my father and i just bought an 89 crx si. good shape except for the fact that it had a rod exit the motor via the block and AC compressor.
so it needs a motor. planned use for the car are HPDE, TT, AutoX, and street time doing commuting duties.

based upon research, it looks like my two cheapest, easiest, and readily availible motor options will be another D16A6, or a D16Z6.

is it worth the cost for the Z6? i see that with a header, exhaust, and intake they are capable of 130 HP and 7500+ RPM all day long. A6 is less.

what about going from the A6 to the Z6? ive been told everything from different PCM, wiring, etc to use my intake manifold and it drops right in.

my father and i are bothe really new to hondas (i used to date a girl that owned one. i put brakes on it once.... and drove it a lot.) but are really familiar with cars and hot rods in general. this is just new ground for us.

so please, advise us. weve got a line on both an A6 and a Z6, with a fairly similar price.

michael

 

I would go for the z6 if the prices were real close. there are a ton of write-ups on the Z6 conversion.

if you just want to keep it simple and keep costs down, just get the A6. you can, and probably will, do a mini-me head swap or drop another engine in later on.

 

ok, the prices are within 20 bucks of one another.

ive been doing reading on this swap, and the way it sounds to me, the only real change is that i need to wire in an RPM activated switch ir something for the Vtec to operate. is this correct? ive also heard about the PCM needing changed to something different.
as far as the basic swap goes, flywheel, trans, manifold, etc can all be retained from the windowd A6 thats in it now, and operate correctly.

im just looking for confirmation, hints, how tos, etc before i pull the trigger and buy myself a headache.

i also have tried searching, but seem to be either incapable of using the button properly, or am not familiar with honda terminology enough to get the answers im looking for.

Michael

 

using the rpm switch to activate the VTEC is not a good idea - when VTEC engages, the engine needs more fuel and advanced ignition timing - if you don't have a VTEC ECU you have no way to provide more fuel and timing at VTEC engagement and it is not going to run correctly - if you swap to a D16Z6 you really need to convert the car to OBD1 in order to run the correct ECU - i would suggest swapping in a JDM DOHC ZC engine which bolts right in with only a minor wiring change at the distributor - the DOHC ZC was the factory engine in the 88-91 JDM CRX/Civic Si models - the stock DOHC ZC will be quicker than any stock SOHC D-series engine in your Si

 

what would the PCM be out of? any website information, threads, etc on the electronics side of this swap? im going down friday to look at the Z6 motor, as thats the way im leaning.

budget is an issue, so full blown standalone is out, as well as importing motors and stuff from japan.

thanks for anything you can throw my way.

Michael

 

If you're going to be using it for racing, I would look up the regulations for the series you plan to race in and see which engine is going to best fill your needs.

 

hpde and tt are our primary venues. no real rules to speak of, just classes. and we could put a small block chevy in it and NASA would find a class for us.

so, any info on the PCM and such?

 

if you are getting the D16Z6, then get the factory ECU for the engine which is a P28 - it is OBD1 and you will need an OBD0 to OBD1 VTEC/ECU jumper harness conversion kit like this:

http://rywire.com/store/8891-crxcivi...74b68f0d9d9e75

you use the engine harness from the Si on the Z6 - you will need to swap the driver's side engine mount (that bolts to the end of the block) from the D16A6 onto the D16Z6 - you can use either the fuel injectors from the A6 or the Z6 - if you use the ones from the Z6, you need to remove the injector resistor box from the fuel injector circuit - the 89 Si has the MAP sensor located on the firewall and the Z6 has the MAP on top of the throttle body - you will need to extend the wires to the MAP connector so that you can plug it into the MAP on the throttle body - the Si has the cooling fan switch located on the back of the block by the oil filter - the Z6 has the switch on the thermostat housing - you will need to swap a different connector onto the engine harness in order to plug it in at the thermostat - you will need a 4-wire O2 sensor - your Si engine harness will have one connector left over that won't be used - it goes to the Fast Idle Control Valve on the back of the intake manifold