Is there a best year to get to begin with for a new project car? I know Si is what i need, but does year really matter options, mechanics wise??

 

Depend what you want. 88 CRX Si (there was no 88 Civic Si) is the lightest of them all. But the 91 CRX/Civic Si have the most "flash" to them.

 

It depends on what kind of car you want to build.
Si wouldn't be good for all race, maybe for a daily driver, the sunroof and other parts add lots of weight...

 

Stock for stock...and going fof best 1/4 mile time stock- Id say 89 crx Si it has 5hp more than 88 and isnt as heavy as the 90-91Si CRX.

HB-89Si lightest HB that was a Si for ED's

If your gonna go for the lightest car and swap a engine a 88-89 crx HF is they lightest ED crx and a 88-89 STD HB is the lighest of alll the HB for ED style..BTW it sux driving a 70hp STD and I bet a 62hp CRX HF isnt any better. The d16a6 in the Si is a good engine that can be pretty quick. If you dont plan on swapping for a year or so get a 88-89 Si

 

I'm going to have to recommend the 88 HF for the best all around race platform. I've built 2 so far, and I'm working on my 3rd.

My reasoning for this is;
1. already has MPFI so swapping is as easy as Si where wiring is concerned
2. it's lighter than the Si. no insulation on floor board or side panels (sound deadening)
3. lighter because of its rear hatch (an hf one can be used on an Si though)
4. lighter because it has no front bumper reinforcement (can be removed on Si though)

reasons for 88-89 are:
1. no seat belt mech built into door (lighter)
2. no tilt wheel (lighter)

only negative would be the HF hub/axle which you'd want from a dx or Si if changing to Dx or Si transmission, and the Hf motor and transmission are econo tuned period.

 

Stock for stock, the 1988 SI is going to be the factest. The power difference between the 1988 and 1989-1991 is actually only 3HP (105HP vs 108HP). And the 3HP increase in 1989 is not going to make up for the weight increase.

But if you want a fast car, you are probably going to swap anyway. If this is the case, consider a 1988 HF, 1988 DX, or 1989 HF. All of these cars are MUCH lighter than even the 1988 SI. And after swapping in another motor, who cares what they came with stock?

 

Personally I'd give up the .02 in the quarter mile to have a 91 Si, I see other interiors compared to mine and they look like ****.(88 style). Thats why I have a 91.

 

91 Si b/c it's newer plus you have a sunroof- much mo betta for a DD

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by muse &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">3. lighter because of its rear hatch (an hf one can be used on an Si though)</TD></TR></TABLE>
huh? I dont understand what u r saying? the actual hatch i.e. rear window and such is lighter?

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by muse &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">4. lighter because it has no front bumper reinforcement (can be removed on Si though)
</TD></TR></TABLE>
thats good to know, I thought that the original owner of my car had removed the bumper reinforcement.

 

STD.

because you can slap a Sexually Transmitted Motor In it Bitch.

Go with what ever you want!!!!

 

i had a 91si, now have a 89 si , but i cant think of many differences off the top of my head? what are they? can you show some pics of differences?

 

Thanx for all the replies guys. I would be doing a swap right away, but it would be my daily driver, so any ammenities would be nice. Sunroof I could really care less about, but if it doesn't leak, I guess it would be cool. I am leaning towards the civic not crx.

 

yea- if you have stuff that requires space the hatch might be best. I love CRX's, but I need room to lug around turntables, and records & the rex just couldn't hold it all.

 

has anyone tried to swap doors from a 88hf or dx onto a 90 hf?

will they fit? is it possible?

mainly to get rid of having the seatbelts mounted on the door.

 

the doors dont fit as the frame size is diff. i would go with a 88 si i dont like door mounted belts but i am also biased as i own one a rex that is

 

so are you saying that 88si doors will fit?

 

88hf, goooooood

 

That's right, they won't fit.

Unless you live in Canada like me, where none of the cars have door-mounted seatbelts

For the longest time I couldn't figure out why everyone said the '90-'91s had door-mounted seatbelts... then I actually saw a US CRX Si and it was like 'ohhhhhh, I understand now'

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by FURBALL B-16 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">88hf, goooooood </TD></TR></TABLE>

hey furball, you still have the white hf?? that thing is soo sexy

 

The 89's also have door mounted seat belts.... 88 was the only year with them mounted on the B-pillar.

I'm guessing the HF rear hatch is lighter because of no wiper and all the stuff that goes with that.

The HF bumper seems to weight less than half that of an Si bumper... I had them off both of my cars (88HF and 89Si) at the same time as was amazed at the difference. Does anyone know the exact weights of each? (maybe I should have weighed them at the time...)

 

Get 1988 CRX HF (rusty tho). Hella of a good project. Slap B16a 2nd gen. and you have 14 sec car for 100%. Only one thing keep in mind traction.

 

I posted this on a different topic yesterday, but it's interesting anyway...


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Differences Between the 2nd generation CRX-es.
» 88-89 CRX's don't have side impact beams in the doors, the 90-91 do.

» All CRX's have rear drum brakes except the 90-91 Si's

» 90-91 have a round instrument gauge cover while the 88-89 one is more squarish.

» 88-89 door moldings are taller and flatter, the 90-91 ones are shorter but stick out further and have a beveled edge to them.

» 90-91 rear lights have a 1/2 inch black edge all the way around them, the 88-89 do not.

» 90-91 have have fake air ducts molded into the bumper.

» 88-89 have slightly different front and rear bumpers than the 90-91.

» 90-91 bumper mounted turn signals are clear with amber inserts in them, the 88-89 lenses are just solid amber and shorter in length.

» 88-89 Corner mounted parking lights have their mounting screws visible while the 90-91 ones are attached by hiden screws.

» 91 and perhaps 90 headlights have a vent in them to help prevent moisture buildup.

» 90-91's are the heaviest, the 89 is lighter, and the 88 is the lightest. In each year the hf is the lighter model, then the DX and finally the Si weighs in at the most.

» 88 manual transmissions have an input shaft with 21 slpines.

» 88 has a 21 spline input shaft, the 89-91's have a 20 spline shaft.

» 90-91 clutch is 212mm, the 89 is 200mm and the 88 has either a 200 or 190mm.

» 88 does not have a clutch safety switch. Which means it will start without having to press the clutch in.

» 88-89 Si models have 105hp, the 90-91's have 108hp due to different ecu settings and possibly a slightly different cam.

» 88's have pillar mounted seatbelts,90-91 have door mounted belts, 89 si's and dx's have door mounted belts, 89 hf's have pillar mounted belts.

» Models with door mounted belts have a wider pillar at the end of the door to accomodate the belt mount, this also means that the glass is and inch or so shorter.

» 90-91's have a red seatbelt warning light built into the dome light.

» 88's have what Honda called "passive rear steering" which makes them slightly more agile but some owners complained that they didn't like the "twitchiness" feeling of it so it only existed the one year.

» Rear lower control arms changed between the 88 and 91 years and the rear shocks have different mounting points.

» 88 has slightly different sized front shocks.

» 88 ecu has a different internal design than the 89-91 but the inputs and outputs are the same and ecu's can be swapped between years.

» 88-89's have the hazard light switch on the top of the steering column, 90-91's have it mounted on the dash.

» 88-89 Si seats have a white pinstrip, 90-91 Si seats have a red pinstrip.

» 88 has a pocket at the bottom of the drivers door.

» 90-91 Si's and perhaps the 89 Si have a mesh pocket on the back of the seats.

» 88 cam indexing is the same for all the engines, 89-91 si's have indexing that is different from the other engines.

» 90-91 and possibly the 89 have larger reverse lights that are set further to the sides than the 88.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Information above originated from: Quick Honda.

 

w00t 88 hf all the way. I'll post pics of my new one tomorrow...