Zc in rex worth it?

well looks like i have blow by in cylinder 3 and wondering is it worth putting a zc oin my crx and what bolts on and what dont from my d16a6...cause i talking somone last night and cali finally will smog a zc in a crx....also inst a zc sohc vtec?

Use the search man, this is a topic like every day.

there is a sohc vtec ZC yes. Mine is a DOHC ZC in my rex and I love it. Its not the fastest car on the road.. but it can hang pretty well. All I have for it is intake and exhaust.

ya think the i can only use the sohc here in cali to pass smog i can be wrong not sure...anybody really know the laws about the zc in cali now?

my DOHC ZC passed smog... but... it kind of cost a little extra money...

What part of cali are you in.. Im in orange county

modesto cali... worse smog laws town to live in...lol

cant i use my si tranny with this motor?

yes u can use ur Si tranny with it

Its say its probably the most worth the money thing you can do to an older Civic/CRX for bang for buck.

Do it.

well next uestion is if i by a zc block with head can i use everything fomr my d16a6 on it...if not what do i need to get to make it all work out?

the d16a6 is almost its twin brother... but thats a question for the more advanced people... im not sure the specifics about each part.

I say go w/the SOHC motor, noone makes parts for the ZC, and if they do they're hard to find. if something goes wrong bottom end wise ur fine, but if something goes wrong w/the head, cams, anything top end, ur screwed, lookin for parts that are gonna be hard to find, and when you find 'em they're gonna cost more then SOHC parts, just get a new SOHC out of a newer civic, it'll be a lot more reliable than a 14+yr. old motor, and easier to find parts for. Just my Opinion. I have a friend w/a ZC swap in his CRX, and he can't hang for shyt. he gets beat by V-6 Camaros and Mustangs all day. go w/the SOHC man

cant hang with v6...lol? should left that opion out there cause thats just saying your friend cant drive worth a shit...haha

No hes actually my friend too, his motor is just beat just like every other zc out there....

zc's are junk...and thats final.

zc's are junk...and thats final.


Yup.

so, since i have been able to beat mustangs and keep up fairly good with my buddys 5.0L Mustang and my buddys 305 TPI firebird, then my motor must still be shit huh? i dont know why everyone hates on the ZC so much, i spent 200 bucks canadian and got my motor rebuilt. and it runs like a dream, runs very strong and i can beat v6 stangs and keep up fairly good with v8 stangs. i think u guys just get bad motors

and as for there not being any aftermarket parts for the ZC, thats bull, i was shown a site that has zc parts and they seem fairly well priced to me. its http://www.dh-racing.com also, send comp cams your cams and they will do a re-grind for 70 - 80 bucks each, well worth it IMO. better then spending 400 + for new cams.

even when i wanted to go with the ZC and i saw all the bashing going on, i said fuck it and bought one anyway. and so far i havent been dissapointed one bit, and since being told about that site, i've gotten even more excited about this motor. and of course, if its beat then yes it may not perform very well. but if you spend a couple hundred and rebuild it you will have a very nice motor

wrong...buddy of mine had his zc rebuilt...runs like junk...sometimes it wont start, it leaks oil, it leaks fuel.

if you have a rebuilt motor and can barely hang with a 5.0 stang or firebird...they are probably stock then thats pretty sad actually.

drive a stock b18a/b/c, b16a/b, b20 crx/hatch and see how well they perform against your REBUILT zc...

my buddys stang has a K&N air intake on it and a shift kit. with eibach suspension

my buddys bird has a 305 TPI with a new cam, larger injectors, headers and freeflow exhaust. both went to the track this summer and were running consistantly low 15's. the bird was doing 15.1 - 15.2 consistantly and the stang was doing 15.3 - 15.4 consistently. and thats while spinning for the first 60'

so if i can keep up with them fairly well... i think thats damn good.

I'm sorry to tell you, but that firebird ran quicker than that from the factory.

I feel bad for you and them....

88 firebird, automatic with 383's? hmmm nope dont think so.

Yeah, 3rd gen cameros/firebirds were low 14/ high 13 second cars from factory. You said it was an auto so that probably droped it down half second or so, still lot quicker than what you said he was running now.

I dont care either way, I'm just saying..

so explain that to all the guys running high 15's low 16s stock at the track with that Gen Bird. and thats with the 305 tuned port. i think your facts are wrong

When my ZC was functional i was bashing on V6 mustangs all day and night. Never raced a v6 camaro though.

My ZC leaked oil and thats why its busted. But I am going to go with a ZC again... for 500 bucks you can't beat it.

as far as a ZC in california as of aug 1, 2004 all JDM motor are legal in US (california) they have to pass there counterparts smog requirments so a ZC = D16a6 will have to have all D16a6 smog parts on it to pass.

ya what i heard cj from a friend that i raced last night that had a zc and i had a d16 and he lit me up...and i dont suck at launching or driving...but when i sprayed i went up and around ihm like nothing...i just thought i go with a zc and spray on that sense they have a warranty for a year...

nitrous is for insane people :evillol: i'd wanna do it to my motor but it would get me in WAY too much trouble hehehe. and i wouldnt have the money to refill the bottle every other day :evillol:

EDIT: what all have u done to ur d16? and do u have any pics man?
i think a ZC with Nitrous would be very fun tho :) just make sure u put new rods in atleast. i heard the stock rods can only handle like 200 - 250 hp. b18a1 rods can handle 300 - 350 hp :) there a nice upgrade for not alot of money

stock internals...aem cold air intake dc sprt 4-2-1 header dynomax super turbo muffler with 2 1/2...i would have pics but i am embarrassed of my cars hood somebody hit me right when i got my rims for my car

ouch, that sux dude. i wouldnt mind seeing pics, hell, mines beaten so badly, its black and blue ;) hehe u can PM me if u feel like uploading em

well give me 2 weeks and they be on here...i honestly dont have any pics cause to lazy take them till my car is done

lol, alright u lazy bastard ;) hehe i expect pics in 2 weeks, no longer :evillol: :lol2:

they be on here some may hate but then i just call them out to race...lol...but i got fenders and ws kit put on but i wait till its ready to paint my car cause i hate driving around on pure primer...lol

i did it for a year man, no worries hehe, should look sweet tho :)

wrong...buddy of mine had his zc rebuilt...runs like junk...sometimes it wont start, it leaks oil, it leaks fuel.

if you have a rebuilt motor and can barely hang with a 5.0 stang or firebird...they are probably stock then thats pretty sad actually.

drive a stock b18a/b/c, b16a/b, b20 crx/hatch and see how well they perform against your REBUILT zc...

Hmmm.. I feel bad for your buddy. How is it the motors fault it leaks oil, fuel, and won't start? Who built the motor? If had one rebuilt and it was doing all that shit I'd take it back.

My ZC was straight. It ran real good, it was a nice clean strong motor and cheap too.

This isn't a thread about a ZC compared to B series, if it was it would be obvious. He asked if the ZC is worth it and the fact is its totally worth it. A ZC is cheaper and easier to find than just the tranny for a cable B series setup. :uhoh: So if you're just looking for a little go for your money, its totally a good deal. Where else are you going to gain 25-40hp (depending on your model) for <$1000?! without nitrous..

To the other guy - 305 Cameros are dogs. I'm sure they don't run low 14s from the factory.

1990 Chevy Camaro IROC-Z 5.8 14.4
1991 Chevy Camaro Z-28 5.7 13.8
1990 Pontiac Formula Firehawk 4.9 13.4
1998 Pontiac Formula Firebird 5.3 13.8
1995 Pontiac SLP Firehawk 5.3 13.9
1998 Pontiac Firebird TransAm 5.3 13.9


I couldnt find any specs for 305 auto's, but at the slowest I would say low 15's, so you may be right.

Theres lots of kids around here with their little zc's they all run like shit and they run slow.

End of story. Ide rather have a 50 shot on a d16a6 than waste money and time on swapping over a whole motor that probably will take a shit on me in less than a year.

1990 Chevy Camaro IROC-Z 5.8 14.4
1991 Chevy Camaro Z-28 5.7 13.8
1990 Pontiac Formula Firehawk 4.9 13.4
1998 Pontiac Formula Firebird 5.3 13.8
1995 Pontiac SLP Firehawk 5.3 13.9
1998 Pontiac Firebird TransAm 5.3 13.9


I couldnt find any specs for 305 auto's, but at the slowest I would say low 15's, so you may be right.

...he did say "spinning through the whole 60ft." so if those rides hooked up, I'm sure they'd match the numbers.

oh... and I wouldn't mind having "a 50 shot on a d16" either... but I'm afraid I'll get "blow by" like Americanfeagle03...

So A zc will be better off being sprayed?

He probably sprays like a madman and or his "rebuild" was done shitty.

I meant I'd rather spray my d16 then swap to a zc. I've never had one so I can't give an opinion in the matter, so please no flaming...

On a side note: If I do anything to this crx, it'll be current engine set-up rebuilt with high compression or b18 swap...

Hmmm.. I feel bad for your buddy. How is it the motors fault it leaks oil, fuel, and won't start? Who built the motor? If had one rebuilt and it was doing all that shit I'd take it back.

My ZC was straight. It ran real good, it was a nice clean strong motor and cheap too.

This isn't a thread about a ZC compared to B series, if it was it would be obvious. He asked if the ZC is worth it and the fact is its totally worth it. A ZC is cheaper and easier to find than just the tranny for a cable B series setup. :uhoh: So if you're just looking for a little go for your money, its totally a good deal. Where else are you going to gain 25-40hp (depending on your model) for <$1000?! without nitrous..

To the other guy - 305 Cameros are dogs. I'm sure they don't run low 14s from the factory.


thank god someone can back me up. thanx bro. but im also talking about a 305 Firebird. i think its a bit different,(might be heavier or something i dunno) but the fact is they dont run low 14 from factory

how can the zc be a little kid motor when its basically a higher compression dohc d16a6? if the zc is a kids motor whats the d16? toddler? what you dont get is that the zc can do everything the d16 could , turbo, nos whatever but it has a higher BASE hp, what yall are saying is that sohc non vtec 1.6 is better than dohc nonvtec 1.6? how is that possible? leave the nos out and explain to me how the d16a6 is a better STOCK motor than the zc?

zc's are old, they have a shitty aftermarket and most are beat on. They just dont cut it anymore neither do d16a6's. unless they are totally rebuilt by a good engine builder.

If you want to race and go fast, save your money dont race for a while and get a nice motor a nice setup and actually be fast, rather than not being able to wait throwing in a piece of junk zc and beating dx's with bolt on's by 2 cars, its just not worth it, its a waste of money, I know from experience.

If you wanna go cheap and stay D series then go d16z6 or d16y8, convert to OBD1 and you'll be happier with that and you will not have problems finding parts or reliability problems that you take a risk of having with a super old motor like a d16a6 or zc.

ZC's might be a good bang for the buck, but in long term your going to want something else. Sow me how many pro race teams are running ZC's. Yes I know theres not many running d16's, but I have seen a few.

You guys seem to be missing the whole point of this thread. It isn't "Can I start a race team with a ZC in my rex", its ZC in rex worth it?, and the answer is yes. Its worth the cost of I/H/E on a SOHC and the ZC will come out on top.

Too bad if you buddy had a shitty rebuild, thats no ones fault but his own and if thats the case the same could have happened if he rebuilt a much "newer" B18A. (0-2 years newer) If this was a thread about how good is a B18A everyone would be praising them and no one would be saying how most of them also have the shit beat out of them by boy racers, and are as old or almost as old as a ZC.

You can't just say "ZCs are junk and thats the final word" because thats stupid. Its not the final word. My ZC was awesome. It ran strong the whole time I had it and gave me no troubles whatsoever. And thats the final word because SiZ says so. :rolleyes:

So A zc will be better off being sprayed?

He probably sprays like a madman and or his "rebuild" was done shitty.
you speaking in my spot, saying i did a shitty rebuild?...if thats the case i gurranteed i run faster than what your posting on forum right now in 1/4 mile...on my own rebuild...i was only asking if a zc worth and for further reference yes i have a b20 with b16a head being built but i dont care about the b series motors right now talking about d series that will pass smog!!!.............

how long ago did you have your zc siz....?

If you rebuilt your motor and have blow by already on a freshly rebuilt motor then yea...you did a shitty rebuild suck it up.

b18a's are old and can be beat up on, I have heard and seen way worse things with zc's....everyone I know personally with a zc has had problems with it....and they dont even pass smog here in MD...

If you want an overpriced DOHC non vtec motor thats really old has almost no aftermarket and knowing majority have reliability issues then...so be it. im done here kids.

I agree, why ZC.

If you rebuilt your motor and have blow by already on a freshly rebuilt motor then yea...you did a shitty rebuild suck it up.
It's not blow-by, I'm just getting oil on the TOP of the spark plug's (Where the wire connects) and I've replaced the Valve Cover as well as the grommets, and it STILL leaks, so, it's not my fault on the rebuild, cuz I got consistent cylinder pressures in all four cylinders.

I agree, why ZC.

Because. Its an easy to do swap, costs about as much to buy as an intake and a header for your stock SOHC, and is considerably faster than the SOHC. Do you get it? Do you even have anything to say, or are you just butt-riding now?

civicHBsi91 - I had my ZC about 3 years ago. Hey, just how many people do you know that have problem ZCs? Whats the problems with them to name a few?

I know 4-5 people who have had zc's and one who still does...not for long let me tell you. Problems ( snapping timing belts, smoking, oil leaks, fuel leaks, low compression numbers) they are just OLD and slow. ZC's are like old football players...they were once great but now...they barely get the job done, if at all and they get tossed around teams and stay in the leauge just because of what their name once meant.


You had yours 3 years ago....with as much as I race I know my LS probably wont perform as it down now in 3 years...get what I mean?

[QUOTE=SiZ]Because. Its an easy to do swap, costs about as much to buy as an intake and a header for your stock SOHC, and is considerably faster than the SOHC. [QUOTE]

i agree, thats one of the main reasons on why i jumped all over the chance to buy mine for 100 bucks, everyone i know said its gonna be shit and it wont run, here it is 3 months later and its STILL running like a dream after i've beaten the shit outta it. and if anyone wants to argue with SiZ about what he's saying i'd pretty much advise against it, he's pretty much all about the B and its good to see him talking good about the D :) he knows what hes talking about.

I know 4-5 people who have had zc's and one who still does...not for long let me tell you. Problems ( snapping timing belts, smoking, oil leaks, fuel leaks, low compression numbers) they are just OLD and slow.

Huh?! Timing belts can't be the motors fault, thats a maintenance thing. Smoking and oil leaks are to be associated with age and also have to do with how regularly they're maintained. All that stuff you're reffering to has to to with how well the motor was taken care of, not how old it is. People can still pick these things up with low KMs from importers and I don't see why they'd be any worse than a low milage B16, 18, SR20, or any other older motor would be. I think your friends possibly aren't taking proper care of their ZCs, in wich case they'd have the same problems with ANY motor, and for the money spent they're still faster than they'd be with their stock SOHC so one could say that for their money it was "worth it" wich is what this thread is all about.

I know what you mean about it getting worn with time, but if you take care of your motor it shouldn't be much worse. Running my B16 to 8,000+ every day since I've got it and it still doesn't burn a drop of oil. Its as old as a ZC. I broke the timing belt on it about 3 months ago, but thats my own fault for not changing it when I did the swap. Things like that can't be blamed on anyone but myself.

Derek - as far as going fast and reliable, I'm B series all the way. But if you want a little quickness for you money I think a ZC is the best way you can spend <$1000 on your old Honda and be quick with a basically stock engine.

i totally agree man, isnt that what we've been saying thru this whole thread? best bang for ur buck :) and for me it was well worth it finding that motor with 40,000 kms on it. hell. i almost wanna do it again, i'd rebuild the b18 i have AND the d15 and just do them right up and toss em into empty shells and have fun with them, yes a d15 might not perform well but if u do it right, it will last a very long time. if ur gonna do it right, do it right the first time. which is what i did with my ZC, full bottom up rebuild :)

If your gonna do it right do something worth building...

I say keep the SOHC, if you're gonna spend that much on a motor w/hardly any parts for it, and that's really old, just buy a new SOHC out of a civic coupe, for around the same price, and you'll have a new more reliable motor w/more after market parts. I'd take reliability over power any day

my bad dude, I wrote the wrong thing, GET RID OF THE ZC and get a SOHC

from what i have seen zc's can hold there own. I have a friend with a stock zc and he beat a saturn with a 1.9 with a header, full cat, plugs, plug wires, aem intake and the saturn got pulled by two lengths. I also have a friend with a d16a6 with a headman header magnaflow muffler plugs plug wires and him and the zc hold together right along with my other friends zc which pulls them both every now and then.

K, here are your options:

- Grab another D16A6 and put it in, build it up
- Get your ZC engine
- Swap in a B-Series

Were you looking for extreme power gains or is it a daily driver? I've heard differing opinions on the ZC's reliability, but i've never really heard of a B-series being unreliable, except when it's the person's fault (e.g. too much boost, didn't take care of engine maintenance, took it to redline constantly, etc). I believe B series swaps aren't that expensive, and it's worth your money if you're going to build it up. But if you want something with some more torque and pretty peppy, go with a d-series.

If it's a daily driver, i'd get another D16A6 since you know everything will bolt up, and you shouldn't really run into problems since it's a fairly simple install.

from what i have seen zc's can hold there own. I have a friend with a stock zc and he beat a saturn with a 1.9 with a header, full cat, plugs, plug wires, aem intake and the saturn got pulled by two lengths. I also have a friend with a d16a6 with a headman header magnaflow muffler plugs plug wires and him and the zc hold together right along with my other friends zc which pulls them both every now and then.
Actually, my best friend has a 93 Saturn SC2, and all he had was a homemade CAI, and it ran 15.5@85mph, and I can walk it pretty easily in my Si. (and his Saturn is an automatic!)

my zc is going in my rex on monday im just waiting for parts to show up. i think that it will be worth it and me only being 17 i dont really have the money for a b series swap