I've been running a Stage 2 EGR Off Map, which I've been very happy with, for quite a while now, but have also been tracking what a few people over on Civinfo have been doing in terms of creating a 'Hybrid' CTDi turbo and looking to achieve power well over 200hp.
This has really progressed in the last year, and quite a few of the Civic lads, who were already producing some interesting power, are heading down this route. I like a challenge and a bit of spannering, so thought I might as well add the first Accord to the list!
The work is still 'in-progress', so I will add to this thread as I go along!
Enabling Upgrades:
Brakes. I already had ATR Front Calipers on, and would advise anyone upping the power to also upgrade their brakes - nuff said... Also have a full set of EBC Yellowstuff ready to go on when current pads are done.
Suspension. Not strictly necessary, but why not! A-Spec kit has been sourced and is ready to go on:
Sports Supension Kit Part #: 08W60-SEF-601 - ordered from HH.
Clutch. My original clutch had quickly been replaced with a Honda uprated 325 clutch, which was coping with the S2 well, but that was about its limit. For a long time the only after-market clutch that could take more power (and torque) was some form of paddle-clutch, which I wasn't keen on in a daily driver.
However, when I re-looked into it CG Motorsport had just started producing a twin-plate clutch that completely replaced the stock system (including the pressure plate and flywheel), thereby removing all the potential failure points. It wasn't long before a parcel arrived on the doorstep:
It was installed along with the FMIC and, although it's heavier than stock, it doesn't take long to adjust to it, is perfectly fine in traffic and is bedding in nicely - there's still a bit of judder in 1st, but that is quickly receding and only surfaces when taking off quickly, or uphill. All in all - quite happy with it and I know it'll take the power, and torque! Since then CG have also released a 666 clutch, which is a bit cheaper and more of a stock feel, which may be the simpler option to go for. I'm happy with this one though!
FMIC. As far as I know only one other Type Accord member has done this (Brodziu) and there isn't any FMIC packages for the Accord. Therefore, I took advantage of a Civinfo Group Buy to get a 180mm Civic FMIC kit, which I planned to adapt to the Accord, fabricating any additional pipe-work needed.
It was installed along with the Twin Plate Clutch and some mesh, as the Accord's front bumper provides NO protection from stones and I don't want my IC going the same way as my A/C Condenser! It took a while, but eventually it was done.
The routing was slightly more 'roundabout' then I had hoped, the bumper needed a fair bit taken out, and the fog lights interrupted the pipes, which meant a lot of trimming and adjusting, plus grinding down the NSF fog light multi-plug so it could be rotated 90 degrees. It does the job and avoided having to seriously hack about with the PAS cooling pipes.
Basically, the only way to bring the left side hose (as you look at it) to where it needs to go was to bring it back on itself across the top of the FMIC and then back down to follow the original routing. A local firm fabricated a lot of the pipework running across the top (where the red line is on the picture below):
So, all in all, it went ok, and the routing should keep the flow rate decent. A 'Twin-Pass' IC would basically have meant a 180 degree switch internally, so i prefer this option TBH. For anyone looking to do the same it's well worth getting as much of the pipe-work fabricated in steel - far fewer leaks to track and fix
.
All back together and on the drive (quite stealth - which i like!):
Turbo. This has been the major ache of the whole thing (which is entirely down to me!) - I got the turbo from Turbo Clinic in Leeds, who had created the first Civic and CRV CTDi Hybrids based on a GTX2256 race compressor wheel (standard Accord Turbo is 52mm) fitted to an enlarged gas flowed inlet housing. The spec is up to 280bhp, but any more than 230-240 bhp is maxing out the CTDi's injectors, and upgrading the injectors on a Diesel is sodding pricey! After some research I also decided not to get the exhaust vanes 'clipped', as I don't like the sound of it (or the cost!).
There were no Accord Turbo Hybrids available, and I didn't have a spare to send for conversion, so I ordered a Civic one, anticipating that there would be minimal differences. I did subsequently buy a used OEM Accord Turbo, just as a spare, and am sodding glad I did! On arrival the first differences between the Civic Hybrid and the Accord OEM Turbo became obvious (Hybrid Left - OEM Accord Right):
The angle of the outlet from the intake side isn't a problem - the turbo scroll can be rotated easily to the correct angle, but the inlet is totally different. Despite being the same engine the Civic's engine bay requires the turbo to be low-mounted, so there's all sorts of pipe-work to bring the air flow down to it - hence the mount point with the two stud holes. The Accord's turbo is mounted much higher, so the pipe can just go straight on.
I therefore sent off my spare Accord scroll to be bored out to accommodate the larger compressor wheel, and the results can be seen below:
At that point I ordered the Gaskets from HH (which took a while to come through) and then got on with some spannering using the guide here: http://typeaccord.co.uk/forum/topic/8624-accord-7th-gen-i-ctdi-removing-turbo-charger/ to remove my Turbo. I may update that guide with more pictures, and I found a few different ways of doing things, but overall it was very useful.
However, when I came to fit the hybrid, it all went wrong! Although the main body of the two look identical, the Accord Turbo's mounting points are about 10 degrees further 'round than the Civic's - meaning that the exhaust downpipe now fouls on one of the cross-members - it took me ages to get the thing in place (lying on my back in the driveway with the car on axle stands and ramps) and then there was the moment of realisation! A quick back-to-back confirmed it with my spare Accord turbo, so things have hit a slight pause.
As it stands now the hybrid is back off to Turbo Clinic, who have been great throughout, and the plan is to Hybridise the rest of the unit I took off my car (using the already machined scroll that's been done) and then I'll be good to go.
<Lesson - just source a spare Accord turbo, or send yours off if you have access to another car!!>
Mapping. The current hybrid setups use a Celtic Stage 3 Map, which is for a very similar hybrid setup, so I'll be using that as a base map - an agent of theirs is just 5mins from my work, so that is also a factor. Once the Turbo's on and mapped I'll see how I get on with it and decide whether to get it custom mapped.
So far then, I just need to get my turbo re-hybridised, install it and map it and I'm done. As soon as it is I intend to get it on an independent Dyno to see what it's putting out and then decide whether to map further. My aim is around 230+ hp, but not at the expense of smoke!! In addition the A-Spec suspension will be going on and then there may well be a bit of track fun...
This has really progressed in the last year, and quite a few of the Civic lads, who were already producing some interesting power, are heading down this route. I like a challenge and a bit of spannering, so thought I might as well add the first Accord to the list!
The work is still 'in-progress', so I will add to this thread as I go along!
Enabling Upgrades:
Brakes. I already had ATR Front Calipers on, and would advise anyone upping the power to also upgrade their brakes - nuff said... Also have a full set of EBC Yellowstuff ready to go on when current pads are done.
Suspension. Not strictly necessary, but why not! A-Spec kit has been sourced and is ready to go on:
Sports Supension Kit Part #: 08W60-SEF-601 - ordered from HH.
Clutch. My original clutch had quickly been replaced with a Honda uprated 325 clutch, which was coping with the S2 well, but that was about its limit. For a long time the only after-market clutch that could take more power (and torque) was some form of paddle-clutch, which I wasn't keen on in a daily driver.
However, when I re-looked into it CG Motorsport had just started producing a twin-plate clutch that completely replaced the stock system (including the pressure plate and flywheel), thereby removing all the potential failure points. It wasn't long before a parcel arrived on the doorstep:
It was installed along with the FMIC and, although it's heavier than stock, it doesn't take long to adjust to it, is perfectly fine in traffic and is bedding in nicely - there's still a bit of judder in 1st, but that is quickly receding and only surfaces when taking off quickly, or uphill. All in all - quite happy with it and I know it'll take the power, and torque! Since then CG have also released a 666 clutch, which is a bit cheaper and more of a stock feel, which may be the simpler option to go for. I'm happy with this one though!
FMIC. As far as I know only one other Type Accord member has done this (Brodziu) and there isn't any FMIC packages for the Accord. Therefore, I took advantage of a Civinfo Group Buy to get a 180mm Civic FMIC kit, which I planned to adapt to the Accord, fabricating any additional pipe-work needed.
It was installed along with the Twin Plate Clutch and some mesh, as the Accord's front bumper provides NO protection from stones and I don't want my IC going the same way as my A/C Condenser! It took a while, but eventually it was done.
The routing was slightly more 'roundabout' then I had hoped, the bumper needed a fair bit taken out, and the fog lights interrupted the pipes, which meant a lot of trimming and adjusting, plus grinding down the NSF fog light multi-plug so it could be rotated 90 degrees. It does the job and avoided having to seriously hack about with the PAS cooling pipes.
Basically, the only way to bring the left side hose (as you look at it) to where it needs to go was to bring it back on itself across the top of the FMIC and then back down to follow the original routing. A local firm fabricated a lot of the pipework running across the top (where the red line is on the picture below):
So, all in all, it went ok, and the routing should keep the flow rate decent. A 'Twin-Pass' IC would basically have meant a 180 degree switch internally, so i prefer this option TBH. For anyone looking to do the same it's well worth getting as much of the pipe-work fabricated in steel - far fewer leaks to track and fix
.All back together and on the drive (quite stealth - which i like!):
Turbo. This has been the major ache of the whole thing (which is entirely down to me!) - I got the turbo from Turbo Clinic in Leeds, who had created the first Civic and CRV CTDi Hybrids based on a GTX2256 race compressor wheel (standard Accord Turbo is 52mm) fitted to an enlarged gas flowed inlet housing. The spec is up to 280bhp, but any more than 230-240 bhp is maxing out the CTDi's injectors, and upgrading the injectors on a Diesel is sodding pricey! After some research I also decided not to get the exhaust vanes 'clipped', as I don't like the sound of it (or the cost!).
There were no Accord Turbo Hybrids available, and I didn't have a spare to send for conversion, so I ordered a Civic one, anticipating that there would be minimal differences. I did subsequently buy a used OEM Accord Turbo, just as a spare, and am sodding glad I did! On arrival the first differences between the Civic Hybrid and the Accord OEM Turbo became obvious (Hybrid Left - OEM Accord Right):
The angle of the outlet from the intake side isn't a problem - the turbo scroll can be rotated easily to the correct angle, but the inlet is totally different. Despite being the same engine the Civic's engine bay requires the turbo to be low-mounted, so there's all sorts of pipe-work to bring the air flow down to it - hence the mount point with the two stud holes. The Accord's turbo is mounted much higher, so the pipe can just go straight on.
I therefore sent off my spare Accord scroll to be bored out to accommodate the larger compressor wheel, and the results can be seen below:
At that point I ordered the Gaskets from HH (which took a while to come through) and then got on with some spannering using the guide here: http://typeaccord.co.uk/forum/topic/8624-accord-7th-gen-i-ctdi-removing-turbo-charger/ to remove my Turbo. I may update that guide with more pictures, and I found a few different ways of doing things, but overall it was very useful.
However, when I came to fit the hybrid, it all went wrong! Although the main body of the two look identical, the Accord Turbo's mounting points are about 10 degrees further 'round than the Civic's - meaning that the exhaust downpipe now fouls on one of the cross-members - it took me ages to get the thing in place (lying on my back in the driveway with the car on axle stands and ramps) and then there was the moment of realisation! A quick back-to-back confirmed it with my spare Accord turbo, so things have hit a slight pause.
As it stands now the hybrid is back off to Turbo Clinic, who have been great throughout, and the plan is to Hybridise the rest of the unit I took off my car (using the already machined scroll that's been done) and then I'll be good to go.
<Lesson - just source a spare Accord turbo, or send yours off if you have access to another car!!>
Mapping. The current hybrid setups use a Celtic Stage 3 Map, which is for a very similar hybrid setup, so I'll be using that as a base map - an agent of theirs is just 5mins from my work, so that is also a factor. Once the Turbo's on and mapped I'll see how I get on with it and decide whether to get it custom mapped.
So far then, I just need to get my turbo re-hybridised, install it and map it and I'm done. As soon as it is I intend to get it on an independent Dyno to see what it's putting out and then decide whether to map further. My aim is around 230+ hp, but not at the expense of smoke!! In addition the A-Spec suspension will be going on and then there may well be a bit of track fun...
