hey guys, quick question. Im pulling my motor out of 93 vtec after 273K miles and putting a fresh h22a4 inside. Ive got everything disconnected except the mounts.

My question, will the block come out with the IM and tran attached, or will i have to drop the tran. thanks in advance.

 

Ive heard its easier to take out/put in with the tranny attached...with a hoist at least.

you converted to OBDII right?

 

no staying OBDI

i have an engine hoist, just need to know if the tran comes out with the block.

 

to answer your question. everything can come out all together.. installation ca be done in the same manner
might have to tilt it to one side a little bit..

 

Easiest way on any Honda is through the bottom, if the hoist can pull the car high enough that is. You can attach it to the core support and lift the car up while using a movers dolly under the engine/trans and slide it out from underneath.

Never done it with a hoist since I have a lift at my disposal but seen guys with DC5, EP3, FD1/2 do it this way since it's impossible to pull the engines through the top on those cars.

Lifting the car while letting the engine/trans sit on the ground means you have to undo far less things, just get the exhaust collector, center beam and radius rods out of the way.

Not sure why the guy up there is asking if you are converting, it'd be a waste of time, just use your old dizzy and TB.

 

good idea with dropping it through the bottom, ima give that a shot, it does seem it would be alot easier.

and yea i agree about the conversion. I was told also i need to swap injectors, is this true?

also, question about some of the gaskets. i got a gasket kit and used some of them on the motor that was in the car that i was driving, the valve cover, vtec solenoid, stuff that was leaking. they have been on there maybe two months, can i re use them, or do i need to get new gaskets? I was under the impression that once u torque down on a gasket and take them off thats pretty much it for the gasket.

 

good idea with dropping it through the bottom, ima give that a shot, it does seem it would be alot easier.

and yea i agree about the conversion. I was told also i need to swap injectors, is this true?

also, question about some of the gaskets. i got a gasket kit and used some of them on the motor that was in the car that i was driving, the valve cover, vtec solenoid, stuff that was leaking. they have been on there maybe two months, can i re use them, or do i need to get new gaskets? I was under the impression that once u torque down on a gasket and take them off thats pretty much it for the gasket.

 

It's just as easy either way. You have to remove less to take it out of the top. Just take off the hood and tilt the tranny side down when you are removing it.
Good luck!

 

Yeah forgot about the injectors, use the old ones. For the gaskets if you bought some cheap aftermarket gasket kit they'll more than likely leak if they're reused, aftermarket ones suck.

Another trick so you don't have to worry about the freon in the A/C is to unbolt it from the block and set it on the front cross member with the lines still connected. Same can be done with the power steering pump, just set it to the side.

 

Cool thanks man

 

I've done top and bottom swaps on preludes/accords and, imo, it seems safer to drop out the bottom. When doing a top-swap (especially with the trans attached), you are going to break certain things...don't say I didn't tell ya so: crank pulley is prolly gonna get all chipped up, tps sensor is very easily broken, and if you aren't careful, the knock sensor is very fragile...one bump and it is usually gone.

And if you are doing a backyard swap, pulling the engine away from the car without the trans hitting the radiator core support is pretty much impossible unless you have 2 guys pulling the hoist and atleast 2 guys holding the trans UP and OVER the core support.

My vote: down with it

 

funny u mention that because a couple years back i pulled a motor out of my 99 from the top and broke the knock sensor. I just asked the question in the OP because i couldnt remember if you took the trans with it, but i appreciate the input.

i will be dropping the motor through the bottom tomorrow, so ill let u know how it turns out.

 

Just be gentle when using a hoist to pull the front of the car up since a jack wont be able to lift it high enough to get the engine from under, don't wanna bend the core support, I have a lift but seen people do it this way, just be careful. Might be a safe idea to remove the muffler and rear bumper since the car will be at a crazy angle when lifting the front so high.

 

As far as the h22a4 goes.. why not go with an h22a thats OBDI? it has the same horsepower/torque as the h22a4.

 

you will need to do some wiring unless you have the obd2 main engine harness... the a4 has the crank sensor in a different spot, and i believe some of the connectors are different (knock sensor for sure, there may be others). you may or not need an obd2 ecu i've only ever dealt with obd1 on my car so i'm not sure.

 

so i tried to drop it through the bottom and it became alot more work. I had the engine suspended in the bay with nothing connected, couldnt get my car high enough with a 4 wheel dolly underneath to catch the block, and still have enough clearance to roll through the bottom. Also i was a little hesitant using the hoist to lift the car. It was just alot easier to come through the top, i removed the hood, cleared the bay and then lowered the car, backed the hoist out, then set the block on the dolly. I may have been doing it wrong but i didnt find it easier trying to go through the bottom; although that may be different for someone with a lift.

I do have the wire harness from the a4. I chose to swap the a4 because i had the long block from a 99 that i was working on while i was driving the 93. Plus i like the open deck of the a4, dont plan on going turbo or heavy mods so i dont really need the "extra" strength of the closed deck design; id rather have the improved cooling system of the open deck.

this will be my first DIY swap so we'll see if it works out, from the research i have done it should be for the most part plug and play. I still have some parts from the a4 if i need to add/mod.

 

also, instead of starting a new thread, one more question. anybody have advice on a good break in process for the new engine? pretty much everything on the long block is new or machined. thanks again