Acura TSX V6 - Heavy Breathing

The intake installed with the engine cover removed.

Breath check 1
After the prototype was fitted and tested to insure there were no clearance issues, the factory box was replaced for the time being, and we were off to visit Elton Lo of Raceline Development in Temple City, CA. Raceline's dyno services are top notch so we knew we could rely on them for a proper baseline and a comparison once we re-installed the new DC Sports intake. Here are the results:

Exhaling
Exhaust systems are usually the next area a new car owner will focus on both for performance, and sound. Something about the grumble of a high-flow exhaust is almost mandatory for every car-guy. The TSX V6 was a little tricky in this area. When the DC Sports crew lifted the car, they realized that Honda utilized a much different flange system than previous models. The awkward plate had to be special ordered just to get the prototyping phase underway. With three factory catalytic convertors and a whisper-quiet set of mufflers, we felt that at least a few horsepower could be picked up with a free-flowing exhaust system. The piping used is two and a half inches, and incorporates two separate silencers along its path. In the rear are dual polished mufflers with four-inch exhaust finishers. The four-piece kit is completely comprised of T304 stainless steel throughout the entire system, so it's built to last.

The aluminum top and bottom intake with built-in velocity stack.

Breath check 2
Due to the rush to get the intake system ready for production before the big SEMA show, we weren't able to test both the intake and exhaust at the same time. However, once completed, we did have a chance to test the new cat-back on its own. Once again, we relied on Elton Lo and his team of experts for their dyno services, and they had us in and out of their facility in no time. Below are the results.

With the basic bolt-ons completed, our TSX V6 did find some hidden power. Thanks to DC Sports, the first group of TSX V6 modifications have been tested, dyno-proven, and will be available as you're reading this. We're hoping other companies will follow suit and help develop more performance goods for the V6 family. Next up, a little more in the way of appearance as JDP Engineering has just completed the carbon fiber front lip, which we mentioned last issue, for the second generation TSX. Stay tuned. . .