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goldstar's '02 DX Worklog

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    goldstar's '02 DX Worklog

    It's been a long, cold, snowy winter and since I have no garage, only a driveway, the only work I do on my car during this time consists of essential maintenance, which I usually arrange to do before the cold weather sets in, or emergency repairs (assuming the latter can be done out in the open or I can borrow my friend's unheated garage, and special tools aren't needed - otherwise off to the dealer).

    Years ago while living in Sin City East (Brooklyn Borough), I had just picked up my almost new Honda Civic after bringing it in to the dealer for its first 3,000 mile oil change and then proceeded to drive north 185 miles to my friend's house in Whately, MA. He lived in a log house in a really rural area in the western part of the state in the Berkshires - beautiful. Upon arrival, I decided to check my oil and found to my horror, disgust, revulsion, and sadness that the oil was dirty, obviously unchanged, and the dealer had stiffed me. Whately had a PO but nothing more so the next morning we went into the nearest sizeable town, Northampton, where I bought oil and a filter. The month was January, the temperature was 15 *F and my friend's long dirt driveway through the woods from the road to his house (he had no garage either) was covered with patches of snow and ice. My friend, being a car guy too, had all the tools I needed plus a drain pan. The oil filter could be accessed from up top but I had to lie on an ice patch under my car to drain the oil. But enough reminiscence.

    Returning to the present from those thrilling days of yesteryear, since any additional mod work will have to wait until it warms up, now would be a good time to take stock of the mods I've already done and try to estimate the amount of HP and torque that I've added to my engine through the essentially simple mods I've performed. This is meant to be a fun post and the estimation is based largely on inferential techniques, not accurate, scientific measurement. In other words, an educated guess. It largely correlates with what's generally called Butt HP (SAE BuHP). But that's another story. All I can say is that it's so much fun playing around with numbers and concocting imaginary HP figures.

    Some may question my devotion to my Protege and why I'm willing to spend so much time and money modifying it and then going to the further trouble of calculating imaginary HP. It's not something I can easily explain in a rational and logical way but perhaps is best expressed by the following ode for which I give my sincerest thanks to the inspiration provided me by Elizabeth Barrett Browning, along with my heartfelt apologies.

    This exists somewhere else on the Forum but it really belongs here.

    My Protege

    Protege, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
    I love thee for thy smooth and rounded form oer which the air so smoothly glides,
    And for thy surpassing mechanical perfection which oertakes all lesser rides.
    I love thee for thy color of purest red which in this whole millenium sees no compare,
    And for thy smooth and supple ride which transports me floating as a cloud on air.
    I love thee with a love I seemed to lose with other cars,
    My unbreakable bond with you was forecast in the stars.
    My love abounds for you from within the deepest depths my soul can reach
    Wither our travels take us, through the valleys, across the mountains, or to the beach.
    Yet still you can'st so nobly and aggressively cling to the road
    That all other cars are left in your angelic dust.
    Therefore, I love thee with the breath, smiles, tears, of all my life,
    And if God choose I shall but love thee better, after you have turned to rust.

    But enough of these diversions. Let's get down to the serious business of calculating imaginary HP.

    Comments are welcomed.

    Happy Motoring!
    Last edited by goldstar; 02-08-2011, 05:32 PM.
    02 DX Millenium Red - The Penultimate Driving Machine
    MP3 Strut Tower Bar kit; Cusco Front Lower Arm Tie Bar
    MSP Springs, Struts, Stabilizer Bars, Trailing Links, #3 Engine Mount
    Kartboy Stabilizer Bar Bushings; Nyloil Shifter Bushings; Red Line MT-90 Gear Oil
    MP3 Shifter, Knob and Aluminum Pedal Set
    Suvlights HD Wiring Harness; Osram Night Breaker H4 Bulbs; Exide Edge AGM Battery
    Summer: 5Zigen FN01R-C 16 x 7" Wheels; Yoko S.drive 205/45-16s
    Winter: Enkei OR52 16 x 7" Wheels; Falken Ziex ZE-912 205/45-16s
    Modified OEM Air Intake; Racing Beat Exhaust System; Techna-Fit SS Clutch Line
    Denso SKJ16CR-L11 Extended Tip Spark Plugs; Magnecor Wires
    Power Slot Front Brake Rotors; Techna-Fit SS Brake Lines; Hawk HPS Pads
    Red Line Synthetic Engine Oil; C/S Aluminum Oil Cap
    Cyberdyne Digital Gauges: Tach; Ambient Air Temp; Voltmeter

    #2
    Introduction
    Although it's not necessary to know the value of the indicated HP developed by our engines, it's a useful concept to keep in mind to fully understand how various mods affect power output. Most here are familiar with the formula:
    BHP = IHP - FHP
    where,
    IHP (indicated HP) = the power generated from the burning of fuel in the cylinder(s).
    FHP (friction HP) = the power used to overcome internal engine friction.
    BHP (brake or crank HP) = the power available at the crank to perform useful work.

    The only way to increase IHP is to increase the volumetric efficiency (VE) or the thermal efficiency (TE) of the engine. FHP has two components: mechanical friction between moving parts, and fluid friction in the intake and exhaust systems including the flow through the valves and motion within the cylinders. The second component is also known as pumping losses. Finally, there is the parasitic loss caused by such engine components as alternators, water pumps, superchargers, AC, etc.

    Why is the foregoing important? Because some mods increase IHP alone (such as an increase in CR), other mods both increase IHP and decrease pumping losses (e.g. free-flow exhaust systems), and still others don't add to the IHP but do reduce FHP (for example, synthetic oil).

    For a more complete and detailed explanation, go to:


    Converting Wheel HP to BHP
    I'm interested in calculating HP increases from the baseline data of the stock engine derived from an engine dyno and the logical place to start will be the Racing Beat (RB) exhaust system for which we have accurate chassis dyno values. The first step will be to convert those values into BHP figures. An inspection of sources yields a range of power loss between the two types of dynos of as little as 15% with M/T and 20% with A/T to as high as 30 to 35%. Taking the range of various power losses into account, I decided to use the value of 20% as this was the most often-quoted figure. In other words, I'll assume that the published RB chassis dyno figures would actually measure 20% higher on an engine dyno. Whether you agree or not, that certainly seems in the ball park.

    Rated chassis dyno figures for the RB exhaust system:
    +4.7 HP at 5,750 rpm
    +5 lbs/ft torque at 3,800 rpm

    Assuming a 20% power loss for the chassis dyno, the estimated engine dyno figures for RB become:
    +5.875 HP at 5,750 rpm
    +6.25 lbs/ft torque at 3,800 rpm
    These latter figures become our new baseline figures upon which everything else is based.

    Stock Power Output FS-DE Engine
    SAE BHP (net): 130 (97 kW) at 6,000 rpm
    Torque: 135 lbs/ft (183 Nm) at 4,000 rpm

    Brake Mean Effective Pressure (BMEP) FS-DE Engine, Calculated
    At max Torque: 168 psi (11.6 bar; 1,158 kPa)
    At max BHP: 141 psi (9.7 bar; 972 kPa)

    For a list of my mods, see my sig.
    For photos, see my vBPicGallery.

    Now we'll look at the individual mods and attempt to estimate their contribution to enhanced power output.

    Racing Beat Exhaust System
    +5.875 HP at 5,750 rpm
    +6.25 lbs/ft torque at 3,800 rpm
    This increase is due both to increased VE and to reduced pumping losses.

    Modified OEM Intake System
    The key changes here involve locating the air inlet in an ambient temperature, high pressure area, reducing intake duct restrictions, and sealing the intake system against pressure loss. Again, as in the RB system, any gains are due both to increased VE and lowered pumpimg losses. I'll take a guess that these intake mods produced at least as much HP and torque increase as did the RB system. Additionally, because of the synergy between the two systems, the output of the combined systems should be more than twice that of either system alone, but in the interest of being conservative and due to the impossibility of quantifying that factor, I'll just double the RB figures and throw in a few hundred more rpm to account for the increased VE:
    +11.75 HP at 6,000 rpm
    +12.5 lbs/ft torque at 4,000 rpm

    Extended Projected Tip Spark Plugs
    Because the spark plug electrode is closer to the center of the incoming fuel charge thereby slightly advancing the spark and increasing TE, I'll throw in an extra 1 HP and 1 lb/ft of torque to account for this change:
    12.75 HP at 6,000 rpm
    13.5 lbs/ft torque at 4,000 rpm

    Iridium/Platinum Spark Plugs
    Reduced quench and consequent increase in TE due to small, iridium-tipped center electrode. That should be worth another 1 and 1:
    13.75 HP at 6,000 rpm
    14.5 lbs/ft torque at 4,000

    Red Line Synthetic Engine Oil
    According to Red Line, use of their Polyol ester based engine oil results in a 1 to 3% increase in power output. This is an example of a mod that does not add to the IHP but rather reduces FHP. Let's split the difference and go with 2% and add a couple of hundred rpm:
    16.625 HP at 6,200 rpm
    17.49 lbs/ft torque at 4,200 rpm

    Modified Power Output FS-DE Engine (all mods combined)
    147 BHP at 6,200 rpm; 17 HP (13 kW) over stock (+13%)
    152 lbs/ft torque at 4,200 rpm; 17 lbs/ft (23 Nm) over stock (+13%)

    Brake Mean Effective Pressure (BMEP) Modified FS-DE Engine, Calculated
    At max Torque: 189 psi (13 bar; 1,303 kPa); 21 psi (1.4 bar; 145 kPa) over stock (+12.5%)
    At max BHP: 155 psi (10.7 bar; 1,069 kPa); 14 psi (.965 bar; 97 kPa) over stock (+10%)

    Wow, 17 more BHP and 17 lbs/ft more torque. That feels more like what my butt senses under acceleration. I'm so happy.

    In point of fact there has been a dramatic increase in both throttle response and rolling acceleration, along with a slightly extended upper rpm range before power starts to fall off. Factors that are of real benefit to a daily driver.

    The use of synthetic oil in my transmission reduces driveline friction and increases wheel HP to a certain extent, but is left out of the foregoing calculations (guesstimations?) since it neither adds to engine IHP nor reduces engine FHP.

    Happy Motoring!
    Last edited by goldstar; 02-09-2011, 08:21 AM.
    02 DX Millenium Red - The Penultimate Driving Machine
    MP3 Strut Tower Bar kit; Cusco Front Lower Arm Tie Bar
    MSP Springs, Struts, Stabilizer Bars, Trailing Links, #3 Engine Mount
    Kartboy Stabilizer Bar Bushings; Nyloil Shifter Bushings; Red Line MT-90 Gear Oil
    MP3 Shifter, Knob and Aluminum Pedal Set
    Suvlights HD Wiring Harness; Osram Night Breaker H4 Bulbs; Exide Edge AGM Battery
    Summer: 5Zigen FN01R-C 16 x 7" Wheels; Yoko S.drive 205/45-16s
    Winter: Enkei OR52 16 x 7" Wheels; Falken Ziex ZE-912 205/45-16s
    Modified OEM Air Intake; Racing Beat Exhaust System; Techna-Fit SS Clutch Line
    Denso SKJ16CR-L11 Extended Tip Spark Plugs; Magnecor Wires
    Power Slot Front Brake Rotors; Techna-Fit SS Brake Lines; Hawk HPS Pads
    Red Line Synthetic Engine Oil; C/S Aluminum Oil Cap
    Cyberdyne Digital Gauges: Tach; Ambient Air Temp; Voltmeter

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