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CR-V RW2 EUDM MY19. General Info and Engine Tuning details

3K views 3 replies 3 participants last post by  Daugaard 
#1 ·
Hello all,

My name is Nick and I live in the EU / Greece. Used to own a Civic Type-R EP3(K20A2, same as the RSX-S engine) and a Civic Type-R FN2 (K20ZA aka Euro-R). Decided to move to something more family oriented but since I am only 36 years old, I am still interested in "spirited driving". I always found SUVs an interesting choice, since they lack the station-wagon ugliness and are more capable than AWD sedans.

3 weeks ago I got myself a brand new RW2, which makes it my family's 10th Honda. The manual cover states "CR-V MY19" thus the topic title.

The V I got is an AWD with a 6 speed manual tranny, engine code is L15BY and Honda states 173hp on basic petrol (95RON). In Europe we get 95, 97 or 100 RON on all gas stations. I run it at 97RON, price in Greece is 6.87US$ per gallon.

Since this is my 3rd personal Honda and with me having tuned and raced the previous two, I am extremely familiar with Hondas, their durability and capabilities. As with the Rs I owned, the "mechanical run-in" or "engine break-in" is a typical procedure for the clutch and the brake pads to obtain a smooth surface when first used. The engine has absolutely no issue. With 300 miles on the clock, the car hit 134mph with 5th gear. I didnt switch to 6th because I had the feeling that I hit the top speed limiter, but I will test it again whenever I get the chance. (Please note that in the EU we do not have the ridiculous US speed limits with the exception of the UK) while our highways especially in Greece are built by the latest road safety standards with absolutely minimal traffic. I am not exaggerating when saying that there are no more than 3 vehicles within 40 miles! The reason for this is mainly the huge financial crisis we are still into.

Thankfully I had the ability to buy a new vehicle. I got the Elegance trim - equivalent of EX more or less (all honda sensing features apart from blind spot info, no HUD, no leather seats, no heated steering wheel, no start button/keyless entry, no automatic trunk, no sunroof) for US$ 42335.

Since I dont have the financial capability of owning a second weekend vehicle (the FK8 Civic Type-R goes for US$ 75.105 :jawdrop::jawdrop:), I have already started into modifying the V.

I know that this forum does not have many members who are interested in this kind of tuning for this car, still I though I should share my knowledge about Hondas as well as the extensive research I did for this car.

Before proceeding I would like to comment on the much discussed oil dilution issue. My car has no kind of problem so far, with temperatures at the moment from 0 to 10 degrees Celcius (32F-50F). Recommended oil by Honda is 0w-30. I did my first oil change at 1000km (621 miles) including oil filter, using Mobil 1 0w-30 fully synthetic. Didnt really have to but still did it anyway:)
The EU dealerships have no info on oil dilution. The car idles at 1650rpm when cold started and drops to 1400 after 1 minute. I am running the same start up procedure as I did with the Rs, which means driving off after 1 minute and not exceeding 2000rpm for 10 minutes. I N E V E R use the ECON mode as I find it to slow down the car way too much and in heavy traffic it makes no difference to increasing mpg. It is useful for saving on petrol when cruising at 50-65 mph on flat roads but in general I find this button useful only after installing Ktuner or Hondata (more for that later on). I also NEVER use the start/stop function as I find it both irritating and also limits the battery life expectancy as well as the engine start motor life expectancy. So no oil dilution here. I am fairly certain that with my aggressive driving style, no oil dilution and low mpg is what I am about to face!

Engine tuning
The L15BY has a rev limiter of 6500. It has the same MHI turbo as the civic X with 1mm larger exhaust if I am not mistaken. I am yet to figure out on why the manual transmission Vs are announced with 173hp instead of the 192hp the CVTs have. Performance wise, Honda claims the manual transmission ones are faster on 0-60mph by 0,2 seconds and 2km/h faster on top speed (210km/h for manual - 208km/h for CVT). I have already seen 216km/h without switching to 6th but I believe 6th is overdrive so with a stock engine there are not many chances of the car accelerating.

Ktuner and Hondata both have hardware and software available but only for the CVTs at the moment. Ktuner has a more detailed software and both have DUAL operation (ECON ON means stock boost and fuel maps, ECON OFF means tuned profile and more fun!). I would suggest if installing either, have your car mapped by a professional and do not go for the premapped options. Remember that if you have your car custom mapped, you have to use the fuel RON that you used for tuning and not lower spec petrol. Also it was a negative surprise for me to realise than when the VSA is turned off, the TCS is OFF but the ESP is still ON....this means that the car wont drift and wont utilize the full potential of the great AWD system it has. We owned CRv GEN1, GEN2 and GEN3 and I can definately say that GEN5 is a much improved AWD system compared to the older versions.

Swapping out the intercooler is a great idea if you are going to tune the ECU. The intercooler size is very important since there is no need for going for something very big. The civic X options can work for the V but bear in mind that they are not bolt-on since they are designed to fit directly on the civic, not the V. PRL, Injen, Forge are all great options.

The exhaust for the manual transmission at least has a 40mm diameter for the middle part and 35mm for the backboxes. This is obviously way too small. A good option is to go for 50mm-45mm without increasing the noise too much. Of course the exhaust has to be custom built, using INOX piping and proper welding. Nothing too difficult for a professional who uses a proper CNC machine. I was asked for US$ 570 for a custom catback exhaust. Note that the back piping is of oval shape instead of round for it to clear the rear suspension bridge so it is not easy to exceed 45mm. Personally I will go for a 45-40mm combo. The civic reaches 220hp on stock exhaust so swapping this part out is not mandatory. I like some growling and this little engine sounds like a baby V6 so I want to make it howl! I am fairly certain that the downpipe is not of interest to anyone here, but if you want to install a new one, RV6 catless is the only option that is worth it. Personally I do not want to remove the cat converter since the law is extremely strict here for pollution and the car can be confiscated on the spot if it exceeds the EU CO2 and NOx limits. Police are doing fumes tests on road blocks (for real!)

Intake
No need for anything more than a K&N drop-in. Already ordered, waiting for package delivery.

Custom ECU remap, catback exhaust and the K&N should give 230hp more or less with 35-38 kg or torque. Not bad at all!

Wheels
Stock wheels are 7.5x18 ET45 114.3x5 or 7.5x19 ET45 114.3x5, 235/60-18 or 235/55-19. Wheels in general are a completely subjective approach. Keep in mind that wheel spacers are never a good idea no matter how good their quality is and that a low offset is also not recommended.

Brakes
Stock brakes have 2-piston calipers, something I havent seen on a Honda before. Honda was known to be stingy when it comes to installing big brakes and I think it would be a good idea for them to have installed 4pot calipers with the Honda logo on them. It would make the car look more sporty and premium. No bolt-on option here. After contacting Wilwood, they suggested a company but in order to comply with the forum regulations, I will not state the name for avoiding indirect advertising. A really helpful individual said that a custom built BBK is possible, using 328x28mm discs and narrow 6pot wilwood calipers. The kit will include brake lines, discs, brackets, calipers with dust covers and all other necessary parts. After looking into the Wilwood caliper fit diagram, the calipers need an extra 7mm to clear the stock wheels. This means that once this is installed, the stock wheels become useless unless combined with 10mm spacers. I am personally looking into 8x19 ET45 or ET43 wheels with a spoke design that will clear the calipers.

Suspension
No options here yet. Ground clearance for the AWD RW2 is 208mm. I am not interested in lowering the car anyway, this is why I bought myself a SUV! Please note that the Accord is not available in Greece anymore.

Exterior
Plenty of options here. Honda aftermarket bumpers are really beautiful in my opinion. They come primed or prepainted. Part numbers depend on color and can be found on honda.co.uk, after choosing the CRV and going into the configuration menu. Not all US colors are available in the EU, so if you like something make sure that it is the same color as in the US. There is a UK company that ships original Honda parts worldwide. If allowed, I can write the name, so the EU "Aero-pack" as Honda calls it can be installed in US vehicles. It differs slightly to the Asian design, while the rear bumper is identical to the "Modulo" edition.
Mugen-power has announced a bodykit as well. A bit aggressive for my taste, but the side skirts look good. The rear bumper does not change much since only 2 skirts are added on either side. Visit mugen-power.com for fotos. I have decided to order the Honda after market bumpers and roof wing, while Mugen will provide the front grille and side skirts. My color is NH883P (Platinum White Pearl) and I have chosen matte black wheels to compliment the side stock plastics, black roof spoiler and black Mugen front grille.


I would upload some fotos but this is my first post so the forum wont allow me. Thanks for reading. I will keep those interested up to date!
 
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#3 ·
Hello all,

My name is Nick and I live in the EU / Greece. Used to own a Civic Type-R EP3(K20A2, same as the RSX-S engine) and a Civic Type-R FN2 (K20ZA aka Euro-R). Decided to move to something more family oriented but since I am only 36 years old, I am still interested in "spirited driving". I always found SUVs an interesting choice, since they lack the station-wagon ugliness and are more capable than AWD sedans.
Keep us posted regarding any news you might have. Do you know if there are any other European (english speakers) forums where CR-V topics are discussed?
 
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