I S/C'd my CLS-6 because I wanted to make the car better than factory and to learn something in the process. A purely cerebral thing for me.
It cost me the following:
$1025 shipped; Comptech headers (DIY install July2004)
$129 shipped; Mugen T-stat & fan switch (DIY install August 2004)
$3250 shipped; complete S/C kit (Dec2004)
$70 shipped; HBP
$255 shipped; 12vCrank Pulley
$45 shipped; Apillar Gauge pod
$325 shipped; Boost & Fuel pressure gauge
$115 shipped; 51R Optima yellow top
$800 speed shop install of s/c kit, pullies, pod & gauges
$425 shipped; Comptech B-pipe (DIY install March2005)

When I look at that list, I think: $6,439 'Good Lord, That's alot of money'
However, I plan on having this car for over 100,000 miles (currently at 69,000; with 22,000 on the blower) and would not have it any other way. If I could have, I would have S/C'd this thing just after I bought it; but, that was not possible. Better late than never. It's all in what you want to do. It was something I wanted to do and found the means to do it.
Oh yeah, the S/C whine

 

i just took mine off and will be selling it in the black market, but ill give my honest opinion on it.
was it worth it? like mrsteve said, it depends on who.
the best way to describe it is this: when i had all the boltons (preSC), i told all my friends that i was getting the blower, it would cost 4k and so forth. But when i told them 35-40 whp, they laughed and told me not to do it.
At the time, i was making some good dough and did it anyways. The night we installed it, i gave a couple friends a ride. They were all shocked at how much of a difference it made, 1 of them felt that it was too fast (basically warning me to be really careful)
Going from 230 to 270-290 is quite a difference. More importantly, you gain 40-50 tq (with a very poor tune at the time, i made 237 tq to the wheels) That TQ really makes the engine come alive, as Honda V6's are known to be one of the weakest in tq. Finally, the only other way to achieve such high tq. is nos or 3.5 L block. Personally i wanted something that gives excellent power daily, all the time. And i rather bolt on an SC then do a rebuild with a different block. Building a 3.5 would also take alot more time and energy on your part, as there is no kit.
When i bought the SC, i could have gotten the 3.5 job done for 1k less. Chose the SC because in the end you can take it off and the car is back to stock. With the 3.5, i would basically have to sell the car with it, as the labor would cost more than its worth to even make a swap with someone else.
You have to expect a bit more maintanence than i/h/e as it is boost. So my only regrets are: 1. Should have bought it used and saved more money (the blower should go 75k without any maintanence)
2. Should have tuned the car earlier on. (since i am in cali with only 91 octane, the hbp caused detonation. if you are getting 93 octane this is not as much of a concern) I eventually got the emanage and that made things safer, but should have done it sooner.
3. Get it installed at a dealer who gives warranty. This last step would cost lots more money. If you can install the kit yourself and are generally handy with tools, then thats a better choice. For me, I am not handy with tools and so i couldnt work on my own car some of the times. Getting it done at the dealer is like buying extended warranty on a car, you get screwed initially, and chances are you would have been better off without it. But, just in case something does go wrong, even the small things, you have some sort of insurance.

So would i do it again? Maybe, definately YES if i had a 6mt the second time around. The auto tranny, though it can handle the power, is limited because of its internal defect. BTW, i had my tranny changed after 30k of boost under full warranty. The first tranny lasted only 20k, which is pretty sad. The tranny that was under boost failed with the 3rd gear clutch pack, just like the 1st one, so i am sure it wasnt do to the extra power. Acura realized it was the tranny failing due to its design, which is why they covered it under warranty (the car was given to them with all mods installed, nothing was hidden)

If you really want that extra power more than suspension, rims, or brakes then its a good option. To me, my brakes cost me 1700 bucks, but i never enjoyed them as much as the SC. My suspension (shocks+springs) cost me 1k total, which was well worth it, more worth it than the SC.
Final notes:
Headers give TQ increase: essentially ZERO
Icebox give TQ increase: 6-7 w tq
Pulleys give TQ increase: 5-7 whp
Exhaust give TQ increase: 0, sometimes minus a few lb/ft
SC w/hbp give TQ increase: minimum 40 tq

Essentially you will gain at least 3 times more TQ than all the boltons put together, and TQ feels great in everyday driving. Oh, and the stock pulley (4 psi) is BS, i wouldnt even consider purchasing the CT kit without using the HBP (at least for an auto) Even the HBP is somewhat weak with peak boost around 5.5-6 (i usually got around 5-5.5, 6 when it was 50-60 degrees)

 

I'm planning on doing the SC w/ the HBP and then adding an Intercooler too...

I hope to be putting out about 400WHP+ w/ the auto...

I'm at 65K miles... the time i get this done I should be at 70K and I'm keeping the car until it dies!!

Cause I have every bolt-on for the car and aftermarket suspension upgrade... I just want this SC to put the my CL-S to the max!

 

Isn't there another pully you can buy to make more power from the SC? Like a UR crank pully, or am I blowing smoke again?

 

You can replace the jack shaft pulley to increase boost to 8psi but you'll need fuel management and an intercooler.

 

sure 30-40hp sounds magical, but theres enough pressure on the auto tranny itself, and by adding a supercharger to that is just asking for problems; even with the comptech tranny cooler installed.

 

Sorry noob but you are wrong.

In no way have we here seen any increase in automatic transmission failures when the car is boosted. It's a design flaw in the lubrication of the transmission. It has nothing to do with "pressure."

 

steve.. powder3d mentions regretting not having it tuned, but ive seen a lot of your posts that its a bolt on and forget... do yo have to tune it with the HBP?

and steve.. do you recommend getting the tranny cooler if the tranny will fail anyways?

 

You don't need a tune with the HBP... just a minor fuel pressure adjustment.

I added the tranny cooler to my automatic. It's only $40 so why not? It can't hurt.

 

I'll give you my testimony, here it goes:from 30 to 60

 

cool..supercharger sounds great!

 

what i think too... all the money you put in can buy and build a civic that runs 12s

 

just depends wht ur lookin for...

 

That really didn't seem too fast.

What gear were you in? Was that WOT?

It takes me (according to a video I have) 4 seconds to go from 20-60 MPH in 2nd gear and I no longer have my supercharger installed. With the supercharger it was only slightly faster due to wheel spin.

 

I love my S/Cer!

As far as the conversations about why to get it, I got it just so I can enjoy my ride a little bit more ..... & I do! I got hooked up by purchasing it through the Black Market from MrSteve & w/his help (on the phone/AZine) installation was a breeze. If U r asking 'Is it worht it?', lemme take ya 4 a ride!

 

hm... the dealership comptech referred me to is charging 1300 install just for the blower ... blahh.. what are you other guys paying at dealers?

 

Man, I wish i had a 2nd gen and that I could go and slap a S/C on it... Jeebus.

 

Yes!!!

 

That's outrageous. I believe I paid ~$650 for the blower, gauges, b-pipe, transmission cooler, t-stat, fan switch, UR pulley removal.

 

i started @ 2nd gear. it was @ WOT.

my gauges are f**ked up. the needles sticks on the white gauges, that's why i cut my RPM gauge bigger. i couldn't shift fast enough because i'm holding 3 things at the same time. (steering wheel, shifter, and camera)

can i see your video? just like to compare it to mine...

 

It's not directly focused on the speedo but you can see it. I start around 20 MPH in 2nd gear and go WOT up to around 95.

http://photos.imageevent.com/mrsteve...60427_0003.AVI

My rough calculation puts me around 4 seconds from 20-60 MPH.

Whereas your video is 8 seconds long and runs from 30-60 MPH.

 

That's a recent N/A video by the way... I/H/TheromoBlok Manifold Spacer

 

Where the supercharger shines is not down low getting off from a start. It's in highway passing and acceleration. Going from 60-110 MPH is MUCH quicker with the supercharger than without

Also, torque comes on hard after 3,000 rpm and you can feel it in any gear. Then there's a serious torque jump (15-20 at the wheels ft-lbs) once VTEC kicks in which you also can really feel.

 

first allot of you guys are talking horsepower numbers which is funny cause what your really looking for is the torque numbers, horsepower just keeps you there.
also give comptech some credit for the little gain it gives you, it was engineered that way obviously for a reason, even on a turbo set up the gain might not be that great, mainly cause your dealing with a high compression engine in the cls and tls, so the amount of boost your are able to run is greatly decreased!!!! so comptech designed a sc kit to give you the best boost with the most reliability on pump gas without allot of knock. The other thing is that if you want to maintain reliability then dont sc or turbo or nos, anytime you force more air and fuel into the engine the whole engine takes a beating, not severe but the longevity will slighty decrease when you use power adders.

 

I guess running 6.5psi through a turbo and making over 420whp isn't that big of a gain is it?

Or 10psi through the same kit making 464whp?

And I guess running 8psi through an intercooled supercharger making 373whp isn't that big of a gain either?

Maybe 4psi through the off-the-shelf comptech kit making 303whp isn't that big of a gain?

Or 6.5 psi through the off-the-shelf comptech kit making 330whp.

Or 6.5psi through the off-the-shelf automatic transmission kit making 295whp... that's not a big gain either is it?

noobs... I tell ya... they get worse every month.

 

Just because a motor has a mildly high compression doesn't mean you can't get great gains from boost.

 

Let's see... My CLS 6MT:

stock: 215/190 WHP/TQ
with CT i/sc/h/e: 305/262 WHP/TQ

Now I wouldn't way "the little gain it gives you".

 

wtf......... 1300 wa without gauges, and they said they werent even sure if htey could do gauges..
tischer is 4 hours away.. dont know what to do

just got 1100 from a dealer in PA... how well do you know the guys at Tischer for htat price?

 

I don't think Tischer will do it anymore. The service manager I know well has moved on to Lexus of Annapolis.



Oh and they gave me a brand new TSX w/navi to drive for 3 days while it was being installed

 

i actually just called Tischer, i spoke to a guy named Ryan and he said they still do it? he wasnt sure but he said it was around $700? he said he has to talk to a guy named Jim to find out exactly.. i dont know.
it took 3 days to install all of that?

 

It'll be worth it when I get it. I'm not looking to race it against Z06's or anything or beat M3's on a road course, but I would love to have more real world, daily driver, potential HP. It's like having that 800 watt stereo or benching 350 or anything else comparable. It's the POTENTIAL of what you can do that makes it appealing. That's how I feel about it. How many cars in everyday situations are flying by you on the road? I think we're sometimes spoiled with HP #'s and what the next guy has. We don't need it, but it DAMN SURE would be nice to have it.

 

from 30-60 MPH the car took 4-5 sec. the whole video took 8 sec. IMO.

i have problems with my white face gauge too that's why i cut the tach. bigger. you can see the big jump from 40mph-60mph..

not trying to bash you or anything i actually would like to know your opinion if ever there's something wrong with my car or not, i only have the swap done not to long ago tho...

 

Hmmm... my CLS 6MT does 0-60 is less than 6 sec. 30-60 in 4-5 secs seems really slow.

 

get the supercharger I'm running the standard boost and enjoying it day by day. Gas Mileage is still great...and like Mr. Steve said before...CL-S is not a race car its a Luxury Sports Coupe.....if you want a to race then I would suggest an STI which is awesome also

 

That's great. I think it was 3 days I don't remember.

Jimmy is the shop foreman and does all the Comptech installs. $700 is a pretty good price IMO!

 

well it def. beats 1300... but considering i live 4 hours away, i dont think its practical considering it takes 3 days to do. thought it was a 1 day job.. damn
thanks

 

They probably could do it in one day.

They swaped my first blower from one customer's car to mine. I think it took 2 days. Not sure. I think I dropped it off on a Wednesday and def picked it up on a Friday.

 

It was about 7 bills for me 2 @ Courtesy Acura in Central FL.

B/T/W ~ Ican't find anybody in town that can get the GoodYear GatorBack, does any1 know where I can get 'em online? I really need a new belt cuz it's starting to sqeak like a 78 Oldsmobile (...& this ain't your daddys Olds either!)!

I had 2 speacial order the IK22's but I'd like 2 get 'em online as well as 2 I'm sure it would be cheaper....

Thanx in advance!

 

F/Y/I ~ They did raise the price after mine to almost a grand though!

 

NAPA should carry the gatorback belt. Don't know why they wouldn't.

And I bought spark plugs off sparkplugs.com