Honda Ridgeline Owners Club Forums banner
Status
Not open for further replies.

Finally - A Turbo For You Guys!

88K views 237 replies 55 participants last post by  csimo 
#1 ·
This is my first post. I have been reading this forum since I bought my ridge in 2006. I wanted more performance and kept waiting and drooling for Comptech or someone to do something. I thought about the sts a couple of years ago after the guy in hawaii did it. Unfortunately, nothing ever came out. I paid off my truck in October, and decided that I was going to do an sts kit. I started doing some homework, and ultimately decided that there was plenty of room under the hood for some serious turbo equipment. I took the plunge in November and I'm almost finished.

My ridge has 86,000 miles and has been my daily driver for 6 years. I work construction and have a boat, so it has seen a lot of abuse. I have done regular oil changes with castrol synthetic, and I did a diff/transaxle lube just a couple of weeks ago. I haven't done the tranny yet, but the fluid is in the garage. Also, my ridge has had a 2" lift since I bought it. I have had no major issues.

I hired a turbo shop with 20 years experience and they have done an awesome job so far. I have a final (I hope) dyno session scheduled in 2 weeks and will try to put down 400 whp.

Here's the skinny. I took out the airbox and plumbing. Took out the battery tray and remote mounted my battery in the trunk. Mounted the turbo and fabbed a 3" exhaust to the rear. We eliminated the third cat, but left the pre-cats out of the heads. We located the cold air inlet to the drivers side wheel well. An intercooler is mounted behind the front grill. We installed new injectors, a tuning system and methanol injection.

I got baseline numbers on a Mustang dyno (4-wheel dyno) of 194 HP and 252 tq at the wheels. That equates to a 23% driveline loss based on a stock 255 hp. With the stock airbox disconnected, we were able to get 209 hp and 270 tq. That speaks to what a good cold air intake can do for you - 15 HP!

I also ran 0-60 and 1/4 mile 3 times to get a baseline. My ridge did 0-60 in 9.82 seconds and the 1/4 in 17.84 @ 83.59. That was my best time. I took my truck to certified scales and weighed in at 4,897 lbs with me and my crap in it.

It has been quite an experience and I've spent plenty of $$$, but it has been worth it! So far, I have put down 329 hp at the wheels with 8 lbs of boost. With the 23% driveline loss figure, that equates to 424 hp at the crank! I can't keep the tires hooked up. I disable the VAS (vehicle stability) because sometimes it kicks in during launch. I haven't gotten back to the track yet, but the Dynomaster app in my phone says 0-60 in 7.41 sec and 1/4 mile in 15.63 @ 96.01 mph. I know it's faster, but the tires just spin for the first 2 seconds. I need to get new rubber.

Based on the shops research, they feel the motor is good for up to 15 lbs of boost in stock form. We are going to tune it for that and see how it goes. So far so good.

By the way, this thing rides like stock. If you don't put your foot in it, you would never know it was in there. I drive my ridge about 80 miles a day for work and it is so much fun. It looks stock and you should see the look on the pony car guys faces when I blast past them with my tires spinning! I can spin the tires at 45 mph!

Thats it for my first post ... got it off my chest. I'll post up again when I get my next tune and a timeslip! :act035: Land vehicle Vehicle Car Auto part Engine


Land vehicle Vehicle Car Automotive tire Tire


Vehicle Motor vehicle Automotive exterior Car Bumper
 
See less See more
3
#42 ·
I agree that this is a feat that no one else seems to have completed. It's something extremely ambitious and a joy to see, but it also comes with a lot of risks - especially since the OP stated this is his daily driver. We're all not against the idea of turbocharging, but rather just want the OP to realize the inherent risks associated with such a lofty install. The Ecoboost was designed with forced induction and direct injection from the factory. Many years of R&D was done to ensure the longevity of this engine with an entire team of engineers and designers. The RL was not designed in any way, shape or form for FI. If the OP is going to add a turbo with anything more than 8 psi (which will already shorten the life of the rest of the drivetrain), he's going to need to think about re-doing the internals of the engine to fortify it. I think this is probably the roadblock that stalled and, eventually, killed the efforts to put together a stock bolt-on system back in 2007. The stock engine just simply isn't all that receptive of any kinds of substantial boost and the end product was only safely yielding about 35-40hp increases while the longevity of the rest of the drivetrain was shortened.
 
#43 ·
#44 ·
While I am no expert, I agree the goals/claims are a bit lofty for any longevity of the engine. I still am not clear why people have stated many times the drivetrain is near its limits at stock power levels.

My only thing to add is this:

This is how we find the limits of stock motors/parts/drivetrains, we go until they blow. This is also assuming proper measures were taken into account when adding the power and not just some weekend warrior slapping a 100shot on and calling it a day.

-Terracar
 
#45 ·
That is a good question about the drivetrain limits. I've just taken the word of those who have stated it here... but they have pretty impressive credentials.

I am personally not interested in finding the breaking limits. That's an expensive process that I really don't wish to undergo.
 
#46 ·
Speed....I take all the data that everyone says with a grain of salt, so to speak. I worked for one of the big three as an engine designer for many many years and I can tell you with all honesty that if any (and I mean ANY) modern engine is hooked up to a turbo or supercharger system that didn't put out TO MUCH (for a turbo, I am talking 4-7psi) they will be fine as long as proper fuel and sensor management are done. And this goes for most MODERN transmissions also. The safety factors built into them is so great that a 40-50hp increase isn't detrimental. If the PSI is increased beyone that then the likelyhood of the tranny and/or engine grenading increases exponentially. I used to go to the engine dyno lab and routinely watch pushrod V6 engines pushed to 7,000 rpm under full load for hours with no problems. When they went to 12,000 rpm, they didn't last more then a few heartbeats. Same goes for transmissions. I have seem very few instances where a transmission couldn't handle the power of the engine it was bolted to....and in those instances, the transmission was modified and tweaked until the safety factor was reached. So, rest assured, a SMALL power increase done properly won't harm anything. My 2cents.
 
#47 ·
I drove a vehicle with one of those pushrod V6's for nearly 8 years. A 1999 Grand Am GT to be exact. The engine was always very strong and had gobs of torque, but the 4T45e trans was the weak point. In my previous forum, there were many who did turbos and superchargers along with other upgrades. Some even accompanied that with a transmission swap to the 4t60e from the Grand Prix. The aftermarket was stronger, of course, than for the RL. Some were putting down well over 300hp to the front wheels and running high 12's in the 1/4 mile with trap speeds in the low 100mph range. I never even dreamed of doing something like that to my car because I never had the excess cash. I'm extremely interested in this thread for the long term effects that the turbo has on the drive train. I really wish the OP would get back on here with some updated information!
 
#48 ·
I got baseline numbers on a Mustang dyno (4-wheel dyno) of 194 HP and 252 tq at the wheels. That equates to a 23% driveline loss based on a stock 255 hp. With the stock airbox disconnected, we were able to get 209 hp and 270 tq. That speaks to what a good cold air intake can do for you - 15 HP!
Does anyone else find this very contradictory to what has been found by several other members of this site? I just can logically fathom how one would gain those sorts of numbers when the stock air box isn't very restrictive. I know you'd probably see SOME increases with no airbox (and no restriction) at all, but 15hp and 18 ft./lbs.? I'm a bit skeptical of that without video proof and computer printouts.

I'm also quite curious as to what the OP has done about his exhaust. The stock system from the manifolds back is very restrictive. jnc2000 has said that a custom J-pipe, pre-cat delete, new high-flow cats and a decent cat-back will give you some very impressive gains. I would think that with a turbo, the need for such a system would almost be a must!
 
#50 ·
I'm also quite curious as to what the OP has done about his exhaust. The stock system from the manifolds back is very restrictive. jnc2000 has said that a custom J-pipe, pre-cat delete, new high-flow cats and a decent cat-back will give you some very impressive gains. I would think that with a turbo, the need for such a system would almost be a must!
I would anticipate from the first photo that custom manifolds were made without cats to route exhaust to the drivers side where the turbo is mounted ("Y" connection), then a single 2.5" or 3" pipe was routed backward off the turbine side and along the same path as the factory exhaust. The turbo would act as a muffler of course, and another muffler (Dynomax or Magnaflow) out back would keep it fairly sedate noise wise. The "fuel management geek" in me wonders how the fueling is done, given that the fuel system is returnless.
 
#58 ·
I think Ian's point is, the more that is done to the base engine in terms of improvements, is always more cost-effective and usually more reliable in terms of long life and ease of maintenance than any bolt-ons.
That's not to say someone can't come along and take an older Ridgeline and modify it and do a great job. That would still be cheaper than buying a whole new truck in the future.
 
#61 ·
Well since I'm staying here in Vegas instead going to Alaska.might hit up some of these race shops and attempt to get some an hp out of this motor while waiting for a long term review of his turbo setup.i have access to a t25 turbo that would be perfect for a low boost setup with a front mount intercooler.not sure how much boost before needing to upgrade the fuel system.less bickering more discussion would be appreciated.not to step on toes but to get back on. Track.wondering how many cats I can delete before I fail smog.ran a single glass pack on my Tacoma 3.4 without setting off the light
 
#63 ·
Depending on which T25, you're right that would be a great one to use. It's a good efficient unit for lower boost levels. Depending on how strict your emission laws/inspections are you can hollow them all out and put some sort of O2 sim delete in and not have a check engine light. Most of the emissions check stations here don't look under the vehicle and just look for a check engine light.
 
#66 ·
I'm wondering as well. I know this is a HUGE project, but just throwing us a little bone would be great. Watching with great anticipation of more results...
 
#72 ·
That's what I was thinking. Boom! is my guess..
 
#71 ·
High volume, low pressure. What's the problem? :D
 
#74 ·
It's certainly been a long time with no new details or even an update. Still wondering what happened to the OP...
 
#76 ·
I'm sure there have been several PM's sent to the OP by now. Update would have been cool to see, curious what happened with that turbo setup
 
#77 ·
Would be nice to hear from the OP good or bad. Wonder if he's lurking? OP, if you're looking, we would like to hear about the outcome. We all appreciate and respect the balls you had for this attempt. Failiure or success, we would like to hear from you.:act035:
 
#78 ·
^^^ Totally agree!
 
#82 ·
With the CAI relocated into the wheel well, maybe he hydrolocked the engine after he drove through a puddle???? That things like a vacuum cleaning the streets!
 
#83 ·
I'm beginning to think the OP is sort of like the 2nd generation RL. We keep holding hope that there will be something new coming, but we're not sure when or if that will actually happen!
 
#85 ·
Sorry it's been so long since I updated you guys. Been scared to really ... I blew up my motor. My fault, not the engine's. Last post, I was excited about getting back to the dyno and cranking up the boost to 15 lbs. A few days before I went, I had the muffler changed to a turbo muffler because the magnaflow I put on was too loud. The turbo muffler solved my issue. A couple days later, I had the like new magna flow sitting there and came up with a $3,000 idea. I decided that my intake was too loud. I wanted it to be a quiet daily driver. My solution was to install the magna flow in the fender well on my ram air intake. Worked like a champ ... at first. I couldn't even hear the turbo anymore, I thought I was the man! Anyway, 3 days later I was stomping on it to merge into traffic and I got a huge belch of smoke and the engine cut out. When I restarted it, I had knocking and a loss of power. I took it to a local shop to diagnose the problem and it sat there for 3 weeks, and they never got to it. I took it to another local shop and they took a week to tell me they couldn't do anything for me. So 5 weeks ago I trailered it 2 hours down to the turbo shop. They took 3 weeks just to get to it. When they got it apart, I had 2 bent rods, 8 trashed valves, spun bearings and a toasted turbo. They had no idea what happened. They ordered parts and sent the engine to the machine shop. Yesterday I picked it up to the tune of $3,150. They told me that when they got it all back together and started doing pulls on the dyno, something wasn't right. They decided to take my ram air out of the fender to see if the filter was caved in or if something had gotten in there ... that's when they discovered the muffler. At that point all the light bulbs went on. The machine shop had told them that there were a bunch of steel fibers all through the engine, but they didn't know what they were from. Turns out it was the steel "wool" packing that makes up the inside of the magnaflow muffler. Under boost, it got sucked through the little holes in the muffler and into the turbo and motor, trashing it. Anyway, it's running. The same as when I had it last. I'm at 7 lbs of boost right now. I'm going to put 500 miles on it, change the oil and start dialing up the boost. I should be able to hit the dyno in a week or so. I'll update you when I get the new slips. As you may well guess, I love the sound of the intake and turbo now. No mufflers for me.:act060:
 
#86 ·
... that's when they discovered the muffler. At that point all the light bulbs went on. The machine shop had told them that there were a bunch of steel fibers all through the engine, but they didn't know what they were from. Turns out it was the steel "wool" packing that makes up the inside of the magnaflow muffler. Under boost, it got sucked through the little holes in the muffler and into the turbo and motor, trashing it.
That's a nearly impossible scenario. First, there is no turbo in the world that can create a vacuum on the exhaust side to suck anything in from a downstream muffler. Second, I've seen a lot of mufflers but none with steel wool in them (but that doesn't mean they don't exist). Thirdly, there are two sides to a turbocharger, the exhaust simply drives the turbine... there is no connection between the intake and exhaust. In other words nothing could possibly be 'sucked' in from the exhaust side and end up in the intake side.

The more likely scenario is that you found out that the stock engine has ZERO chance of being boosted to 15 lbs. and last more than a short period of time.

As pointed out earlier... if you stay at 7 lbs. or less you should be OK for some time, but you'll can at least expect the engine to last less than 50k miles. You cannot expect to increase cylinder pressure on that magnitude without significant damage to components that were never designed for such conditions. There are no free rides.
 
#145 ·
Wow. A muffler on the intake side is absurd and makes me call BS on the whole thing.
Can't say he is not dedicated to make it work, and for that deserves an award!!!
This is some insane fantasy... not reality.

Can you imagine any sane person cutting out a wheel well to put a muffler on the intake? A Rube Goldberg design with Darwin results.
You really believe some guy that was interested in increasing performance actually necked down about a 4" intake pipe and welded about a 2" pipe muffler on the intake side after the air filter? I hope there is nobody alive that would actually try such a stunt (other than for a Rube Goldberg device) and also hope nobody would believe such a story.
Like OP (or someone else) would not do the same if I or someone slipped up or came up with a hair-brain idea?
This guy only has posted 4X in 4 months. This whole thread is BS without some proper updates and proper pics. This may as well be a thread on bigfoot or UFO's. :rolleyes:

The video could have been taken with his Ridgeline on jackstands for all we know.

To the OP: Do yourself a favor and give the thread you started some legitimacy and DOCUMENT your project or keep it to yourself.
I'm disappointed in you guys. You're coming down hard on a guy who is experimenting with our trucks' drivetrain. And you don't think all these comments are personal attacks? You're basically calling him a liar. And for what reason? Are his actions hurting you? The community? Or does attacking him just make you feel better about yourselves? Who cares how long it took him to post updates. If you don't like his thread, don't post in it. But he's not breaking the rules. Certainly not the one about personal attacks...
 
#146 ·
I'm disappointed in you guys. You're coming down hard on a guy who is experimenting with our trucks' drivetrain. And you don't think all these comments are personal attacks? You're basically calling him a liar. And for what reason? Are his actions hurting you? The community?
First off, I don't know the guy and have no intention of attacking him personally.

If you post on this forum some absurd story I, or anyone else, has the right, and maybe responsibility, to point out that it's absurd or factually incorrect. I do not believe this guy, or anyone else, would weld up a muffler to the intake. That is not a personal attack. If you said you drove your Ridgeline into the side of a cliff and didn't get a dent I'd say the same about you.

Are his actions hurting me or the community? Yes, I believe he is. He's trying to convince people that you can successfully make such extreme modifications to a stock engine without repercussions. I feel that it's the responsible thing to do to point out that there is no free lunch in this fantasy. If you read what the guy is really trying to do... sell turbo kits... you then see who has the real agenda (and it's not me).
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
You have insufficient privileges to reply here.
Top