"Yellow Jacket" Aero & Cooling
In the first installment of Project AP1, I picked out a set of wheels, tires, and coilovers, and paid a visit to Evasive Motorsports where they rolled the factory fenders, and properly aligned the car. The fresh handling, without question, increased the car's fun factor ten fold. The next order of business was to add a little aero to the equation while increasing cooling efficiency; still retaining a clean and aggressive overall look. Here's how it went down:inline_mediumwraptextright31166022/tech/htup_0910_project_ap1_2001_honda_s2000htup_0910_02_o+project_ap1_2001_honda_s2000+hood_vent.jpgTrue

Suspension, Appearance, And Results
Our project Fit has come a long way. In the beginning, we could barely scrounge up a set of coilovers since no one was jumping in to make new parts for the '09 GE. In fact, when the car was handed over to me, it had nothing more than a set of coilovers, HKS axle back muffler, and set of Gram Lights. A great beginning, but there wasn't very much aftermarket support for the '09 GE. Being the internet nerd that I am, I searched high and low, looking for anything to add to the list of upgrades. Eventually I ran across a cold-air intake from Takeda for a little more power, and some beautiful carbon fiber pieces from JDP Engineering. It's been a long hunt, but I've managed to dig up a few more items to bolt on.inline_mediumwraptextright26953738/tech/htup_0910_project_2009_honda_fithtup_0910_01_o+project_2009_honda_fit+completed_install.jpgTrue

Dog Box Transmission
People love to go fast. It's in the human DNA somewhere right around the "go fast" gene. Some enjoy the occasional stop light grand prix in an attempt to see who can reach 50 MPH first. Others take speed to a completely different level. These are the guys striving to put down times faster than Michael Phelps on steroids. Super fast cars do more than register high trap speeds; they destroy various components of a car, especially the transmission. Even Honda's unprecedented reputation of strength and reliability cannot escape the consequences of cars with insane amounts of horsepower.

First, Let's Review
In the first few installments of our Project Fit series, we aimed a covering the basics. Ninety-nine percent of Fit buyers interested in modifying their cars will usually start with lowering and wheels. We addressed this with a set of Function Form coilovers and Gram Light rollers wrapped in Falken Azenis tires. Next, we added an HKS axle-back exhaust, earthing kit, and recently hit the scales for a proper corner balancing session with Sportcar Motion. All of the mods we've done so far are very basic, affordable, and aside from the corner balancing, can be performed by any average Joe in his garage or driveway.

Technical
If you've noticed a large number of Honda enthusiasts ditching their Civic or Integra project for an S2000 lately, you're not alone. It seems that the little roadster has caught the eye of many as they search for a new challenge to overcome. Due in part to their age and falling sticker price, the S2K has transitioned from being a pipe dream for many, to being a reality for the average buyer. Searching online for a few months, I found this 2001 Spa yellow AP1 for under 14K, which, just a few years ago, was unheard of. A clean title, spotless Carfax, and absolutely no body damage combined with low mileage proved to be too much to pass up. For the past few months I've driven the car in completely stock form, and each time I'm behind the wheel it gets better and better. But the time has come, as with any car I've owned, to start making changes.

Carbon Fiber Goodness For The '09 Fit
JDP Engineering has answered the weary pleas of GE Fit owners everywhere! Just released is their carbon fiber front lip, rear-view mirror cover, and radiator shroud. Using only the highest quality carbon fiber materials, each JDP unit is hand made, not mass produced, which means the fitment and quality control is always top notch. All JDP products utilize factory mounting points and ultra-rigid, feather-light materials.
www.jdpengineering.com
323-327-2036

Behind bars
My question to you is in regards to my CRX being built for SCCA solo competition. In the Street Touring class, I have learned from several of the successful drivers that they do not recommend the bars that go between the shock towers to stiffen up the chassis. The common opinion is that in our solo competition, the Honda is already stiff enough and does not need this additional bracing. In fact, these have been said to add unnecessary additional weight! I see in most of the prepared cars in Honda Tuning everyone has the braces, and many have an X bracing in the rear of the car. Could you talk about the philosophy behind these, or direct me to an article that discusses the benefits and hopefully has some measurable engineering basis for the bracing.
--Larry, Indiana

Project Fit
In the previous installments of Project Fit, we installed a set of Function Form coilovers along with a set of slightly smaller 15-inch wheels and tires. Though the car handled better after the stiffer suspension and lower center of gravity, we scoured the web for any possible upgrades in the suspension department for our little '09. As with most new cars, the aftermarket isn't exactly beating down our door with options. One idea that came to mind was a corner balancing session. For those that are new to the term, corner balancing is a sometimes lengthy process that involves adjusting the weight carried by each wheel in an attempt to find improved balance. A proper balance will often give a car the ability to handle much better; one of our main goals for the project. Let's face it: short of swapping out the motor, this car is not going to be a screamer. Why not focus on something that all cars can benefit from; superior handling.

S2000 Supercharger
If you're looking for the ultimate in S2000 performance, this is it. The KraftWerks High-Boost S2000 kit offers the performance of a custom setup yet still maintains OEM reliability. Kits include smaller high-boost pullies for added boost pressure and no extra tuning or parts are required. An installation manual and interactive CD-ROM are also included for increased DIY friendliness.
www.skunk2.com

OG Forced Induction
In case you didn't know, Oscar Jackson's been involved with Honda and the company's racing heritage since the early 1970s. When the CRX was first unveiled to the U.S. in 1984, Jackson wasted no time in purchasing the car that would capture countless titles and championships. And in the early '90s, as the import performance market began to bloom, Jackson developed the most complete supercharger kit the Honda world had ever seen. Heck, it just might have been the most complete forced-induction kit the import world as a whole had ever seen. It was compact, expertly engineered, and boasted an Eaton roots-style supercharger that replaced the OEM intake manifold completely, making it a perfect fit for cramped Honda engine bays. Off-the-shelf kits kept boost levels conservative, though the introduction of race pulleys allowed for an upgrade for those looking for a bit more power. Oh, and each Jackson Racing supercharger kit was 50-state legal, meaning enthusiasts didn't have to worry about emissions tests, referee tickets, or any of that nonsense. Jackson's innovative kit was a sensation to be sure; it appeared on numerous magazine covers and earned him countless awards, including the coveted Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) award. During the '90s, you simply couldn't go to a track event, car show, or pick up an import magazine without mention of the Jackson Racing supercharger.

Rely On The Relay
Brighter headlights are never a bad idea. Today, many newer cars are equipped with halogen lights but few of those can compare to the luminosity of HID (high intensity discharge) headlamps. And there are a lot of them out there. Such high-wattage HID bulbs can draw far more current than the stock headlamps do, which isn't always safe when considering the OEM headlamp wiring harness and connectors. The additional current can heat up the smaller wiring and potentially melt the connectors, resulting in a dangerous or, at the very least, annoying situation. Before shopping for and installing a set of HIDs, it's important to first understand that they create more heat than what your car's used to.

Your Questions Answered

Valve Cover Leakage
First off, let me say I love Honda Tuning magazine!! Every other magazine is trying to focus on Honda content, but you guys are the only ones that nail it every month with the best cars! I have a problem with my 1991 CRX Si. I recently completed a B16 a swap in my garage (my first one, 100% of the work was done by me!). I'm having an issue with some oil leaking around the valve cover. Now I purchased the motor used, and I never removed it. I went to change the spark plugs today and I noticed there was a oil in there. Am I screwed? Please help me out, I love this motor, but I'm afraid I might have blown it before I even got a chance to get it tuned.
David, Knoxville, TN

Tire Tech
Tires are the backbone of any car, the single barrier between the wheels and the road-they're what give your Civic that smooth, rubbery drive you've grown accustomed to. But more importantly, tires play an important role in slowing your car down from, say, an 80-mph sprint, gripping onto whatever they can on the road to bring your beast to a stop. Despite all that you know about brakes and suspensions, tires are indeed one of the most important aspects of both and should be heavily considered before modifying either.

Honda's Fit-it isn't the enthusiast's performance dream car come true. But Honda fans have long taken cars perceived to have little dream value and extracted big things out of them. Of course, this almost always begins with the exhaust system, which is perhaps the most basic of all performance upgrades. Also earning a reputation for standard bolt-on fare, electrical ground strap kits have earned street cred in their own right. And while exhausts and grounding kits may not seem like they belong in the same sentence, they've both become target mods for new enthusiasts if for nothing more than their aesthetic values. The best part is that they provide honest performance gains.

Cylinder Technology
If you own an older B21A1-equipped Prelude, NA2 NSX, AP1 S2000, or almost anything with an H22A/H23A engine in it, you may have noticed that, as mileage and wear and tear increases, so does oil consumption. Each vehicle's engine above shares one thing in common: they all have FRM-lined (Fiber Reinforced Metal) cylinder blocks. FRM is a thin but strong lining material that consists of a fiber matrix, aluminum alloy, and aluminum oxide. It's inserted into the cylinder casting when molded, cooled, and bored out, and then left as a thin lining material for the piston rings to brush up against. The results are tough, resilient cylinders that can put up with their fair share of abuse. But FRM linings aren't all perfect. Because of the material's strength and composition, it's easy for oil to pass by the piston rings, up into the combustion chamber where it has nothing left to do but burn and cause you headaches. Besides the smoking stench of billowing oil from the tailpipe, the process can also cause premature piston ring wear--never a good thing when performance is a concern.

Embrace Your Inner Noob

You've got a damaged bolt-maybe it's stripped, maybe it's bent-so you head to the hardware store for a replacement. There you are, surrounded by bolts, nuts, washers, and all sorts of small hardware. But which one do you need? If you knew just a little bit about how bolt sizes are interpreted, then finding the right one would be a whole lot easier. Aside from the U.S., most countries use the metric system for classifying hardware, which means your Honda is assembled with metric hardware. You've just narrowed down your search to a single aisle. Most metric bolts you'll find in the hardware store are stamped with some sort of marking. For example, a metric bolt might have an "8.8" or a "10.9" stamped on its head while a standard U.S.-grade bolt might have three or five dashed lines on its face. If you don't see either, it's a low-grade bolt with a weaker tensile strength, meaning the amount of tension it can hold before it breaks is little. A bolt's tensile strength is also referred to as its "grade," and is something you should be very concerned with when replacing hardware on your Honda. Most Honda hardware is comparable to metric grade 10.9 or higher.

There are three things you can do. First, consider converting the car to OBD-1. You'll need a jumper harness and an OBD-1 ECU to do this. The OBD-1 ECU will recognize only one oxygen sensor, and can be chipped and tuned to maximize your engine's output. This is the best method, especially if you plan on modifying the engine in the future. Your second option is to install an oxygen sensor simulator. Such simulators use a series of resistors that fool the ECU into thinking that the temperatures are hotter that what they are, but are often unpredictable and not considered a foolproof solution. Lastly, you can put your catalytic converter back on. The amount of power you've added by removing it may likely not even be worth the trouble.

NSX Drama
Look around and you'll find that early NA1 NSXs have at last transcended below that price point that many simply find unreasonable when considering a 15-plus-year-old Acura. It could be because of the economy, or perhaps it's the lack of interest in cars with two too many cylinders in this age of fuel efficiency awareness, but it doesn't matter. Honda's all-aluminum supercar is, at long last, affordable. Rejoice, but don't let the entry cost fool you. Owning and maintaining an NSX is never cheap and modifying one is even worse. Deep pockets are mandatory as is at least an inkling of mechanical know-how. For perspective, compare a mid-'90s Civic timing belt to the NSX's. The NSX belt is nearly four times more costly, yet it's made of the same material, by the same manufacturer, presumably at the same plant. It isn't gold-lined, and it won't make you any more popular. The clutch assembly is even more discouraging, with the NA1 NSX's OEM twin-disc setup retailing for roughly $1000 more than the Civic's. Installation costs are worse, as space is tight and many technicians prefer complete engine removal for otherwise routine maintenance. But with a little bit of dexterity and a whole lot of patience, the NSX can be relatively easy to work on and, if you've familiarized yourself with engines like Honda's B-series and chassis like mid-'90s Civics and Integras, you'll no doubt find yourself in familiar territory when tinkering with the NSX.

Hondata's Dual Adapter Harness
If a car's engine is its heart, then its ECU is no doubt its brain. Honda's done an excellent job building highly efficient, easy-to-tune, small-displacement engines. From its B-series to its K-series, extracting power via bolt on parts isn't terribly difficult. But since the introduction of OBD-2-based electronics, fuel injection tuning in hopes of maximizing power and efficiency has become that much more challenging. And with the introduction of CAN-based (controller area network) ECUs, it's become next to impossible, especially if you don't have the wherewithal to re-write OEM parameters. Fortunately, Hondata has the wherewithal. The company has been tweaking and modifying OEM-based Honda electronics since the late 1990s, giving tuners the capability to tune ECUs in ways that were previously possibly only with standalone systems. Both Hondata's S300 and K-Pro systems rely on OEM Honda electronics and algorithms but offer tuners complete control over things like fuel injector pulse width and ignition timing.

You Said
"Your Fit would look so badass with a set of Equips tucked into the wheel wells...with a healthy offset." --Elgin Zeiber

A single pin is all that's responsible for allowing the middle camshaft lobe to control valve movement instead of the outer two. It's simply pushed from one of the outer rocker arms via oil pressure toward the middle rocker arm, engaging both about halfway through. This locks the two arms together. Meanwhile, another pin moves from the middle arm toward the opposing outside arm by the motion of the first pin, also about halfway through. All three rocker arms are now locked into place, essentially acting as one big rocker arm. Of course, only the large VTEC lobe will control the valves at this point since it's the tallest of the three. Once oil pressure subsides, a spring pushes everything back into position and the smaller outer lobes once again take over.

Spoon-Built
$125K+, Out The Door
Vs.
Homebuilt
NSX-R Carbon-Kevlar Seats: $18K
NSX-R Dry-Carbon Hood: $10K
NSX-R Gauge Cluster: $4K
NSX-R Steering Wheel: $4K
NSX-R Engine Cover: $1.5K
NSX-R Shift Knob: $250
And more...

Axle Tech
Axles (also known as driveshafts) transmit torque from the transmission to the wheels. Without them, you'll go nowhere. Sometimes both of them transmit torque-like in limited-slip differential applications-the rest of the time only one does. Either way though, they've all got a pair of CV (constant velocity) joints-one for each end. CV joints are a collection of bearings and cages that allow an axle to rotate in sync with the transmission and deliver power to the wheels. They're what allow an axle to change angles and vary its lengths as the wheels turn and the suspension travels up and down. A CV joint's internals are protected inside a layer of grease that's held inside the joint by a flexible, rubber boot. The boot keeps dirt, grime, and water out to protect each moving part. But rubber boots deteriorate over time, eventually cracking and leaking. Once moisture and dirt get into the joint and grease makes its way out, an axle's days quickly become numbered. The question then becomes: Do you spend the money on a new axle for a quick and easy swap, pay someone else to rebuild it, or rebuild it yourself, saving some cash but gaining the satisfaction that you did the job yourself? Buying a new axle almost never makes sense. Unless yours snaps in half, twists, or you've stripped the shaft's threads, most any axle can be rebuilt. Typically, it costs about $100 to have an axle rebuilt, or you can do it yourself for half that. There are a few ways to know whether or not you're due for an axle repair. The most common signs are splattered grease on wheels, brake calipers, or steering components. Act fast and situations like these typically involve no more than a CV boot swap. Clicking sounds or metallic crackling noises while turning, accelerating, or braking, often times mean the axle needs to be professionally rebuilt or possibly replaced.

Individual Throttle Bodies
Often taken for granted, producing power from a naturally aspirated engine is difficult. Simply put, there are fewer options when compared to forced induction applications where, often times, all that's required is more boost and more fuel. To harness ever last bit of power, each part of the system must be scrutinized. Long used by racing engineers for generating more power from all-motor setups, ITBs, (individual throttle bodies) have become all but commonplace within the Honda world. But similar to how different turbochargers and superchargers can differ from one another dramatically, not all ITBs are the same. John Whatley, Nalani Whatley's all-motor drag racing team's crew chief, knows this, as he's tested numerous throttle body configurations as of late. The team's most recent showdown: its current TWM Induction 54mm configuration versus Kinsler Fuel Injection's legendary 62mm ITBs.

Forget The K-Series, You Need A J-Series V-6...Now
In case you're not geek enough to get it, TNG refers to The Next Generation, the successful Star Trek remake. Twenty years after Kirk and Spock had trouble with Tribbles, Picard and Ryker battled the Borg, and the entire franchise was reborn. The analogy is there. Really. Honda land's been slow lately. B swaps are far too common to be cool and the K, when done right, is still too pricey; engines and transmissions together are still $4,000. So what do you do when you want all eyes on you or you're just looking to haul some ass? The old hot-rodders say it best: "There's no replacement for displacement," especially 3.5 liters and 24 valves of six-cylinder, VTEC goodness.