Attempting D16Y8 head swap on D16Y7 block on my 98 Civic DX hatchback (minime) and ended up going route of swapping over all necessary Y8 parts on an EX with for that sweet SOHC VTEC. Have the manual OBD2a 96-98 engine harness, manual OBD2a 96-98 P2P ECU, knock sensor, Y8 manual intake mani, Y8 fuel injectors, Y8 fuel rail, vtec solenoid etc.

Left it at a shop so I could have other maintenance done like new timing belt tensioned, new water pump etc. and techs are telling me only issue is the D16Y8 distributor (picture also below) I bought isn't fitting to the head correctly? I'm aware the distributor from 96-98 vs 99-00 may be different? I provided the shop with a 99-00 distributor previously and thought instead I'll just match all 96-98 parts.

Will be going to the shop this Friday to take a look with the tech but am I missing something here? Everywhere online says the distributors should be the same and some older forum posts say you can change the internals like coil pack etc. from a Y8 to a Y7 which mates correctly of course and maybe splice some wires but what is the correct distributor I should be buying for this? Really appreciate any insight thank you!

 

The only difference between a '96-98 Y8 distributor and a '99-00 Y8 distributor is the style of the electrical plug itself... a '99-00 dizzy plug will NOT plug into a '86-98 EX engine harness. If you buy a '96-98 Y8 distributor, everything should be fine. If you ask them exactly what is wrong with it, they should be telling you it is only the plug. If they tell you otherwise... something else is wrong.

 

Thank you for the response!

Yes didn't make sense to me either but will find out when I'm there. They said something about the bolts on lining up so I assumed maybe they meant only 2/3 holes lined up to bolt it to the head. But looking at pictures Y7 and Y8 dizzys are the same. Again really appreciate the reply I'll provide an update.

 

Y7 and Y8 distributors are NOT the same... are you sure you purchased a Y8 distributor ?

 

Yes in my first post I linked the one I bought from eBay (shipped from Canada to California but can't imagine region Y8 distributors are any different). Here is the link again with more pictures https://www.ebay.com/itm/23404833449...p2047675.l2557

unless it turns out the seller sold me a Y7 on accident but that wouldn't explain why the tech can't fit the distributor back on. I was a little suspicious of the line the listing saying "this is the OEM distributor assembly from a 2000 Honda Civic D16Y8 VTEC S40" but even then the plugs I know are different and the tech didn't mention any issue with the plug going to my 96-98 Y8 engine harness.

 

A TD-80U distributor housing fits a '96-00 Y8 cylinder head. So, one of three things has happened here:

1 - The distributor isn't actually a TD-80U.
2 - The cylinder head isn't a Y8 head.
3 - The mechanic doesn't have a clue.

 

Also, the description states that the distributor pictured fits a '96-98 Civic HX... this is not the same as an EX. The housings are different.

 

Interesting I did not know about the HX distributor housing and yes on the fence now if I bought the wrong one. Worst case I would have to purchase another Y8 distributor online though most listings are saying for Y7 and Y8 are suspiciously confusing.
The cylinder head is definitely correct as I pulled it myself off a stock D16Y8 EX engine from the junkyard. I want to believe in the tech haha so now leaning towards purchasing the right one.

Thanks again for the contributions so far JRCivic1!