[B16A2Elex]

Originally posted by Rice-Rocketeer
The Rod to Stroke ratio: This topic gets very complicated very quickly. Basically it’s the ratio of how long the rod is compared to the length of the entire rod stroke. The perfect ratio is 1.75. If the ratio is off, it means that the rod is not using 100% of it’s momentum to compress the air and gas mixture. It’s using more energy to push against the sides of the cylinder walls than to compress the fuel mixture. This is normally not too bad because things are very well lubricated in your engine. But when you change certain aspects of the engine, in particular increasing the ECU fuel cutoff point or going forced induction, the imperfect R/S ratio will cause more stress on the engine block and could eventually destroy it. A good R/S ratio also ensures long engine life. For a more in-depth look into the R/S ratio check out the following site: http://victorylibrary.com/tech/crod-c.htm

R/S ratio on hondas has been beat to death and honestly it doesnt really turn out to be that big of a problem the ITR and GSR both have a 1.58 r/s rato and have no problem reving high.

B16B: Often regarded as the best 1.6 liter engine in the world, the JDM Civic Type R engine is the rarest of them all. Producing a whopping 185hp @ 8200 rpm and a reasonable 120 lb.-ft of torque @ 7600 rpm and being naturally aspirated, it is technical marvel. It was only available on the 1999-2000 Civic Type R and having one imported will run you easily into the $6000+ range. But you will be WELL respected and large thief magnet when ppl find out. If you have the money and like spending it on high octane gas for your 4 banger, why not?

Just a Destroked ITR engine with a more aggressive Exhaust cam, and can be had for about 4,600.

B17A, B18B1: The B17A could be found on the 92-93 GSR producing 160hp @ 7600 rpm and 117 lb.-ft @ 7000 rpm. The B18B1 is the later model Integra LS, RS, and GS engines. They don't offer huge power outputs at 142hp @ 6300 rpm and 127 lb.-ft @ 5200 rpm, But they can be had for very cheap as they are plentiful and not really sought after by many ppl. The exception being for the B17A as it did have greater power output but they can still be had for cheap as they are generally older and in worse shape compared to the newer B18’s. Anyone of these should still offer a cheap, reliable power upgrade for your small civic. Anyone of these engines could be found for under $2000. The downside to these cheaper engines is their Rod to Stroke ratio. The B17 isn’t that bad but the B18B1 has a R/S ratio of 1.54. This does considerably reduce the maximum possible power output from these engines. But if you don't plan on turbocharging this engine past 15 psi or letting it rev to 11,000 rpm, then it should meet your modest power needs.

Non VTEC motors take extremely well to high boost apps even on stock motors due to the low compression ratio and increased stroke. And Also can sustain high rpm abuse.

There are really two choices for dealing the B20 as far as power goes. You could leave it as is and simply swap the head for B16 model. The cylinder head on the B20B model (particularly the tall intake manifold) doesn't clear the hoodline of the civic, which is ok since the B16 head swap will add Vtec abilities and increased power. OR you could go about what is called a CR-VTEC conversion. This is what I consider to be the ultimate engine build-up for civics’. You can check out www.crvtec.com for details. The first thing you need to know about B-series engine (B18, B16, B20) is that they all have, for the most part, interchangeable engine parts. So the CRVTEC buildup basically consists of taking the best parts of all the engines and making an unprecedented Frankenstein of motor that has a perfect Rod to Stroke ratio of near 1.75 which allows for great naturally aspirated performance (A HUGE redline) or the ability to turbocharge the engine to very large proportions without worrying about engine stability. It is unfortunately rather expensive but this setup will take you anywhere you want to go. The simple B20/B16 swap costs as follows: $1000-$1500 for the B20 short block, +/- $600 for the B16 head, +/- $300 for the B16 ECU + tranny and other small parts. The price for the CR/VTEC could be calculated on the aforementioned site.

Unless you’re simply happy with the stock B20 swap, the only reasons it should be considered are CRVTEC conversions or Forced Induction. The aftermarket support isn’t as plentiful for the B20 as it is for the other engine mentioned so any engine upgrades usually come from other B series or upgraded aftermarket parts for other B series. Which is more less slowly building a CRVTEC engine. But I still highly recommend this engine for the best bang for the buck power adder. Here’s a techy article on the B20 for you: http://www.theoldone.com/archive/crv...roke-ratio.htm

Destroking the B20 block defeats the whole purpose of the swap friend of mine did a B20 block B16A turbo modified stock B20 pistons and 12psi made over 300@ the wheels.

The people saying you should put the B17A crank into the B20 block have slowly faded out after seeing the stock 89mm crank is up to the duties of running hard with boost and all motot though the sleeves in a B20 are not the strongest things out there.

H22A1, H23A1, H22A4: The H23A1 came on the lude Si’s, the highly acclaimed H22A1 came on the 4th gen Si VTEC models and H22A4 came on the 5th generation Si VTEC’s.. And all three engines are MONSTERS compared to what we’re used to. The H22A1 produces a nice 190 hp while the H22A4 produces an even greater 195hp and the H23A1 produces 160hp but they all produce a THICK ASS 160 lb.-ft of torque at relatively low rpm. Giving your 2500lb civic wheel spinning capabilities comparable to a V8 F-body. The whole engine should cost about the same as a GSR swap, $3000-$3500. The down side is the fact that the engine also weighs about 200 lbs. more than the engine you have in your bay now. This effectively makes your weight distribution even worse than what it was before. This causes all types of havoc with your other systems, including suspension, braking and cooling. The engine is also of course very large in size so it's a tight fit into the tiny civic engine bay providing that you make space by removing both air-conditioning and power steering systems.

H22A's have been weighed in comparison to B series engines its 80lbs heavier then a B16 and about 46-48lbs heavier then a B18 so in reality its not all that heavy and the difference isnt much to worry about.

Considering you no longer have air-conditioning the extra space that was once used by the AC condenser could be put to good use and it could be used for an external oil cooler. With this setup you could go uphill mountain racing without fear overheating.

most bolt in kits will let you keep your a/c if you wish but you will lose power steering but even then sometimes you can keep it if you get creative with your install.

let me remind you that this is all extra $$$. The basic swap still includes about $1000 worth of junkyard parts just to make it work, which includes axles, linkages, ECU, HASport mounts, etc. PLUS the cost of the engine itself. This is definitely not the cheap swap.

axle wise you use 90-93 integra axles with 90-93 accord intermedite shaft, the shifter and ecu should come with your change over, and the engines arent too expensive unless you want 99-01 model and even then the cost isnt too bad.

Head Swapping Pros:

One of the points of swapping in a Vtec head is they usually flow allot better than their non Vtec counter parts. And this can even be improved further with a port and polish. So with that in mind, the best flowing DOHC heads can be rated in this order:

1. B16B
2. B18C5
3. B16A
4. B18C1

The B16B head is by far the best head but it's rather expensive and rare. It's basically a B16A head with a factory P&P and lighter valvetrain assemblies among other things. This goes as well for the Integra Type R head. It's basically a GSR head with a factory port and polish, slighter better and lighter cams, valves, springs, etc. The best compromise for price and availability is the B16 head and the last one the list would be the GSR head. Of course it needs to be said that simply swapping the head onto your engine won't give you all the HP from the engine the head came from. Like swapping an GSR head onto an LS block won’t automatically give you 170hp. There were more changes to the engines than just the head like displacement, compression and air flow tracts. But it's still better than your stock head.

B16B, B16A and B18C5 are all the same casting heads the B16B and B18C5 have the slight port job from the factory as you mentioned but the B16B just has a more aggressive exhaust cam.

B16B and B18C5, B18C (JDM ITR) have the stronger valve springs which can handle higher RPM's

The B18C1 GSR head is different it uses a 2 plenium intake manifold which has a set of runners or butterflys that open higher in the rpm range after the VTEC cross over. it also has a larger quench area and has more direct cylinder ports.

Usually a B18C1 swap onto any block will result in a high compression ratio because of the quench area. If Doing A LS VTEC and keeping stock pistons i would recomend the B18C1 head. With A aftermarket single plenium B16 style intake manifold and reprogramed ecu.


Good post overall just needed to clear up and correct a few things in it.