94 Civic Si

Plodding along...

I heard back from the machine shop - head is not warped, and pressure tests okay. Exhaust guides are bad, and she definitely needs a valve job.

That is great to hear, glad it is not warped.

Former User

Have you compared prices for buying a replacement head versus the valve job?

galognu

I got my JDM B18C from a place in Toronto for about $700 US. Have considered how much this refresh will add up to?

94 Civic Si

I am not sure if I know the best sources, but from what I saw, I was going to come out ahead by rebuilding, before shipping.

Where do you recommend checking? Thank you!

94 Civic Si

What is the place in Toronto? Yes, cheaper than that.
Good question on total cost. I am on the verge of purchasing all the parts to put engine back together, and am thinking about replacing the steering rack while I have this much access.

It looks like they can be had for ~$350.

My rack is leaking, and the DS tie rod end is loose. It seems like a lot to put into a 1994 vehicle, but they also didn't make a ton of Si, and even fewer of those with ABS.

94 Civic Si

I like to take pictures during projects like this, so here goes!

Hopefully these can help someone else down the road...

The first step:

94 Civic Si

I lift up the front end to start on the crank pulley and what is this?!?

Coolant leak from the complex of coolant hoses that are probably 14 years old. It was time...

94 Civic Si

This is what it is all about, eh?

94 Civic Si

Accessory belts are pretty straight forward.

I was able to break loose the crank bolt with help from the crank pulley socket that was on loan from the local parts store and a long breaker bar. I was worried about this. After I got this loose I figured I could do this.

94 Civic Si

Then I pulled the plugs and turned her over to #1 @ TDC. I know this last step was not necessary as I was pulling the head, but I felt better doing it this way.

94 Civic Si

Next I wanted to make sense of the various coolant lines/vacuum lines/electrical sensors connected to the head and intake - so mainly some shots for reference:

94 Civic Si

Now I felt ready to remove the head and intake together:

94 Civic Si

Nice to see that the cylinders looked pretty uniform, not much variability between holes.

From 1 to 4:

94 Civic Si

There is a lot going on under that intake!

I will get organized here - more on that later.

94 Civic Si

Cylinder bores look nice - cross-hatch still present. No ridge to catch the fingernail, just some carbon build-up:

94 Civic Si

Back at it this past weekend. First I thought I would get organized and label some things. Next I thought I would try the local parts store to see if I could find the right coolant hoses to bridge from a '96 GSR B18 to a '94 Si body. I have heard a few little bits of info, but no clear cut guidance on what hoses to use going to the heater valve and from the heater outlet to the coolant tube that goes under the intake. I will know as soon as some hoses come in this week if I have a match.

When I pulled the heater outlet hose - surprise! I wonder if this is why it never got fully hot inside the cabin when it was full-on winter. That damage had to impede flow through the core:

94 Civic Si

The damage to the heater core was just a typical example of the shoddy work by the outfit that did the swap. I wish I could have done my own work back in 2002, but I was in the middle of a move and job change, so that was not going to happen. Over the years, I have fixed or improved many of the short-cuts they took.

94 Civic Si

Next it was time to remove the carbon scum at the top of each bore and then remove each rod & piston assembly. I need to read up on the code "B2" seen on the crank. I believe that corresponds to the size/color bearings that were used on each main and or rod.

Each assembly tapped out nicely!

Crank shots go 2-3-1-4, in order of removal. I tapped out 2 & 3, then rotated crank.

94 Civic Si

Bearings look pretty nice, with the exception of a groove in #3, I wonder what got in there?
We replaced the crank and rod bearings way back in 2004 with ~150k on the clock. So these bearings have over 100k on them. No wear or scuffing seen. I wish I could remember what we put in, they were a very nice bearing with a special coating on them.

94 Civic Si

Last item while I was under my little Civic - pull the shift rod. If my measurements are correct, if I shorten it 7/16", it should put the shifter back where it was when stock. That has always bugged me!

94 Civic Si

Back up top, I was running out of time on Sunday, but I wanted to get the water pump out - check:

94 Civic Si

Last item for the day - repair the crimped heater core outlet with some expanding snap-ring pliers:

94 Civic Si

I ended up at the local Honda dealer and we had to do some ordering, but I think we found the proper heater hoses.

For the inlet hose going from the cylinder head to the heater control valve, the original hose my '94 Civic Si calls for looks like the fit: 79721-SR3-000 - HOSE A, WATER INLET - HONDA. This hose looks like it fits all the hatchbacks '92-'95, all the 5th gen sedans, '93-'95 Coupes, and '93-'97 del Sol, but not the VTEC del Sols... Interesting.

For the heater outlet hose that connects to the coolant tube that runs under the manifold: 79725-ST7-000 - HOSE, WATER OUTLET - ACURA. This is the heater outlet hose for all the GSRs (sedan and hatch) from '94-'99.

I hope that info can help future searchers.

I am hoping that the heater outlet hose fits well. If it does, I can lose a lot of clutter under the intake - look at the crap they used for the swap - pure booty fab. I wonder if that hose was also obstructing flow out of the heater and contributing to less than ideal heat in the winter?

94 Civic Si

I dropped off the rod assemblies w/ pistons at my machinist last night - got a picture of the head - looks purty!

94 Civic Si

There are a lot of little coolant hoses to replace under the intake.
I thought it would be easiest if I organized the hoses into 3 categories to make sure I ordered all the hoses, and ordered the correct ones!
In my mind there are 3 categories of hoses for my EH3 w/ B18C1:

1. Main cooling system - engine to radiator
2. IAC/throttle body/intake manifold
3. Heater core loop - starts at cylinder head, goes to inlet valve, to core, outlet to the connecting pipe that runs under the intake manifold which connects to the connecting pipe between the water pump and thermostat.

I will detail each in a separate post so I can include some images and part numbers.