VTEC Engagement Changes?

[Stevearcade]

I'm sure this will have been thrashed out here before, but I was unable to find anything with my searching. So I apologise if I'm just going over stuff that's been covered before.

I'm considering ways to give my 2.4iVTEC a little more oomph. I don't really want to do anything drastic and don't know a great deal about tuning so have a couple of questions.

I've been reading around and just can't seem to get any conclusion, lots of contrasting views on the matter.

Are devices that lower the VTEC engagement point (VTEC kicks in at lower rpm) a good idea?

I've read it can ruin your engine if VTEC is engaging at the wrong times (should only start when horsepower=torque)?

If you do get an adjustable VTEC controller, do you need other tuning done too in order to safeguard the engine against potential problems?

Do the controllers enable you to adjust the VTEC on the fly? I.e. if I wanted to over take, could I just turn the dial to 3000, floor it and enjoy the ride?

Does anyone know anything about potential VTEC controllers for i-VTECs? Or have any suggestions other than VTEC controllers for a bit more oomph and fun?

At present my engine does the following: Slow and sluggish till 3000rpm, nice and tight feeling till 5500, then it really comes alive. I'd like to simply really come alive at about 3000!

Any tips, tricks, advice or warnings will be greatly appreciated. Cheers guys.

 

[Yugguy]

I think from the factory vtec change is set at the right rpm so that low down torque and high end power are maximised. The more modern systems vary the valve changes according to demand on the engine so maybe a bespoke mapping could improve on this?

 

[Stevearcade]

Hi, thanks for your comment. I did some more googling after I posted this. I found an american forum where it was being discussed at length. They were basically saying the same as you. About leaving the VTEC point as it's set in the factory, as they know what they're doing. Although one person raised a good point about Honda purposefully put the VTEC so you feel the kick, when the best positioned VTEC should be a seamless transition, i.e. you shouldn't feel it come in.

But the general consensus was, only bother with it if the car's having a major tune with engine remapping and more high performance parts. So really, I guess I'll leave as is.

I've read cold air intakes can add a little spice to the mix, as can exhausts and manifolds. I've also considered putting sport suspension on it. The car handles well for its size, but a friend of mine added some to his BMW325 and just the suspension alone made driving feel much more exciting. But all of this would need thorough research. At the end of the day, I'd want a bit more excitement without potentially damaging the car with inappropriate parts.