Honda RA163E

The Honda RA163E is the Formula One engine with which Honda began its second era in grand prix racing in 1983; the article on it also covers its successor, the RA164E. It was derived from the RA260E Formula Two engine by cutting the stroke from 52.3 to 39.2 millimetres to bring the displacement under the 1,500 cc limit, and by adding a turbocharger. The result is a water-cooled 80 degree V6 with DOHC and 24 valves, displacing 1,496 cc with a bore of 90.0 millimetres, a compression ratio of 6.6 and more than 600 PS at 11,000 rpm. The extreme short-stroke layout left a flat combustion chamber that often burned its fuel incompletely, and Honda changed the turbocharger supplier from KKK to IHI. In 1983 it raced only in the Spirit 201 and 201C, while the improved RA164E carried the Williams FW09 and the early FW10 until the new RA165E replaced it in 1985.