i need help with my ld9. i have always worked and owned honda but a buddy of mine needed cash so i bought his 98 cavalier from him knowing it was going to need work i decided to make it a project car. i needed to change the head gasket with the head off i decided to really build it up. i ordered some wiseco pistons 9.1:1 .20 oversize, eagle h-beam connecting rods, clevett 77 bearings .10 undersize, i sent it to the machine shop for them to bore it out also sent the crank to get cut. got those back within 2 days. new exedy clutch kit, throw out bearing, needed the flywheel cut so that was done, used original because didnt want to set off the balance and getting it rebalanced yet, i have a turbo kit for it but i have yet to try it out.got it alittle larger then what iv normally noticed to get more boost. people told me that because its larger it will take longer to boost but i ordered a 35 shot of nos to shoot into the exhaust so it will build boost faster.
well anyways after i built the block i went through a 1000 mile break in period where i just cruised it after work. at about 900 miles all my exhaust valves gave out and im guessing im going to need a new gasket.
i ordered a thicker cometic gasket but i dont know what else to do with the head. i have been looking for parts for the head or even a rebuilt racing head but i have not yet found one this was about 6 months ago that i started looking. i am also looking for a better set up with the cams and i dont really like the way the ignition system on the ld9 is so im going to convert it into a coil ignition but i cant seem to find anything about the head.
if anyone can help me out i would really appreciate it. i kinda have until june 2010 to get all the parts i am attending wyotech so the car is just sitting there at my place. and again any info at all even routing me to a good thread that has this info would be so helpful.
what all do you need to know about the head? there are two different versions...
96-98 and 99-02. the older head provides slightly more compression, nothing to write home about though. more things are different between them as well... just minor things, but you can use either on any year engine.
as far as a 'racing head' goes you are SOL. we dont have any options as far as buying a fully assembled head. through the years there have been a few options but they have all since died out.
if you have the head media blasted/cleaned and hit up sivalves.com for a set of bronze valve guides and stainless steel valves (1mm oversized are available if you want them) then have it ported/polished at a reputable machine shop it would be down for whatever you want to do with it. i recommend using the stock 2.3 HO quad 4 camshafts and valve springs/lifters. trust me on this, you will want these cams. they are a MASSIVE jump over the stock 2.4 cams. lift is .410 and duration is .212.
as for a head gasket get a cometic .074 thick 'boost' gasket.
wtf is with this spraying nitrous into the exhaust stuff?? ive never heard of such a thing....
Edited 1 time(s). Last edited Friday, December 04, 2009 10:53 PM
Stand in the corner and SCREAM with me!!!!
yea the thing is boost is created by your exhaust. the gasses expanding against the fins of the turbine allow it to spool up. by throwing a small shot of nitrous into the exhaust you allow the heat to expand it alot faster. i was sceptical about it to but one of my buddies instructors in his high performance class showed it to me being done on his kids civic. they normaly run a .43 trim so it doesnt take long to build boost his son set it up with a .63 trim turbine and spooled it up quicker then iv seen a normal turbo spool up.
if i got with the HO cams do i need to make any changes to the oil pump?
the port and polish is going to get done once i get back home. do you have any other advise as to
doing the 2.3 oil pump swap would be a wise decision to do on ANY LD9 let alone one that is performance oriented. so yes.. i think you should get that done.
as for HO cams, its up to you... do you want to keep you're power steering? if not then they become a bolt on part. if you want to retain it well then you need to PM me so i can help you out with getting the ho intake cam modified.
Stand in the corner and SCREAM with me!!!!
well i have heard some people talk about the HO cams and that they got a large increase out of them but none of them were boosted. will that make a differeance. if you can also help me like by the process of what needs to be done to do the oil pump swap to the 2.3 and yea if its possible to keep the power steering for now then that would be great. chances are i will have to lose it later when i set up the turbo since they sent me an 2.2 ecotec manifold with ac and ps friendly and when they sent me the ld9 manifold it didnt have for it.
also do you have any info as to fuel delivery upgrades. any good suggestions. iv never really had to change it on the hondas but i noticed there are alot of differences with the cavi to any honda engine.
one of the highest WHP from an LD9 ever recorded from a private party is brandon fetter and he runs HO cams. he is boosted.
hit up the
2.3 oil pump swap sticky from that information.
man i think you are confused, the intake manifold has absolutely nothing to do with the power steering. are you thinking of the EGR setup?
as far as fuel delivery we have a couple options most go with for fuel pumps, either the walbro or racetronix units. hit up the search button for information on them. or you can add an in-line 'helper' fuel pump to keep the flow going. tons of fuel injectors are out there for us, rc engineering is no stranger to us. accell makes an adjustable fuel pressure regulator that bolts right on. and ultimately HP tuners would be one of the best tools for adding fuel.
Stand in the corner and SCREAM with me!!!!
hey also i have another question about the heads. i have heard and read that if you put a 96-98 head on a 99 block that you will increase the compression from 9.7:1 up to 10.5:1. since i have the need for a lower compression and i am probably going to need to buy a completely new head if i got the 99 head and placed it onto my 98 block would it help lower the compression alittle which would help me out more with boosting it at alittle higher psi? also if it would and if it is even possible what would i need to change or cover on the head the gasket or the block to get that to work.
