I lost to a non-vtec stock civic!!! Help!

[K240]

Ok now that i have your attention, one of my friends has a stock, non-vtec civic. i didnt exatly lose, but i was steadily right next to him until third, then i started to pull. I should have been pulling on him from start to finish...I have been notcicing a loss of power.....What could my problem be?

[Nismo_Freak]

Ok now that i have your attention, one of my friends has a stock, non-vtec civic. i didnt exatly lose, but i was steadily right next to him until third, then i started to pull. I should have been pulling on him from start to finish...I have been notcicing a loss of power.....What could my problem be?

No idea chief, there are alot of factors that can play a role in power production. Where in the RPM band does the power feel like it's lost? Have you noticed any issues with idling, or excessive fuel consumption? Does the engine have any flat spots? If so when do they occur (WOT or Partial Throttle, RPM, etc.)

[s13sr20chris]

its quite possible that you may ping and the ecm retard your timing. do you use premium gas? other than that your a/f could be off due to car being old. try reading my driveability sticky and check some of that stuff. for example: maf ground, ect sensor, etc.

[K240]

It seems like it loses power after ~5500 rpms. I use premium only. I just did a recnet tune up including-spark plugs/wires-distributor cap/rotor-new headgasket/resurfaced head/valve job-new cooling system-new fuel filter-new o2 sensor

I am getting the code for the EGR, but my mechanic tested it and said it was fine...i am having just a little bit of problems with the idle, not too much though...

[s13sr20chris]

could be an intake gasket leak. thats common on the ka24de. spray with carb cleaner to find out. if the revs pick up shes leaking vacuum. 5500 rpm? maybe a fuel pump? this is not the first bog a 5000+ iv heard of. dont remember if the others got fixed.

[InsanityInc]

losing power after 5500 is normal for a KA, that's where the power peak is.

[Prelude Guy]

Honestly, I am not surprised that you were neck and neck with a non-VTEC Civic. I raced my friend's 240SX in my 92 NON VTEC Prelude and beat him by over a second in the 1/4. That's how much I beat Civics by.

240SX's are slow. There is a reason why they got horrible reviews while they were out.

I think you were just humbled when you actually raced a car that is as fast as yours.

To make sure that evey thing is working properly, I would have your car dynoed. However, I don't think anything is wrong with your car.

240SXs are a GREAT platform, however, the engine ruined all of its potential here in the US. The JDM swaps that are available are the reason why the 240 can be turned into an all around nice car.

Anyway, if you dyno your car, post the results here. I am kind of curious.

[InsanityInc]

240's run from 15.6-16.1 stock.

That's a hellova lot faster than a SOHC civic. However, many 240's have a lot of problems with them.

[Prelude Guy]

240's run from 15.6-16.1 stock.

That's a hellova lot faster than a SOHC civic. However, many 240's have a lot of problems with them.

Yes, that might be true however, we are talking about racing on the streets without professional drivers.

We can argue about it all day and all night. Who cares. The best thing for him to do is take it to a shop to have it dynoed. It will be the best $75-$100 you spend.

[InsanityInc]

thus why I said 15.6-16.1, that's what people have generally reported from their stock 240's. I've seen a few outside of that range, though, in both directions.

[Prelude Guy]

thus why I said 15.6-16.1, that's what people have generally reported from their stock 240's. I've seen a few outside of that range, though, in both directions.

Yeah.

This post reminds me of when I raced my friend when I first got my Prelude. He has a 94 325is that dynoed 187whp. My 92 Prelude Si has a rated 160hp at the crank and weighs almost 3000lbs. We raced each other. I stayed with him all the way up to 70mph. That is where he started to pull on me.

When he stopped, he was SOOO surprised. Moral of the story: Comparing cars based on numbers is one thing but actually racing them side by side is another.

We later took our cats to the strip. He ran a 14.9 and my best was a 15.9 (launching at 1200rpms...long story)

Basically, my belief is that it is too difficult to diagnose a "issue" with your car just based on a drag race. A dyno will tell him every thing he needs to know.