They say the 1st Gen RDX 2.3L turbo motor has a lot more power that can be squeezed out of it than stock. Doing a tune on it with Hondata is what they recommend. Leaving the motor basically stock, other than maybe a K&N air filter, how much power can one safely get out of this engine, without going above the limits of the drivetrain? I see Ford's 2.3L turbo can safely get 340 horses stock, so I'd wonder if the Honda could do similar? Anyone do a tune, and what were your results? Did gas mileage go drastically down too, or did it stay around the same? This motor seems to be known to already be gas hungry. How was your drivability on street roads?

 

They have some dyno charts on the hondata site. Most people actually see a slight increase in mpg.

 

According to Hondata, you only get between a 10 to 20 horsepower increase, and 33 lb pounds of torque for a stock engine. 10 horsepower out of a tune? That seems pretty weak for a tune. I heard this engine has much more potential, so Im not sure why Hondata cant do better than that.

 

Larger fuel injectors would be a start I would think .

 

Their own website shows 26 hp and 33 lb-ft. That is for a generic reflash on a stock engine, made to accommodate any user right out of the box. Bear in mind this is a more old-school turbo engine, not a modern direct-injected engine with much more precise control over spark and fuel, which tend to respond a little better to tuning (I know my old car certainly did).

I personally don't think the numbers are bad at all. You may free up a bit more with a customer tune and/or some bolt-ons, but you're running out of injector flow at that point as well. Want more power? Pay more money. That's always the name of the game.

Also, keep in mind with Hondata you're primarily paying for the interface tool and software. Any local tuner familiar with them can then do a custom dyno tune of your car that will be better than Hondata's generic flash.

 

What kind of injectors do you recommend to install to help boost power?

 

Injectors on their own aren't going to give you any more power. First, figure out what kind of power goals you are hoping to achieve. Then you can use that HP target to determine how much fuel you need, which will help you decide what size injector you need as well as whether or not you need to upgrade the fuel pump as well.