i am thinking of getting an str blockguard or a nuformz one... but i dont know which one is better. give me some opinions on what you think....

 

Just run without it, it's not worth your time and effort. I had (still have) the STR one and it was the worst choice I ever made. $100 STR block guard=$1000 in engine work. My cylinders were warped by installing it and the then headaches begun. Spend your $100 on some dyno time. Just my opinion.

 

A properly installed blockguard won't warp your cylinder walls (banged it in with a hammer ? heh heh) A block guard is great to keep the walls stable under boost, even if it is just tapped in. (if it's welded, you should really alignhone the walls to clean up any warpage and surface abberation from the welding)

The STR design is very good with large cooling passages and I think the nuformz is a knock off of that design, but don't quote me on that.

If you are gonna do it yourself, the only tip I can give you to avoid fitment issues is to drop the blockguard in the freezer for a half day or so to get it to shrink a bit (very little but it's initial fitment will be much easier)

 

Does anyone know how much it would cost for a proper install?? Welding, alignhone, etc. Thanks

 

STR

 

nuformz was the first company to make a blockgaurd

 

dont half ***, if your gonna need a block guard, have it resleeved.

 

When I bought my teg, it came with an STR blockguard, but when the previous owner installed it, he didn't line it up with the head gasket and drill any additional holes that were needed in order for the water to pass through. So what happened? It gave me warped cylinder walls. And I was the lucky one to find out about the damage AFTER i bought his car oh well.. my block is getting fixed and resleeved now.. and a NEW blockguard will be installed with holes following the head gasket holes so that water can pass through!

btw, i know that blockguards do their job, as i went through 2 shortblocks on my Civic before installing a blockguard. Since then, i've never had any broken, warped, or cracked cylinder walls. I think those people here who have had bad experience with them just didn't get them installed properly.


[Modified by turbopanda, 9:00 PM 5/26/2002]

 

well it dont need to be resleized its a 99 si we are workin on i was just wondering how people liked or disliked the block gaurd we are thinking we are gonna leave it for a while with stock internals

 

If you're running stock internals, then you absolutely should put in a blockguard for extra support to the cylinder walls. My Civic is running stock shortblock, hasn't been resleeved or anything, all it has is a blockguard.

 

the block guard is a good investment if installed properly.

tip: when installing it do not hammer it in get a dremel and make it fit grind it and it will fit perfectly.

 

kinda OT... but has any one here heard of KMS Engine Dev block guards? They sell for pretty cheap on ebay.