question about manually engaging VTEC
 

Is it possible to just have a button and connect the positive through it and then to the vtec solenoid. Push it whenever you want vtec to kick in? Serves the same purpose as a $300 vtec controller right?

And another thing, has anyone else done that little vtec activation LED thing?

Re:question about manually engaging VTEC
 

...please tell me you're not serious.

Re:question about manually engaging VTEC
 

just hook up vtec to the battery! run vtec all day every day you can never get enough vtec!

Re:question about manually engaging VTEC
 

if you dont have the money for a nice vtec controller, just get a msd rpm activation unit. its cheap and it works.

Re:question about manually engaging VTEC
 

possible, yes. recommended? not by me. If that's what you wanna do, do it I guess. I say get the rpm activator like above. Or you could always do the shift lite 'mod'

Re:question about manually engaging VTEC
 

way ghetto. get a rpm switch at the least

Re:question about manually engaging VTEC
 

The thing is you gotta remap your ECU or run some sort of a hack to tweak the mixture to make a real benefit from engaging early.

Re:question about manually engaging VTEC
 

go read what VTEC is all about before trying to attempt to activate VTEC manually. I hope you know what it means to be in the VTEC mode and what purpose it serves.

Re:question about manually engaging VTEC
 

You can do it the solenoid is tripped by a 12 volt power source. Just get a gay "NOSSS" button and use that hooked up to a switched 12 volt source. Or if you want you can just be totally ghetto you can get two wires and manually connect the VTECCHHHH. Get a p28 ecu if you dont want to spend money on a vtec controller : P

Re:question about manually engaging VTEC
 

Think about this...

Why would Honda put all that money in to R&D over the past 10+ years if you could just use a switch and decide when you want it to turn on? Hmmm... millions of dollars or a 5 cent switch?

I know it sounds absurd, but there is, in fact, a reason for their madness. I echo the post above me and say you should put some effort into researching this before you over-rule millions of dollars in R&D.

Re:question about manually engaging VTEC
 

I can see someone in a parallel universe answering to this thread saying " But i love the sound it makes when VTECHH kicks in"

Re:question about manually engaging VTEC
 

there no reason to change the vtec unless you want to manually tune the ecu and vtec to see some power gains which is pointless. I dont think you know what vtec is for and why its set at so high rpms. well here you go

VTEC is an acronym for Variable valve Timing and lift Electronic Control. It is a mechanism for optimizing air/fuel mixture flow through the engine.

An internal combustion engine converts the chemical energy stored in fuel into thermal energy. The increased thermal energy within a cylinder causes the pressure to build. This pressure acts on the pistons and the result is a mechanical force rotating the crankshaft. This mechanical force is measured as crank torque. The ability for the engine to sustain a certain level of crank torque at a certain RPM is measured as Power. Power is the rate at which the engine can do work. This conversion process is not 100% efficient. In fact, only about 30% of the energy stored in the fuel is actually converted into mechanical energy.

Physics says that for a given efficiency level, a higher rate of fuel consumption is needed for the engine to generate power. So it becomes obvious that if you want more power, you need to increase the rate of fuel combustion. One way to achive this goal is to have a bigger engine. A bigger engine with larger cylinders will be able to combust more fuel per rotation than a smaller engine. Another method is to pre-presurize the fuel/air mixture and cram it into an existing engine size. Thus even though the cylinder size stays the same, more fuel is combusted per rotation. This second method is referred to as forced induction.

Honda chose to explore another method: keep the engine size the same, but turn the engine faster to consume more fuel. Here is an analogy: You want to move foam peanuts from one bucket to another with a cup. You can increase the size of your cup, compress/cram as much peanuts as possible into the cup each time, or you can just move the cup faster. All three methods moves more peanuts. Honda uses the last method. And again, more fuel combusted equals more power generated by the engine.

As the engine speed is increased, more air/fuel mixture needs to be "inhaled" and "exhaled" by the engine. Thus to sustain high engine speeds, the intake and exhaust valves needs to open nice and wide. Otherwise you have what is akin to athsma: can't get enough air/fuel due to restrictions.

If high speed operation is all we have to worry about, Honda wouldn't need to implement VTEC. Indeed, race engines that operate mostly at high rpms do not utilize any mechanism like VTEC. But street cars used for daily driving spend most of their time with the engine at low RPMs. Valves that open wide for high RPM operation contributes to rough operation and poor fuel economy at low RPMs. These undesirable traits are directly against Honda's design goals.

The solution that Honda came up with is the VTEC mechanism: open the valves nice and wide at high RPMs, but open them not as much at low RPMs. So now you have a engine with smooth operation at low RPMs, and high power output at high RPMs.

And that is basically what VTEC is. It's nothing magical. The idea has been around for a long time. Honda's VTEC is just a very simple, elegant and efficient implementation that is extremely effective at achiving its design goal. Honda automobiles are the first among modern automobiles to utilize this mechanism in such a large scale of distribution.

as far as making a vtec led i understand though. it might be in the faqs

Re:question about manually engaging VTEC
 

just get a summit rpm switch, no pills and its like $39... my boy had his D16y8 head on his y7 and he used a toggle switch on his dash to hit vtec... man was that ghetto... i still bust his balls for that one

Re:question about manually engaging VTEC
 

Ok let me sum up what he said in 1 picture

http://www.gameroom.com/gheyed/vtec.txt

:P

Re:question about manually engaging VTEC
 

The only reason I ask is because I have a friend that has an automatic transmission and he made the vtec light, his kicks in at different rpm's. Anytime between 2000 and 5000 depending on how hard he hits the gas. and on standard tranny it waits til like 5400. Does auto tranny vtec kick in so early because it's auto or what?

Re:question about manually engaging VTEC
 

WTF ??? ::)

Re:question about manually engaging VTEC
 

UHm, I only really hear my VTECH when I am at or very close to WOT when I'm above 5k rpm. but ---- I just love the sound of VTECH!

Re:question about manually engaging VTEC
 

Me and my buddies dropped a b16 into a 91 integra and we rigged up a temp toggle for the vtec, then a month or so later we hooked it up the right way... the right way works SOOOO much better, i think the honda engineers know what they are doing to i wouldnt ---- with it. And if your gonna get a real controller get that dyno tuned.

Re:question about manually engaging VTEC
 

Re:question about manually engaging VTEC
 

uhh... go ---- yourself, what the hell is so ricey about this? but umm... anyway. Does anyone understand what I'm saying about the vtec and the transmission? In an automatic transmission, vtec kicks in at different rpms (between 2000 and 5000) depending on how hard you're on the pedal, but on a standard it kicks in at 5400. That's why I'm saying maybe it wouldn't matter if you made it engage earlier than normal. Does anyone know anything about this?

Re:question about manually engaging VTEC
 

If it engages earlier than normal, it loses major power. Just leave it the way it is.

Re:question about manually engaging VTEC
 

ok dude noone is gonna answer you questions about putting any lights on your car but as far as your $1 manual vtec switch is not a good idea, the fuel/spark maps change at the crossover point and your switch wont do that.

i dont think your friend with the automatic had his sweet light hooked up right b/c i have never seen a dyno of a engine with a crossover that low.

Re:question about manually engaging VTEC
 

his friend prob.ly has a Vtec-E motor(HX?)

Re:question about manually engaging VTEC
 

^^^^ word, hx/vx will crossover there.

Re:question about manually engaging VTEC
 

Your mate will probly have a i-VTEC engine..

Re:question about manually engaging VTEC
 

he means vtec-e ^^^^^

Re:question about manually engaging VTEC
 

two words: "VTEC Killer"

if you dont care about idle quality or emissions, go ahead and do what you want. Engines still exist without the benefit of VTEC and they run just fine.

Plus 4 cylinders loping sounds ------- awesome :D

when i first dropped in my y7/z6 mini with comp 59300 cam, i hadnt got my VAFC in the mail yet, so i just hooked up a toggle to my VTEC solenoid. In a cold start siatuation where i had high oil pressure and a high cold idle, i hit the switch a couple of times and it loped and sounded bad ass but i never tried to drive it like that.

bottom line is it wont hurt anything, but it could make you lose power in the low end.

Nobody said honda spent all that money on research and development to make their non-VTEC lobes make maximum power, they are simply to make the car idle properly and maintain low emissions at crusing rpm.

Re:question about manually engaging VTEC
 

Word to that, But yeah my friend has an 02 civic ex, I don't think they had i-vtec yet, and plus it only says VTEC on his engine head. I don't think I'll ---- anything up if I made a switch though.

Re:question about manually engaging VTEC
 

i-VTEC is activated by throttle postion etc i always thought?.. New cars over here have it ..

err i duno