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I recently bought a 96 2dr civic ex and i was doing some research on it and found a h22a4 on craigslist that i bought for $350 which will take the place of the D16y7 that was in it. Here's where i need help i was contemplating putting a turbo in it, but before i started buying parts for that i was wondering if some one could take me to school on turbos. Any help is appreciated and thank you.

 
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Well first off how much boost are you wanting?

I am assuming you want to run about 25 psi which my civic will be doing about mid summer and something close to 400 hp on the d16y7 with the mini me conversion.

1.)The stock internals on almost all engines can withstand about 8-10 before cracking rods. I suggest eagle rods as they can withstand something close to 600hp but have been known to go way higher than that.

2.)Next you need to think about the pistons. They will need to be low compression pistons as with most honda motors the compression ratio is like 9.5:1. Vitara is a decent brand of these and fairly inexpensive.

3.)Next you would need to upgrade your valve train and I went with brian crower double spring with titanium retainers and valves. Expect that setup right there alone to set you close to a grand backward. I wouldnt worry about the cam as honda cams can generate over 400 with a turbo setup.

4.)Then You will need a clutch to withstand the power you want to generate. I went with an xtd 2300 lb clamping force with a 4 puck. I will warn you tho expect your leg to be tired if you do much city driving with a clutch like mine tho. There isnt any way my kids can push the clutch pedal in I will just say that.

That covers the motor part but my motor build costed me 2200 alone and i built it. If your still interested after that price here is the turbo section

5.)Log or Ramhorn? Ramhorn is the better way to go and i have gains seen 50 hp from just bolting it on. I will tell you this tho, If the ramhorn is anything less than 500 it will crack. I would ask what type of warranty they offer and actually call the company before you purchase it so you know you can get ahold of the people who produced it. Log is the better way to go for clearance. Even the log manifold will withstand 25 psi and will push the civic up over 400 hp (If I reference to a civic with 400 hp its the d16y8).

6.)Name brand turbo or not? I would tell you to run from the turbo people have that dont offer a warranty. I have purchased several of the chinese turbos on ebay and they last about as long as the price. My turbo alone cost me over 1100 but they offer a unlimited mile warranty for the first year.

7.)Ball bearing or Journal bearing turbo? Both will have equal properties and spool like hell. The ball bearing turbo will set you back another 500 for just that upgrade. I will tell you this tho. That ball bearing spools up almost instantaneously tho.

8.) Internal or External wastegate? My setup has an external wastegate but both are equally just as good. I will say tho that if you get an external wastegate please dont just let if vent under your hood. At least hook it up to your exhaust the way it should be. Your turbo will thank you and all that soot wont be under your hood so your mechanic will thank you.

9.) Intercoolers are pretty much all equal these days but the only thing I will say about the intercooler and piping is get some with flared edges at least. You will no blow near as many hoses this way and make sure it comes with true turbo clamps and not just hose clamps.

10.) Blow off valve... These are a life saver just like the wastegate is to your turbo. The wastegate relieves pressure in your manifold before your turbo which causes the turbo to continue spooling faster and faster unless the wastegate opens expelling the unwanted boost. The blow off valve on the other hand expells the compressed air that your turbo has sent thru your intercooler and flying towards your intake manifold. When you let off the throttle the turbo is still spooled up creating boost and your throttle body is closed the blow off valve releaves this pressure so the turbo doesnt get damaged from surge. This is an important part of the setup and a $40 blow off valve is going to fail. Mine cost me $248 shipped from turbonetics.

All the basic turbo components have been covered.

Next you will need to upgrade the fuel injectors to something worth throwing boost at. Im running 1000cc injectors in my civic. Deautchwerks brand or however you spell it.

Then a high volume fuel pump such as a 255lph walbro

A adjustable fuel regulator to regulate all this new amount of gas the fuel pump is throwing at it.

Last a system that can tune for the turbo. Every person is going to have their own opinion about this so Im only going to list a few and let you dig into that on your own.

you have to have a wideband oxygen sensor and gauge to do these yourself.

Demon/ Neptune tuning kit- this is a do it yourself tuning software that allows you at home to fine tune the civic. Very good product by the way. but you have to have a wideband oxygen sensor and gauge to fine tune it.

Hondata s300- This is a tuning kit just like the demon only this has more of a following than the demon kit. Both have the same features.

crome tuning- this is a good tuning software but they have had no updates in about 3 years.


If you need anything else let me know I have first hand experience working with the turbo in a civic. Oh and all my tuning is not done by me but some friends down at Humble Performance.

Sorry this post was so long but I hope it covers everything you was wondering.

 
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Engine/fuel management should be MUCH higher on that list. Just gonna throw that one out there. That's really the make it break for a turbo system. You can have the best components in the world, but if you have a shitty tune, it might as well be a eBay kit with **** components.

 
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yes it should be higher on the list. I hand typed all of that and was tired of typing. But ebay doesnt have turbos. I have never seen one stamped ebay as the people who produced the parts. Those are chinese throwaways. If I was to buy a kit on ebay I look at it like the BOV(which is junk too), intercooler piping kit, Oil supply lines, manifold, and downpipe is what you are actually paying for. The turbo is complete junk. Every one in 5 maybe ten survives without leaking or locking up within the first 3 months. I would not ever buy a turbo kit on ebay unless the seller was offering a turbonetics with warranty or something. And to go along with what he said the tune is the most important part. A bad A$$ engine with a crappy tune is going to be a turd and either predetonate or kill itself due to tuning issues. However with the right tune will be unbelievably powerful.

 
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might help others looking for it, but OP asked it almost a year ago...

we did not reply at the time because he could have found easily the information if he had searched or looked at the stickies on the top and also that the DIY section is for people posting DIY articles, so a guy asking questions is really not supposed to post here... It goes against the whole DIY entirely...