as the title suggests, i have been flipping this question through my mind for a while, and i just wanted to see about things i am missing or maybe misguided on. if i had enough money, i would like to go b16a, but i think that the price tag exceeds my budget, once mounts and shipping and my refusal to buy the b16 without an lsd transmission are factored in, a b18a seems like a good idea.

by the way, my car is stock w/ d16a6 currently.

swap pros

b18a engine and trans only $160 from my local junkyard, not guaranteed running but there are 2 to choose from. one is auto trans though and other has manual that was already pulled by someone....

i get the b18a with no trans for $100.

no wiring whatsoever..

more torque and hp than a d16a6

more potential for forced induction out of the box than b16a

potential for ls/vtec or poor man's type r in the future, with emphasis on poor man

a6 is getting tired.. 215k miles, with the last 5k or so spent above 3500 rpm..

trans is about to take a dump in my a6 and i dont want to buy another from a yard.


swap cons

no vtec out of the box

engine has no guarantee. i could buy one with a cracked cylinder wall, destroyed head, etc etc.

only 130hp out of the box..

stock transmission is slow? i am not sure, but compared to an si tranny.. i dont know.

need to find a transmission period for the b18a because one is an auto and the other is no trans.

only have about $1000 to work with. that includes no brainer maintenence that will need to be done, such as timing belt.

stock crossmember clearance issues and bolting up to stock exhaust system questions.


the parts i know i need to make the swap are:
engine $100
trans ?
shift linkage ~$150 ? hasport has it, but anyone cheaper?
mounts $155 from a guy on H-T
axles $25 from junkyard ...i think i can use the teg's axles with my si hubs
-----------------------------------
$430 for stuff i need to make it work.

but.. that leaves me with $570 to find a trans, lsd or not, i just want it to work, a clutch and pressure plate and throwout bearing and timing belt and new plugs and all that. the thing is i have to act quick, for one because i have 2 weeks paid vacation coming up where i can afford as much downtime as i want, and second because im afraid someone will get the engine i want from the yard before me.

basically im just looking for a "yes this is a good idea, here is why.." or "stick with the a6 with 215k miles". i have slowly peiced together a turbo setup for my a6, with 215k miles, but i dont have all the parts yet, and i dont want to get shrapnel in my chest when it blows up. i do have access to another a6 in the yard which i could also purchase and build for boost, but the hp ceiling for the a6 isnt high enough, to my knowledge, for my longterm goal of around 300 whp. im sorry i posted this mental mess at 12:15pm, but i have 4 days until i go on "vacation" which is just sitting around otherwise doing nothing unless i get the ball seriously rolling on this b18a.

cliffs notes: b18a into 91 hatch on the super cheap. good or bad idea.

 

sounds like a big gamble, they way you make the b18 conddition sound like. can you get a ride or walk to work just in case some thing doesn't happen?? (ie the engine is damaged)

 

How much do you think you can get for the a6 and the turbo kit if you sell it?

 

is the d series really that tired ? I would just save until i could get what I really want. You ll be happier in the end.

 

there are bus routes that indirectly go to my work. i will deffinetly check out the engine before i swap it in though, ill pull the head off while it is out of the car and make sure it is healthy and make sure that everything rotates as it should..

as for the a6, i hadnt thought about selling it, but that deffinetly would be a way to recoup costs. the a6 in my car is healthy, i compression checked it when i bought it and if i remember right it had around 140 across the board, which, for colorado is pretty good. a lot of people around me, close friends etc, tell me not to turbo my car because they dont want to see it blow up on me, and i dont want my a6 to go either.. but.. well, you guys all know the but about having an a6 as far as horsepower is concerned.

the turbo kit is kinda a halfway done project. its one of those deals where if i buy all the stuff to complete the turbo kit, i wont have money for the b18. but if i buy the b18.. you get the picture. i would really really like a b16a with lsd tranny, but thats $2k just to get the thing to my doorstep without mounts and shiftlinkage, atleast from hmotors.

i guess my line of thinking is that with the b18, it will give me an engine whose potential exceeds my budget at this time, but which would provide noticeable upgrade from what ive got now. then later on i could build it when i save some more money. but the same can be said about the b16 as well. and the d, if i built it, i could probably get it to 250 or 300 on boost with built internals.. but 215k miles on this block makes me nervous about boost. but i have no reason to think that the block isnt healthy..




Modified by sanimalp at 4:11 PM 7/28/2008

 

Well you are never gonna find a B18A that cheep usually. So here is what i would do. Get the 100.00 motor, then get a B16A trans. Then what ever you have left over get the ECU and a wire harness. Start working on the motor, save your money (don't eat) then get the belt and the other things you will need. You are not gonna be abel to tell if it is cracked by looking at it but you can sometime do a compression test even when the motor is not in the car, or at least a leak down test. I say go for it. Just like any project it will take time and money.

 

I'm gonna have to agree with the guy above and say buy the engine at $100 and then slowly put together the rest. You may never find a b series engine for that price again. Just make sure and visually inspect as much of it as you can. See if the yard will let you take the valve cover off (so you can check the timing belt is still on with tension and all the valves look to be in place). Also take a socket and breaker bar and put it on the crank pulley. Turn it over a few times. If you can't move the crank pulley, you probably are looking at an engine that has seized up at best. If everything on it tests good, go home with a $100 B18. Now, as far as not having a wire harness with the engine, you don't need one. Your post said you had a d16a6. All you need to do is swap your harness onto that engine and plug it back in. TRUST ME, that is all it takes for wiring a B18A into an Si model EF chassis. I should know, I have a 91 CRX Si with a B18A in it. I also have a LS cable tranny that I just pulled from my car in favor of a YS1 that I refreshed. If you want it PM me. It's got its flaws, but it ran fine in my car for almost two years. PM me about it and we'll talk.

 

save up and get the b16a i would

 

you wont have clearance issue with the b-series into the ef... engine will clear the crossmember with no problems... all you got to worry about is the ef bseries mounts... and the shift linkage... i saw a guy here in HT selling his EF mod shiftlinakge for like $20
about the axles you will need either DA 90-93 axles... or the 87-89 teg axles....
tranny you got either a stock b18 tranny to work wid.. or you can also put a short geared b16 tranny in...
i usually check engine shops... $400 range + $100 shipping cost... check h-motorsonline... or jspec

 

I say do the swap. I have had it for a couple of month now and I love it.

 

what about throttle cable and clutch cable? do i have to harvest those off something or will my stock si stuff work? i just thought of that stuff today at work. heh..

 

they can be modified or just take them with the swap if you can

 

d16apwr you have pm

 

Omfg you got 2 tahitian green 88-91 civics!?, they are the most hot ones out they're, and so hard to find in good condition.

 

Btw
1. axles $25 from junkyard ...i think i can use the teg's axles with my si hubs. Yes you can but you have to take out the dust ring on the back of the hubs for them to fit, you can pop em off with a flathead in like 2 seconds.
2. http://www.jdmshit.com go they're and buy a cable B series trans, used but still working and not too bad of a price.
3. make sure you'r b18a/b is in ok shape or somewhat.
4. who needs vtec when you have 10 more torque over a b16 and lower compression, which=good boost lovin.
5. only 130hp??, pfft thats a somewhat big difference over a 108 hp stock D16a6, for a little car!, but mostly the torque you will love.
6.The stock headers on a stock b18a/b will fit for sure on the crossmember on a 88-91 civic/crx, i would know i see it on mine everyday, no cuts.
7. Nope no wiring needed, but you do need a 90/91 integra Pr4 Ecu with a ObdO b18a 90/91 integra distributor, make sure both are fine.

 

You should get everything done for sure, if you watch you'r money and be careful with what you are doing. Another thing, the Ls tranny, 5 spd of course for the b18a/b models is S1 i think?, well anyways it will still be quick in the hatch mang.

 

thanks for the link and info contender25, that is the first place ive seen that sells just trannys so far.

and for the tahitian green civics, the one on the right is mine, the one on the left is my friends. but my girlfriend will be getting the one on the left soon though. it will be like having 2 of them. you should have seen my friend's before it got hail damaged. that thing was freakin mint. the damage will be repaired eventually though.

mine was wrecked at some point by the previous owner, and thats why the front end is still kinda missaligned.. but the thing drives perfectly straight, just the hood and fenders and bumper spacer spacing are all messed up though.

 

Em...it should be alright if it drives straight. Just because someone gets a fender or something smashed or crushed in doesn't mean the car is totalled. These cars are beginning to get more harder to find, imagine 5-10 years from now you'r not even gonna be able to harly find any good ones around.

 

Hey u know what u and me have in common is $$$. Ive got the same problem but i know a cheap place to get a b16a1.Go to osakajdmmotors.com/introhonda.htm. u can get one for $1100 then +$200 for lsd+$150 for new axels+75 for shiftlinkage====$1525 thats better than 2000 or more.


You don't have to order from Japan ither I think they have a place in Canada so shipping may be a little cheaper than from japan.

I hope this helped.

 

yeah that would deffinetly be the lowest price ive seen for a b16a.. i just wonder if anyone has used them or can vouch for them, because it makes me kinda nervous to buy from a place no one has heard of, especially when we are talking about $1500.

deffinetly good info on yet another place to buy parts from. i can never have a long enough list for that.

 

Did u look at there website? They look ok to me but ive never bought a motor from them. On there website they show a massive warehouse of engines. I'd say they probably have any engine for any import.ask around and do some kid of vote for cheapest b16a motor websites.

 

Stop right now. DO NOT GO TO OSAKA MOTORS. plenty of ppl will tell u that in here. u get what u pay for

 

thanks for the warning.

 

im about to swap my B18A into my rex and i thght the 90-93 integ axles go right into my hub? do i have to change them around? if so ill just wait till i slip in my 90-93 steering knuckles for the bigger brakes.

also if you were in the bay area some people are selling b16 for as low as 700 ive seen

 

you dont have to change your hubs at all. its just a dust ring on the inside of the hub that you have to pull out, otherwise it will rub a lot and bind up the axle, atleast from what i have read. unless you have an hf rex.. then you need different hubs all together.

yeah, you guys are lucky to live by the ocean, cause you get all the imported stuff for cheaper than us inland.. cept that whole stolen honda problem out there.