04 ep3 k20a help me!!!!!! NOVA

[epctr04]

ok so i bought this ep3 from a friend of mine after he blew up the original engine the k20a3 i belive so he swapped the engine for a edm k20a out of a rsx then he lost his job and couldnt make his payments anymore long story short i got a stupid deal for the car i honestly dont know anything about the k series im well versed in d series and b series and even f and j series but k series i know nothing about them can somebody please help me

2004 honda civic si
k20a 43,000 miles 45,000 now my dd out of a edm rsx have no idea which model
5 lug
5 speed ep3 trans
k20a2 ecu from what i know

ok now to the issues
the car feels like its way underpowered i dont know any specs on the engine or if anything is wrong with it i know it has a prc intake manifold on it with a short ram intake stock exhaust has k20a stamped on the block plate under the throttle body on the engine

well my issue is when i go past 5,800 rpms the car falls on its face up untill redline but it pulls hard befor that rpm range and then nothing and i have stock exhaust and pipeing stock header with a empty cat shell as a test pipe i am slowly collecting parts to make the car the way i want it but its slow going right now tryin to find wheels first is main goal right now so please help me figure this out it really sucks for getting on the interstate or even going out for a drive im located in fredericksburg va pm me if u can help or post on here i think i need a new ecu but im not 100% sure any advice helps thanks alot everybody

[Her-Name's-Ally]

k pro? dyno?

[epctr04]

neither stock ecu i think and i have no idea if its ever been on a dyno but i need to figure this out asap

[04sidriver]

you should find somebody close that has kpro and see if that fixes the problem.

[epctr04]

i dont have any friends that have anything k series they all tell me i am wasteing my money with k series but i couldent pass up this deal for the car i would love to meet some people with some nice ep3s but i only know one person with one and he acctually sold it last night lol i wish i could afford kpro but i cant wait or afford it my wife would flip out if i spent 900+ on just a ecu and thats without tuneing and dyno time its just alot of money that i dont have and i need to figure this out asap if you have any ideas pleazse let me know

[mitchlikesbikes]

if it's an EDM engine out of an rsx it's possible that it's just another k20a3. check the block stamp and figure out exactly what engine is in there. also pull the glove box and find out which ecu you have. people will be able to help you a lot more with that information.

[superchargedk20]

So ur block says k20a? But ur running a type s ecu?

[epctr04]

i know the block stamp says k20a and i dont even know how to check the ecu or where its located how do i get to to and tell which one it is?

[mitchlikesbikes]

i know the block stamp says k20a and i dont even know how to check the ecu or where its located how do i get to to and tell which one it is?

an edm rsx wouldn't have come with a k20a though. that's what's throwing me off. edm rsx came with a k20a2.
either way if you have a k20a you need a type r ecu or k pro

[superchargedk20]

Maybe he has the wrong ecu and vtec isn't engaging. When does it cross over on a k20a? He says it falls flat at 5800. U have a intake. U should def tell if it crosses over

[epctr04]

i know the block says k20a and its not scratched off or ground by any grinder or anything and my friend bought the engine as a front clip it was a rsx front clip like a whole front end and all i know is that its running the ecu that came with it see now i have been reading that the rsx came with a k20a the base? i guess i know the front end my friend bought was rhd but was damaged and the front clip had edm k20a written on the hood when it was delivered so the only thing i got to see was the engine and the ecu came from the clip everything else was sold or scrapped b4 i got the car so i have no idea what to do

[epctr04]

it sounds like its engageing but im not 100% sure i know that b series d series engage alot harder the k series sound wise i guess i dont know alot about them i know that at 5,800 it feels like it has power but after 6,000 it just falls on its face and bogs but dosnt die

[superchargedk20]

A base rsx comes with a k20a3 same as what ur SI originally had in it. Edm ep3 type r has a k20a2. Jdm ep3 has a k20a. I don't know what an edm rsx comes with. But im pretty sure only the jdm ep3 and integra r have k20a's in em. And the fact that u say it " sounds" like it crosses over makes me beleive that it doesn't. A k series true vtec is loud and very distinct. U should very easily tell when it crosses over especially with an intake

[epctr04]

ok so what ur saying is that the k20a is out of the civic type r? thats cool well this one came out of an rsx so an itr? and see i wish somebody on here lived close to come check it out to tell me for sure whats going on ill take them for a test drive to show what im talking about and so i should try and find a civic type r ecu or and rsx/integra type r ecu will it plug right in?

[superchargedk20]

Do a 2nd and 3rd gear pull and post it up. We will def know if vtec is engaging. and for the price of an ecu ur better off getting kpro

[epctr04]

see ive priced kpro and its way too much 2,000$ is less than i paid for the car and the shop told me 900+ for the ecu another 600+ for the actual kpro to be installed and 500 for a tune why do that when i can buy a ecu out of a wrecked itr or ctr or one off here for less than 500 but idk and i have no way to post vids on here

[superchargedk20]

see ive priced kpro and its way too much 2,000$ is less than i paid for the car and the shop told me 900+ for the ecu another 600+ for the actual kpro to be installed and 500 for a tune why do that when i can buy a ecu out of a wrecked itr or ctr or one off here for less than 500 but idk and i have no way to post vids on here

Um what? Why would u need 900 for an ecu? . You kpro ur existing ecu that ur running in ur car right now. And its qbout a grand to kpro ur ecu. And im sure there is a base map for u to run until ur ready for a real tune. And u paid under 2grand for this car ? What a steal

[epctr04]

see but y is it so expencive just for a ecu program? i can chip tune and run a d or b series ecu for under 100 bucks but k series is 1000 i just dont understand does anybody sell theirs? and is it all plug and play? or is there more needed then that and see i need somebody to go for a ride with me so they can understand what im talking about but i dont know anybody around here that has any thing k series

[epctr04]

honestly i paid two payments of 110 bucks for the car lol yea like i said deal i couldent turn down and i traded him my built 95 eg coupe

[mitchlikesbikes]

you got the car for that cheap and you're worried about spending 1000 on k pro to get the most out of it? B/D series guys are always bitching about how expensive k series are but the reward you will get for that much money beats a D or B series any day. either do it properly or sell the car to someone who will, profit, and keep building boring B series cars haha


a wise man once said "you can't just jump into the ring because you think you can box"

do your research, save your money, and do it right. your 100 dollar tune on a b series will NEVER feel as good as a tuned k20a on k pro. i can assure you of that.

[epctr04]

hey lol i have had alot of fun with the car belive me its just alot of money to spend and i would still have to buy another ecu to use while i sent it to them to get kpro'd

[jwdep3]

come by monday night to the springfield plaza meet. i could take a look for you.

[epctr04]

i cant man i work till 9pm all week long till saterday im goign to the midcoast mega meet in manasses on sunday the 5th if u could stop by i would be glad to let u look or give me a call sometime pm me

[epctr04]

and is kpro really worth it is the question im asking now what makes it so much betther then just getting a type r ecu either ctr or itr

[superchargedk20]

The turn around rate to get ur ecu is literally one day. You dont have freinds that can drive u for like 3 days tops?

[epctr04]

not really between mine and my wifes scedual and no other car its impossible i work 8 am to 830 pm everyday mon-sat and sunday is the only one i have off

[epctr04]

well after ferther review and some help from a new friend i found out that im running the stock k20a3 ecu and thats why i dont have any power after 6,200 so now the search is on for the correct ecu anybody that has any laying around pm me and ill pay 4 shipping if price isnt too cra cra lol please let me know asap i dont wanna damage this engine

[whatsvtec]

EDIT: F*$^ me for not reading....
Before you do ANYTHING! I would pop the valve cover to check which engine you indeed do have. 2 lobes on the Intake cam and 1 on the exhaust cam would mean it's an EDM/JDM k20a3. 3 on the Intake and 2 on the exhaust would confirm that you have a true k20a motor.

I would check that first before anything, it really would suck to see you trying to find the wrong ecu/tune for the motor you have.



Now... onto the reason I'm skeptical about this happening.
Just dealt with this talking to ep3jd over the phone. He bought a new k20a3 from jdmengine depot, came with a plastic In. Mani. just like the base rsx. However! The block is stamped(like yours) as a k20a. In the matter of his case It's a JDM/EDM k20a3. The block is stamped k20a, but it's basically a base rsx style k20a3 motor. Try to see if a k20a3 ECU or kpro with a3 basemap will fix this for you.

Again though, to recap.. The real way to check is to pop the oil cap or valve cover and check out the cams, how many lobes are on the intake cam?

[epctr04]

ok thanks guys im gunna check the cams befor i go to the mega meet tomorrow in manasses and it is running the stock k20a3 ecu i found that out today thanks to jwdep3 and im gunna check the cams out tomorrow heres another question if i grab some type-s cams would it help for power any? and im looking for a rsx ecu i know the auto ecu wont work at all i guess? any opinions or help pm me or reply on here i check it every few hours that im awake lol but let me kn ow what you got laying around im interesting in buying one asap

[epctr04]

i know im not engageing vtec at all unless its engageing at the stock a3 ecu rpm band which is 2,800 rpms if i rember what ive heared b4 from other ep3 owners but im not 100% sure anybody know a site or a page that has ecu info or engine info please let me know thanks guys

[mitchlikesbikes]

i know im not engageing vtec at all unless its engageing at the stock a3 ecu rpm band which is 2,800 rpms if i rember what ive heared b4 from other ep3 owners but im not 100% sure anybody know a site or a page that has ecu info or engine info please let me know thanks guys

k20a3 vtec engages at 2200 rpm. even if it is engaging though you won't be able to tell because the k20a3 doesn't have 3 lobe vtec

[superchargedk20]

^^^ I Sooooo called it

[04sidriver]

link for kpro for sale

http://www.ephatch.com/forum/showthread.php?69704-FS-K-Pro-Skunk2-Stage-1-Cams

[epctr04]

ok so apprently i cant use any ecu because of the immobizer is there any way around this? because im basicly driving a geo metro with less power

[BarracksSi]

KPro. Do it right and quit futzing around.

Either that or swap the engine with mine and I'll take good care of it.

[04SiSpeed]

yeah man kpro, nothin else will work but a k20a ecu and with that you wont pass emmissions sooooo, kpro is the only option on a ep3 ecu in all reality.

Thats what i did and love it, about to put some kelford stage 1 cams in and RBC mani, expectings some serious gains so well see. Good luck tho, o and i wouldnt drive that car much btw you are hurting the motor just a weeeee bit possibly

[sincityep3]

lmfao!!!! 600 plus for the kpro to be installed? FALSE. & I did it my self in five/Ten minutes.