Deep Inside: Skunk2 Breaks It Down
Super Street: How much different is the K-motor in comparison to the B-series?David Hsu: Really different. The main advantage of the K-series is that the cylinder head flows a lot more air. You can do all the porting in the world to the B-series and barely get to where the K is stock. In fact, I don't even think you can. When you try to run the B-series with really big ports you need bigger valves to take advantage of that. The angle of the valves interferes more easily. You can't run big valves or high-lift long-duration cams. The basic architecture of the B-series limits you. The K has a roller rocker, which allows you to run more aggressive angles on the cams without wearing out parts through excess friction.
SS: What about the bottom ends?
DH: Both cranks are very nice out of the factory. The material they use and the forging process create a very strong crank. We whittle them down to nothing and they hold up to the abuse we put them through. The K-series short block is real stable because of the integrated main caps. The girdle is much more rigid than the B-series. Even the oil pump is stronger in the K. We've ran them up to 10,500 rpm and have had zero oil problems. We still haven't had a failure.
SS: When you first started with the K-series, what challenges and limitations did you face?
DH: The only way you are going to know how close you are to the limits is to blow something up and hurt parts. We haven't had any weird blow- ups except a broken sleeve. Since then we've had a great relationship with Golden Eagle and haven't had problems with their blocks or sleeves. Also, when testing the cam sizes we broke some rockers. We've done so much testing that we know how often we need to change the bearings out. It gets to the point that we have to change the crank because we've worn through the journals.
SS: How about the transmission? How does that hold up?
DH: They have inherently weak gearboxes. You blow up Second gear all the time.
Our differentials don't hold up either.SS: Why did you guys choose to race two cars rather than retiring the Integra?
DH: There's some sentimental factor there.
Frank Balough: I think it's the legacy issue. It's a phoenix if anything. It won't go away and it continues to win.
DH: Maybe it's a personal OCD thing I have. I remember it from the very beginning and every time we ran that car I would think that certain things can be better. I wasn't happy with leaving it the way it was. With that car, I only have one complaint left that I won't get into. Once that's fixed, even the most critical eye will be able to scrutinize that car. There are things I don't like about both cars and they will get fixed. I don't ever want to retire a car and think back about how we didn't change things that we could have.
SS: How similar are both cars?
DH: Very. In terms of performance, if I pulled up the two time slips you wouldn't be able to tell which belonged to which car. The numbers are so close all the way down the track. You'd know that one had a different final drive or something, but that's about it.
SS: What's the significance of the suspension types?
DH: The chassis are totally different, which is the interesting thing. The RSX has a straight axle and the Integra has an independent rear suspension. Both cars are very rigid, which is necessary if you plan on tuning the suspension.
SS: How does that equate for a front-wheel drive drag car?
DH: The primary focus is in the tires. Any compressive movement is going to be in the tires first. The tires are soft little gumballs. The car is going to compress the tires, not the springs. Setting up the front suspension around the tires is crucial. The rear shock valving and wheelie bar height make a big difference. It's interesting that you can take two totally different approaches that can't better each other, but are equal in the end.
By Ricky Chu
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