Michael.K.Conte

so i got a 93 del sol. i want to take out the d16 for the J32A2.

i would also like to convert to rwd.

i understand the amount of work and money involved.

i am working with an experienced welder, bodyman, and artisan of the auto world. he is a busy man so i dont want to bother him until i am ready.

i can do the engine swap, but i am wondering about the rwd. i know it has been done many times, but with the engine i am putting in there, can any stock honda/acura/nissan parts from a yard do the job?

I UNDERSTAND I NEED TO FABRICATE LOT OF MY OWN PARTS.


i need it to endure 300+hp and ~250lbs torque.

kaiba

Another dreamer????

Gunmetal_B20_Hatch

iTrader: (9)

most likely...

Look dude, we see these threads all the time and MOST of the time see little to no results. The only thing that I can tell you to do is SEARCH. Weirtech has a RWD conversion going on in the welding/fabrication forum. There are several other threads going around also.

FlatBrokeHatch

No you do not.

8VEYBEYB

you can be the best FAB guy evar but you cant get over the ground clearance , unless you dont like driving anywhere or make the suspension sit like a 4x4 the Ground clearance of the j in a small car like this is ridiculous ,you will hate it when you destroy oil pans and other things. Trust me been there done that , seen RyanA's integra with the J32 and if his **** sat too low a del slo will sit even lower in the front.

my 2 cents.

Vindicator9000

That's my guess. People who have the ***** to do these types of projects don't ask opinions, they just do them and post the build thread. I'll throw in my 2 cents anyway.


First of all, as far as I know, Honda never made a RWD J-series transmission. The way I see it, there are 2 ways you can approach this problem.

A. you'll have to fabricate a bellhousing that mates an existing RWD transmission to a J32. Probably an S2000 transmission. Good luck with that... this sort of thing ain't as easy in the import world as it is with domestics, where you can just mix n match. Swap bellhousings for Hondas are pretty rare unless you're going H2B.

B. Make it rear engined. This isn't as crazy as it sounds. A rear engined H22 DelSol has already been done (somewhat badly), and a rear engined H22 teg has been done (awesomely). No one has ever done a rear engined J32. I like this idea because I think it'll have better weight distribution and more room to play with than a front engined J. There's a lot more vertical space under the back of a DelSol than the front, and I think you'll be able to fit it back there under the stock trunk, hopefully without the oil pan sitting too low.

If you go route A, you'll have to fabricate mounts, probably radiator support, subframe, bellhousing, firewall, transmission tunnel, driveshaft tunnel, reroute the exhaust somehow, and cut out the rear floorpan and fabricate the differential mounts somehow. If you go to the trouble, I suggest using something better than a crappy S2000 diff. You'll also have to cut a big hole in the hood, because I've not yet seen a J-swap that came anywhere NEAR fitting under a stock hood. There's just not enough vertical room. You'll have even more problems with it mounted lengthways.

If you go route B, you'll have to fab mounts, beef up rear floorpan, and rework a front suspension into a solid rear suspension. You'll have to decide where you want the radiator... on the MR Teg, it was in the front, and he ran cooling hoses up to it and back. That idea is probably best, IMO. You'll have to cut and significantly lengthen the engine harness. You'll have to lengthen a ton a vacuum hoses (brake booster, etc), and reroute a ton of things. The advantage to this method though, is that you only have to chop up one half of the car.

Of course, a DelSol is considerably shorter than a Teg. The H22 Teg was actually more or less mid-engined, and the H22 sat mostly where the backseat would have been. On a DelSol, I think you may run into some crazy oversteer due to all the weight hanging past the rear axles, and the shorter wheelbase. No one will really know though, until you start drawing up schematics and trying things out.


EDIT - Just thought of a possible 3rd way: AWD J32 from a TL SH/AWD. Whole different set of problems, starting with sourcing a SH/AWD drivetrain for anything resembling a reasonable price. Not RWD, but whatever, this is never going to happen anyway lol.

98civdx

Are you sure you understand how much of a bitch this is going to be?
Why not just throw a j in and go?

Vindicator9000

lol, well, he says he does.

Even a FWD J isn't exactly an easy swap.

Anyone planning to do a RWD swap on any FWD Honda shouldn't be asking for directions though. There are none. It's doable, but it's been done so rarely, and in different ways every time, that there's not really any guidelines whatsoever.

It's sort of like saying 'I'm about to build my own car from this giant pile of scrap metal. I have $100K to spend. Can someone tell me everything I need to do?'

98civdx

I agree. But it is kind of hard to know if he really can handle it, without knowing some history.

J swaps, are a bitch lol. My freinds dad is working on putting one is his 99 coupe. He wants a v6 dd civic. But he wants my friends and i to do all the work, what a headache

I could only emanage what kind a pain making a fwd drive car rear drive, while haveing a fwd engine, What kind of tranny would he even use?

hondare

that is a crazy idea. but to each there own. Post your progress if you do it.

Michael.K.Conte

alright guys thanks for the good opinions.

look, i do know what im getting into.

i am going to do the j swap for sure. already negotiating the engine/ eveything else for the swap.

if i can get some confirmaton that i could use some parts from a acure tl, i might just pick one of those up and use the engine and all.

look guys, i really do want to do this and i have the time. i have some money saved up, and i know a welder/bodyman the wants to have fun and will help and whatnot for free.

i want to make it rwd cause its more fun the fwd.

98civdx

I hope you do it, make a build thread.
however most of the people on ht wont beable to help much, sence there is only a hand full of rwd civic's and people that know/have the bulls to attempt something such as this.

Samuraij

These guys were able to do a RWD conversion on an EG so maybe you could take some pointers from what they did. Good luck with your project. http://www.importtuner.com/features/...vti/index.html

Vindicator9000

Well, the TL/SH is all wheel drive, but I don't know a ton about how it works. It's NOT RWD. If it's anything like the other AWD Hondas I've seen (wagovans, CRV), then it has an engine and transmission transversely mounted like a normal FWD. As far as I know, there's no way to make it run JUST RWD. Also, if you want a manual transmission, I believe that you're going to have to fork out BIG bucks for brand-new late model Acura parts... I don't think you could get the TL in AWD and manual until the past year or two.

The transmission engages the front wheels like a normal FWD. However, it has a variable center differential that (I believe) runs off of the final drive and exits to a prop shaft out the rear of the transmission. At least, that's how a CRV works. There's where you'll need the driveshaft tunnel. Really, you need to purchase a TL shop manual, and start looking at diagrams hardcore.

Then, you just run the driveshaft to the back and fab in a diff of your choice. People say the wagovan diff works better than the CRV diff because it's gear driven rather than clutch driven. If you're going to the trouble though, I'd consider something better, like a Nissan 240 diff. I know a few of the high HP S2K guys are running them because the S2K diffs don't really hold up too well.

I know my post is full of speculation and maybes, but you're going to have to try things out yourself on this, because there REALLY isn't a wealth of knowledge on it. People who do this research a ton on their own, and then make it up as they go along.

dwgreear

It would be a lot cheaper and easier to buy and modify an MR2 Turbo.

chaos_cascade

MR2 for the win. After you move the gas tank your gonna wind up with a MR2 sized trunk anyway so why not go with a proven platform that can easily give you those numbers. Besides the huge MR2 following and all the rally parts from the Celica alltrac make it a sturdy choice that won't have you spending way more time working on your project then driving it.

Duc_du

for the money i vote buy a rwd car...the sound of it just ridiculous

98civdx

thats what makes it cool.

Gresini

Is this thread going to end this way?

Michael.K.Conte

well, i am checking out other methods, i belive i can get a decent deal on a late model tl and use new motor trans etc...

speaking with my fab guy on sat see what we can come up with

michaelmikewho

Resurectig a dead thread to plug my build; shameless I know guys, but it's moderately applicable.

http://www.j32a.com/showthread.php?p=9714
http://www.mr2.com/forums/engine-swa...thread-12.html
http://mr2oc.com/showthread.php?t=396710&page=4
http://tl.acurazine.com/forums/showt...1#post12449771

rick_rabies

im beginning to feel ashamed to own a honda....
from the lack of encouragement and projects. every says "cookie cutter"
from post 2 to 17 is all badgering.
if you cant help sum1 or given educated advice, at least point them in the direction they should go to accomplish their goals.
maturity has vanished from out generation....................................

EP3Moschini

I agree completely, BUT normally some one who has the abillity to do the project. . . usually does the project THEN makes a thread about it

B18C5-EH2

Look it's entirely possible to make a rear wheel drive J32A-powered Civic - it will just take mad fab skills.

A shop north of Atlanta put an NSX C32A drive train in the back of a CR-X and dubbed it the "CR-NSX" and it ran. This was EIGHT years ago.

You could put a J32A engine and transmission into the back of Civic in much the same manner. Other than figuring out the positioning, the other hard-ish part would be the shifter set-up, but since it's on cables that too can be done easily enough by a skilled fab guy/engineer.

Oh and the reason people are giving the OP crap for this is that if you've been on H-T long enough you've seen DOZENS of these topics, and not a single one has ever come to fruition. Before you say "well so and so did it" yes he did, but he didn't ask about it first on H-T.

As others have stated already, if someone actually has the skills, or knows "an engineer" and a "skilled fabricator" then he would not need to even bother posting a "is it possible?" topic. A truly skilled engineer and/or fab guy should be able to see if its possible. The fact that the OP is even asking makes me think he's nothing more than another dreamer...

Sorry if that's harsh.