Hey guys,

Im a returning member, I used to be a EK coupe owner back 5 years ago, it was modded. Sold it and got a 2006 mercedes c class. Now im having to part with the german beauty that ive modded and shown and get back into the jdm scene.

Im looking for a 98-01 LS or something good for commuting and is easy to mod. has to be easily smoggable. I'd love to get a ek hatch, but the non power options stray me away.

What are opinions on a LS full motor? i know a lot of ppl turbo the LS. but i want reliability and i hear the LS-vtec is nice, but hard to complete without problems. it would be nice to have a nice strong dohc motor. my civic was a dx, and i want a good platform to start with. GSR's are hard to come by and most alllll these damn cars are salvage or high mileage.

Also I am looking to trade my mercedes for a decently modded LS/Civic Hatch or something clean if anyone is interested.

 

Ls vtec, isn't reliable unless built right. Same could be said about the turbo ls, unless your on top with maintaining it. I've seen many hatches in and integra on sacramento's craiglist. maybe check there or the marketplace.

 

I strongly recommend getting a fully stock Ls or Gsr obd1 and clean title if possible. It's better to build a car you know that hasn't been tamper with. Learn to become a self-taught builder or even a tuner if possible. It will save you a lot of money down the road and creativity expands with the knowledge you gain. I will stay away from buying modded cars from anyone especially on craigslist unless they seem like a qualify source to trust (the value of a car goes down with mods added). Besides, most kids these days are just trashing their cars with unknown mods, and it's not worth the hassle trying to figure out what they had done to it. An all motor Ls will not pass smog, same goes with any other motor with a lot of n/a applications. Do not buy a car with a b20/b20vtec swap in it. Crv motor will not pass smog (if they don't catch you) and will never pass state ref so keep that in mind. I favor boost because it's easier to build than an all motor. You still won't pass smog either, but if you got the money to make it happen, you can pass it under the table lol. A reliable Ls vtec is for experience builders. You gotta know some decent math, physics, and have a pretty strong mechanical/tunning background to build a reliable Ls vtec; otherwise you will blow motors left and right that's if you never learn from your mistakes. Best of luck.

 

so is obd1 specific years?, i honestly would just like a nice clean LS/GSR, that i can maybe do Intake/Header and a tune with cams or something, just giving it more pep and overall fun to drive. by no means do i want a beast. its going to be my DD. i need a reliable commuter, but im a car enthusiast and never will buy a corolla or prius etc. i plan to do tasteful mods if i find the right car. its hard to find a clean body/motor these days. I dont want it in the shop getting repainted/ motor fixed. not passing smog etc..what about ITR swaps? how are those as far as legality goes?...

 

Obd1 are 94-95. Obd2 are 96-01. ITR swaps are good. Just make sure the motor is the same year or later than your car (example: 94-97 integra with a 98 ITR swap) just in case if you run into state ref problems, you'll have a better chance of it passing.

 

whats the problem with obd2? i planned on finding a 98+ lol bc of the facelift..and chances of less mileage/damage. would it be okay for basic bolt ons..etc.

 

Getting obd1 save you less trouble instead of needing to do a obd2 to obd1 conversion for tuning.