I'm new to civics and just got a 96 civic ex automatic 4dr (first car) with a d16a SOHC non vtec engine. I've been reading about mini me swaps on y7's and y8's. I wanted to know what if any head can I put on to give my car a lil more kick and add vtec or would that just be a waste of money putting it on an automatic. If it can also be done how much you guys think the whole thing would cost.

 

it's exactly the same as doing it on the other d-series engines.

 

just to clarify for you, a y8 motor already has vtec so you wouldn't do a mini me on a y8. a y8 is the mini me. that being said, if you were going to do it, that is the head you need to get.

and it's not so much of a waste putting it in an automatic, but essentially just putting it in that car. you're not really gonna notice a difference with your car being as heavy as it is.

if i were you, i'd hold off, do a little more research, and try and save some money for a b series swap. you can even leave it automatic and will be more satisfied with it than with just doing another d series head swap.

 

Its heavy, but its not that heavy. I'd honestly be more concerned with the automatic tranny.

Automatic B-series swaps in '96 - '00 Civics are a huge pain in the ***. It involves notching the frame, as well as fabricating your own mounts, and then you need to wire in an integra TCM, 40ish wires. Its much easier, and probably more cost effective to swap in a manual tranny.

 

wow, i didn't even know it involved all that. thanks for catching me on that.

change of plans, do an auto to manual conversion, haha.

 

So would converting my car from automatic to manual and installing a b16a be a good idea?
If so how much would that cost and would a lot of body shops know how to do that are would it be hard to find a shop that can do it?

 

it would cost a ton for a shop to do an auto-manual and swap to a b16.

live on honda-tech for like a couple months and read stuff bout swapping in a b series into your civic. its prolly the easiest swap other than a d series replacement.

you can buy a whole swap from hmotorsonline.com or the marketplace here.

and it will be amazing when you get done and start your car that you built for the first time.

or if your tight on money just go with a ls swap with a b16 trans. they are pretty fun and later on you can do a ls/vtec.