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Spoon Engines: 5 Redefining Performance Standards

6 minutes read

Every ‘Fast and Furious’ fan knows this key scene where we find out that Hector’s Honda Civics have some serious power under the hoods to DECIMATE the competition at Race Wars.

The Spoon engine is something of a fantasy for serious JDM (Japanese Domestic Market) fans in North America, but it is very real. It’s like how you can’t even import HKS exhaust parts, BEE*R engine control systems, or even the legendary R34 GT-R.

Most people can’t even buy the engine in Spoon, but if you had the chance to drive a car with one, who could say no?

Spoon Engine

What is a Spoon Engine?

A Spoon Engine is a high-end Honda engine that has been changed a lot. Spoon engines can match the power and speed of race cars.

The Japanese tuning company “Spoon Inc.” made this engine. Tatsuru Ichishima came up with the idea for this company. He wanted to use his favourite base, the third-generation Honda Civic hatchback, to make badass race cars.

When the 6th generation Honda Civic Type R came out, it was clear that Honda Motor Co. had learned from the Spoon game. They basically made a race car that you could buy on Friday, drive to races on Saturday, win on Sunday, drive home on Monday, and take your kids to school on Tuesday.

We don’t know how Spoon felt about this, but real race car fans always like it when their work gets noticed. Plus, the new Type-R gave Spoon less work to do in terms of chassis dynamics because it had a better starting point.

Must Read : Rack and Pinion Leak – Symptoms and How To Fix It

How do Spoon Engines work?

Tatsuru Ichishima started this business because he wanted to make badass race cars from his favourite platform, the third-generation Honda Civic hatchback.

He took the 1.6-liter ZC engine apart and tweaked it so that it now has over 230 horsepower, which is a 100% increase. Then, starting in 1988, he started racing these Civics in the Japanese Touring Car series, where not even Honda had a car.

Everything they had learned about making race cars could be used on the then-new Honda NSX, which beat the competition in races all over the world right away.

What kinds of cars have a Spoon engine?

Even so, they still made it crazy. 11,000 RPM, and it weighs 1984 pounds when it’s empty. That’s more than enough to start working on that annoying Dodge Challenger.

After this Civic came the Honda S2000 and later versions of the Honda Civic, both of which are well-known cars. If you wanted to drive the best Honda in the world, you were pretty much going to end up driving a Spoon.

Parts of a Spoon Engine

Spoon engines are modified engines that are used in circuit racing. They have special Spoon parts. Because of how precise these races are, these parts are made with very little room for mistake.

To make a Spoon Engine, the following parts are polished and put in the right places:

Parts for aeroplanes
Plates with a gusset
Body throttle
Head Seals
The driveshafts
Put on the brakes

The goal of the refining and balancing method used to make Spoon Engines is to make the parts work better and get rid of any flaws they might have.

How much does it cost to buy a spoon engine?

The Nengun Performance Site says that a race-ready Spoon K20A motor costs around $11,000, plus the cost of shipping and packing.

That’s a lot of money for a motor, but it’s not too bad when you think about:
How well you think your money is being spent
If your car has a real, well-maintained Spoon engine, you could get a lot more money for it.

A wrecked Civic might cost you $1000, but with an engine, suspension, cage, wheels, tyres, and brakes, you can turn it into a one-of-a-kind, $20k supercar that can beat Porsche. (Just don’t listen to the people who call it a “ricer car”).

What are you going to buy with the rest of your money?

Mugen vs. Spoon

Even though you know about Spoon now, Mugen was another Japanese car company that started up around the same time as Spoon. Mugen was started by the son of the man who started Honda. They made high-end race parts for Honda cars and bikes, and just like Spoon, they started winning races.

FAQ’s

How do spoon engines work?

A Spoon Engine is a high-end Honda engine that has been changed a lot. Spoon engines can match the power and speed of race cars. A lot of car parts are made by Spoon and Honda Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) parts.

What kind of horsepower does a spoon engine have?

On average, a spoon engine has 260 bhp at 8500 rpm.

Can a spoon engine be made faster?

Yes. But that might be too much, since it might not always increase the power of Spoon’s engine. Spoon engines are made to work well and quickly at high speeds. So putting a turbo on a Spoon engine will make the compression too high, which makes the engine more likely to explode.

What kinds of cars use spoon engines With parts And Prices?

The Spoon engine is in the following Honda cars

Fit Honda

The tiny Honda Fit doesn’t look like much of a car, but when Spoon gets its hands on one, it turns into a high-performance machine worth praising! Some parts are available for the first generation (2001–2007), but the second and third generations are well-stocked until 2020.

Costs and Parts

$725 for a roof spoiler.
$575 for a tail silencer
$90 for a thermostat
$1260 gets you a Venturi Big Throttle Body.
$110 for a sports wiper blade
$500 for Progressive Spring

Brake hose sets, bumpers, air cleaners, brake pads, head covers, intake chambers, and a few smaller improvement kits.

CR-Z Honda

The CR-Z was a fun hot hatch, but it only lasted from 2011 to 2016 (six model years). Still, Spoon has tried to pay tribute to this Honda by making a good number of kits—around two dozen.

Costs and Parts

$1,290 for a Damper Kit (Fix Type).
Set of drive shafts: $2,790
$1,990 for a carbon bonnet
High Camshaft Kit without ECU: $1,765
The High Camshaft and ECU Kit costs $2,520.
Red/yellow Intake Chamber – $655
$1,260 gets you a Venturi Big Throttle Body.
Front Stabiliser – $355

Integra Honda Acura

Even though the old-school Integra hasn’t been made for about 15 years, that doesn’t mean Spoon doesn’t like it. There are 30–40 different parts for cars made between 1992 and 2001. Let’s look at some of them.

Parts and Costs

Carbon Lip Spoiler is $1,280
Clutch Disc (Metal) – $500
$3,355 for Cross Gear Set
Full Damper Kit (Spec) – $2,900
$525 for a Fly Wheel
Repair parts for LSD cost $65
Set of monoblock callipers: $1,650
$2,750 for the N1 Muffler Kit

Accord Honda

Spoon covers Accord models made between 2000 and 2011. Most parts are available for the 7th and early 8th generation (2002 to 2008). Since the Accord is not as famous as the Civic, there are just over a dozen parts for it.

Costs and Parts

$1,990 for a carbon hood.
Spoon Front Brake Pad ($290)
S-Tai Front Bumper ($2,045)
$445 gets you a 4in2 Exhaust Manifold.
$160 for a 2P head gasket

Can I make a spoon-powered car?

No. Here’s the thing: if you want to change or fit an engine to your needs, you could buy any of the specialised Spoon motor parts. But an engine is only a Spoon engine if it is put together at the Spoon Sports plant in Japan.

So, officially, you can’t build a Spoon engine even if you bought and used Spoon parts to build an engine. A good option to building your own engine could be to get a spoon engine swap.