civic engines!!

[illsmokeu]

i just bought a '90 civic for $300, startin a project car, everything else is fine except the engine , it's a Dx.
wanted ta ask what's the biggest engine that could fit in the civic ( hatchback), and what extras do i need? would i need to change the tranny too?
need all the info i can get.....thanx

[4G4D Store]

Well, the biggest motor that I can think of would be a k series motor. If you swap anything other than a d series (which is what's in your car now) you'll need mounts, tranny, axles, shift linkage, ecu, wiring and probably a few other things that I'm missing. But that's the basics. What is your plans for the car? Drag? Autocross? Streetrace? That usually will help you decide what motor to put in.

[4G4D Store]

For street racing or drag I would probably do a larger engine - b18-b20 - maybe H22. K series swaps are still kind of spendy and rare. For autocross you'll probably want a lighter engine for cornering, so building up a d series motor wouldn't be bad there. Maybe a d16z6 or something. If it's a daily driver I personally wouldn't recommend the h22 - it's too heavy for a 4th gen on cornering. These are just my opinions.

[illsmokeu]

well i just basically want something for street racing, enough horse power to give V6's a tough time....won't i need new shocks for the heavier engine? and cornering, what exactly do u mean by that? i mean r u talking about over steer or something, can't strutsa or shocks balance that out....but thanx for the info, i will keep an eye out for engines, btw how much do u think an engine for street racing would cost? just wanna know how much i'm gonna spend.

[viper_2_4]

Originally Posted by illsmokeu

well i just basically want something for street racing, enough horse power to give V6's a tough time....won't i need new shocks for the heavier engine? and cornering, what exactly do u mean by that? i mean r u talking about over steer or something, can't strutsa or shocks balance that out....but thanx for the info, i will keep an eye out for engines, btw how much do u think an engine for street racing would cost? just wanna know how much i'm gonna spend.

street racing eh?

well if your talking about illegal street racing you should sell the car and go buy a nice minivan, something slow so you don't kill yourself and others, because if this is the case you are clearly an idiot.

If you are talking about some kind of road course racing (legal I guess through the SCCA or something), then you need to do more research, but a d series is a good place to start.....

[4G4D Store]

Well, your biggest concern is actually understeer with a bigger engine. You can make up for it in suspension to some extent - just depends on the engine. As for the price - that depends if you are doing the swap yourself. A b16 is usually around $2000 for the parts and engine. Then usually another $1000-$1500 on top of that for install if you don't do it yourself. A d16z6 can be purchased for easily under $1000 for all parts and could be swapped for a little less. All other engines just go up in price from there. The h22 and k series motors are probably the only ones you'd really have to worry about being to heavy. They aren't worth the money in my personal opinion.