zc or dohc head swap on an 89 dx?

[Jonwes]

i really want some more power in my car, and my stock engine already has 190k miles on it, the only prob is im desperately out of cash, still going to high school, working at mcdonalds, and paying for insurance really empties your pocket . anyways i figure i could save up enough to do the swap on my own, another thing i heard of awhile ago, but dont know jack about, is the dohc head swap, where u just pop in some other model head with dohc, of course its prolly not just pop it in, but anyways i was wondering what increases in hp i would get with the header swap, i already know zc's get around 130, but that would probably take a little while longer to save up the cash, still have no clue about the head swap, like how much it would cost me, but hey, thats why im posting, crap guys sorry about the long winded post, anyways again i got a 89 civic dx hatch
thx alot guys

 

[Si_Racer13]

Welcome to Club civic man.

To answer your qusetions. The DOHC ZC is a good engine, especially for boost. The swap usually runs about 800 bucks. Altho the downside is that there is very little aftermarket support for the engines. A SOHC VTEC engine (D16Z6 or D16Y8) put out the same amount of power as the ZC at a cheaper price, and there is a bunch of parts available for these engines. As far as the head swap you were referring to, you can only swap same series engine parts amongst each other. For example a B18B1 or B20B/Z non VTEC engine can have a B16A/B or B18C heads with VTEC put on them. It is also possible to do this with SOHC D series engine, which is usually referred to as the MINI ME swap. People usually swap a D16Z6 or D16Y8 head onto their existing non VTEC engine. And if you are thinking if it is possible to put a B series VTEC head on a ZC it will not work, because the ZC is a D series engine, and B series heads wont work. Also a DOHC ZC head wont bolt up to any SOHC D series engine.

If your confused still, then hit me up on AIM or email me.

 

[Jonwes]

ah, ya was thinking of the mini me swap, just didnt really know much about it , so im guessing the best route for me (again on a very very tight budget) would be to go with the sohc vtec d16z6 or d16y8? if so, what engines do these come out of? are they jdm? btw, i have access to a garage 5 days out of the week, so doing it myself isnt a problem. oh another question, if i were to go with that swap, would i need new headers/exhaust? or will stock fit?

appreciate the help
Jon West