i've got a b16 with a built head and a bone stock bottom end. i've been looking for a block to rebuild to give my cams some more compression to work with. i was trying to decide between a b16 (low price, fits well in my engine bay, rev happy) and a b18c (pricier, taller, 1.58:1 r/s ratio, but more power). well, neither of those have popped up for sale in my local area in the last year or so, but i just caught wind of a b17 block, crank, and rods for sale. now this seems promising to me. same deck height, half the price of a b18c, 1.62:1 r/s ratio, and .1 more liters.

i'm looking for around 11.5:1 CR, does anyone have some piston recommendations? is there anything else i need to think about that's unique to the b17 block? is the extra displacement worth the lower r/s ratio?

 

you can use the pistons from the b16 to bump the compression up dont quote me but i think around 11.0, b17 are rare and the cranks and rods can be used in a b16 block if you didnt know now u do, also i think the b17 puts down around 120 tq but like i said not to sure not to many people have these motors i think honda should have put these in the 99-00 si's in stead of the b16 esentiall the same motor with a slightly longer stroke, same head and i believ the same cams as b16. if its going in a crx you will be happy have an aquantince who has one in a crx and he runs consitint mid 14's with basic bolt ons. you should be happy with the setup.

 

I would recomend P30 pistons

 

p30 pistons seem like a good choice... probably around 11.0:1. it's looking like CTR pistons would put me around 12.2:1, which i think would be a bit too high for my tastes.

 

I thought b17 cams were better than b16

 

i don't know of any difference between the cams, but i'm keeping my b16 head, so it's a non-issue.

 

The b17 cams are almost identical in lift and duration as the b18c1 cams.

 

Don't use OEM pistons, unless they are new and free. Think aftermarket pistons and rods. (Wiseco/SRP) The aftermarket pistons are lighter and the rods are much stronger. This will allow you to rev higher with less stress.

 

but oem is so cheap!

 

Think 8 to 12 hp gained.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by mar778c &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Think 8 to 12 hp gained.</TD></TR></TABLE>


8-12hp from only lighter pistons....yeah right. Stick with the oem stuff and spend the extra money on real power like a quality header.

 

Ah yeah, aftermarket piston and rods add HP.
But I guess reductions in recipating mass makes no difference.

 

You can't put a horsepower number on something like that. The pistons are lighter and rods usually heavier. Any power gains are realized by better dome shape and cylinder sealing. If you want to reduce reciprocating mass get a flywheel.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Runnerdown &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">You can't put a horsepower number on something like that. The pistons are lighter and rods usually heavier. Any power gains are realized by better dome shape and cylinder sealing. If you want to reduce reciprocating mass get a flywheel. </TD></TR></TABLE>

Both pistons and rods should be lighter than oem at least on the combinations I've dealt with. A reduction in piston and rod mass lowers the "Friction Mean Effctive Pressure" which increases "Brake Mean Effective Pressure" thereby increasing horsepower(1). I don't disagree with your point about dome shaping or better sealing ie rollerwave pistons and new rings.

(1) The Internal Combustion Engine in Theory and Practice, p 313.

 

Now this has just gotten silly. Theories and books aside, common aftermarket rods ans pistons will NOT give him a 8-12 hp increase from weight savings. Its clear that we disagree, lets let this thread continue in a productive manner.

 

ok back on topic,

yea with p30's compression should be right around 11:1, maybe do a resurface on your head and bring it like around 11.3:1 or so, which should be decent but still do able on pump gas.

i would love to have a b17/b16 combo in my car, though i would be running it under boost on low compression

 

Hey why were on the topic i was gonna ask, could i buy ITR cams and install them on my b16 head?, cause that would be wicked as hell. :D

 

yes. I have civic type R cams for sale which are actually more agressive.. make an offer!

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by JZPerformance &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">yes. I have civic type R cams for sale which are actually more agressive.. make an offer! </TD></TR></TABLE>
$35 bux... don't like my offer... tell me how much you want and we will go from there.

 

Are you telling me that civic type R b16b cams will fit in first gen b16's?. i din't know

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Runnerdown &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">You can't put a horsepower number on something like that. </TD></TR></TABLE>

True, you cannot simply put a number on how much power you gained by lighter piston/rod combo, but mar778c is right nonetheless. There's a lot of threads on this guys, read up.