I can't decide! Right now I've got an automatic LS that I plan on converting to manual and eventually turboing but I'm torn. I would rather have an N/A car but turbo is cheaper. If I do make an N/A car then I want a better motor though. Maybe an H22 or B18C swap? If I do a swap then I can do the conversion as well. Hmmmm I'm so confused. I don't know how I want to build my car anymore.

 

turbo LS no question

 

boosted ls i think but u will get some mixed answers

 

Don't turbo your car, I was preparing my car to be turboed.. I had the same situation you had though, I had the parts (Most of them) and I was getting ready to install but I mentioned to the guy that was going to put it in that my car was indeed Automatic. He didn't advise putting the turbo in my car at all, the boost doesn't know when the tranny is gonna shift into gear and it'll tear up your tranny.. The length of life on it will be almost zero after this. I'd say do an Auto/Manual conversion you'll notice a huge difference in power from Auto to Manual. Manual > Automatic anyday my car as an automatic felt like a granny..

 

Hehehe. How much did the conversion run you? I've got a mechanic saying he'll do it for about $3k which includes me finding all the parts. I may just buy another teg and do the conversion myself over the span of like...a month hehe.

I'm thinking if I'm going to convert I may as well do a motorswap and get a whole new package. Only thing bothering me about that is my already bought exhaust and intake manifold. If I could have the cash back for those it would be no problem to save up.

It is all very confusing. So many decisions but I can't afford it all. I think boost being the cheaper solution is very appealing alone. I just don't want to do all the maintenance on it and I also think and N/A Integra would be mean if it was built well. I keep going back and forth right now but either way I can't afford anything for a while.

Maybe I'll just get a Supra with it's twin turbo....mayyyybe.....

If I did swap what would you all recommend? A swap for me would mean going N/A instead of boost since I already have an LS engine. B18C? H22A? B16?

 

have you ever thought about selling your car and buying a manual??? depending on how much you have invested in your car, that will probably be cheaper than a manual swap.

but if you had to swap an engine, id forget the h22. if you have the money, get the b18c, of course. if your short on cash, get a b16. i think either would be great fully built, bigger being better in this case.

im in the same situation, but i dont have money to do anything yet. but im going to sleeve and bore my ls block to 84mm and build a mean *** ls/vtec during my college years. ive got a long time to read and think about that one.

good luck

 

What do you want to do with the car HP wise? Daily Driver? Emissions (since your in Cali), AutoX? Goals? Wants? Needs? Dig deep down & figure out what you really want with the car. RESEARCH! Then make the decision for what you want. Not what everyone else is doing.

Alot depends on the motor, your goals, how much $$ you have, and all the little things listed above. I would almost look to selling or trading your car for one with a manual. You will find the $$ wasted on the Manual Conversion can go for parts. Do some research on your Car or another you wouldnt mind trading for it. Check into your motor options, parts cost for N/A, Parts cost for Turbo, Parts cost for the swap etc... Do price checking on parts all over the net and local (if possible). This way you can see what is more economical for you & get a $$ estimate of what each one is going to run you.

Let us know how it goes.

 

boosted LS the right way... not the chep way

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by WhitEdRift &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Hehehe. How much did the conversion run you? I've got a mechanic saying he'll do it for about $3k which includes me finding all the parts. I may just buy another teg and do the conversion myself over the span of like...a month hehe.
</TD></TR></TABLE>

3k for the conversion

The most cost efficient way to go fast in this sitiation is a) Ls turbo & b) sell your car and buy an automatic

Why spend 3k to convert to manual on a car that is probabaly only worth 3k? Get my drift, sell you car, take that $$ and buy another g2 Ls teg(manual) then Turbo your stock Ls motor.

If you go your route

3k for swap(manual)
3k for turbo kit

Thats 6k total plus your car, if you choose the other route, you are looking at

3k for turbo kit, on new manual Ls car.

3k is alot of $$$, and it doesnt need to be spent, be patient, save the $$, and find a manual.


Oh yeah and if your worried about maintenence, always keep in mind the more things you mess with/customize, change, the more chances you'll have of something going wrong.

Keep it simple Stupid KISS

 

I agrree save your money, forget the tranny swap and
buy a manual gsr w/ the 3000.

 

Wow, $3k is quite a bit. Well, I purchased my Integra for $650 with 55,000 Miles on the engine and 176,000 on the chasis, it was my principals and he was getting a Jeep so he wanted a different car, I jumped on it and started workin on it. Since your in the bay area, I'd HIGHLY... Again HIGHLY HIGHLY HIGHLY reccomend Rage Performance, I'm getting the tranny swap done now. Usually the base price is around $1500 but it all depends on what kinda car you got. My friend and I both got autos for cheap and he knew a very reliable business to swap them and they did an excelent job on his car. PM me for more information and their website is http://www.rageimports.com

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by IMMORTAL-B18 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">What do you want to do with the car HP wise? Daily Driver? Emissions (since your in Cali), AutoX? Goals? Wants? Needs? Dig deep down & figure out what you really want with the car. RESEARCH! Then make the decision for what you want. Not what everyone else is doing.

Alot depends on the motor, your goals, how much $$ you have, and all the little things listed above. I would almost look to selling or trading your car for one with a manual. You will find the $$ wasted on the Manual Conversion can go for parts. Do some research on your Car or another you wouldnt mind trading for it. Check into your motor options, parts cost for N/A, Parts cost for Turbo, Parts cost for the swap etc... Do price checking on parts all over the net and local (if possible). This way you can see what is more economical for you & get a $$ estimate of what each one is going to run you.

Let us know how it goes.

</TD></TR></TABLE>

I couldn't have said it any better. This is perfect advise. Plan ahead and realize what you want out of the car before you start doing things. Get the big picture.

I suggest....selling your car and buying a manuel then decide what route you want to go. goodluck

 

Boosted ls motors are fun and cheap.....Cant beat it in my opinion....

 

This car was only $200 so I took it right away. Technically a hand-me-down from my brother. My plans are always changing. I've gotten it down to these two decisions. If I can get a VTEC motor I would go N/A if I just do the conversion I will boost.

I've been looking for another Integra for $1k or less so I can do the swap myself in my garage. But finding them isn't easy and since my car is already modded with suspension and the exhaust selling or trading it in wouldn't get me much. Not to mention I sold most of my stock stuff so I can't put it back to it's original condition.

I am definitely emotionally attached to my car now and my gf doesn't want me to sell it either. Basically I am looking at either buying another Integra to do the tranny conversion myself or getting a motorswap and the whole sha-bang at once to go N/A.

But uhhh yeah...I don't really have much money. I am going to start working again in a month or two and start saving up. I don't mind waiting a while so I'm just trying to sum up the facts for 6+ months down the road. I would have my decision right now if I hadn't boughten an and Skunk2 intake manifold but I'm just tthinking about how much I'll be losing there. Resale would be low on that stuff wouldn't it?

Anywho I'm saving my pennies. The boosted LS seems more practical since I have an LS already but if I'm gonna pay $1-3k for a conversion I might as well get a nice engine right? My preference is N/A in any case, I just need to see what is more cost effective I guess.

 

The specs for the H22A are better than the B18C. I thought the Type R was the fastest of the Honda's stock. Maybe I missed something?

 

Also note that there are mount differences between auto and manual cars that will need to be addressed with some quality welding.

3k is entirely too much for the conversion by the way.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by WhitEdRift &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">This car was only $200 so I took it right away. </TD></TR></TABLE>

Well theres your answer, why not keep this car(Daily driver) buy another Ls(manual) and boost that. In the end you'll have you a fast boosted Ls, and a nice $200 daily driver, what more could you ask for

Trust me a daily driver will come in handy later on

 

That's not a bad idea. Maybe if I can find that cheap LS manual I've been looking for I can do that. I still want to do a motorswap, that would be great, but if I've got an extra body and motor lying around then I can garage it and fix fix fix.

I had a quote for $1,500 for the entire conversion from a guy where I worked but I quit that job so I lost the deal. The $3,000 is from a Honda/Acura guy. He knows his stuff so I trust the job would be good but it just seems so expensive. I'm looking at:

About $1k for an LS manual car for parts
$1-2k labor and any additional parts.

 

How is turbo cheaper than a vtec swap? even if you go with an ITR swap(around $4300?) it's still cheaper than going turbo cuz...
$3000 for a turbo kit + rebuilt the engine with all the necessary parts(pistons,rings,valves,upgraded fuel pump,etc) to make the motor reliable, will be a chunk of money..
But if you have money like that...i'd go for turbo.

 

N/A is more expensive in the long run isn't it? Might not be able to push the same power out of a VTEC motor than a boosted LS either but I'm thinking the motor will last longer without turbo. I heard there was a difference in sound too. N/A being louder in general and turbo having the BOV noise.