D15A3 questions
 

Hey guys,

So I bought an 87 Crx Si from a guy last week, he fully rebuilt the engine, replaced a lot of the parts on it (clutch, pressure plate, radiator, alternator, etc) and installed fuel injection (thank God)
I'm pretty new to cars, I understand most of the basic things about engines and I re-did some wiring on this thing (he never wired in the rear speakers and a few other things weren't wired correctly)

It has a D15A3 engine, I want to put a turbo kit on it (obviously otherwise I wouldn't be here :P ) I don't wanna do anything real crazy, just bump it up to 200hp if possible? I was thinking nothing more than 6-8 psi LIKELY (if I can get more without a whole lot more effort or $$ then please inform this newb :P )

I understand some of what I need to know and some of what I'll need to get, but I was hoping someone could just sort of lay it out for me as I'm still rather lost after reading around

So I wanted to know

- What I need to know about my car (Parts already installed, specifics on the parts or dimensions of somekind)

- What I'm going to need to buy/do
This one I know the obvious ones, A Turbo (hard to not get that one), a manifold, a 1/2 radiator thing(?) pipping, ecu? or boost controller not sure what the difference is on this one.

which type of turbo has a blow off valve? I always thought they sounded bad ass Lol

I was looking at buying this but don't know if it'd be what I want/need http://www.ebay.com/itm/Custom-Race-...7a3a58&vxp=mtr

I've heard terms thrown around like obd0 and obd1 but don't understand them.


If someone has time to answer some of these questions I'd REALLY appreciate any advice at all.

Thank you very much :)

Welcome to HMT

Welcome to HMT!

As that engine was rated at 99 hp stock, it's going to take a bit more boost to hit your goal than 8 psi. 8 psi sounds like it would be somewhere in the 140-150 hp range.

You might want to start off with reading a copy of Corky Bell's Maximum Boost. It's not the most in depth or technical turbo book out there, but it's a good choice if you want an easy to read, noob-friendly turbo guide with a dash of humor.

Mostly make sure it's in good working order. Also, this engine would have been factory fuel injected, but you'll want to determine what ECU you have to see if there are any good ways to hack it.

Of course, it will need to be the right size; the "T3/T4 hybrid" things you see on eBay are typically too large. A stock Eclipse turbo might be perfect here.

Do you mean an intercooler?

An ECU, or engine control unit, would be running, at a minimum, fuel and ignition. Some ECUs exist that control boost (the stock one wouldn't, but I have seen some Honda ECUs hacked to have rudimentary boost control). A boost controller is a separate device that controls boost.

The Borg Warner EFR series is the only turbo to actually have a blow off valve mounted on it, and it's a fairly quiet one. Usually this is a part that's completely separate and you can mix and match.

I wouldn't start with that kit at all. Some of the items discussed above are missing, and a lot of what is included is inappropriate. Many of the no-name eBay turbo kits are Chinese knock-off parts packaged into "kits" by people who have no clue what they're doing. Let me review it item by item.

(1) Hybrid Turbo Charger: Way too big for your stated power goals, and how long it will last is anyone's guess.

(1) Front Mount Intercooler: No name Chinese intercoolers may not be as efficient as name brand, but they are better than no intercooler.

(1) Universal Intercooler Piping Kit: It doesn't have any flanges on it to keep the couplers from coming off, and as the seller acknowledges, is not tailored to any specific model.

(1) Boost Controller: Looks like a ball valve type and may be OK.

(1) Slim Cooling Fan: What for?

(1) Electronic Turbo Timer: Probably works but I don't recommend bothering with them.

(1) 10 Meters Heat Wrap: You can probably do without this.

(1) High Flow Intake Filter: You need a filter, but can you trust this one to actually filter?

(1) High Flow Breather Cap: Makes no sense.

(1) Coolant Sensor Bung: Ditto.

(1) Non-divided T3 Flange: You're on your own for the rest of the manifold... and there isn't even a flange for the downpipe.


They're stock Honda ECU types. OBD1 was what was used on '92-'95 Civics and OBD0 was earlier. (A few cars as early as '90 had the OBD1 ECU, such as Accords.)

Great information! I know my reply is a bit late, there was actually a lot of engine work I still had to do just in general, the guy who rebuilt the engine did an okay job but clearly rushed a few of the simpler things.

It sounds like I need to do a lot more research still before I attempt this, but as it is my engine's temps sit at 3/4 to max, so I'm assuming I need to fix my temperatures before I can actually seriously look at putting a potato on my 1g. as Well as swapping from intake manifold to a set of headers, Don't know If I should bother with replacing the exhaust (my area has no emissions laws so I AM planning on running straight pipe instead of a catalytic converter for more flow).

Thank you for the review of why this is not a good choice. I will educate myself further before blowing my engine!

Yeah - DEFINITELY fix the engine's heat issues first! A turbo will (1) add more heat stress, and (2) make the consequences of overheating far worse.

I know how it goes with projects... my Dodge Dart tends to get interrupted by so many other things.