I am thinking about swapping in a ZC into my 89 civic. The only problem is that it is an automatic. Could I use my tranny with a ZC motor, or do I have to get a different one? Also, If I have swap in a manual, how much time and money does it cost? What parts would I need?

 

not sure about the tranny, but as long as the spline counts are the same then i wouldn;t think you would have a prob. however if you are going to go thro all the trouble of putting a higher performamce engine into your car, you might want to think about getting a manual trans as well. for this you will need to obtain the following: (this might not be a complete list)
new tranny mount
new pedal set
clutch cable
hole in firewall for cable to run thro (might already be there from the factory, i dont really know)

and of course u'll need a clutch assembly as well. geez, now that i type it all out, i DOES sound like quite a bit of time and money.

 

what is the spline count for every year tranny and model......?

 

You will also need the shift linkage, shifter, a flywheel, flywheel bolts and clutch bolts. The only thing the spline count will affect will be the clutch selection. I believe that the 88's were 21 spline and the 89-91 were 20. Someone verify that for me.

 

If you were to swap a Automatic tranny to a ZC, their is nothing you would worry about (spline counts) you will just bolt on the flexplate and torque convertor from your old setup directly onto your new zc setup. Its pretty easy.

If you were to convert to a manual, there are a few things you have to do,

clutch cable, linkage/shifter, a ecu to support 5speed, flywheel clutch kit (for whatever year tranny you plan to get) Axles depending on what tranny you get (zc or si) Rough price:
probably an extra 800 bucks to fully convert...
Not including labor.

Jeff

 

Thanks guys. You gave me a lot of helpful information.