Strong motor (or weak) from the factory... Fact or fiction?

1507 Views 17 Replies 13 Participants Last post by k.alexander, Mar 24, 2001

Ludecrs

Discussion Starter · Mar 22, 2001

What do you guys think? Every so often you hear someone say, "I got a strong motor". Or, someone with a slower car claims they got a "friday" car (the theory goes that by the end of the work week, the factory workers are tired and anxious to get out, thus their quality of work declines).
Is there really that much variability in the manufacturing process that some of our Preludes have more power than others?
Has anyone put several brand new Ludes on the dyno to compare?
This is especially notorious with Hondas... so I've heard.

------------------
-Rebecca
'00 5spd base Prelude
What tha dealio?!

See less See more

1 - 18 of 18 Posts

thewedge3

· #2 · Mar 22, 2001

I don't know but I would say the oil burning issue is a good indicator. Some have it, some don't. Somethin's fishy.

BlueShadow

· #3 · Mar 22, 2001

2

i've heard that term too. out of 20 cars produced 5 are fast 5 are slow and 10 are about average. blah blah blah. there is no way to know for sure if that phrase is true. but "i've got a friday car" does make a good excuse for losing a race.. not that i'd ever have to use it, cause i never lose

------------------
2001 EBP Prelude
Mods:
CF Altezza
AEM CAI
Tanabe G-Power Medallion

See less See more

schwett

· #4 · Mar 22, 2001

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by Ludecrs:
What do you guys think? Every so often you hear someone say, "I got a strong motor". Or, someone with a slower car claims they got a "friday" car (the theory goes that by the end of the work week, the factory workers are tired and anxious to get out, thus their quality of work declines).
Is there really that much variability in the manufacturing process that some of our Preludes have more power than others?
Has anyone put several brand new Ludes on the dyno to compare?
This is especially notorious with Hondas... so I've heard.

</font>

obviously some have more power than others. this will apply to every car ever made. the question is, how much more or less. judging from the dynos i've seen (which can't always be trusted anyways based on the quality of the dyno and shop) it's about +/- 4hp on ludes, with low 160s being the midpoint... 158-166 for a stock 99+ 5th gen.

MaverickD

· #5 · Mar 22, 2001

101% douht it~ come on~ it's a japanese car!

dka

· #6 · Mar 22, 2001

in that one comparison where the SH went up against the gsr, itr, and gts..they dyno'd the SH at 167whp

See less See more

schwett

· #7 · Mar 23, 2001

right - i saw that - but discounted it because the number was printed in SCC. in that same test they got a 7.5 second 0-60 time, which is between one and .5 seconds slow. those guys are retarded.

of course it's possible, i've seen plenty of 165 whp stock dynos.

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by dka:
in that one comparison where the SH went up against the gsr, itr, and gts..they dyno'd the SH at 167whp

</font>

IXLR8

· #8 · Mar 23, 2001

There is some truth to that statement. Every car & engine is a little different. Some parts are closer to the ideal specs and others aren't but still fall within the allowed manufacturing tolerances.

Honda does a better job of mitigating the extremes than most domestic manufacturers. My Prelude vs. my Suburban being a prime example...

mugen22

· #9 · Mar 23, 2001

I think the inconsistencies are more a dyno issue than a motor issue. Hondas are built to the tightest of tolerances. Regarding the SCC article, did anyone read the Project GT-S article? Some how thier Celica had 10 more whp than did the HKS and TRD cars. Hmmmm.

Anyway, Honda builds phenominal motors and I don't think there is much difference from one to the next.

------------------

See less See more

kckckc

· #10 · Mar 23, 2001

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by schwett:
right - i saw that - but discounted it because the number was printed in SCC. in that same test they got a 7.5 second 0-60 time, which is between one and .5 seconds slow. those guys are retarded.

of course it's possible, i've seen plenty of 165 whp stock dynos.

</font>

Rumor is that the SCC driver missed the 2nd
on that run. Bastard..
7.5 with a missed 2nd isn't bad

KC

See less See more

kckckc

· #11 · Mar 23, 2001

Seriously.
I was told by an engineer friend in Japan
that honda engines made in Japan have
net tolerance variation level of about 2%
at Confidence level of 95%.

that's about +/- 3 whp.

but depends on what ever the underlying
distribution of that variation is.. i'd guess
+5 whp is possible, though quite improbable.

I brought lotta crap to this forum but if you've been here
long enough to remember, I am the one who brought all the
accurate news about 2001 Preludes
and about the demise of 2002s..
i.e. believe me it's 2%

KC

See less See more

Jspec81

· #12 · Mar 23, 2001

kckckc-u da man, but why do you always disappear? I recall your post about sex being a higher priority than H/A. Does that still apply today?

dka

· #13 · Mar 23, 2001

kckckc do you live in the bay area? If so, where?

VeeTec

· #14 · Mar 23, 2001

Fact,

I don't care what Honda reps say. I have driven quite a few Preludes, and other Hondas, and I have found that there performance does vary noticably.

There is an awful lot that goes into the motor, not just the internals, but when everything comes together just right you get those that seem to run stronger than others.

My Prelude ran high 14's stock. Factory ringer? I have driven others that were noticably slower. I have also test driven countless other cars and came to the conclusion that most cars do have that middle of the road feel.....but some do run stronger..and even some slower.

------------------
Warren

93 Prelude VTEC N/A (lots of mods) [email protected]

00 Honda Accord SE (stock)

See less See more

Ludecrs

Discussion Starter · #15 · Mar 23, 2001

Thanks everyone! I agree with veetec. I think there are definite differences in the output of different cars. I've come to think that I've got a strong Lude.
Case in point:
I stay dead even with a friends Type-R. We've raced a bunch of times, all from rolling starts at various speeds. Driving skill is equal.
I've also beat a VR6, and a heavily modded 5 spd 5G prelude (I was stock).
Regardless of HP or differences in cars, I still contend that it's the driver that is ultimately most important.

------------------
-Rebecca
'00 5spd base Prelude
What tha dealio?!

See less See more

ed'98

· #16 · Mar 24, 2001

I'd believe 2% total engine variance "from the factory".
You're all missing the variable of how the engine is broken in. That can make a big difference. And I don't mean "break it in the way that you want to drive it", but break it in properly.

------------------
1998 San Marino Red SS
1998 VFR800
1991 2.0Si "first 'lude love", was still great at 146k miles

schwett

· #17 · Mar 24, 2001

if you believe the gtech (and i do, to about +/- .1) my stock 2000 SH runs high 14s too. yet i see many posts of people with mods running 15.3 or so; either a) the mods are slowing them down, b) the driving conditions are less optimal, or c) the driving is less optimal. beyond that, there's a lot of more minor variables, like gas, oil, tires, wheel weight, air temperature, humidity, elevation, road surface, etc etc etc etc

anyone know how much variation in the ET 10hp would cause? how about 50lb of weight? 100? one stock lude could easily be 100lb heavier if it had a full tank and 200lb driver...

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by VeeTec:
Fact,

I don't care what Honda reps say. I have driven quite a few Preludes, and other Hondas, and I have found that there performance does vary noticably.

There is an awful lot that goes into the motor, not just the internals, but when everything comes together just right you get those that seem to run stronger than others.

My Prelude ran high 14's stock. Factory ringer? I have driven others that were noticably slower. I have also test driven countless other cars and came to the conclusion that most cars do have that middle of the road feel.....but some do run stronger..and even some slower.

</font>

k.alexander

· #18 · Mar 24, 2001

.

[This message has been edited by k.alexander (edited March 23, 2001).]

1 - 18 of 18 Posts

This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.