Hello all! So here's the deal... sadly enough a week ago driving back home i notice my engine temp gauge is WAAAAY above operating temperature so i quickly switch on the heater and park it at my apartment. Let the engine cool and checked the radiator and sure enough there's oil in my radiator.
So i'm pretty sure its the head gasket. Instead of repairing it i'm in the process of looking for a new motor. i came across one on this website, but it isn't the EXACT model that i originally have. Here's the link >>

http://www.jdmenginescorp.com/engine...d2-engine-only

My civic is my daily driver and I've had to resort to go back to my home town and pick up my '71 Chevy C10 and drive it until the car is back in action.
Little info on the car
1998 Honda Civic LX (sedan)
Automatic transmission
177,735 miles on Odometer

What i'm asking is what exactly would it take to get the new motor in IF it is compatible
Little info about the car:
100% stock beside cosmetic stuff like:
fog lights
OEM struts with Tien S Tech lowering springs
aftermarket upper control arms
Everything under the hood is OEM though.
NO exhaust
NO Cold Air Intake
and thats pretty much it. It ran like a dream up until recently.
I babied this car from day one and this month would be the 3 year anniversary of having the car in my possession.

Info will be Greatly appreciated!!!

 

One for one swap.

If anything should happen to be different on the intake manifold reuse your existing manifold(s). That should be it honestly.

 

Why not just pull the head off, take it to your local machine shop, get it milled if needed, pressure checked, then replace the HG if everything is ok? Plenty of useful threads for it. Otherwise, to put that engine in, you may have to change the oil pan, do a ckf bypass, etc. Please use search function.

 

I quote this to save on the headache, 1:1.

 

I would do that but honestly the motor has always felt "weak" and as much money as I'm going to spend fixing everything I'd rather have a newer motor with less miles and wear. I just need the car to run just until I graduate college (which is in 6 months)

 

Some state laws may make a jdm engine swap illegal so look up the laws in your state and take it into consideration.

 

If you're only going to keep it a short while, a head gasket replacement is cheap and easy. Up to you, but the HG would likely route I'd take (after confirming the diagnosis). You could get a faster engine, but only you know if it's worth $700+ for 6 months of driving.

 

I live in Texas, in a place where we don't do emissions testings so we're good on that. And I was planning on handing the car down to my brother so I don't want him to have a piece of crap from the beginning.

 

I sure hope your right, because if you're missing any obd2 compliant components, than you won't get an inspection sticker.

 

So you *do* need it to run longer than 6 months.

Think of it like this... had the head gasket not failed, would you be considering doing an engine swap for him anyway? If no, then why now? If yes, then you're a pretty awesome brother.

Up to you, of course.

 

Trust me, I've had my vehicles inspection all the time and what they check are:
Headlights low/high beams
Tire wear
Blinkers
Brake lights
They have never plugged a OBD2 tool in.

 

I was hoping the car would last me until I graduated, I was planning to keep the car and do a motor swap for higher performance but as of right now I'm 100% worried about reliability.

 

 

Another question, will the new motor work with the stock ECU that i have in my car. I just NEED to know straight forward if this will work.

 

There are certain sensors that the USDM ECU will look for, that the JDM motor won't have. You should be able to swap those sensors from your blown motor to the replacement motor, though.

That said, "low mileage" is an industry keyword, and isn't necessarily true. I'm with everyone else here - replace the head gasket, as well as the water pump, timing belt, and tensioner (which you should do on a replacement motor anyway), and call it a day.

 

Another way of looking at that is the ECU could care less what motor is in there as long as it has the sensor inputs it needs. Just like "NotARacist" said, swap the sensors required and you're golden.

 

Alright appreciate all the feedback! !!! Would it be in best interest to go ahead and use the intake and exhaust manifold from my old motor like someone mentioned earlier??

 

Yeah swap manifolds. Also your going to have either bypass the CKF sensor or swap oil pumps. Other than that you should be good to go.

 

We don't even know what engine you picked yet, so how we going to know if it will work with your ecu.

 

It's in the original post in the link I posted. It's a d16a I believe

 

jdm engines aren't the only option, should you decide to replace. direct replacement with 110k for $550 in houston http://www.car-part.com/cgi-bin/search.cgi, y8 vtec upgrade with 121k for $595 in el paso http://www.car-part.com/cgi-bin/search.cgi not knowing where you live, i used a generic dallas area zip code to search.

 

Upgrading to a Y8 engine on his automatic would require not only an ECU change but he would also need the Y8's auto transmission as well, OP take that into consideration.

 

your going to need to be creative with this one. But if you think you can get a WA without running any of the obd2 equipment then go for it.

 

very nice civic . just get it from tigerjapanese .
I have my replacement motor for 2 yrs now .I received mint condition engine .
much better price also .
http://www.jdmtigerjapanese.com/hond...nly-96-00.html

 

Are you sure about this? I know 92-95 gear ratios are close enough that it doesnt matter. Have run EX auto trans in DX/LX with no issues.

Edit: found the 96-00 ratios

GEAR D16Y7 D16Y8
1st 2.600 2.722
2nd 1.468 1.516
3rd 0.926 0.975
4th 0.638 0.638
Rev 1.954 1.954
FD 4.357 4.357