Hey guys,

I am pretty new here and I am in the process of gathering information. So here is my background. I am in my mid 20's and I have within the last six months purchased a 1999 civic CX.

As many have before I would like to do a b16 swap in this car. Ideally I do want to take this further than just a basic swap over time but for now the straight swap will be fine. Also I guess I should note that I am planning on gathering info over the upcoming winter and hopefully I can start this process in the spring.

So I do have a bit of a mechanical background. When I was in high school I took two years of mechanics and rebuilt a few chev 350's while in school. However it has been a fair bit of time since I have done anything that big for a while. I still do my own basic maintenance and have done some other work such as suspension lifts on my old truck and some work on my BMW so I am not really concerned about being over my head. Also when I go to do this I will be doing it with the help of my friend who is a second year apprentice of heavy duty mechanics, who also happens to be a honda enthusiast.

So over the last six months I have been doing a lot more reading than posting. Now what I understand is there are three B16 motors that can go into my car. So since my car is a 1999 it would be OBD2, but from what I understand OBD1 provides more options for tuning.

So my first question is would I be better off to put in a b16a gen2 from a 92-95 civic or should I use a gen 3. I should note I live in Canada in the province of Alberta where there are no emissions laws. So that is not a factor. So at this point unless I am wrong it is my understanding that a gen2/obd1 would be a better fit for me, and in addition they are cheaper.

The place I plan on getting my engine from sells all of the following as a package.
Engine
Transmission
ECU
Alternator
Air Conditioning
Power Steering Pump
Distributor
Intake and Exhaust manifolds
Down Pipe
Starter
Axles (add 130)
LSD (add 250)

So to use a obd1 engine with a obd2 car I need to use a ECU Jumper Conversion Wire Harness. Now is that plug and play or is there additional wiring.
I believe that that package should over all of the things I need. what else am I missing on my list to be fully prepared to do the swap.

 

My opinion? Get the newest motor you can get your hands on. It will be plug and play that way, you can add an obd1 ecu with a jumper harness later if you decide to start tuning.

 

That makes a lot of sense too.
I was unaware you could use an obd1 ECU with a engine that was intended to be used with obd2.

 

To be honest I'd look into a B18C1 or C5. You'll be happy you did with the added power and torque. Also you need to find out the emissions in your area to see if your engine and ECU will pass.

 

No emissions in my area.
The cost goes up by about 900.00 to get a b181c and about 2,200.00 for a b18c5 so I don't really feel like exploring those avenues. But if I can locate a complete b18c1 for a reasonable price I would jump on it.

The one real concern I have is wiring. I absolutely hate it, for the most part I have been able to do almost anything with cars up to this point. But when there is wiring involved my confidence goes downhill very fast.

So another thing I am wondering is, when I buy a complete swap from an importer if I buy all obd2 is it directly plug and play, or is there still wiring involved?

Sorry for my Noobness but there is so much info here it can be hard to find the one thing I am looking for as a very large number of results always comes up.

 

HondaPartsHero said it best. Swapping over to an underpowered b16 and spend all that money for lackluster performance isnt the best idea.

But a fool and his money will always part ways.

Now if it were me, id check the health of the current engine.do a compression and leakdown test.

If everything is good, a turbo kit will spank the b16 and the b18c. It can be reliable as a stock engine if built and tuned right.

But do what you like. Throwing away all that $ from a 1.5L to a 1.6L doesnt make sense to me.

 

I'd go for the C1 swap too.

 

The only logical answer. End of thread.

I only swapped a DOHC ZC because I was going to build for boost anyways and I got the motor for 300 with trans.

 

I see what you are saying, and it is valid. My only concern is that in my area a b18c1 sells for 2,750.00, or I can buy the entire car for 3,500.00-4,500.00 with the b18c1.

Which isn't really a bad idea, but I find the hatch much more appealing.

 

Get a B16A OBD2b from a 99-00 Civic Si, it's the same harness minus the vtec stuff unless you also get the Vtec Engine harness. If you get the B18c, you would also use your CX engine harness and add the Vtec stuff or get the Vtec Civic harness.

From Katman: