low RPM with high loads, like going uphill at 2000rpm or flooring the accelerator at 1500-2000rpm?

**Jazzdude** · 06-01-2007 12:46 PM

So if a person takes really good care of the engine (regular servicing, 98oct fuel, synthetic engine oil etc.), and does not ever go over 2500-3000rpm, can a Honda engine last 'forever' or will it eventually fail?