If you’re a fan of car racing movies, you’ve likely come across the concept of the Spoon Engine. In these cinematic races, it’s usually shown as a performance-enhancing feature that propels cars to outperform their rivals. However, Spoon Engines also exist in real-world technologies installed into specific vehicles. This article deeply explains the Spoon engine.
What is a Spoon Engine?
A Spoon Engine is a high-end and extremely modified Honda engine. Spoon Engines have the capacity to match the performance of racing cars in terms of power and speed.
This engine was developed by the Japanese tuning company “Spoon Inc.”. This company was the brainchild of Tatsuru Ichishima, who wanted to build badass race cars out of his favorite platform, the third-generation Honda Civic hatchback.
Upon the release of the 6th generation Honda Civic Type R, Honda Motor Co. was obviously taking notes on the Spoon game. They basically created a race car directly from the factory that you could buy on Friday, win races on Saturday, drive home on Sunday, and then take your kids to school on Monday.
While we don’t know exactly how Spoon felt about this introduction, true race car fans always appreciate when their work is noticed, and hell, Spoon had less work to do in the way of chassis dynamics with a better starting point in the new Type-R.
Spoon Engines Parts
A Spoon Engine refers to an engine designed for circuit racing through the careful integration of specific Spoon components. These components are manufactured with exceptional care due to the exacting demands of competitive racing.
A Spoon Engine is meticulously assembled by using the following elements:
- Aero parts
- Gusset plates
- Throttle body
- Head gaskets
- Driveshafts
- Brakes
The outcome is a vehicle equipped with an impressive 11,000 RPM rev limit, making it a challenging contender in terms of power and speed when compared to normal racing car engines.
The main purpose of the refinement and balancing process in creating Spoon Engine is to enhance component capabilities while removing any inherent faults.
This process effectively addresses common problems found in “ordinary” cars, such as power delivery inconsistencies, power loss due to inefficiencies, and suboptimal engine and throttle responses. Consequently, the tuned engine exhibits swifter revving, extended longevity, superior management of high RPMs, and eventually improved performance.
What Cars Have Spoon Engines?
Spoon Engines are derived from standard Honda vehicle engines. While Spoon parts are primarily designed for a select range of Honda engines, it’s possible to adapt and customize a Honda Spoon engine to fit into other vehicles, although with fluctuating degrees of effort involved.
This exclusivity to Honda engines can be attributed to the collaborative partnership between Spoon Sports and Honda.
Following Honda cars have the Spoon engine:
- Honda Fit
- Honda CR-Z
- Honda Acura Integra
- Honda Accord
- Honda Civic
- Honda S660
- Honda S2000
- Honda N-One
How is a Spoon Engine Made?
Rather than undergoing a complete overhaul, a Spoon engine closely resembles the original engine found in a vehicle. The enhancement process primarily involves the incorporation of aftermarket Spoon components, similar to a performance alteration rather than a complete engine replacement.
However, it is technically achievable for individuals to buy each component and assemble the engine themselves, this approach doesn’t meet the official criteria for being legally designated as a Spoon engine.
Spoon engines are, in essence, highly modified OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) engines. Instead of developing a wide variety of their own products, some Spoon parts are OEM parts with fewer margins of error. They’re more precise, one could consider.
The engine components are balanced and later weighed with the precision of +/- 0.01 grams (which is the Honda specification). In technical terms, it’s described as “really, really precise.”
Reports show that all bolts and nuts will be torqued to a precise level of +/-1 Nm. Most average torque wrenches you can find in parts or hardware stores will be able to handle a tolerance of about +/- 2%, which is significantly greater than an expert tool.
How much does a Spoon Engine cost?
According to information from the Nengun Performance Site, a race-spec Spoon K20A engine carries an approximate price tag of $11,000, excluding handling and shipping fees.
While this may seem like a substantial investment for an engine, it becomes a convincing proposition when you consider the following factors:
- The resale potential of your vehicle significantly increases if it contains an authentic and well-maintained Spoon engine.
- The level of performance you receive in exchange for your investment is remarkable.
- You can acquire a totaled Civic for as low as $1,000. After installing a Spoon engine, maintaining the brakes, adding a roll cage, fitting specialized wheels and tires, upgrading the suspension, and you’ll transform it into a one-of-a-kind supercar capable of outperforming a Porsche, all while keeping your total investment around $20,000.
FAQ Section
What Is a spoon engine?
A Spoon Engine is a high-end and extremely modified Honda engine. Spoon Engines have the capacity to match the performance of racing cars in terms of power and speed. A lot of automotive parts are actually Spoon automobile parts, in combination with Honda OEM parts.
How much HP does a spoon engine have?
The horsepower output of a Spoon engine isn’t standardized; it varies depending on the specific engine type and the extent of adjustments applied. Nevertheless, when investing in a complete Spoon engine, you may expect a power range typically spanning from 250 to 500 horsepower.
Can you turbo a spoon engine?
Yes. But that could be overkill because it might not always boost Spoon engine power. Spoon engines are designed for high-speed performance and reliability. So getting a turbo done on a Spoon engine will lead to excessively high compression, which increases the engine’s risk of detonating.
What cars have spoon engines?
Following Honda cars have the Spoon engine:
- Honda Fit
- Honda CR-Z
- Honda Acura Integra
- Honda Accord
- Honda Civic
- Honda S660
- Honda S2000
- Honda N-One
Can I build a spoon engine?
No. Here’s the thing, you could buy any of the specialized Spoon motor parts when looking to modify or fit an engine to your specifications. However, an engine must be assembled at the Spoon Sports factory in Japan to be considered a Spoon engine.
So technically, you can’t build a Spoon engine even if you bought and used Spoon components in building an engine. Getting a spoon engine swap might be a great alternative to building one yourself.
What did Hector buy in Fast and the Furious?
Three Honda Civics that have spoon engines. In addition, the guy just went to Harry’s and placed an order for three T66 turbos and NOS.