First off, yesterday I bought a 1989 CRX DX. I've already gotten it lowered, and I absolutely love the car. Due to my parents not ever helping me out buying a car, the two cars I have owned before this one were an '88 Nissan Sentra 4 speed and an automatic 1994 EX Civic sedan. God that Vtec-E sucks! Needless to say, these cars were slow as hell so...

1) This is by far the fastest car I have ever owned. I am very impressed with the speed Im getting out of the D15. Next month I plan on ordering a B16. When I get this motor, is the car going to feel A LOT faster considering its roughly twice as much horsepower? I mean, I already know Im looking at high to mid 14's with just the swap which is by no means fast for race car standards but to a person who has only owned 18-19 second cars, are 14's going to feel fast as hell?
2) A year from now, am I going to wish I'd just saved for a B18c1 or c5?
3) With basic bolt ons, am I going to be able to compete with Mustang GTs or Z28 Cameros?
4) I dont plan on drag racing this car much, as AutoX seems much more enjoyable to me. CRXs seem like a very good platform to build a strong autox car.... is this true?
5) I've already got an Apexi N1 muffler to put on but when I called the muffler shops to see how much installation would be, they told me $60-$80 because CRXs require special work. Im assuming this is because of the way the pipe bends around to the other side of the car. When they put the muffler on, is it going to be a straight pipe out of the cat to the left side of the car, or is it going to go to the right and then bend around like the OEM exhaust did? If its the same pattern as OEM, is there room under there for them to modify it to go straight from the cat to the left side?
Im really not as much of a noob as these questions may make me out to be, Im just trying to cover all my bases before I invest in all this money. But anyway, thanks for your help!


[Modified by camera obscura, 3:06 AM 2/26/2003]

 

If you think the d15 in your dx is fast....well.....your in for a huge suprise with the b16..

 

yeah, the d15 is fast <U>TO ME</U> . But anyway, thats what Im hoping.

 

I don't have a rex but when i put my B16 in my 89 hatchy, it's way faster!!! You'll love it. Enjoy VTEC yo!!!!

 

I wouldn't jump thinking your gonna get mid-high 14's maybe 15's and with a lot of tuning 14's. there is no special anything for the crx exhaust it doesn't jump to the other side until it's almost all the way back after the gas tank. Yes you will wish you had saved for a b18c5, but if you got that it would just be something else you wished you'd saved for lol. Auto x scca etc not bad to have a crx good start but if you put the b16 in your class will change too street modified or something like that and you will be lower on that totem poll. you said it is lowered already how much? putting the b16 in you need new axles often they donot sit properly if the car has been lowered to much etc. It will be a real shock to you that first day you drive with the b16 but a couple months later you won't hardly remember that slow *** d15 lol. Too bad for me I drove my SC GSR and now my crx feels slow Will you be doing the swap yourself or having it done? in any case Good Luck

 

You will love it. I dont think you will care about a gsr or a type r motor in the future. If you can get a b16 Xsi motor its 168hp, and still a 1 series motor. With that and a jdm y1, s1, or j1 there is no reason you should not hit 14's. I trap at 96 mph with a ls tranny which would equate to a mid to low 14. on street tires too. The motor is cake to put in, once its running you will love it. The b16 axles will be fine as well even if you are slammed. I was tucking 1/2 inch of tire with 13" rims and 70 series tires. My axles were fine. The reason i lifted it back up was the jdm down pipe is way lower then my header was. I did the swap from a dx, and the car feels decent, but I was driving a 12.5 second nova before I got this thing running right. So fast is all relative, if you ride in ferraris or vettes, your honda is not gonna feel fast. But since you have been riding around in 18 second slugs, you will love every second of it. Enjoy Variable valve timing

 

You will love it. I would reccomend a cat back system, or at least have a exhaust shop bend you a nice system. I dont know if I read your post right, but if you are going to weld that muffler on your stock system you will end up doing it over because the factory restricticve *** piping wont be effecient for the b16a. Get a 2 1/4 inch piping minimum. Ryan
PS, check out my site for b16a install instructions (in sig). I dont have the dpfi to mpfi instructions though.

 

haha with alot of tuning??? what the hell are you talkin about. and exactly what are you meaning by alot of tuning? my bone stock b16a wiht just intake and bald tires and no hood(couldnt get it to s shut so i took it off) i went 14.5 also withstock exhaust and no tuning at all. and with now with my slicks and fiberglass doors i am shootin for mid to high 13's. with a bones stock b16a.

but yea you should have no problems hitting 14's bro so good lick with the swap

 

how about the part about competing with mustangs and z28's?

 

1. yes, 14's are 'fast as hell' coming from 17 second cars...but 1/4 mile times vary on your driving skill and the condition of your motor, condition of the track, weather, etc...so don't worry about that until you learn how to drive it well

2. yes. you will wish for more power, it never ends so just accept it. IMO, you should buy a 1.6 sohc (vtec or not) and turbo that succer for the price you pay to get the b16...it'll be alot faster and if you build your block, it'll be more reliable (assuming you build your block from the bottom up and you're not boosting at say, 20 psi)

3. GT's and camaros are not the only things you should aim for...make your car into what you like whether it be eatin stangs or makin 1.0+ g's on the skidpad

4.crx and autox= or so i've heard from dozens of guys on the board. if you're even semi-serious about autox, invest in some good suspension parts and learn how to drive your car STOCK before you get oodles of power...what suspension parts to get? search honda-tech.com, questions like that are all over the place

5. if you want a swap, don't install your muffler yet, you may need to cut and re-weld to fit with the b16. or if you go turbo, just get a custom job!

btw, how much do you plan on spending for the swap/turbo/power?

 

i am smokeing most mustangs and f bods around my area. all stock and slightly modded stangs are easy till you get to the late 90's and 2000's. same with the fbods, late modles are quick. all i have is a b16 with 95 ex piping cut after the cat and a intake that i prefer to call hot air induction due to the piping being about 8 inches long with a cheap filter on the end. oh yeah, my car is completely gutted other than the dash and sound deadening material. but gutting the car doesnt make that much difference. soon i'll be taking out new vetts and hopefully vipers. I am currently buying parts for my turbo set up wich includes hondata stage 4bd, lsd, turbo kit, slicks, someones used kit (when i find one) and next year, full engine rebuild.

anyways, when i put in my b16a, i was amazed by how fast it was. you will be too. VtEc WiLl OwN joO!


[Modified by 90_Civic_Hatch, 8:41 AM 2/26/2003]

 

I ran 15.0 with absolutely no modifications. After tuning I could pull 14.8s. Yes it will feel fast as all hell, but slow as a dog below 4.5k.

You will enjoy And yes you'll wish you'd saved for a B18C later on

 

good luck man....im still tryin to get mine to run...i drive around some beat *** 96 cougar that probably runs a 20 in the 1/4 but i have driven fast cars such as 92 cx with gsr and drag turbo...so that was fasttttt!!! but im hoping the b16 will haul ***...i have 91 hf TOTALLY gutted...i hope to get low 14's to high 13's with some bolt ons and slicks