hey so i have a 87 civic and im wondering how hard it would be to swap the engine for like a d16y8 or z6

 

unless your a big fan of the flat back i would just sell the car. it can be done though but not many people do it. try and google redpepperracing or something like that its a forum for only the flatbacks.

 

alright ill check that out. me and my friend are going to do it because the engine is all messed up from driving it over heated so it sounds like a good project car and it could look sick if we fixed it up

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by 94accord760 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">alright ill check that out. me and my friend are going to do it because the engine is all messed up from driving it over heated so it sounds like a good project car and it could look sick if we fixed it up</TD></TR></TABLE>
Although yes it is harder, swaps can still be done, try http://www.redpepperracing.com

It's a great site just for 1st gen rexs and 3rd gen civics

 

Find yourself an older browntop zc (no, not a usdm D16a1) and tranny.
135 PS(133hp) and they are as bolt in as you can get. Way easier than any of the vtec and more power.

 

how much would a zc cost and could i find them at junkyards. i'd need the whole engine like tranny,intake manifold,dist.ac and ps and all that right?

 

If you want to go the ZC route, check out http://www.thezcr.com, the site specializes in ZC engines. Not sure how easy you'll be able to find a brown top though, but they're definitely out there. Also check out http://www.redpepperracing.com like the good Capt. says, they have a bunch of good info on 1st gen CRXs/3rd gen Civics.

 

Start doing your research...the info is documented all over the web. For like the 5th time, start at Redpepper.

You won't find a browntop zc at most junkyards. But any decent engine importer will have them.

And don't let someone sell you a usdm D16a1 as a ZC. They bolt in and look the the exact same but there's a 20 hp difference in the ZC's favor.
Now if you're willing to settle for the 113hp D16a1, they're everywhere and can be had for pretty damn cheap.

 

The easiest and cheapest way to do the swap is to get yourself a 1st gen Integra. 86/87 are 113hp brown top (for the brown colored valve cover) and has the vacuum advance just like your car. It's a plug and play. You can use mounts from the civic and integra with 1 notch either in one mount or in the timing cover (your choice). Axles are integra and you swap the spindles to make it all work. Since you just bought the whole integra to do the swap (I've bought 2 and never spent more than $120 for a car), you can swap the front disk brakes (easy) and if you like banging your head against a wall, do the rear disk swap, which would require the integra prop valve and you'd probably want to do the M/C while you're at it.

The next easiest is the 88/89 integra (black top) which is 118hp with a bit more compression and an electronic advance. Both of my donor cars were 89's. I was planning on the swap in a full blown track car so wiring is completely exposed, so I can remove the entire harness in about 20 minutes. A bit more work on the wiring, but the rest is easy.

The advantages of the D16 series swap is that you get higher revs with the dual cam and the tranny ratios are far better. I did not do one of those swaps as I've yet to find an engine that would survive my torture test without any problems at all. I did driver a 1st gen CRX a couple weeks ago and it was better than the d15 but it's not like you just got into a Vette. I'm now working on a B18c1 which is waaaaaaaaaay more work and lots more question marks.

I don't know if it's been said :D but redpepperracing has the stickies on this swap. It ain't hard or expensive. Oh, by the way....sell off the rest of your teg parts on redpepper and on G1teg.

jack

 

screw the zc. get yourself a b20 from a crv. cheap and torquey. plus you can add vtec if you want. or if you want to keep the tranny you have, get a d16y8. cheap vtec power with an option to turbo.