D15b7 seized Engine. Rebuild it or rebuild junkyard engine?

Fatherofthree13

New Member
So here is my question. I have acquired a1994 honda del sol with a seized d15b7engine. Do I bore the d15b7out or go with a different engine? I am going to rebuild whatever I put in. I have been wanting to rebuild an engine for quite some time. I figured what better place to start. The del sol looks like it will be a blast to drive plus gas mileage is great for a dd. I am an electrician by trade for the past 20 years and have rebuilt things like tractor tranny,motorcycles, etc. I have just never done acomplete engine. I have all the tools necessary to do this job. I am just looking for pointers on whether or not I should stick with boring block or get junk yard engine to rebuild?
 

lethal6

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What do you mean by boring out? You mean to make it bigger or just talking about re-scoring the cylinder walls?

Doesn't really matter if you rebuild this one or a junk yard one. Sounds like the true internal condition of either one would be unknown at this point. Would need to tear into the internals to find out what is "seized". That could mean anything from a seized valve to a stuck piston to a hydro-locked cylinder. If the block is cracked or there is a hole in the del sol one, I would look else where but if it is in good shape all things considered, I would run with it. Depends on the condition. Same goes for a junk yard one, you have no idea the condition until you get it, then you have already spent the money. Why not start with what you have at least.

Better yet, swap to a bigger engine if you are going to put the time and money into it, but that depends on how much "time" and money you want to put into the project.
 


Fatherofthree13

New Member
I am under the assumption that it's a piston that is seized. I was told the oil light was on and then the engine died. I have tried to turn it over by using a breaker bar on the crankshaft bolt. It is not budging. So I figured that at least one of the cylinder walls would be damaged enough that honing the block would not be enough. I figured it would need to be bored 20,000 over. I agree with what you said about using what I have. There is a machine shop that will bore it for $25 a cylinder plus another $50 to clean it. It's still cheaper than a junk yard engine that I will need to pull myself. Since this is my first rebuild, I am not looking for speed or performance, just reliability. I want to keep cost at a minimum. I figured I will have around $600 in material by the time it's all said and done. I have found a master rebuild kit for less than $400 including oversized piston/rings, timing belt, water and oil pumps. I am hoping to have less than $300 in machine work. It depends on the head. Is there one place that's better than another to get rebuild kits?


What do you mean by boring out? You mean to make it bigger or just talking about re-scoring the cylinder walls?

Doesn't really matter if you rebuild this one or a junk yard one. Sounds like the true internal condition of either one would be unknown at this point. Would need to tear into the internals to find out what is "seized". That could mean anything from a seized valve to a stuck piston to a hydro-locked cylinder. If the block is cracked or there is a hole in the del sol one, I would look else where but if it is in good shape all things considered, I would run with it. Depends on the condition. Same goes for a junk yard one, you have no idea the condition until you get it, then you have already spent the money. Why not start with what you have at least.

Better yet, swap to a bigger engine if you are going to put the time and money into it, but that depends on how much "time" and money you want to put into the project.
 

lethal6

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I would stick with a rebuild kit from Honda for something like this. Online places like Majestic might have them or just google it and see what comes up for OEM. These are cheap to work on but cheap aftermarket stuff can bite you in the ass in the long run. I have always been an advocate for using factory parts unless the need for an upgraded version is there do to performance or lower OEM quality. Like the aftermarket water pumps for german cars that have the metal propeller rather than the plastic nightmare OEM ones.
 


rayej8

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I had the same engine in my hatch and i also came up to the same fork on the road rebuild or get another engine... i decided to go with the d16z6 because i can do a lot more to a z6 than the b7.
 


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