KAOS_2.0SI

so to dispense with the typical "search feature" responses, the search feature doesnt allow me to search JUST the prelude subforums....

SO, we're dealing with an '86 prelude SI with the B20A in it

previous owner was so clever they replaced a section of the coolant system with some of the hose that supplies COLD water to a washing machine and obviously it didnt last very long, just long enough for us to wind up with this thing. it was given to us by a friend who got another car (old kia spectra, if that tells you anything) because she was tired of spending money on this poor poor little lude.

lots of random ancillary issues like the windscreen wiper arm being broken off and having a screw driver shoved in the steering column module, steering column cover is in the trunk, passenger sun shade is in the trunk, about 20% of the interior is in the trunk frankly. wiper arms are stripped because they never go off, needs a driver side CV axle, etc etc etc.... oh and the repaint on it is so faded it looks like it was left in a junkyard since the '60's, well actually, that describes the whole car.

but back to the piece of hose that was $3 a foot at auto zone. well it already had a slight head gasket leak, and the valve cover leaks as well. so we were driving it one day (the cougar's transmission is out while I install a torsen t2 and kevlar clutch, the MPV is apart getting a new water pump, idlers and timing belt) and it seemed to be smoking, I feared the gasket let loose, so we tried to baby it home ( about 3 miles) and then it died at a light. pushed it to a gas station (thank god for a 2400lb curb weight) and then had AAA tow it home. found ridiculous cause of issue, replaced hose. now it's got a miss (water in a cylinder, exhaust is moist) and also a bad exhaust leak (for some reason?) that you can hear from the passenger side.

we pretty much need it to survive long enough to finish the other two vehicles and then I'm going to put an axle and a head gasket on it. I hope to be able to restore it to some level of it's previous glory eventually, but I already have a project car and the MPV is a gas hog. so for now we need this 'lil guy to be a reliable runabout. I'd be happy just to get the 158hp this engine is supposed to put out from the factory. prior to the overheating it "butt dyno'd" around 136 or so, now it's more like 95 and has barely enough torque to move the car in first gear, poor 'lil prelude

in the mean time though I'm going to pull the plugs, find the bad cylinder, and dump in some some head gasket repair in the coolant (I know this is a horrible thing, but ya gotta do what ya gotta do some times) but I'm a bit afraid to mess with the pedcock on the radiator since when I type in "86 prelude coolant drain" in google all I get is 250000 results for replacing them. so I take it this is a part that will crumble in my hands if I fool with it. thing is I have to flush it twice, put in the "liquid mechanic" and then flush it again before I can put in proper coolant. just curious if there's an easy breezy way to drain ALL of the coolant system without fooling around with hoses or breaking more parts.

if a thread exists and you have a link that would be great. also, since I know it needs a proper headgasket job, a link to a thread on timing the engine would be great as well.

also if there's anything odd about doing an axle that I need to know short of doing one on any other fwd, that would also be amazing to know. just sort of trying to figure out what I'm getting into before I break out the tool box and create more problems for my self.

like I said though, all I'm really looking for are links to threads that I'm sure already exist on this forum. I just cant find them because if I look for B20 I get a list of any swap that involved a B20 or a B18 across every platform the B engines can be finagled into...

thanks for listening to my story, any replies will be greatly appreciated

KAOS_2.0SI

174 views and no comments? are there active members on this forum with second gens?

89_accord

I will tell you that if there is any info on the B20A gold top in this forum, its probably either buried somewhere deep down, lost or not even here. If you ask most people here anything about about the B20A, they'll think you're talking about the one on the 3g prelude. I personally don't know a whole lot about that engine either but I do know I want one for my accord! :D I would suggest looking either on preludepower.com or 3geez.com since that engine came in both the 2g prelude and the 3g accord.

Rude Awakening

^ What he said. That B20A isn't related to the B20's you'll read about on here, and further more arent related to the ones in the 3G Prelude. They MIGHT have some part shared like the headgasket you need, but I dont know, the B20A you have fits 2G Prelude's and 3G Accord's and leans forward and has 160PS, the other B20A leans back, and has 135HP. The B20B/B20Z only shares the fact that its a DOHC 2.0 non-VTEC Honda motor.

crazes

when doing the search click advanced and then you will see on the right section sub forums to help with your search. I will say the b20a isn't a very common motor used so it might be buried deep. If you need help let me know and I will see what I can find for you after you have done your searching

KAOS_2.0SI

Thanks for the input guys, I created an account at PP the other day. situation got worse now though, lost most of the oil, coolant level dropped...

anyone know just in general if you can get by re-torquing a head just for a bandaid?

worst case the head is warped, and machining the head will bump CR a bit anyway, so thats fine in the future, even if it winds up on premium fuel later...

I know on my 3 liter ford engine the heads bolts are Torque to Yield, but people will reuse them in a pinch and they hang in there as long as your careful about the torque down procedure. I found the torque down procedure, so I was just wondering if honda headbolts are as resilient...

89_accord

Retorquin the head in this situation will not help, once the head gasket is blown, its blown. The head bolts aren't torque to yield so they will be fine if you reuse them.