I was contemplating making a frankengine using a 97-98 CRV bottom end ( B20B ), with a 94-95 GSR head ( B18C ). I'm installing this into a 93 civic Si. But I'm not sure how much work is involved, and I had a few questions that hopefully someone can answer.

How does the weight of a B20B w/ GSR head compare to the wieght of a GSR engine? If it is much heavier I will probably just get a GSR swap because I do not want to sacrifice any handling performance.

What ECU would I use? I assumed that I would use the ECU that corresponded to the head, i.e. GSR. But I read in a Honda Tuning article that said, "The proper VTEC ECU is the ECU for the VTEC model of your vehicle." Does that mean that I would continue to use the same ECU that I'm using with my D16Z6? That doesn't sound right to me.

Which transmissions / axles will mate to the CRV block? Can I use any B-series tranny?

What kind of machining would need to be done to the head or to the block to get them to fit?

What sort of horsepower / torque ratings should I expect at the wheels?

 

the weight will be about the same. they are the same block, the only difference is that the crv has an LS crank and its bored to 84.5mm. thats it.

any b-series tranny will work. i suggest the ITR if you can afford it. b16a tranny is also good.

gsr axels will work fine.

for machining, vtec oil lines and stuff like that. not too much. they fit together just fine.

ive seen horsepower around 180 - 220 and torque 140 - 160.

as for the other questions, i dont know.

its a good setup, good luck on it

 

Actually, the bore is 84mm, not 84.5mm.

 

http://www.crvtec.com/index.php?section=head
great info in crvtec

 

[/QUOTE]What ECU would I use? I assumed that I would use the ECU that corresponded to the head, i.e. GSR. But I read in a Honda Tuning article that said, "The proper VTEC ECU is the ECU for the VTEC model of your vehicle." Does that mean that I would continue to use the same ECU that I'm using with my D16Z6? That doesn't sound right to me.[/QUOTE]

magazines suck esp honda tunning btw yhere was a thread about that article and that a magazine that only does hondas (actully just a spin on scc) doesn't know sh!& about hondas, just use an obd 1 ecu (gsr, or dohc del sol)

 

Sorry just have to ask a qestion on something that got me thinking. So in actcuality a B20 is nothing more than a B18A/B bored out to a 2.0L or 84mm, since it shares the same crank as an LS? So could I just bore my B18A out to a 2.0 and it technically be a B20, or are the B20s sleeved different? Do they share the same rods as an LS?

 

So based on this info, i can use a ITR or GSR crank in a B20 block??

 

they're a different sleeve setup forsure and i'm quit certain that they bigger too (in the b20).
http://www.c-speedracing.com/howto/lsvtec/lsvtec.html

fire up a top view pic of the ls block and compare it to a top view of the b20 block and it really looks like the b20 water jackets are narrower.

 

b20 sleeves are much thicker! Check out the damn website, it will tell you anything you'd want to know about crvtec

 

Ok...i went to the site and red up about CRVtec. But it doesn't say what crank to use. Does anyone have any inputs on this? This crank will need to be strong enough for 8500 rpm.

 

Did you not read, it recommends the b20b/z crank for all applications (n/a or f/i)
because of the torque...
I heard b17a crank is good too

And the b18b block is very similar to the b20 exept that the b20 have a bigger bore (84mm) and the cylinder walls are thicker, making the b20 shortblock quite durable..