I have a 1997 Acura Integra GS-R that I am going to custom turbocharge... I am a bit weary of doing it because of the threat of detonation because of the engines high compression ratio. I have so far been unable to find a tool that will count knock. My friend has an Apex'i SAFC2 on his DSM that works quite well. Will that work on my GSR?
Another thing is a side mount intercooler... how well do you think this would work on a GSR?

Any suggestions would be great. Thanks!


Oh, and by the way... I just want answers to those questions... don't tell me to get a new car or to not turbocharge it...

dont run high boost seing how vtec is not turbo friendly and id go with a front mount intercooler thats way better unless you dont want to be able to see it for whatever reason

what do you mean vtec isnt turbo friendly ?

just dont run high boost, dont run lean, and use the highest octane gas you can get

What are u talking about, vtec not being turbo friendly?

dont run high boost seing how vtec is not turbo friendly and id go with a front mount intercooler thats way better unless you dont want to be able to see it for whatever reason

Okay, first of all, I didn't want any lectures on not running boost, etc... Secondly, VTEC works fine with turbos... Thirdly, is anybody going to answer my question about the knock count?

The Apexi will work for the GSR. I did not know it counted knock though. I thought it was just a fuel computer. What you could do to be safe is lower the compression or retard the timing. That will keep you safe

Would a larger (thicker) head gasket reduce the compression enough to make a difference? I'd prefer not to really mess with the engine a whole lot because it is my daily driver. I am going to turbo it and only run about 5 - 7 pounds of boost just for some extra kick. I am going to buy an Eclipse GSX or a Talon TSi for my fast car. I just want a little extra protection to avoid detonating my engine due to boost spikes, etc

If your running 5-7 you should be fine with maybe midgrade gas just to play it safe?

Ah, I always use premium already, so I'll continue to use that... I wouldn't use midgrade gas.

Has anybody here turbocharged their GSR with 5 - 7 psi? How much different did it feel? Did it seem a lot faster or just a bit faster?

Well I know you said dont tell u to not turbocharge the GSR, but im all for that. Id say if you are gonna get the eclipse or Talon, then just put ur money into that as a fast car. The GSR is already fast enough for a daily driver. This way u can put that $4000 into the fast car and make it faster, then put it into a GSR just for a daily driver.

A knock sensor detects the sound frequency that spark knock makes and when it detects it, it just sends an AC curent to the computer when it goes off, if your really on a budget, go buy a cheap digital multimeter and wire it up.

Also remember that a head gasket it your weakest point on a forcefed car. the thicker you go, the more prone it is to blowing.

Like someone said go with an intercooler (the best would be front mount or even icewater to air.) and Alcohol injection. I garuntee you could get 12 PSI + with 91 octane and alcohol injection ( know its a different car but my GN on stright 93 can run 18 PSI with 20 degrees of ing. timing, but with alcohol, I can run 24 PSI with 22 degrees of timing. on pump gas.) The stuff works.

if your scared of detonation get a thicker head gasket cuz my friend has a gsr and his head gasket brought him down to 9:1 compresion and has been runnin 8-10 pounds for 2 years now and his car is fine and he has never had any problems....relating to the turbo of course