i bought a 1998 civic cx hatchback a few months ago, and im looking to get a little more pep out of it. the problem im having is what to do.

choice 1.) there hasnt been a B series motor made for 11 years, and around my area they go for 2-3k for a vtec swap. lets say at best, for the swap, im looking at like 170-190 hp. i like the fact that i can buy "si" axels, and the b series motor is bullet proof.

choice 2.) after looking at hasport mounts, it looks like a K series motor is basically a bolt in plug and play now. i called my junk yard, and got a price for a k20a2 with 100k miles for 1200 bucks. i have a extra 5speed tranny from my 05 si, and by the time i get motor mounts, wiring harnes, swap axels, ecu, and headers im still looking at around 3k all said and done. and the k20a2 has gobs of torque.

choice 3.) turbo-ing the d series would be cool. i do love turbos, but to do it right would be around 1800 bucks( by the time i buy the kit, injectors, tunning etc) and my gains wouldnt be much(160-190 depending on psi). i know that the d series motors are pretty tough, but it doesnt seem smart to turbo a motor with 130k miles on it.

im torn on what i want to do. one of the main reasons i dont want to do the k swap, is because the oil pan hangs 2-3 inches lower, and my car is pretty low as far as hondas go. this is my DD, i do have a built EP3. so reliability and fuel economy matter. ive never had a b series, but it just seems nuts to pay 2500 bucks for a gsr swap, and then still have a motor with 130-140k.

what do you guys think? and what would you guys do?
price is a factor, because i wanna get the most bang for my buck.

 

If you want the most "bang for your buck", its a boosted D series and thats hands down.
Everyone will have a different opinion for what you should do, but bang for your buck is D16+T.

Youll get more than 160lbs of torque, you can make a little over 200whp safely, and you get all the cool noises associated with a turbo. Plus youll beat almost every bolt on B swap out there. I never lost a race to a B series. Im more biased to boost because I had a Y8+T. But beating my friends RSX-S who was making $300+ monthly payments in my 10+ year old hatch was fun. I only spent a little over a grand and I made 210whp/190 wheel torque.
~$1800=200+whp on 7psi with an eBay turbo.

B swaps are fun. So what if you they have that many miles, rebuild them and take your time doing it. B16 transmissions are super fun to cruise around in because of the short gears. But at the end of the day a B16A leaves much to be desired. They do respond decently to bolt ons though. But still, no torque.
~$2500=150whp

K swap is a whole different story. The $1200 youre going to pay is barely getting your feet in the pool. There is sooo much needed when you do a K swap; mounts, harness, Kpro, axles, etc etc and the list goes on and on. It wont be cheap.
~$4000+=180whp?

 

guess my little d series is getting a turbo.

 

I really hope you do it, and not be like every other person that says "oh ill probably boost it down the road".


"When it comes to turbo; either you want it, or you WANNNNNNT it!"
Terry "ktad" Delgado
1991-2011 RIP

 

Dont be afraid to boost a high-mileage engine. I boosted my prelude at 128k, bone stock internals and still using the original head gasket and head bolts. I'm pushing 13.5 psi on e85, ebay turbo, tubular manifold, daily driver. I also take it up to 8k-9k rpm on a daily basis, compression test is in spec (178psi per cylinder). Its been boosted for about 20k miles now and still runs strong. Important thing is TUNING. I'm using hondata s300 and street tuned it myself.

 

...thoughts on Turbo d16y8 vs H2B???