Hey Honda-Tech. I'm new and don't know much about Honda's yet. So please don't be to cruel. My question to all of you is which engines will bolt right in with an automatic transmission for a 2000 Civic LX. I can't drive manual, and don't feel like learning. The current engine in my car is a D16y7 with 258k. I want something with more power. Thanks for all responses.

 

You could drop in a Y8 with minimal fuss but it won't net you all that much power.

If you could find a good/patient teacher, you could learn to drive a manual in maybe 10 mins., and be "competent" at it in a few days. This will allow you to go B-series, etc.

 

dont feel like learning manual? are you a woman?



just leave it alone then

 

I swear here in north america most honda drivers should be banned from driving a manual, why? almost all manual trans car on the second hand market have worn out gears ,input bearing , synchros etc....way earlier than they should. Most likely bad/unskilled MT drivers who only learnt a manual after years of driving auto....complete opposite of the rest of the world (well in the past , now some countries have auto trans only licenses!!)

If you get someone to teach you to drive a MT in one session after years of driving with a dead left foot 90% of ppl are going to munch gears and destroy trannies. like any skill requiring some motor coordination its best to start young and/or learn it through many reps.....

 

I think the consensus is that:

Naturally aspirated D series just is what it is - no significant power jump even with vtec

Integra B18 with automatic swap is technically difficult/damn near impossible into a Civic

Honestly, as a veteran of several powertrain swaps you'll be money ahead if you:

Replace the engine in your car with another D16y7 or

Sell the Civic and buy a similar Integra

An EX 5 speed is the best "performance" transmission you can get for a D series. It has the best gear ratios, and rowing your own gears is about the only way to get more performance - the automatic is just a slug with such a small engine. If you're not interested to learn stick shift, you're probably not going to enjoy the rewiring exercise that comes with a D16y8 swap. My current car is an EX (D16y8), and was automatic when I got it. Way more fun to drive after the 5 speed swap.

 

I'm just looking for which engines will bolt into the auto trans that came with my car. My dad is a master tech for BMW, so he will be installing the engine himself. Also would a b16A1-6 bolt into my transmission?

 

D series transmissions only mate to D engines, your only options are D16y7 or Y8 from a US car, or a JDM D15B.

You always have the option of installing a Y8 (or D15b) and adding a vtec controller later.

 

no

your only option is another d series. you wont get any sort of noticeable power increases with any of them.

 

Well the y8 is 20hp more, so that is about a 20% increase. Is there a b series with an auto trans that can be installed into my car?

 

You want to keep the D-series auto transmission so you need a D-series engine.

Please consider having him teach you to drive a manual.

No. D-series engine == D-series transmission, same for B-series. You could certainly swap a B-series into your Civic, but this will require a B-series transmission. There are (is a?) JDM auto B-series transmission, but I have not seen anyone actually performing this swap and posting the results.

 

you are not going to feel the difference especially keeping that autotragic trans

 

@Axatax. Do you know which b series engine has the automatic trans?

 

No, sorry, I don't -- but I know the B-series auto was discussed in the past here so it's somewhere in the archives (I recall reading about it maybe ~1 year back or so). I think it's from some JDM (EK?) sedan?

I think if one were to obtain an auto B-series tranny the major issue would be wiring/ECU. I totally agree with the manual recommendation but I wouldn't mind trying to do this swap as I think it's interesting.

 

There is no real easy Automatic swap in most cases. Its a civic, a grocery getter, and came with a D-engine in most cases as it was an econo-box. And that supposed 20% increase of a Y8 is just chewed up in the auto if you have one. Realisticly if you want a bigger engine, sell the civic and find yourself an automatic accord or maybe an auto prelude.

 

@Axatax. Can I bolt in any of the d-series to my tran?

 

I'm going to say "mechanically", yes, but the wiring becomes more complex the farther you depart from OBD2. The Y8 is an easy swap. You could even do a mini-me swap by retaining your block and just swapping in the Y8 head.

Again, the effort expended may not be worth any gains from this swap.

I'm probably (most certainly) going to be flamed for this, but you can boost that auto Y7 with a piggyback system like the AEM F/IC. The general consensus is that the auto tranny isn't robust enough to handle high HP - this is probably true, but again, nobody here has posted results (good or bad) from this endevour.

I wouldn't try this personally but it's certainly an option. I'll be willing to bet that auto tyranny has some head room that can be exploited with very conservative boost.

 

I have a D15B7 (102 hp) and a D16Y8 (127 hp). They are both auto and yes you do notice a difference even before vtec hits. Part of that difference may lie in the transmission, but I'll let you investigate that. I believe the D16Z6 (125 hp) has a lower geared auto trans, so the Y8 may also.
I do appreciate the mpg of the taller geared B7.
Some people simply prefer automatics. I learned manual before auto and I prefer auto, but then I have an insanely long traffic ridden commute.
Not everyone who wants a little more power is looking for a race car (or a manual swap).
Also, even though a D engine will bolt up to a D trans, doesn't mean it (or its ECU) was designed for that particular trans/gearing. I'd probably feel better about dropping in a matched engine/trans/ECU, but there are many more adventurous on this forum.

 

<obligatory flame>How dare you even suggest that</obligatory flame>

 

Nothing else will bolt up to the current trans and work 100% correctly. A Y8 needs the correct ECU and transmission or it will throw transmission codes due to gearing differences, it also wont shift quite right with the wrong transmission. As far as B-series automatic stuff goes it doesn't clear the passenger's side frame rail and other than an automatic LS swap it is not possible to pass emissions if your state requires you to do so.

 

Seriously, no engine is going to help you. The automatic transmission is the part holding you back from going fast. The second you add more power then the automatic will not be able to handle it and blow.

You have two options:

1. leave it stock or get another faster Auto car.

2. learn to drive a stick and then do a swap or boost it.

 

@Axatax. Could you send me a private message on what is needed to install the Y8 with my current Y7 transmission.

 

You can look into swapping the entire automatic crv motor/transmission into your car. b20 automatic with automatic ecu. Since your dad is a mechanic he can probably tell what you can reuse from a crv to a civic. Engine bay is almost exact with the engine harness running down the passenger side exactly the way an ek would.

 

As I said, it doesn't work. It will throw a P0715 transmission code and shift weird. Ask me how I know.

 

@Axatax. I think I'm just gonna install a new Y7 with about 50k miles. Thanks everyone for the input and help.

 

How you know? Seriously...and why does it do that?