Hi again - newbie to the board. Bought a new '11 Accord LX with the 177hp engine. I wanted the 190hp version but no one had an EX with a manual shift. So what I'd love to do is a few things to the car without necessarily voiding the warranty ... but I'd like to hear all of the options! What are the easy (what I used to call "stage 1") mods to the 177hp motor that will bump it up closer to 190hp? Would love to hit 190-200hp and be done with it. Any suggestions I can start off with?

Thanks!

 

Welcome to the forums! Cold air intake, exhaust, header and a tune would be the place to start for a nice gain! I wish I had a stick shift

 

x2 wish i had a stick. Great stuff to start with.

 

you can only add a intake and muffler otherwise you will void your warranty. Intake and muffler will NOT get you to the 190hp mark.

 

Aww you can't get a tune under warranty? That sucks. You could always do some other mods and just return to stock if/when you go to the dealer.

 

No you can't get a tune...b/c K series cars need a EMS to get a tune. It's not like us OBD1 guys who can just swap for a p28/p72 chipped ecu and go snag a tune. Honda will not warranty a EMS. You lucky to get away with a intake. If I'm not mistaken it must be a C.A.R.B legal intake. As for the muffler I believe you can use any muffler you would like

 

Wow, ok guys thanks for the advice. Yes I like the stick - it's a rare thing these days but gets me back in tune with my car. So with a CAI and an exhaust can I say I'd get 10hp from that?

On the other hand, are there any weak spots/links in the car that I should be beefing up?

 

With a intake and muffler you might get lucky to gain 5hp

 

If you want more HP then trade for a car built for HP.

 

You could also probably get away with some alloy rims if you don't have them, plus some better tires. Won't necessarily increase horsepower, but it will drop some weight and that's always good. You can find countless debates on sprung vs. unsprung rotational mass on forums, actually a decent read.

Are there any suspension modifications that can be done under warranty? Before doing anything I'd call the dealer and ask them what will or won't void the warranty because in the end it's their call. You want their OKAY on it. Or you can go for bolt-ons and just swap stock parts back in when it comes time to get some work done, I know some people who do this. Means a good 2-4 hours putting your car back to stock before each trip to the dealer though, so it's a pain.