So unfortunately I won't be receiving my J-Series parts until febuary, it's cool, these things happen and it basically didn't dampen my spirits, I still have my motor, trans, everything else, Once I get my Harness, Mounts, brackets and axles from API I'll be good...anyway...

I have a spare h23a sitting around and I want to put it to use, I have an h22 turbo set up in my EG hatch, i've never put an H in an EF before and this INQUIRY is a check list...these are things that I saw just by staring at the Bay, and I just wanna make sure I'm right...

so..tell me if I'm wrong or right...


I have to..

-Bang on the firewall to make room for the intake manifold.
-Cut out some of the drivers side frame rail (how much??)
-Remove the passenger side transmission mount bracket from the chasis and replace it with another.

ALSO, wiring wise is this just like a DPI to MPFI conversion??? The motor is a 94 I believe, not 100% sure i'm guessing I should check...

am I forgetting anything??? prep wise??

This motor is just going to hold me over until everything for my J arrives but that still isn't an excuse to half *** it, so i'm double checking despite having the experience to just WING it.

 

Shouldnt have to cut your frame rail, I never did. Just get the accessories machined off the pulley, you'll only have the alternator belt.
What mount kit you going with, again I never had to remove the trans mount with a good mount kit.
If your dpfi then you'll need to go to obd1 and mpfi.
I'd look into a traction bar to for clearance.

 

Now the mounts I had hanging around are BLACK mounts with BLACK polyuerethane inside, I'm thinking their innovative mounts but I'm not sure, they were set neatly on top of the motor, I'm going to try and get a pic but there is poor lighting in here right now, bring em home with me, maybe get some better lighting then.

I was TOLD that you have to cut off the transmission mount bracket (Passenger side of the car) and put in a new one, if I don't that would be GREAT. I've covered the traction bar, and as for the crank pulley could I get by with a stock one until I can get the car to another shop to have the extra machined off????

 

I will be doing a similar swap in the near future, as for what I've found...

I have the Innovative mount kit and it does come with a new tranny mount bracket that you are supposed to use (remove old factory one and weld new one into place). I don't know about other mount kits though.

The trick to getting around modifying the frame rail on the driver's side is as "sirtef9" had stated, you shave off the accessory belt drives on the main pulley. Another way around it is to use [I believe] a Euro-R main pulley. It's basically the same thing just minus the accessory portion of the pulley.

About the firewall...I'm not sure. I was under the assumption that the newer mount kits fit the motor straight in with no other major modification outside of the tranny bracket but since I haven't done it yet I couldn't say you need to or don't need to bang out the firewall. Hope someone else can confirm/deny this particular question...

 

pretty sure that trans bracket comes off to fit the new h trans mount. theres a kit that uses no welding. you simply bolt it into where the battery tray was bolted on the pass side framerail. crank pulley isnt gonna fit without the accesory sections machined off.

 

check out this thread.

https://honda-tech.com/forums/honda-crx-ef-civic-1988-1991-3/90-ef-hatch-h22-project-complete-2673810/

 

Yea I just checked it out, seems pretty straight forward. I looked over the whole swap and come find out it was my cousins (he had gave it to me as payment, totally forgot about the whole event, but entire swap IS EF ready), he informed me that it's good to go, checked over the Pulley and it's good, Altenator only, will fit, and the mount kit is the SAME as the Bolt in joint used in that link so ....I think so far so good..I also have an aftermarket Altenator bracket as well...

Only thing I'm waiting on now is the traction bar, I see a couple of good ones like the innovative one, but I wanna do some more research on it before I finally decide, I can definitely use the Clearance and added performance up front (And the drop in weight). Just got the axles to, Traction bar and shifter box and i'm done.

 

Ok, so I took a brief break on my Daily to attend to my more serious builds, and thus i'm back to my daily..

I started breaking stuff down, it was harder then usual, I had my road side toolbox and that toolbox ONLY, so I had nothing but....1 actual SOCKET, a few drives, and alot of wrenches, no lifts, no jack stands, just one half assed jack, tires and alot of know how lol....Got some pics to share..


Axles and suspension diassembled, I also took out the front cross member to, it's getting replaced with a Brand New Custom Traction Bar that's build built by Phantom, it's a light weight composite unit, costed about 2-grand, 3 times stronger then an aluminum or steel unit, but equally lighter, I think the unit weighs less then 15lbs I'll post pics when I get it..


Another shot, figured i'd get that punk *** tool box in on the action lol..


Cross member and some other joints out..


Close up of the axle and everything out..





Motor is on the ground, took a lil minute to get it out but it eventually Fell to the wrath that is my 11/16 wrench...





Motors out, tire on the ground, jack ontop of the tire, spare tire ontop of the jack that's on a tire...jacked it on up...yanked the motor out from the bottom after I disconnected my Shift linkage...


FINALLY! They find my h23 in my shop and get it out and over to the car for me.....

More pics coming soon!

Good thing is that I don't have to cut the passenger side mount, it's a straight drop, and I don't think i'll have to bang the firewall OR Change the pulley becauses the right one is on there already. I was thinking about using the Prelude Dashboard and installing into my EF, I have the ENTIRE Cabin Harness and the Engine Harness...may be worth trying...

Well, waiting for the Axles, Traction Bar, Shifter Box and full Borla Exhaust and Skunk 2 Full Race Suspension and i'm on....

 

The motor is an h23a1, was rebuilt, has 20K on it after the rebuild, Ported and Polished, BDL Fuel Rail, other then that, it's stock.....Modified Pulley already on, mounts are there for a straight drop in...

Word...

 

Just a quick question, i'm having a lapse in thought...

I don't have the stock DX engine harness, which I had modified for MPFI, the modifications for MPFI that I made are still present at THE PLUG, but the wiring is gone basically...

I have the Harness that came with the motor...

I also have the Cabin harness that came with the motor...I've been looking it up all day, is there any modification I can make, that would be less painful then actually putting the ENTIRE Cabin harness in, JUST to run this motor?

 

i have the same problem... all i have to do is wire my car

 

I'm pretty much there, I'm asking cuz I just wanna knock out whatever wiring issue i'ma have before I physically PUT the motor in the car...

If it's a simple DPI-to-MPFI Again fine but if it's not that straight forward need to knooooow...I've done H's in EG's and it was straight forward but mostly because it's OBd1-to-obd1.

 

youl want to weld it after awhile trust me

 

get a virgin dx engine harness, convert to mpfi which is only adding 2 more wires and some minor wiring at the ecu if im not mistaking, its been awhile sense ive done a dpfi to mpfi

 

also what mounts are you using

 

I honestly have not the slightest Idea, they look like Innovative Mounts, what I DO know is that it doesn't require you to modify the chasis at all, you use all the original Chasis mount brackets and it's a straight drop...I raised the motor today for a test fit and it went in snug like a champ, I won't even need to bang out the firewall behind the intake manifold (Although I think I will because there is probably less then an INCH of clearance between the two)..

UNFORTUNATELY, i've already pulled out the dash and Started stuffing and mounting the Prelude Chasis Harness into the Cabin, I REALLY decided to just go left field and try using the Prelude DASH, I love the look, i've seen it done on here a few times...I'm gonna make a thread asking particulars, I know it's MORE then just making new brackets so that the dash can fit....but at the end of the day if I pull this off, I'll have a functioning prelude Dash, and I can just plug and play the motor at that point...

 

I know how to do dpi-to-mpfi, done about 4 harnesses now, but being that i'm using an OBD-1 ECU, I would still require a conversion harness right????? It's THAT factor that has me like BUMP IT, use the whole Obd-1 chasis harness, and thus make the motor plug and play....after all i've already yanked out my DX chasis harness and started putting the Prelude one in.

 

Soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo....SUP GUYS!! Back form down south, work has died down, life has granted me some time to come back and finally do something with my daily driver! Its amazing, the whole purpose of me doing this was to get a beater I had sitting around up and going and I wound up focusing on my hard core's...

In any case the original plan was to put an H23 into my EF as a pre-quel to to the J-Series swap I have set to go into the car come December/January. FORTUNATELY, I came across some illness...

A BRAND spanking new h22 swap, all that it needed is assembly so...

GOODBYE H23....IN with the h22...

The DX Hatch is already prepped and ready to go wiring and bay wise...got some pics to share...



YES, I do have The HONDA symbol, DOHC and VTEC tatoo'd on my arm, lmao...



I absolutely love the color on this valve job, it's sick, could have been done with a better quality of paint but for what was worked with, it's a damn damn fine job.


H22a4


Slick..I'm thinking of painting the BAY the same color, as well as my rims..



Now what i'm debating on is USING this Block, which is an OPEN deck h22a4, or use my CLOSED DECK, JDM H22 block, The closed deck will definitely handle boost alot better, and be more reliable overall, and I can easly Sand blast, and re-spray that to for the same look...I dunno, I think i'm going to go for the closed deck..



Clean as a muh fugga ain't it??



The head is new as well, and it'll soon be taking a Full Type S valvetrain into it', I DO have a JUN head kit but that's way to hard core for what this motor will be seeing. It's a DAILY, I may boost it at best, a punk *** 5 pounds and a good tune, but not build it.



Sitting right...



Well I have other parts, i'll take more pics. I also have an Type S h22 Trans, some other goodies going on as well, I'll keep u guys posted on the progress of my build but wow it's been a long time and i'm glad to come back to honda-tech with pics and progress to show.

 

**** all the bullshit build a g23 .. take that h23 block and put the h22 head on and get that thing shittin n gettin

 

So i'm running a closed deck set up since I will be eventually low-boosting this thing on stock internals + Tune. Along with that I managed to get another Girdle, FULL Girdle for the bottom end, not to shabby...few pics I managed to snap, more soon..



This is the JDM-h22 Block, I prefer it over the H22a4. Also have a Kaizenspeed Balance Shaft Eliminator Kit on it's way, ARP-Main/Head Kit on the way. Tomorrow i'm gonna unpack the Camshafts (Type S), Valves, Springs, Retainers, rocker arms, cam caps (All Type S)...everythings labeled and...

Only thing i'm waiting on now is my crank, Quick Micropolishing. Have a set of ACL Race bearings and Type S pistons/Rods on the bottom end..so far so good, Pics coming soooooon, probably tonight when I get off work.

 

Looks awesome man. That tattoo is epic. I think you should post more photos of them.

When are you doing your J swap?

 

Well I have A J32 Type S, FULL Swap, I got my custom harness back from API, my mounts, basically everything i'ma need to drop it in and install it but i'm unsure as to whether I want to use the EF Chasis anymore because of the plans I have for the car. I Drive HARD, when I'm not putting hours in on the track I can admit to using Urban and Highway roads for my personal play ground which means alot of turns taken at near triple digit speeds...

I watched the telemetry from my friends J32 Swapped EF (Data logged on his laptop AS he's lapping) on the track and it under-steers like nobodies business, its not the type of driving characteristic you want in a car. FF naturally plows, a J32 would vastly amplify that problem....So long story short, I really want to dial in the proper suspension set up before just DROP it on in there and I've yet to find one I think covers it. I wanna do EVERYTHING..

Upper Control Arms
Lower Control Arms
Camber Kit
Full Race Suspension (Strut/Spring --Dialed in by a reputable tuner..Skunk2 offers a $2000 package which includes dialing in the suspension + Track time )
Axles
Tie End Rods
Traction Bar..
Tires
Wheel Package.


I wanna go ALL the way in...so i'm not putting it in..until i'm the chasis is Ready...Realistically???? November..January at the absolute latest. PLUS i'm looking into seeing if it's possible to counter balance the front weight by throwing ballast strategically placed in the car...I'm figuring that with the J the weight distribution goes like...60/40, even 70/30 at that extreme I wanna keep it as close to 60/40, aspire for a 50/50 if I can put enough counter weights in the car,...not just weight but put it in the RIGHT place...


It's gonna PLOW regardless but maybe I can tame some of it...

For now...h22 Type S Turbo for a daily, not to bad.

 

Might as well show the whole thing...








My right arm...glad I don't own anything right hand drive or this tat would be meaningless..

 

Got my head and block internals out and labeled...cranks out to the shop for a micropolish, pics coming up in a sec..

 

Build looking like it's coming along nicely.
Hopefully you are married to Honda for life.
Not sure what you are going to do if you made a move on to a different brand like Chevy.
=/