aight guys i need ya'lls honest opinions about which swap would be better?
i have about 800 dollars and im intrested in which swap would perform, last, and give best quarter mile times...i have posted in a local forum about dohc zc, and all they have givin me is that that engine is crap!!(www.siatlanta.com) and what all have u done to your zc. b/c ppl tell me you cant find many aftermarket parts to it.. i also plan on turboing this in about a year or so, so what engine would be best???

thanks

 

You should do a search on this, I have seen a whole mess of this same topic out there. But personally, I would go with the sohc vtec...I am slightly biased having a y8 and all... but my friend had terrible luck with his ZC... I know there not all bad but there seem to be more people complaining about their ZC's rather than the sohc's. Easier to get parts for the sohc's too...

 

IMO SOHC VTEC hands down
revs faster , a smoother powerband, way more aftermarket support and they are cheaper to fix and mod if u blow or need another one

 

well I had a Dohc ZC in my rex for about 6 months and then I blew the head, it was a fun motor with a good pull but then again I havn't ever driven any honda with a bigger motor in it. after the head blew it never ran the same again and then I busted up the block pretty bad driving around in the mountains this summer. I'm getting a d15b sohc vtec finished up today and I'll see how that treats me.

 

Check one of the 20000000000000000 other threads that cover this topic. This gets covered quite a bit, and it usually turns in to a "My SOHC beat my friend's cousins neighbors ZC by 14 car lengths" vs. "My ZC runs 12.7s stock and my neighbors SOHC doesn't run at all" vs. "Just go with a B series" vs. "My stock Si motor is faster than most ZCs and SOHC vtecs".... etc etc etc. Just look at the numbers, the difficulty of swapping each one, the potential of each, etc. I personally like the DOHC ZC. I drive a SOHC vtec every day to work and I find it to be a really uninspiring motor.... I just don't like it. It all comes down to personal preference.

The SOHC is a smoother motor, it probably won't be quite as fast assuming you put it up against a similar condition ZC, but it will be very close. SOHC motors are a dime a dozen if you blow one. ZCs are cheap, but not quite as. SOHC vtec swap is more difficult IMO, but both are pretty damn simple. A ZC swap is about as easy as it gets... its is simply a remove and replace swap... unless you count the 2 minutes you spend changing a few wires at the distributor. Both can be flogged like hell with no problems. I've been beating the **** out of one of each for the last few years with no major issues on either. Depending on which SOHC you get, you may be replacing distributors occasionally... they seem to have coil and ignitor issues. With a ZC, you will be replacing a distributor or two, its simply a matter of when. You stand less of a chance of getting a motor with problems if you purchase it here in the states and see it first hand before buying it. That is the tip of the iceberg. Many factors...

Personally I like having the motor everyone loves to hate! The DOHC ZC is just the bastard child or something. People love to bash that motor, and its fun to beat them after they do. Get a decent one and it will run like a champ. Throw a turbo at it and have loads of fun.

Good luck...