looking to swap my ex motor within the next couple of weeks for either an ls motor or a b16. opinions on which is better out of the box or which has more potential? what about holding up w/ turbo? thanks ? ?

 

Well up in madison WI, i was watching some races , and there were two CRX's there , one with a B16 and one with a B18.

1.6L DOHC VTEC
v.s.
1.8 DOHC NONVTEC


both had equal mods (i/h/e) but the B18 CRX had a full interior and stereo sys.
both were drivers of equal skill.

they lined up and the B18 non vtec CRX beat the B16 powered crx by about 2 car lengths....

 

well on paper it would look like the b16 would be the better engine. but in all the cases in real life the b18b has come out on top. dont know why besides the torque. the b18b is great for turbo also. i say go for the b18b, its cheaper, faster (or as fast) as the b16, and you can turbo it and have a monster.

 

b18b in lighter cars are beast once turbod thats for sure.

 

I had a b18b.....stock....cheap intake and exhaust....

2 other people in my car.

I raced a CRX with b16,I/H/E ITR cams, ITR pistons, LSD and some kind of like 4 puck clutch..sounded really mean.

Well he revs and revs and makes a scene, but come race time he only ended up with my front bumper at his door, and I was actualy reeling him in during 4th gear

I wish I didn't have anybody with me so I coulda actually had a good run

 

I saw a totally gutted out hatch (I mean gutted, nothing left, no hood even) at the track with a B18A/B. It had I/H/E cam gears, cams (possibly), that's all I could see. I was not impressed to say the least. He lost to my friends GSR with i/h/e and skunk 2 mani.

Just one case I saw, not the be all or end all, but just something I witnessed. I was quite disappointed with the hatch.

 

Anything less than 1.8L in a heavier car like yours = Go for the B18B, better for turbo and you'll enjoy the extra displacement more than revving the snot out of a 1.6L....IMO

 

one more reason to get the b18b...and people often forget abouthtis in the honda world.....

IT HAS TORQUE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

it doesnt have much (compared to a V8 ) but its noticibly more then a b16

 

I'll go against the flow here.

I have 2 friends that are brothers.

1 has a DX hatch with a JDM B16A second-gen 170hp

1 has a CX hatch with a B20 with Skunk manifold

The B20 had i/h/e while the B16A just had i/e.

Every time they raced the B16A beat the B20 - EVERY time.

You guys can talk about torque all you want to, but the B16A will still beat on the B18B with equal cars and drivers because it has a lot more top end. The only place the B16A isn't good is in first gear pre-VTEC but once it's in VTEC and STAYS in VTEC through gears 2,3,4 and possily 5 the race is over.

Tooling around town? Don't like to rev to 8000rpm? Get the B18B. It makes more torque on the low end, so it's good for passing w/o having to downshift as much.

Now I compared the B16A and the B20 for a reason - that means that the B18B would probably fare worse because the B20 has even more torque.

Compare prices:

http://www.hondamotorsonline.com

They sell the LS B18B swap for $2,200.00

They sell the B16A swap for $2,450.00

Sorry but the 170hp B16A is worth the extra $250.00 IMO.

 

i paid about 1200 total for my b18b swap. from a junk yard, this was about 2 months ago too. just look around locally.

let see 1200 for b18b + turbo 1200 = 2,400

b16b 2500 with no turbo = 2,500

hmmm, b18 turbo or b16 for the same price, what would i choose?!!

 

I'm going through the same situation. I'm not trying to be the extreme street racer. I just want something quicker. I love the vtec in my ex now. So, I'm going for the b16 with itr cams and leaving it alone. I think the b18b and b16a are good choices either way you look at it. It just comes down to preference.

 

I gave the source of http://www.hondamotorsonline.com because they are very reputable and they sell 100% complete swaps.

I'm sure you could find a B16A cheaper if you looked around, but the point is that there's not too much of a price difference and the B16A and B18B from a good source for motors, not the local idiot junkyards.

Perhaps you have a good local yard, but not everyone does. I know here in GA we don't too many reputable yards.

We do have one that sells the B18B full swap for $1,800.00, but again it's local and they don't like to ship.

Someone else said it - it's really more about what you can or want to afford.

 

Same here also. I'm going with the B18b. I drive around with my buddy that has a b!6CRX and its alright. LS would be the one to go with IMO. Peace !!

 

Dude the B16 is the way to go. A friend of mine (Chris for those who know him)had an LS swap with skunk 2 manifold,i/h/e, and a few other bolt-ons he ran a 15.3. That was gutted.Most kids with a B16 swap full interior with bolt-ons run mid to high 14's. Why not save an extra 800 bucks or so and get a B18C1? Just ponder on that.

 

Stop comparing the weak first-gen B16A that goes in the 1988-1991 Civic/CR-X to the much better second-gen B16A for the 1992-up Civics.

The first-gen B16A can be good or bad depending on the condition, the TRANNY, etc.

2 different motors altogether.

 

You guys also forget about the "fun-to-drive" factor. I went from a LSVTEC with R pistons to a stock b16. Now I know my LS was built and had VTEC, but who gives a ****? Sure it was faster and had more torque, but that torque still wasn't very impressive. The b16, altough it has to be reamed, is a much better motor that provides a lot more in the "fun" department.

And if the motors are stock for stock in the same car....the b16 usually wins from all that I have seen.98% of the time.

 

A friend of mine in a full interior LS with I/H/E ran best of 15.3 at the track. Another friend of mine in a GSD with just an intake did a 15.5. It all boils down to the driver.

Stock for stock, a b16 will have an edge I believe because of the shorter geared transmission. If you're gonna go with an LS, get a GSR or B16 tranny... You might want to do a build on that b18b though, since you'll be revving higher on the highway.

 

b18b1, all the way. And i doubt a b18b motor is 2200, i bought mine 2 years ago for 1600 and it came with GSR tranny, ITR flywheel and little goodies like that. Most people usually buy them even cheaper.

Go with b18b1, it's a lot cheaper than the b16, at one point i too somewhat regreted getting a b18b because of the low compression, but i proved myself that you don't need VTEC or high compression to take a b16. I am proud to say that i took my friend in his 6th gen hatch with a jdm b16, i have a 5th gen with a b18b, not only that. There are many examples, but maybe i just have a good motor. I kind of want to build an LS/VTEC but seeing how i surprise so many people with the LS alone, it kind of inspires me to build the LS, it's something not too many people do.


[Modified by 1.8 HB, 5:08 PM 10/8/2002]

 

i just bought an ls eng for 430.00$ im re buildin it and gettin a gsr trans. b18b= better turbo eng. thats why i got it

 

Well not everyone is a pro driver like you Jonathan haha.

Anyway, for light to light I'd say B18B, for top end or highway, B16.

I dont see why everyone underestimates the B16 motor, my friend hit a 14.6 in his stock B16 in a CX hatch, so dont forget driver plays a big factor.

If it were me, I'd get the B18 and just boost that ho. You can add cams in the B16 and make some good horsepower up top. They're both good motors.

F it, I'd just go H22.

 

both are equally good motors. people look down on the b18b1 because of the slowness of "some" LS integras. but in a lighter car like a civic or a crx the ls has alot of potential. in a race between a b18b1 civic and a b16 civic. my choice is the b16 though in the longer run but both has its advantages and disadvantages. 1.8 vs 1.6, more torque/less hp Vs. no torque/more hp.

 

amen....lol

 

i met this guy at the track that had an LS swap, he was disappointed in a way the car ran. IMO go with the jdm b16a(second gen) . b16's might not have torque but i'd pick it any day over a b18b

people here that are under estimating b16's oviously dont have one!!! stock for stock my hatch has taken out hatches w/ LS swaps. but turbo on an LS, thats a different story, what about a b16a turbo?

92 cx
jdm b16a



[Modified by zzZZzzleeperCX, 7:51 PM 10/8/2002]

 

 

if your not really planning on street racing it or nething then i'd just say go N/A with the b16a or a2...going b18b is nice if yoo want to go turbo but keep in mind turbo is HIGH MATENENCE especially if yoor not really looking to race it. the b16's are good motors for everyday driving with more speed then what yoo have in yoor EX now` good luck