aaronblaron

Hi! Two questions. Thanks for any help.

89 civic si. Completely stock.

For now I am only aiming for what power can safeishly be made without rebuilding the motor. 170-200ish.

First ethanol:
I wan't to convert to e85 for a few reasons;
one because it currently does not pass smog, apparently because of carbon buildup.
Two: cuz i am into that hippy ----.
Three: because i want to turbo, and its cheaper than premium.

I need some advice:

1. Do i need a different computer? I have read that it will need to be tuned, and i don't know much about this. Can this be done with the 89 computer?

2. I apparently need bigger fuel injectors, how big exactly? Anything specific?

3. Am i going to need anything else? Fuel pump? (I only want to boost it to 200ish).


Turbo questions:
1. I want to set something up with ABS pipe and duct tape, are there any posts of people doing this successfully? What kind of money can i expect to spend?

2. What size turbo should i get for this motor?

3. Any best resources that i should read?

Thank you for any help at all.

Matt Cramer

You will need a tune of some sort. I'm not as up on stock ECU tuning as standalones, but I think there are options for tuning the stock ECU. We've tuned a couple E85 burning Hondas on MegaSquirt at our shop.

Something around 40 lb/hr sounds about right.

That's about as much flow rate as you'd need for 300 hp on gasoline. I'd upgrade the fuel pump for sure.


Was that a joke or a mock-up for determining what parts to order for something better? ABS itself is OK, but duct tape is going to cook and burst. You could use ABS (or exhaust bends) and radiator hose if you want a jury rigged setup, but there's so many cheap Chinese turbo pipe kits on eBay that one of those may be a better bet.

If you're trying to do this on a low budget, get a used stock DSM turbo.

aaronblaron

Thanks for the answer. I was joking about the duct tape. Serious about the ABS.

aaronblaron

I will look into ebay turbo kits.

Also: I have been looking for cheap 400cc ish injectors (i have no idea were i got the number 400cc... How big do i need for 40lb/hr?), and i can find nothing. http://forums.turbobricks.com/showthread.php?t=73061 mentions just adjusting the fuel pressure to 80psi on stock injectors (in a volvo) instead of replacing injectors, do you know if the injectors on my car allow the same flow as a volvos?

Matt Cramer

As a general rule with eBay no name parts:

1. There's only so bad a charge pipe or intercooler can be. Generally safe bets.
2. The turbos are a grab bag - I've seen some hold up for years on the street, others start smoking after a month.
3. Cast manifolds are usually OK. Tube headers usually have a lifespan measured in months... if you're lucky.

400 cc is pretty close to 40 lb/hr; I was being a bit conservative with injector sizing, and to convert from lb/hr to cc/min, multiply by 10.5. 80 psi can cause some injectors to stick shut. Not sure if yours fall into this category, but it's quite risky. Also puts more strain on the fuel pump.

aaronblaron

Thanks! The ebay pipe kits are very cheap alright!

I have read that intercoolers are less necessary with e85, do you know if this is true?

Matt Cramer

E85 is more resistant to detonation and so it is less of a problem to leave out the intercooler - but it's still going to make more power if you intercool it.