Nitrous Express Install
There are several ways to measure the effectiveness of a power-enhancing upgrade. The first of course is the dynamometer, but raw power is actually only part of the equation. There's also the time taken to install whatever it is, the amount of money that it costs and the amount of maintenance required to keep it in operating condition.
Nitrous oxide scores well in all of these areas, so it's no wonder the addition of huffing systems is so popular. Relatively inexpensive, the resulting power from a nitrous oxide system can radically transform a car from a sleepy boulevard cruiser to a blistering street racer.
I was reminded of this little fact after driving back to the palatial Honda Tuning offices in a freshly squeezed 2001 Civic EX coupe. With a 50-hp shot from Nitrous Express just a mashed throttle away, the Civic leapt forward like a disobedient dog at the end of a leash whenever the throttle was opened to full song. The expert installation had been performed by Teren King of T. K. Motorsports, and took a full 10 hours to complete.
This was Nitrous Express' GenX kit, with virtually every bell and whistle one can attach to the bottle full of torque. In addition to the basic system of the bottle, injectors and switches that one normally associates with a nitrous system, this one included a remote bottle opener, a bottle heater and blanket, and a much more elegant multifunction switch for all three. Despite the length of the installation, King was quick to point out that a more basic system (minus the remote opener and other extras with this kit) still takes about six hours to install. Interestingly, most of this time wasn't taken up actually attaching hoses and fittings to the bottle, as well as other hardware in the kit. Rather, it was a quite extensive wiring job as well. There are various switches--both manual and automatic--that ensure the nitrous oxide system doesn't shatter an engine into shiny little aluminum bits. Despite the reasonably clear instructions provided by Nitrous Express, the wiring itself is complicated enough that if you don't absolutely know what you're doing, taking it to a professional is an excellent idea.
At the end of the day, however, the dyno proved the labor was well worth the time and effort. Strapped to R&D Dyno's DynoJet dynamometer, the Civic made 110.9 hp at the wheels with the nitrous switched off. However, with the system turned on and properly purged, horsepower jumped immediately to a whopping 154.6 hp. An improvement of 43.7 hp is good by almost anyone's standards, but it was short of the claimed 50-hp increase boasted by the "50-shot" claim of the system itself.
This shortfall didn't go unnoticed and R&D Dyno proprietor Darrin SanAngelo quickly diagnosed the problem as a bottle that wasn't properly warmed up. A quick check of the bottle pressure confirmed it was "only" at 750 psi. To build up enough pressure to really get the system pumping, at least 900 psi is needed. The bottle heater went on, and we waited. With pressure built up, SanAngelo ran the car up to redline on the dyno once again. The result? A full 170.9 hp, a 60-hp increase compared with no nitrous. Even more surprising was the torque increase, from the stock 103.6 lb-ft at a high-ish 5000 rpm to a whopping 210.7 at a low 3500 rpm. Torque in a bottle, indeed.
How can just squirting a little nitrous oxide into an engine result in a more than 50-percent increase in wheel horsepower? Nitrous oxide increases power in two ways. First, it adds a powerful oxidant to the combustion chamber. Gasoline needs oxygen to burn, of course, so more oxygen in the combustion chamber means more fuel can be added to take advantage of it.
The second way is courtesy of the law of thermodynamics. As liquid nitrous oxide expands to a gas, it gets extremely cold, cold enough to freeze flesh. This low temperature makes the intake charge denser, again allowing more oxygen into the combustion chamber and allowing even more fuel into the mix. The result is akin to what happens when an engine is turbo or supercharged, e.g., more oxygen is shoved into the combustion chamber and more gasoline is squirted in to take advantage of it. The result is a bigger bang.
Of course, that bigger bang can devastate an engine if it isn't ready for it. It's easy for the engine to get too lean with so much extra oxygen flowing into it, so it's important to follow correct installation procedures. This means making sure that not just nitrous, but plenty of fuel is added to the mix. First in this is, of course, the injection nozzle itself, which sprays a proportional amount of gasoline into the chamber as well as nitrous. Beyond that, there's a throttle switch that only allows the nitrous to turn on at wide-open throttle.
Installed properly, though, a nitrous oxide system like the one we used should pose minimal problems. It's only active when you want it to be, so fuel consumption can remain virtually the same. The bottle needs to be filled occasionally, of course, but it's a minor price to pay to have so much additional power at your fingertips. From a bang-for-the-buck standpoint, nitrous is still a tough act to beat.
1. The complete nitrous injection kit from Nitrous Express. You don't need all of these components to get the benefit of a nitrous system, however. This particular set-up runs close to $2,000 retail, but the basic system will only cost you around $700 or so, minus installation.
3. The engine bay before installation. This particular car has already been modified with an Injen cold air intake system and a DC Sports header and cat-back system, neither of which will affect the nitrous system's operation.
4. The nitrous line (arrow) passes through a hole drilled into the firewall.
5. The bottle itself needs to have numerous fittings attached before it can be mounted in the trunk. The first one is the safety valve. If, for some reason, the bottle pressure gets too high, this valve will automatically release pressure. The alternative is more than 1000 psi of compressed gas exploding in one's trunk, so be sure to install this valve.
6. The other side of nozzle is where the nitrous will feed into the engine. The nipple is inserted into the nozzle and held in place with the nut shown. When assembled, only the threaded part of the nipple is exposed.
8. For many nitrous systems, the next step would be attaching the nitrous hose itself. Since this system included the bottle warmer and pressure gauge, two extra stages are included. The first one, shown here, will hold the automatic shut-off for the bottle heater. Note the liberal amount of sealant being applied to the threads. This helps maintain a solid seal and prevent leaks, ensuring the nitrous finds its way to the engine instead of filling the trunk.
9. The second adapter will hold the pressure gauge. Note the mounting holes for the heater and the gauge are offset so they will fit together on the bottle.
10. The pressure sensor ensures the bottle pressure won't get too high or low. It constantly monitors pressure inside the bottle, and turns the heating element on or off as needed.
11. The pressure gauge allows the owner to visually monitor the bottle pressure. Maintaining at least 900 psi in the bottle is important to get the maximum kick from the nitrous system.
12. With the pressure sensor and gauge installed, the blanket itself was wrapped around the bottle. A snug fit is required, and it is important not to touch the actual heating element when the unit is turned on, that is unless you like getting burned.
13. The automatic bottle opener was next, and as the saying goes, some assembly was required. First, the manual knob was removed and the valve gear was fitted.
14. Next, the slip collar was installed.
15. The actual motor is fitted on top of the valve gear. The powerful motor can fully open and close the bottle at the touch of a button from the cockpit.
16. Finally, the mounting strap is tightened around the motor base to prevent it from simply spinning around the bottle when activated.
17. Quite a bit of wiring was needed to complete the installation. Nitrous Express provides build-it-yourself wiring harnesses for the bottle opener. They are sealed against moisture (Note the black rubber collars on the wires.) and easy to assemble.
18. When assembling the wiring harnesses, be sure that the wires will line up properly when the harness is connected.
19. King chose to route the actual nitrous line through the passenger compartment rather than under the car. However, through careful planning, one would never know it was there. Here, the line passes under the plastic scuff panel (removed) on the driver's side.
20. From the trunk, the nitrous line snakes under the rear seat.
21. Note the position of the nitrous bottle in the trunk. The nozzle faces toward the engine, and the bottle is tilted upwards slightly. The feed line is extending straight down from the nozzle. All this ensures that the system will draw liquid nitrous oxide from the bottle instead of gaseous.
22. The bottle warming system was grounded in the trunk against the car's sheetmetal.
23. These three switches are for (from left to right) the nitrous arming and bottle warmer, the purge system, and the remote bottle opener. They mounted snugly into the coin pocket under the parking brake handle in the center console (removed here for installation)
24. If you can make heads or tails of this wiring, then you are probably capable of installing this system yourself. If it looks more like a colorful rat's nest to you, then you'd better take your system to a professional for installation.
25. These are the solenoids that activate the nitrous system. The one on the top is the fuel solenoid, and the one on the bottom is for the nitrous itself. The smaller one next to the nitrous solenoid is the purge valve. Here, all the fittings have been installed, and the solenoids are ready to be mounted in the car.
26. The fuel line was removed from the rail to ensure that any excess gasoline is drained from the line. Be careful about sparks and open flame when working with gasoline...put out your cigarette if you smoke.
27. The fuel line itself is cut in half wherever convenient for the installation of the T-joint that will route fuel to the solenoid.
28. With the steel braided fuel line already screwed on, the T-fitting is tightly clamped to the fuel line to prevent gas leaks.
29. Both the fuel and nitrous solenoids were mounted inverted inside the engine compartment against the firewall.
30. The power for the nitrous solenoid was tapped into the line that will eventually go to the battery for main power to the system. The wire was soldered into place and then taped up.
31. Finally, the nitrous hose itself was fitted to the nitrous solenoid. The system is almost ready to go.
32. This throttle switch not only activates the nitrous system, but it ensures it will be squirting nitrous only when the throttle is wide open.
33. Here, the throttle is at idle position...
34. ...and wide-open throttle (WOT). Note that only at WOT is the nitrous system activated.
35. The main power for the system was routed to the battery to ensure a clean, unobstructed source of electricity.
36. King installed the nozzle in the rubber hose connecting the Injen intake system to the throttle body. Note the white line around the inside diameter of the hose; this is an area free of contact between the pipe and the throttle body, making it an ideal place for the nozzle. The bottom photo shows the fitting for the nitrous nozzle fit perfectly in the spot King selected.
38. Note there is still plenty of room on the intake hose for the pipe and the throttle body.
39. The flow of nitrous and fuel is regulated by these small brass nozzles that fit between the nitrous injector and the hose fitting. The kit comes with a chart that indicates which nozzles to use for a given horsepower boost.
40. With the nozzle installed, the intake pipe is ready to be reinstalled.
41. While it's fashionable to vent the nitrous purge through the hood, a better idea is to reroute it onto the nitrous solenoid. The colder the solenoid is, the denser the nitrous injection will be.
42. The nitrous hoses and fittings are relatively inconspicuous, compared with a turbocharger or supercharger that is.
43. With the bottle properly warmed up, the kit produced a solid 60 hp on R&D's DynoJet. Additionally, it more than doubled the torque output, and moved the torque peak 1500 rpm lower.
44. With 60 extra hp and more than twice the torque, the stock clutch won't last long, especially if you're on the bottle frequently. An upgraded clutch, such as this heavy-duty unit from Clutchmasters, is highly recommended.
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