What is my weakest link? what are reasonable power goals?
 

Okay guys I am still in the non-boosted stage of my weakling d16y8, but the plan is to be boosted by the end of summer. I am hoping to be able to get a good amount of power and still keep my civic reliable on long drives and have a quick car. Right now I am hoping for 275-300 whp and would like to hit high 12's on street tires. Here are the things I plan on doing, some i have, most I dont. Anyways here is the plan, and I am on a budget, I am going to try to do things myself, and take the extra time to find great deals becuase I am CHEAP. So with this list of stuff I plann on doing, are my goals resonable? Can these parts take more power? Less? What is my weakest link?

-Probally a log mani with external wg (ac compatible) do the ac compatible logs that have an offset flange flow badly?
-probally a used name brand wastegate (sometime the ebay ones look tempting but I dont know if thats worth risking my motor and turbo for
-some sort of used snail, thinking like garrett .48 .60
-ebay special fmic and 2.5 piping
-2.5 downpipe gunna cut it? I have like 2.25 inch exhaust, maybe 2.5, so I am not sure if I will consider doing a cutout or something and possibly do a 2.5 or 3 inch downpipe
- 550 injectors
-uberdata street tuned by a local tuner
-stealthmode oil lines prob (may peice together my own set)
-vitara pistons
-some sort of rods that will fit vitara's
-arp head bolts


Ok so I was thinking that if I get a snail that can push it efficiantly that 300 hp should be doable with and that the engine could probally take it with the arp head studs, and the pistons and rods. What do you guys all think? This is my first time boosting a car, so we'll see. Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated. And yes I have searched and researched any and everything about turbos for like months and months now, just I would be curious to see what you guys say about a setup like this.

I would think on a good tune that everything could handle over 300, I thinkt that the pistons would be my weak point as they may not be safe past 310-325. What do you guys think?

Re: What is my weakest link? what are reasonable power goals?
 

i didnt see what motor this will all go on??
:1 1ST LINE I SEE NOW.

if ur exhaust is crush bent i would try doing a cut out or get some new exhaust. when i hooked up the little exhaust on my turbod b16 u could tell a diff.
and like these guys said try picking up a t3/t4 u can get them fopr about 300 bucks some times used

Re: What is my weakest link? what are reasonable power goals?
 

If you're adding pistons and rods, you're mostly going to be limited by compressor choice/fuel. You want 300, pick up a used t3/to4e.

Re: What is my weakest link? what are reasonable power goals?
 

Possible weakest links in my opinion are:

1. You're tuner's ability.
2. How well the D16Y8 head flows. You might be better off using a D16Z6 cylinder head.
3. As Minor Threat stated, the efficiency of your turbo.

Re: What is my weakest link? what are reasonable power goals?
 

imo, that the turbo you've chosen is gona hold you back. get a bigger compressor.

but I agree wih stanb on everything.

Re: What is my weakest link? what are reasonable power goals?
 

if u want ac compatibility, have a local make ur mani. I bought an ac compat. online and there was no way it would clear with a t3/t04e on a y8. So i just scrpaped my ac, but if u have ur heart set on keeping it, id have the mani mocked up in ur engine bay

Re: What is my weakest link? what are reasonable power goals?
 

thanks guys I really am not sure about what size turbo will be best. What do you guys think would be a good choice with a resonable cost? To be honest I had been thinking less power, alot less, and then decided to get some internals and up the boost. And really I am just trying to see the limits of what everything can take by asking you guys. Really I am looking for somewhere around 275whp, its just if it can take 300, then why not. So, think the little d16y8 with arps and some pistons and rods could handle over 300whp? Stock sleeves

Re: What is my weakest link? what are reasonable power goals?
 

what a/c compatible mani did you get? Was this a log? a ram? and ebay special? Unfortunately I am set on keeping a/c, it sucks, but I really can't or won't go without it, so it may be another pita I gota deal with. Any one know of who makes an ac compatible mani that will fit a bigger turbo?

Re: What is my weakest link? what are reasonable power goals?
 

http://www.honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=1478127

check that out, if u scroll down the d series is there.
try searching around under some of there names and u will probably come up with thier setup.

Re: What is my weakest link? what are reasonable power goals?
 

there is no way your gonna post a 12 second time on street tires, so you might as well plan on investing in some slicks or drag radials. Your car is gonna spin like a bitch on street tires

Re: What is my weakest link? what are reasonable power goals?
 

well the original plan was to hit low 13's on street tires, and break into high 12's with slicks, but with the hp i hope to have, I think i might be able to break into 12's, keep in mind that this setup with this power and under best circumstances could probally hit high 11's or low 12's with slicks. I have a coupe, and i will not assume i am the best driver, and I will assume my 300 whp civic will be slower than the next guys just becuase thats my luck, so I want to over build it. I want to have the power to go faster than my actual goals. I realize that it is going to be close to hitting 12's on street tires. If that doesnt happen I am not all too concerned (if it is becuase of traction issues, I just want something that can pull hard on the highway) but I do want to run low low 13's on street tires at least, and at least into 12's on slicks.

Re: What is my weakest link? what are reasonable power goals?
 

ur gonna need a clutch capable of handling that amount of power and i would also think about water/alcohol injection too although many people don't use it i noticed a major power difference with it

Re: What is my weakest link? what are reasonable power goals?
 

ohh ya, clutch is deffinatly on that list, forgot to add that, shoot my stock clutch is pretty much gone and thats with an NA d16

Re: What is my weakest link? what are reasonable power goals?
 

That's your weakest link right there ^-^ There is no such thing as alot of power and reliability, trust me, i know first hand. 300 hp is not an unattainable goal on a d-series, but it will take alot of money, alot of research, and an awesome tuner. First thing, address the issues. The y8 oil pump sucks, replace it with the z6 unit. You're going to need it when you start hitting much higher than stock rpms to make your power. Next check your motor and what condition it's in. If it's getting up there in mileage, rebuild it. Have the crank straightened and micro-polished while you're at, just extra insurance. Build your head too, or better yet, build a z6 head. The higher the rpm you can go, the more power you can make, even with a turbo setup. A nice sized t3/t4 combination will spool late on a d-series, but with a higher redline you can utilize that to your advantage. Vitara pistons are nice for entry level, but get some forged ones instead. Spend the extra money for them if you really want that reliability factor...after all, vitaras are still cast. Get a good set of rods too (duh lol). You'll also need a good clutch to get all that power to the ground. Don't skimp out on this either, nothing sucks more than having to change your clutch 2 weeks after you got it built and running. And research research research. There's alot of things that go into putting something like this together, so the more you know, the better off you are.Oh, and yes you can hit 12's on street tires. Big turbo + higher rpm= less low end torque than a normal quick spooling turbo. It'll let you get immediate traction off the line, and then make crazy power up top when the torque curve starts settling off. Also make sure you don't have any camber issues so you can get a complete contact patch. This is where most people fail and end up spinning all over :P

Re: What is my weakest link? what are reasonable power goals?
 

thanks slo I appreciate the response.

I am saying 300 here becuase I am trying to be overly safe with assumptions of what things can handle what. I dont want to say I plan on getting 260 and end up getting 220 after it is all built and tuned, I would rather get parts that can handle about 300, and boost to what should be close, and then end up with 260+

I am not going to be swapping heads, that just wont happen. I wont be building the head either, no springs retainers or porting/polishing, as well as I wont be going over the stock redline.

So maybe a better way is to state this, bottom end can handle it, even though the stock head wont flow so well, can't I up the boost a little to make up for it? eg: with a head ported and polished, then maybe I could hit 280 whp at 16 psi, but with my stock head, I go up to 18 psi to still get 280?

Doesnt low 13's seem resonable with street tires and 270 whp in a 97 coupe 2600 pounds race wieght with me in it.
What I want to make sure does happen is that I can run at least 13.5 with street tires, and at least 12.9 with slicks.

and I am planning on getting a cheap ebay special xtd stage 3 racing clutch, I will be getting it about a month or two before I am boosted, so if it seems like crap I will ditch it before boosting (at $150 I cant help but try it) have heard mostly good things about them

Re: What is my weakest link? what are reasonable power goals?
 

i ran mid 13's with a ---- of alot less than 270whp.

Re: What is my weakest link? what are reasonable power goals?
 

exactly, I am just trying to do at least, I really would like to break into 12's on street tires, and I think that could be possible with 270 whp, I dont have an lsd, but will get some traction bars, so street tires, traction bars 250 whp-270, doesn't high 12's look possible?