I picked up my car yesterday, so I've had 24 hours behind the wheel to get a feel for the 4.44 gearset. As mentioned in the title, my '02 is otherwise coompletely stock. I wanted to know what kind of difference the gearset made on a perfectly stock car.

First, a little background as to why I chose the gear as my first mod. It's unconventional...most people do the typical intake/header/exhaust combo. I have been down that road with my last car, and I don't want to do it again. I have a plan for all my mods...and it's all unconventional. I won't add anything to the car that sacrifices refinement/streetability. There are VERY few intakes/exhausts that appeal to me. Yes, there is some power to be gained, but it's at the expense of a GREAT deal of added noise. And the noise, to me, is not very refined or pleasant. Many people love the roar of an AEM intake, but I find it abrasive and immature (sorry, AEM folks!!). Sound is subjective, though. I love how "tuned" the car sounds from the factory, and I don't want to alter that if I can help it.

Also, I had to consider what I don't like about the car. I always felt that if there would be anything I could change, it would be the unusually tall first gear. Starting out from a complete stop is awkward. After I bought the car, I almost stalled it several times before I got used to the tall ratio. I eventually got used to it, but I always thought a shorter gear would be good. I figured the 4.44 would help solve that. I gave a lot of thought to what mods I could make that would not sacrifice refinement while improving the car's performance and eliminating its "weaknesses." The gear swap seemed a logical choice. I figured the 4.44 would change the few things I don't like while retaining all the things I love. Plus, it never hurts to have a quicker car...

Well, after day one, I can say xviper, Rick, and everyone else was right!! The 4.44 fills the "hole" in first gear perfectly, even on a bone stock car. The change, though not dramatic, was instantly noticable. There is no longer a moment of hesitation after you let the clutch out completely. It snaps to life and starts pulling immediately. Cool!!

There is noticably more thrust at lower engine speeds...especially around 3K rpm. Actually, the increase in thrust is noticable at every engine speed. If you are cruising along and step on the gas, it just snaps to attention like never before. The whole car feels more lively. Wow!! And the best part... a passenger would never even know the mod was there, except for the added thrust.

I will post numbers for all you quantitative people as soon as I have them available, so you can see real-world before/after results. I took my car to the track before the install and I will do so again now that I have the gear installed. I also did some G-tech 0-60 runs before the install, and will post comparison numbers soon. But I do have to mention that my 0-60 "method" is unusual. I don't launch the car at all...I slowly let out the clutch and let the car's idle "drive" the car at 3 mph. If you do this correctly, you don't wake up the G-tech, and it still says "go." So then I go full-throttle and it starts measuring. The reason I do this is to eliminate the launch from the equation. I can't get consistent times with a clutch drop. The launch is the most difficult thing for me to do consistently, so I simply "took it out of the picture." Not to mention it is MUCH easier on the car. So I actually do a rolling start, 3-60. It really works. I did 12 runs, all were within a few hundredths of a second apart. Though the numbers are really slow (all were around 6.9 seconds), I can more accurately measure what a difference the gearset makes. As you can imagine, it takes a while to get to the good stuff in first gear with this method. It took a LONG time to get to VTEC, and it felt weak during the first few thousand rpm.

I have done this a few times with the 4.44 installed, but I haven't done any G-Tech runs to show before/after. I can say, though, that the difference is huge. With the stock gear, it took the engine quite a bit of time to respond to the full-throttle call. With the 4.44, the engine snaps to attention the moment you step on the gas, and it pulls a great deal harder from 3K rpm and up. I was quite surprised at the difference.

More info will come soon when I have numbers to post for you all. All I will say for now is that I agree with everyone who says that the car should have come from the factory with the 4.44.

Thanks, Rick, for delivering such an awesome value. Thanks to Todd at Elk Grove Honda for doing such a meticulous, quality install, and thanks to Neil at Rolling Audio for wiring up my Yellow Box.

Next mod....cams!!

 

Very nice review! The more I read about the gears, the more and more I want them.

 

Another great post on the 4.44s. I'm seriously getting the itch for a set!

BTW, does anyone know of a reputable installer in So. Cal, L.A. area if possible?

 

Very cool!

I had the pleasure of driving Major Havoc's 2002 with 4.44's last weekend and can confirm the difference on the butt o meter.

I'm anxious to see your times.

 

Rear gearset sounds real sweet. I did a 3.23 to 3.38 diff change on my other car and it's a very noticeable difference. Unfortunately I doubt that this is legal for BS in SCCA SoloII as it the x brace. Man sometimes I hate those Solo rules. I'm not a major modder but the few that I like, big brakes as well, are a no go. Guess this is a mod I'll have to do in 3 - 5 years when I retire this car from Autocrossing.

 

I can understand the better responsiveness from a stop or at lower speed in 1st gear, but at cruising speed??? Why would that be? Above ~33MPH, wouldn't the performance be pretty much the same compared to stock?

 

It sure doesn't feel like it. It feels more responsive. There is more torque at all points in the rev range. It feels like if I were to do a rolling start next to a stock S2000, I would slowly pull away.

 

Sounds great Station, Gongrats!

One question. On my stock gears, I'm at about 70 mph on the HWY at 4000 rpm in 6th gear. What rpm are you at now when cruising at 70 mph?

 

70? I don't know. I never go that slow.

I'll have to keep an eye on it and tell you later, but right now I can say that you won't notice much of an increase in revs. Simple math would say it would be between 4300 and 4400 revs. Hope that helps!!

 

Cool! 6.9 3-60mph isnt too bad.

This will accurately measure the difference, betwwen 4.1 and 4.44, for the street start. Look forward to the numbers.