hey guys. i have a 1989 civic hb DX. i am looking to do a swap and i was planning to buy a complete 1st gen b16a swap with a cable tranny. simple enough.

HOWEVER, i met a guy who is trying to sell his b18b motor with everything (ecu, tranny, etc) HOWEVER, i know his hydro tranny isnt very compatible with my car due to it originally being a cable tranny. so heres the scenario:

would it be possible to just buy the LS swap MINUS his tranny. so ill have the b18b motor and ecu, etc. and afterwards, ill go and pick up a b18a cable tranny (im pretty sure the 90-93 integs used cable trannys) and bolt it right up? or will there be problems?

if anyone has ever used a b18b engine from a 94+ integ WITH a 90-93 integ 5 spd tranny, can u tell me if its worth all the trouble? compatibility issues.?

OR do u guys think i should just wait and get a 1st gen b16a swap? let me know
thanks guys

 

It really comes down to what kind of setup you want.

The B18B is a good solid engine, especially for FI. You can buy it without the hydraulic tranny and use a 90-93 teg cable tranny, or get a B16A cable tranny. i would recommend getting a 92-93 GSR tranny because it has good gearing and it is USDM. Because the B18B is OBD-I(?) You would have to deal with the wiring issues. If you want to keep ot OBD-O you would have to get a 90-91 OBD-O Teg ECU, Distributor, injectors etc etc.

Can anyone correct me on any of this if I'm wrong?

The B18A/B is a great engine. It's very fun to drive around town because of the torque, but it will usually lose to a B16 in drag race because it simply lacks the top end of the B16's DOHC VTEC setup. IMO, you should get a B20 over a B18 though.


[Modified by Mr. S, 11:28 PM 1/2/2003]

 

Actually from all that ive read on here the b18 should be a little faster than the b16's. Most b18a/b swaps will put you into the very low 15's and more times than not high 14's. I see MOST b16's running mid to low 15's....so they are very close in the 1/4. I know that there are the "magical" b16's that will put you into the 13's COMPLETELY stock...dont believe me then just ask them. Ive seen ALOT of people swapping out their b16's for b18a/b's lately. There has to be a reason that they are doing that. I say go with the b18 but good luck with whatever you decide to do.

Sean

 

thanks for the advice, however, i am well aware of the good old b18b vs b16a debate. i am not deciding what engine i am going to get based on the "capabilities" of each. i am a fan of the b18b over the b16a due to larger displacement. so that is why if i can find a b8b motor CHEAPER than the b16a, i will jump on it. which brings me to this thread.

i found the b18b swap for sale. so i want to get it IF and ONLY IF the swap wont be complicated as it seems. my obd0 and the cable tranny is what scares me. however, i am going turbo with this engine and i will want to use Hondata in the future so i will eventually buy a obd0 to 0bd1 conversion harness later on.

but i guess my REAL question is..

b18b motor, ecu, axles, etc and swap (MINUS the b18b hydro tranny)

OR

1st gen b16a complete swap from hmo

AND remember, the deciding factor isnt performance here..its compatibility issues..the guy is selling the whole swap MINUS the axels for $1000 picked up. so whatever the tranny costs MINUS $1000 is how much i will get it for.

and keep in mind that hmo b16a swaps go for $1100. so with some math, can someone suggest whether buying the LS swap here and all the extra parts to get it running right (cable tranny, axles, ecu etc) is worth it compared to buying a regular old b16a swap? thanks again

 

This is what I did...97 B18b motor and used a cable Y1 tranny that came off a B16A...its plug and play.