Moved to s2000 talk from UTH

 

Razor - no cams or stroker kit?

M@

 

Welcome and congrats, cali is perfect for your car, you can do all your shopping right there compared to here in FL.

 

What is the ultimate N/A set up worth in hp & tourque and will it pass the smog Nazi's. Same goes for a stroker motor.

It seems to make sense to keep the engine to basic bolt on's for everyday driveability. Have the nitrous on board for a situation that requires it(drag racing etc). Put some cash into brakes, tires, handing to rock on the road course. Perfect balance of all the fun things.

Almost forgot, upgrade the sound system!

 

FF: I have a 2003 SVT Cobra with many bolt ons and a 2004 S2000. I have a good perspective on the 2 cars, and believe me, the SC'd Cobra was easy to get gobs of power increases - the S2000 is not. If you want to PM me to start a private thread or ask a specific question, by all means do. But consider that they are vastly different, and raw power is what the Stang is about, with little finesse. The S2000 is the opposite, and arguably should be kept within many stock parameters for a bunch of reasons. Short "booK"": Honda tuned this rig very carefully and within an inch of its little engined life - power increases are incremental and small unless you go the power adder route, and then it is still a matter of power in the last 3000 RPM. The Cobra is an amuptation saw - the S2000 is a retina scalpel. My advice is to have fun, but it is unreasonable to expect V8 gains from this car - that is not what it is all about. Enjoy, and welcome!!!

 

I have frankly been underwhelmed with supercharged S2Ks. They look good on the dyno but not at the track (road course). Power gains are essentially all between 8K and 9K. Gears are another mod with only "phantom gains" (nothing really usable). The only S2K with a *significant* power advantage I've ever seen was an extremely well-tuned turbo, whose owner frankly regrets going that route because it's been nothing but headaches (and MAJOR $$) trying to make it reliable.

But "reasonable" NA power (i.e. bolt-on only, without sacrificing reliability) IS possible. Here's how to do it:

1) AEM CAI. California CARB-approved.
2) Hondata intake gasket. It's a pain, but dirt cheap and absolutely essential IMHO.
3) Mugen or Toda header.
4) Toda flywheel.
5) Exhaust of your choice.
6) Once the above are isntalled, add AEM ECU and tune, tune, tune. Hire a pro for this step.

My fearless predictions for this setup:
+30 hp peak gain at about 6K rpm
+15 hp peak (vs. stock peak)
+25 lb-ft peak gain at about 6K rpm
+20 lb-ft peak (vs. stock peak)
And all of this gain will be useable in a road-course setting or on the street, and all of it dead-nuts reliable.

Total cost: under $4K including installation and tuning.

Here's what's bizarre: NO ONE to my knowledge has done this! I have done 1-5, and have gotten +20 hp, +15 lb-ft peak gains, but for step 6 I've just used a VAFC since I'm hanging on to my warranty (three more years, baby!). Maybe you can be the first?

 

John, I need to take you for a ride. While installing my Vortech, I ran with the AEM EMS and no boost. It added to the power in the low to midrange dramatically. Smooth is the word.

 

John, you make a good case and most likely the route I will go. I will make sure to post any results as I am big into dyno before and after. Unfortuantley, not after each mod, but after all are done.

I never expected the S2000 to be like my 4 Mustangs. Its obviously a very different car. I just don't want to make the same expensive mistakes I have made in the past,thats all.

 

Twohoos,
explain phantom gains with gears? True, there is no difference in hp, but it unlocks what is already there. I romp guys with the stock final gear. This isn't a flame, I just want you to elaborate.
thanks

 

Sideways, your motor is too built to be considered a "regular" supercharged S2K. But even in your case, you must admit the majority of the gains are between 8K and 9K. Your torque curve looks like most HP curves (linearly increasing).

tenblade, "gears giveth and gears taketh away." Gears give "phantom" gains in the sense that you can't always use them: Depending on the course, you may have to use a higher gear in a critical section, or have to shift far too often. In other words, sure, you can find examples where the gears will help, but I can also find examples where they do nothing or even hurt. That's why race teams have to change gear ratios to match every track they go to.

Power gains, on the other hand, work just fine at any track, any time.