Most of the Honda F-Series engines are SOHC inline four, but there are a few that were built as DOHC. Not only does it have an aluminum or iron open deck block but it also has an aluminum or magnesium cylinder head.
These engines are mostly in smaller vehicles and give just the right amount of power. With that being said, let’s take a good look at these engines.
Honda F-Series: Engine Basics and Specs
This engine is very popular in places other than the US. They have been used quite a bit in places like Europe and Japan. These engines have won a few competitions, including the F18B winning the 1.4-1.8 L category in the International Engine of the Year Competition in 2000.
You may not realize it, but many of the smaller Honda models that you see probably have one of these engines in them.
- Production Run: 1996-Present
- Cylinder Block Material: Cast Iron or Cast Aluminum
- Cylinder Head Material: Cast Aluminum or Magnesium
- Configuration: Inline 4-Cylinder
- Valvetrain: SOHC or DOHC – Four Valves per Cylinder – VTEC
- Bore: 85mm, 86mm, 87mm
- Stroke: 81.5mm, 88mm, 90.7mm, 95mm, 97mm
- Deck: Open Deck
- Compression Ratio: 8.8:1 – 11.7:1
- Horsepower: 110 horsepower @ 5700 RPM up to 240 horsepower @ 8300 RPM
- Torque: 110 lbs @ 3800 RPM up to 162 lbs @ 7000 RPM
Honda F-Series: Vehicles
There are many different engines in this series, including the F20, F22, and F20Z1. The most popular engine in the family is the F20C and F22C which Honda used in the S2000.
Remember, the majority of the vehicles that have an engine from this series is either small or midsize because it wouldn’t give enough power to a bigger vehicle. Some of the cars in each engine category are below.
- F18: Rover 618i
- F20: Honda Accord
- F20C: Honda S2000
- F22: Honda Accord and Honda Prelude
- F22C1: Honda S2000
- F23: Honda Accord LX, EX, SE, and LEV
Keep in mind, there are subcategories to each of these. For instance, the F22 has F22A1-7, F22B1, and F22B. Most of these are in the Honda Accord models but there are a few other random Honda models that have them.
Honda F-Series: Known Problems
Regarding problems, the engines in the F-Series have had their fair share of issues. Most of these problems have been issues for the majority of the engines in this series.
For starters, these engines have a lot of the same problems that plagued the Honda H22A. These problems are high oil consumption, oil leaks, coolant leaks, and a complete loss of power. These are pretty easy fixes, and the causes will be listed below.
- High oil consumption: Failure of valve stem seals and pistons
- Oil leaks: These usually happen in the VTEC gaskets, oil cooler gasket, cam seals, or oil pressure sensor.
- Coolant leaks: Usually caused by a faulty idle air control
- Loss of power: Could be a few different things, which are: distributor, oxygen sensor, valves needing to be adjusted, knock sensor, or timing chain tensioner
Another problem that these engines experience is that the engine can sometimes run unevenly. You’ll know if your engine isn’t running right because it’ll feel rough when you’re at idle. The main reason this engine experiences that is because of a faulty idle air control valve.
As always, if you feel like something going on with your engine, get it checked as soon as possible so you can try to minimize the damage that is done. It might end up being nothing, but it’s always better to check it out instead of just letting it go!
Honda F-Series: Tuning Potential
The F-Series of engines has started to become extremely popular in the Honda tuning community, especially for swapping into older Hondas like the EG. The biggest problem with swapping an F-Series into an EG, for example, is mounting the engine in the vehicle.
This is where an F2B or F2K kit comes in, which allows you to use a B-Series or K-Series transmission. This makes mounting, axle shafts, gearing, transmission parts, and more, much easier to find.
Of course, the typical intake and exhaust modification do help the F-Series make more power. Honda did an exceptionally good job with the F-Series cylinder head, so porting and polishing it won’t result in any incredible gains.
If you really want your F-Series engine to make big power, you’ll need forced induction. For a street car, simple bolt-ons and a quality tune will be more than enough.
So I own a 97 Accord Ex Sedan. The problems i read that and F series engine has are all over mine. Leaking coolant and oil with a rough idle. It is 4cyl VTEC. It runs great when i hit 50-60+ mph. The acceleration is hesitant at best with a surge in rpms round 3500. I have replaced both the VSS and the Transmission output sensor but my car still reads a vehicle speed sensor malfunction. Just wondering should i just buy a new engine or just fix these issues. I only paid $700 for the car and over all it runs pretty good. I want to add a some extra hp a nice new intake and exhaust would be nice. But the cat back systems are not a great fitment to my car. A friend said build my own exhaust piece by piece. Any way thanks for the info on the engine. I am really interested in working on it but my experience is limited. I’m just glad to know what i am looking at to improve it. And when it says bolt ons and a quality tune what does that mean to get forced induction.
Sounds like it needs a tune up and a transmission service if its blipping up rpm when trying to accelerate. Unless its a down shift blip then you might have transmission issues