I'm 17, and just getting into the car thing.. this is my first project, a DX I picked up for $550 with a broken A6 swap and no exhaust.






90-91 tails


Rust. I'm not sure if I should try and weld in something or just clean it up and bondo it. Thoughts?


The wiring was... less than spectacular on the DPFI-MPFI swap. I'm contemplating just buying a new harness... wiring is going to be a bitch on this thing. Expect a shitload of questions.

My plans are to rebuild the motor with ZC pistons, cam, and maybe ITBs. It needs paint, obviously, though I'm having a hell of a time deciding on a color.

Anyway, I'm on a tight budget, but once I get it running and painted I'm going to sell my current daily, an automatic 88. With the engine build and painting out of the way I can do one thing at a time, wheels, new seats, ICE and whatnot. Opinions?

 

Wiring gremlins... Ew...

 

wiring should not be hard. just redo the mpfi parts of it. cut at the ecu and replace to the injectors and resistor box. all in a days work. good luck.

 

If you want to make it a quick daily, go for a swap. That way you have a motor that is mostly stock yet makes a big difference in performance. a 1.6 with ITBs is not exactly going to make a good street car.

 

good luck

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by ProjectDarkBlack &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">If you want to make it a quick daily, go for a swap. That way you have a motor that is mostly stock yet makes a big difference in performance. a 1.6 with ITBs is not exactly going to make a good street car.</TD></TR></TABLE>

You're probably right about ITBs, but I don't have the money for a swap. I've done my research on the motor build and it'll be reliable, and faster than a B16.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by FBS &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

You're probably right about ITBs, but I don't have the money for a swap. I've done my research on the motor build and it'll be reliable, and faster than a B16.</TD></TR></TABLE>

What'r your plans?

 

I &lt;3 SOHC's!!! I like the looks u get when u bust sumone in the *** on the street pull up at the next light and like "what u got in there"!!! tru story. lol

 

If I could do it all over again, I would not have got my b16 swap.

Turbo that a6 man, that is a great engine

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by LankorDie &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"> Turbo that a6 man, that is a great engine </TD></TR></TABLE>

 

I was gonna pick up that rex from Redbaron a while back.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by LankorDie &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Turbo that a6 man, that is a great engine </TD></TR></TABLE>

 

dont bondo over rust cut the bad parts out and weld in some new metal

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by LankorDie &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">If I could do it all over again, I would not have got my b16 swap.

Turbo that a6 man, that is a great engine </TD></TR></TABLE>

I probably will do a turbo A6 in the future, but now I'm just going with P29 pistons, an Exospeed cam and IHE. I might deck the block a bit too, 12:1 compression ftw.

 

Three months later and I finally get started. High school.

Anyway, the motor is coming apart bit by bit. I am a complete automotive virgin; this is the first time I've even seen the guts of a motor. Let me know what I'm looking at, i.e. if anything's wierd/broken.

Engine bay's a mess. I don't know if I'll even try to tidy it up..












Ugh. Orange as hell. Any way to get this off? Is it going to bother anything other than my asthetics?




Any advice for a first-timer is much appreciated.

 

looks like a good build! im also somewhat of a automotive virgin (engine wise that is...) good luck!!! Cant wait to see more of it!

 

Nice, the exterior is in decent condition. I say paint it all white, mabye with black front and back bumpers. Recolate fuse for more room, wire tuck, and clean up the engine bay now when its easy to get to. Trust me, it will look alot better and if you dont do it you will just be mad and would of wished you did it in the future. Also, change the gaskets now before you put it back together and rebuild.

 

love the crx builds. what are your longterm plans?

 

That engine needs alot of work, from the looks of it it had a bad head gasket, and some of your valves look burnt. Do you have the specifications for the engine? I don't have them but i'm sure someone else does... When rebuilding an engine i always print out all the torque specs, the clearences, cylinder bore, everthing... And i put it into a duo tang with plastic covers I'm lame as hell, but i have a passion for honda engines like no other...

The stains on your head can be removed by yourself with simple varsol (cleaning agent for oil) + rag.

When i take apart an engine, i always put all the bolts into labeled zip lock bags, i label them with a piece of masking tape. It works wonders, you never worry about losing a bolt... or whether or not you're using the right bolt, etc... I'll come up with more tips for you later, but those are the basics. Keep everything organized and do things right, don't cut corners cause you'll regret it.

P.S. Every time you take apart an engine you always change the water pump, most people suggest the oil pump, but i just open it up and check the clearances, etc... Timing belt, etc...

Basically a full engine rebuild consists of:

Block:
-Engine Bearings (conn. rod / crank)
-Hot tank the block (very strong chemical used to clean the block, it will look brand new)
-Cylinder re-bore / Honing (machine shop usually hot tanks my blocks and does that for 100$)
-Pistons
-I have never had to re grind a crank on a honda... they're the strongest cranks out there, trust me
-Deck resurfacing (if needed) - this is "flattening" the top of the engine, as over time they become distorted.
-Engine master gasket set (includes every seal, gasket, in your entire engine. Don't get shtty EBAY ones, they're garbage i can tell you from experience... Get OEM. It's worth the price they make you pay... trust me.
-i may have forgotten something, as im typing very fast

Head:

-Head gasket set (again dont use ebay ones... use oem)
-Re-seat the valves, change those that are burnt / dont seal properly anymore
-Resurface the head (same as the block, only do it if needed or if you want to increase compression)
-Check valve springs for install height, install load, etc...


I hope this was helpful, my first engine i rebuilt was a B18a1, it was a blast... i hope you enjoy it as much as i did, it's really exciting.

Have fun bro

 

in your original post you said it has a broken engine, did you find out whats wrong with it?

 

Thanks a bunch AndrePerras

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by civhatch90 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">in your original post you said it has a broken engine, did you find out whats wrong with it?</TD></TR></TABLE>

So far, I haven't found anything. The previous owner said it was low on oil and "making noise," and thought it was a spun bearing. Everything rotates very smoothly, but I have to disassemble the bottom end to find out for sure.

 

NP man, feel free to ask questions around here, the community is awesome. I for one love helping people when i can, and in return others do the same. It's great here.

 

It spun the number 4 connecting rod bearing.



The crank looks pretty good to me, though:




I assume I can get it resurfaced at a machine shop, and buy oversized bearings? Will I need a new rod?

 

Usally, once a crank goes, it gone, even if they are polished, they still spin bearings. Your best be would be to get a new crank.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Got_soy &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Usally, once a crank goes, it gone, even if they are polished, they still spin bearings. Your best be would be to get a new crank.</TD></TR></TABLE>
werd! Dont even risk using that crank, just invest in a new/used one, that never spun a bearing.