Hi guys,

I'm a novice car guy and need some help/advice for my car. I just blew the motor and I am trying to figure out what I should do. I think it would be worth it to put a used engine in it, but I don't know where to get one at a cheap price. This is a DX model with the 1.6L non-v-tec motor, A/C and automatic transmission. I have hardly any money so I can't take it anywhere and will have to do the work myself (never done it before). What would be my cheapest option for an easy replacement? This is my commuter car so I do not want to upgrade horsepower or anything like that. I just want it running again giving me good gas mileage.

I looked on ebay, but most of the engines were $600 for pretty high miles. I found this company selling a JDM motor with between 25-35k miles for only $399.

Can a JDM motor be put in a US car without any problems? I need to pass emission tests in Wisconsin. Keep in mind I am a novice so ease of installation is needed. The price of the JDM motor seems great. Any thoughts? http://www.jdmtigerjapanese.com/details.php?id=1600 Also, they say the engine is 1.5 L and mine is 1.6L. Is that a problem? Any help is greatly appreciated!

 

Would I have to remove all of the sensors from the old motor and put them on the JDM so I could use the US computer?

 

heres the issue with used motors. they never are what they claim. the people rarely see the actual car...they are just engine wholesalers. the gut with the high mile motor probably has the better seal. what were the miles? under 200,000 good. over...its a gamble. sounds like a private sale type of buy. why was the person selling it? i sell engines to companys like that and some of them i know have false claims. some of them i seen the cars the engines came from with 160,000 miles but the company sells them as 60,000 or less. that particular company is talked about between members on this site but they are sold on them already. be very cautious when buying a used motor. PM me if you have more questions

 

tiger Japanese is great if you are local. HUGE warehouse and thousands of motors to pick from.

But be careful ordering online from tiger.

If you have never ever done a swap, might be a little over your head and worth paying somebody to do it.

But if you are confident with it and will take your time, Its a ot of fun.

try your local junkyards. They can probably sell you a d16y7 from a crashed civic for $ 200 and install for another $ 200

 

DVDr, I didn't even know there were junk yards that would install the engine. I will have to look into that. I assume the d16y7 would be stamped somewhere on the engine so I know I am getting the right one? I thought buying an engine online would be better than a junk yard because some of them say they test them, but I guess it is all just a crap shoot. I'm at the mercy of the junk yard too, because I wouldn't know a good engine from a bad one. I have been looking at the service manual and removing the engine is certainly involved, but the instructions seem straight forward. Of course, it is always easy when you are just reading about it. I'm still a little lost as to what to do. If I could find a motor at a junk yard for only $200 that would be great. I'm sure it would have a lot of miles, but I got 200k out of my last one.

So the JDM motors are pretty much out, huh? If I did go that route, to the sensors all talk to the US computer or would I have to move all of the old sensors from the old motor to the new one for it to work? What about the 1.6L vs 1.5L. Does that matter?

Thanks for your help so far guys.

 

Thanks for all your suggestions. Got one at a junk yard for $450 (ouch), but at least it will work. Junk yard wanted $600 to put it in so I'm trying myself...