Hey guys,

Long time lurker, I figured Im far enough in to my build to post a bit about it. First and foremost I have to say if not for the resources made available to me by this site (amongst others) and its contributors, NONE of this would have been possible. I am an mid level mechanic at best-hobbyist really, but HT has more knowledge than any one person does. So just generally speaking, thanks! -- Ok so I drive a lot for work, and I bought this car primarily to offset the extra mileage I was putting on my lease. Its a 1991 Civic DX, Tahitian Green. I think I drive it more now than I do my daily haha. Heres how it sits as of this post:







Bought it for $950 from original owner, clean title, no accidents on carfax, mileage exempt but who cares really... Don't really have pics from when I bought it, but it was bone stock. OEM everything. Every accessory worked, from the seatbelt warning lamps to the old Honda radio. Idk if this adds anything to the value but I even found a sweet old KFC coupon from 1991 under that carpet (which I still have). Awesome. Some rust was the worst of what I had/have to worry about. It would see some paint soon (still waiting ) so nbd really. This is the oldest bay pic I can find. It had the factory airbox but think I put a cone filter on it right away lol:



I bought eBay coilover springs, upper and lower control arms, and camber kits (not sure the brand), as well as some stagg shocks. Probably spent about $400 total. eBay coilover springs SUCK, I know its overstated but I had to know for myself lol. Stagg shocks are actually not bad at all. I also replaced my rotors/pads/shoes and booster/mc with advance auto parts brand stuff, (wearever I believe) with the intention of upgrading to integra brakes front and back in the future. Cant remember how much that all cost but its pretty cheap:



With all that out of the way, I thought about my overall goals for this car. Having made 412hp in a boosted gsr a few years back, I set after something way less intense, for lack of a better term. I decided to keep the under-rated sohc d-series engine but after some research opted for a d16y8 head instead, cus who doesn't love vtec? I found a listing on CL for a full y8 swap minus block for $150, couldn't pass it up. I converted to MPFI, wired for obd1, and ran a p28 with an eBay jumper. Picked this stuff and ecu up for $60:



So with the mini-me underway, I hit a snag:



This should have been like a huge slap in the face, accompanied with a "DONT DO IT". However I figured if It had compression before, it should now; Whats the worst that could happen? So I bought a new water pump, tensioner, timing belt, thermostat and a fel-pro gasket set (don't recommend, use Honda). I reused 7 b2 bolts and 1 y8 and slapped my y8 head on........ no compression... DUH.

So here we go again:

Motor out:


Head was machined and had a slight valvejob. Upgrading springs/retainers in the future so didn't spend too much time here:





New Block, decked .010 and new pistons bored .020. Making about 11:1 right now, but will eventually make a bit more with a .027 cometic gasket. Will be swapping to ARP studs at that point as well... 93 octane only!!:







At this point I swapped in the ex hydro tranny and new exedy clutch kit. I opted for the y8 flywheel and had it resurfaced. I also picked up an innovative hydro/cable actuator:



Fully assembled before going back in. I don't recommend cheaping out on cam gears like I did. Regretted it the second I had to adjust timing:



Onsoku... even sounds Chinese.

Amongst other unmentioned upgrades, ebay header (temporary), yonaka catback exhaust, taylor battery tray and relocation kit and innovative mounts. I've failed to mention all the other small things I've purchased also (spark plugs, wires, hoses, various bolts and sensors, etc..) but basically if you have to question it, or even just if its cheap enough, buy it. Youll save yourself more time/money later on.

Late at night, motor in:



Working on timing, I was actually off by a tooth or so:



Working order, but still a bit messy in there. I swapped to a crx si cluster for rpms but was using an obd2b dizzy at the time and couldn't get an rpm signal from dizzy or ecu (eventually switched to obd1). Also notice whats plugged into my iat is evap I think lol, idk how that happened or how I didn't notice before this pic. One of the little annoying things with wiring was having to move some plugs around. Tip for self: use ef si harness as base next time:



At this point the car was running and I quickly discovered the tranny I picked up for the low (surprisingly lol) was busted; no 2nd gear. So now a tranny swap (got some minty oem axles in the deal also). Eventually ill rebuild the busted one with synchrotech carbon synchros:





Since then, ive cleaned up my harness a bit, and replaced the alternator and dizzy with an obd1. I am still in need of a tune, but I am also already purchasing parts for the next phase so I might hold off. Also found some pretty minty hx wheels at the junkyard, so as soon as I buy new tires, those will be going on as well:



And... a lil bit of whats next:




That's all I can think of for now. If I think of anything else worth mentioning, I will include it in my next edit/post. Any feedback/advice is appreciated and I will try to answer all questions. Thanks for looking!!

-Oso

 

How does your car ride and handle with stagg shocks?