Swap advice

[DaltonSD]

In two weeks, I'm going to have a 1990 civic hatch. My buddies parents are buying him a new car after spring break, and hes sellin the hatch to me for $600. He drives it to school every day,so its fairly reliable.
The car is a 4 speed, and slow as balls, so of course I plan on swapping the engine. Probably a B series because I've read its a fairly simple swap compared to something big like an H22.
My first idea was to just do a B16 swap. Fairly cheap, decent power, amazing aftermarket following, and from what I've read, easy to install. This will be my first REAL build / swap by myself, so I want something fairly simple. ( I plan on keeping it all motor as well )
Another one of my buddies thinks a B18B would be a better choice for me tho. He had one in his integra, and loved it. He thinks that I'll like not having vtec, because the torque / low end being so good. I have done some research, and those engines are pretty beast like with a stage 2 or 3 cam in them. =p
What do you guys think I should go with? I know in the end its my car and I'm going to be happy with what swap I do, I just thought I would get some advice from a few Honda heads.

Thanks!

-Dalton

 

[White90EF]

i would just start with the ls(B18A1) but thats just what im doing...i like the torque that comes along with it.....cuz if i end up not liking the non-vtec i can always do ls/vtec for more power and have v-tec

 

[psychotic_civic]

first off if youre a swap virgin stick to something simple like the B series as you stated. Also do not listen to others when they say all you gotta do is slap a Vtec head for LS Vtec. Its MUCH more complicated than that. Like the rod/stroke ratio is horrible on a LS/Vtec and it cause the pistons to go up at an angle instead of straight up and down. This causes the rod bolts to stretch and can cause spun bearings and gouged cylinder walls. Do it right and use ARP rod bolts and head studs at bare minimum...i recommend using all forged internals for LS/Vtec.

H series into a EF is more trouble than what its worth IMO

B series...i would go LS with boost or B16 NA or boost. If you want torque then go B20 all the way with B16 tranny. People will debate to the death about the B20s thin cylinder walls but as long as you tune the car by someone who knows their stuff then you should be fine. Ive seen B20s have over 400whp and be reliable. But if youre hell bent on NA and want a mildly priced platform then i say go B16. It already has high compression and responds very well to bolt ons bc of the high cr.

D series...if you want a descent setup and are willing to go boost. I might suggest the JDM D15B. it has the most HP stock of all the D series and Vtec engagement is almost B16ish. They are dirt cheap...i got my whole swap(motor, tranny, ecu, wiring harness) for $1000 shipped to my house. Also you can use the tried and true Vitara setup as well. Get some Vitara pistons and rings off ebay for $100 then get some forged tuner toy rods for $250 and have fun laying down 300+ to the wheels. Also it is a direct swap, no hidden costs of mounts or trying to piece together a swap

 

[DaltonSD]

first off if youre a swap virgin stick to something simple like the B series as you stated. Also do not listen to others when they say all you gotta do is slap a Vtec head for LS Vtec. Its MUCH more complicated than that. Like the rod/stroke ratio is horrible on a LS/Vtec and it cause the pistons to go up at an angle instead of straight up and down. This causes the rod bolts to stretch and can cause spun bearings and gouged cylinder walls. Do it right and use ARP rod bolts and head studs at bare minimum...i recommend using all forged internals for LS/Vtec.

H series into a EF is more trouble than what its worth IMO

B series...i would go LS with boost or B16 NA or boost. If you want torque then go B20 all the way with B16 tranny. People will debate to the death about the B20s thin cylinder walls but as long as you tune the car by someone who knows their stuff then you should be fine. Ive seen B20s have over 400whp and be reliable. But if youre hell bent on NA and want a mildly priced platform then i say go B16. It already has high compression and responds very well to bolt ons bc of the high cr.

D series...if you want a descent setup and are willing to go boost. I might suggest the JDM D15B. it has the most HP stock of all the D series and Vtec engagement is almost B16ish. They are dirt cheap...i got my whole swap(motor, tranny, ecu, wiring harness) for $1000 shipped to my house. Also you can use the tried and true Vitara setup as well. Get some Vitara pistons and rings off ebay for $100 then get some forged tuner toy rods for $250 and have fun laying down 300+ to the wheels. Also it is a direct swap, no hidden costs of mounts or trying to piece together a swap

Thanks for all the advice man!
I'll look into the D15B!

 

[psychotic_civic]

Ebay has a ton of them...like "buy it now" for 700 then bout 300 to ship....i had one in my CX hatch and had it on 8psi on stock internals and that thing could really scoot. imagine 300+ to the wheels on the Vitara setup

 

[white89hatch]

you could also do a zc swap. Its a direct bolt in.

 

[psychotic_civic]

^^^ dang how could i forget the ZC???? yep theres yet another route haha gotta love honda/acura....they make our lives a living hell tryin to find out what combo to do next

 

[91civicfreak]

turbo d with vitara would kick ass.

 

[1988DX]

d series

 

[bud6770]

If you have the time and patience, b16 all the way =] If not the d15b is great, i have a d15b on stock internals at 6lbs of boost and its decent =]

 

[DerekB2200]

91 Civic Si B16a1 swap

When swapping a B16a1 into a 91 Civic Si hatch, will the JDM intermediate shaft work with 90-93 integra axels? Or will I need to find a 90-93 integra intermediate shaft? Also, I've noticed that most B series aftermarket headers do not have an O2 censor bung at the top of the header near the head, like most D series headers do. Will this cause any problems with the swap? Or do I just thread the #1 O2 censor into the bung on the back of the header, and add my #2 O2 censor somewhere further back on the exhaust? Any useful info about this swap would be appreciated. Thanks

 

[Tom]

first off if youre a swap virgin stick to something simple like the B series as you stated. Also do not listen to others when they say all you gotta do is slap a Vtec head for LS Vtec. Its MUCH more complicated than that. Like the rod/stroke ratio is horrible on a LS/Vtec and it cause the pistons to go up at an angle instead of straight up and down. This causes the rod bolts to stretch and can cause spun bearings and gouged cylinder walls. Do it right and use ARP rod bolts and head studs at bare minimum...i recommend using all forged internals for LS/Vtec.

H series into a EF is more trouble than what its worth IMO

B series...i would go LS with boost or B16 NA or boost. If you want torque then go B20 all the way with B16 tranny. People will debate to the death about the B20s thin cylinder walls but as long as you tune the car by someone who knows their stuff then you should be fine. Ive seen B20s have over 400whp and be reliable. But if youre hell bent on NA and want a mildly priced platform then i say go B16. It already has high compression and responds very well to bolt ons bc of the high cr.

D series...if you want a descent setup and are willing to go boost. I might suggest the JDM D15B. it has the most HP stock of all the D series and Vtec engagement is almost B16ish. They are dirt cheap...i got my whole swap(motor, tranny, ecu, wiring harness) for $1000 shipped to my house. Also you can use the tried and true Vitara setup as well. Get some Vitara pistons and rings off ebay for $100 then get some forged tuner toy rods for $250 and have fun laying down 300+ to the wheels. Also it is a direct swap, no hidden costs of mounts or trying to piece together a swap

i;'m a little lost here, and yes i could be wrong, but why would you change teh rod bolts out?, isn't the LS/Vtec just putting the vtec head on a LS block, which only requires a oil conversion kit since teh block needs drilled, thus not having to touch the rods, perhaps you may mean to use ARP head stud, but correct me if i'm wrong and point me to info showing me where i'm confused.

 

[White90EF]

i;'m a little lost here, and yes i could be wrong, but why would you change teh rod bolts out?, isn't the LS/Vtec just putting the vtec head on a LS block, which only requires a oil conversion kit since teh block needs drilled, thus not having to touch the rods, perhaps you may mean to use ARP head stud, but correct me if i'm wrong and point me to info showing me where i'm confused.

i think it was just the way he said it which got you confused lol...the way you said it is probably what he was thinking lol and type it wrong lol

 

[puertorican#1]

i have a 90 hatchback with a integra b18b1 and this is the best engine for this type of car because the hp and the 1.8 engine so i said the if you want to do some work with that car put the b18 and then talk to me if you don't liked