engine swap/or just some parts

[MOY]

I have 96 prelude h22 trying to make it dohc vtec people tell me just to change the heads,trottle body, ecu, etc.....

or do i just go for the engine complete and then swap it out to a h22 dohc vtec

[hondacivic99sivtec]

Originally Posted by MOY

I have 96 prelude h22 trying to make it dohc vtec people tell me just to change the heads,trottle body, ecu, etc.....

or do i just go for the engine complete and then swap it out to a h22 dohc vtec

so by your first statement i'm confused. do already have the h22? if not then you have a h23.

in the latter, swap out the engine and tranny and make sure to get the ecu. or a chipped p28.

[MOY]

its a sohc i know that for sure and i know its not a vtec

[hondacivic99sivtec]

whats the engine code on the block?

[O'Dailigh]

First off you cant make it DOHC VTEC as far as I am aware, it's either or. As for the H22, the 96 lude had a h22a and h22b and an sohc h23 (I could be wrong haven't looked at the specs in like 3 years). The b was the 160hp 156torque DOHC and the a is the VTEC 195 158, and the 23 was 135 / something (140?).

IF you want to go to the h22a, you are goign to have to replace the whole thing. I don't know, but you might be able to find a VTEC head that is the correct size.
There are a few cheap and easy mods you can do to the engine. Go to 92lude.com.

Hope that helps!

[MOY]

Some Told Me It Might Be A F22 Instead Of A H22 He Said They Didnt Make Sohc H22.how Can I Tell

[O'Dailigh]

SOHC F22A1 engine, 135 hp (101 kW) @ 5200 RPM, 142 lb·ft (193 Nm) @ 4000 RPM)
That is the S version for the 4th gen lude engine. its 2/2 L

Here are the basics on the engines
S" model (SOHC F22A1 engine, 135 hp (101 kW) @ 5200 RPM, 142 lb·ft (193 Nm) @ 4000 RPM) and "VTEC" model (DOHC VTEC H22a, 190 hp (143 kW) @ 6800 RPM, 158 lb·ft (212 Nm) @ 5500 RPM), with a less performance-oriented 2.3-litre for the "Si" (DOHC H23A1, 160 hp (115 kW) @ 5800 RPM, 156 lb·ft (212 Nm) @ 5300 RPM).
so disregard my previous post. I looked up the specs.

[hondacivic99sivtec]

your right. they never did make a sohc h series. the f22 is a possiblity. they use the same engines in accords.

[MOY]

Ok Lets Say It Is A F22a1 Which It Probably Is. My Question Is If I Want To Upgrade To H22a4 Can I Just To The Head,pistons,trotle Body,ecu Etc....and Will It Fit On The Rest Of The Engine Or Just Go With The Whole H22a4 Engine And Tranny And Swap It Out. I Know It Might Be Difficult Buying Parts By Parts But Im Willing To Buy Parts Here And There.where If I Bought A Whole Engine I Would Have To Come Out With The Whole Cash To Purshes

What To You Suggest

[O'Dailigh]

If you do go for a H22, You are going to need to do a couple of things outside just the engine to make it work correctly. You will need to get a new ECU, the one fo the S will not allow you to go into the Higher RPMs where the H22 goes. Second you will need redo the exahust system, completly. Heads, carb, and muffler. (and if you wat to drop an easy 20-30 lbs off your car go get a diff muffler. The stock one is a frickin cement block! I put the 3a twin square on my 96, looked beautiful, sounded great, and it seemed to add some kick. never dynoed it, but thats what it felt like.) And of cource the engine. I looked ot see if it would be possible to do a partial swith because the sizes were like 2156 and 2157(not much,both considerd 2.2L honda rounds up) but the stroke and compression ratios were not so close. s bout 8:1 H22a bout 10:1. So, I would suggest that you just get the h22a block.

But I got to ask, do you know what Hp and Trq you are trying to achieve? Also what top speed and 0-60, 1/4 mile times are you looking for?

If you are really gogin to push your lude, have you looked to see what the differnce is between the various turbos and Sup Chargers? It might be (haven't looked, just speculating) cheaper to drop a H23 and turbo or supercharger?


Ok, I looked up sombody elses conversion from a H23-H22. I know you got a F22, but this might give you an Idea of what will have to transpire.





VTEC=h22

1996 Honda Prelude Si - 2.3 DOHC VTEC conversion, completed May 2001,

modified and successfully completed February 1, 2003... link to pictures at end of this page.

updated February 6, 2003 ***PARTS LIST*** Here is what was needed:

1. VTEC head, complete: cams, gears, rockers, valve cover.

2. VTEC timing belt- VTEC has more teeth on the belt than the Si does.

3. VTEC water pump.

4. VTEC auto hydraulic tensioner for timing belt.

5. VTEC manual tensioner.

6. VTEC head gasket.

7. VTEC lower, most inner crankshaft pulley; ('96 is different due to sensors!!!).

8. VTEC intake manifold ('96, throttle body has sensors which you need to use).

9. VTEC exhaust manifold - i couldnt find a used downpipe, dealer was $621, so i bought DC Headers-VTEC.

10. VTEC ECU/ECM.

11. VTEC spark plugs and wires.

12. VTEC water pump pipe (black pipe that runs behind the head from the water pump to thermostat housing.

13. VTEC injectors - if you don't change these over, then once you plug in the ECU/ECM you will keep blowing the 'EAT ECU' fuse when you crank/start the car.

*DISTRIBUTOR was the same so it did not need to be changed - double checked part numbers.

*VTEC controller - not required but could be used if you dont buy a new ECU/ECM and have a way to bypass your redline.

WHY i did it?

I started the car and heard the awkwardly tapping motor in my prelude as i left it on for a few minutes to warm up. It was idling pretty low lately so i didn't think much of it cause i knew it had something wrong with it but it was running. I pulled out of the driveway Thursday evening on April 4th, 2001, I approached the stop sign exiting the neighborhood then it just died quietly. I tried to start it several times but it was just whining, i could tell the engine was not turning so i realized the timing belt may have snapped. I knew the timing belt broke most likely from prying it on and off a few times. So luckily i was in the neighborhood and not far enough to push the car back in the garage rather than getting a tow truck. I pulled the valve cover off and there was the timing belt sitting there, broken. I replaced the belt but it still didnt start so i realized the valves are bent. So i pulled off the head and sure enough all the valves were bent and open. I decided to get something out of all this mess and go VTEC! So i found a VTEC head at a junk yard and took it to get it ported and polished. So now i have a ported and polished VTEC head on my 2.3 block rather than the 2.2 prelude VTECs come stock. I dont really know if this setup is worth doing just to do it if youre engine is fine or if you have a H22 motor that you can just swap in... it may not be worth the 2.3-2.2= 0.10 difference...

WHAT’s the difference between the setup and parts?

The reason for changing some of parts listed is because the VTEC timing belt has more teeth on it that the Si belt. Therefore you need to change everything that touches the timing belt such as the inner most crankshaft pulley, tensioners, and water pump- because you dont want to have to go back in there a few months down the road if it goes bad and starts leaking and open everything back up to change it. Change the lower balancer belt as well for the same reason as the water pump, however it does not need to be converted over to the VTEC part. The timing belt doesnt touch the balancer components on the lower block so nothing had to be modified with that, only what touches the timing belt.

Some stupid mistakes i made which didnt let the car run once i was done and i had overlooked was a blown "EAT ECU" fuse under the dash. Also the ECU ground was not reconnected which is bolted on the thermostat housing on the head. Then i had a major oil leak which made me think the head gasket was not sitting right; it turned out to be the cam seal on the exhaust cam was not sitting all the way down because the bracket holding it wasnt bolted down all the way which allowed oil to seep down underneath. Another obstacle i faced was my car being a '96. Not only the last year of the body style but the year they decided to go OBDII. The throttle body has several sensors which you need to keep! I used my original Si throttle body with the VTEC manifold, you'll have to figure out where the hoses go cause they are different. In the end i had to do a valve adjustment cause i had some tapping after i let a friend drive it, he punched it a little hard and high RPMs caused one of the rockers to come loose.

PROBLEM

But the dilemma out of all this is that its still redlining at the Si limit of 6500, not the VTEC limit of 7500!

The computer isnt giving me a check engine code all the time, sometimes i get code 22 which indicates a malfunction in or from the VTEC pressure switch so i still have a problem somewhere...

I changed the pressure switch out 3 times but thats not solving it so i may not be getting enough oil pressure... im sure its something small and stupid, but those are the worst to find and solve.

UPDATE * February 6, 2003 Successful VTEC... and 7800 redline... * UPDATE

CONCLUSION

I took the car apart in October 2002 to change the clutch, remove the head again to clean and flush it , and change the timing belt. I completed it on February 1, 2003. I installed an ACT Xtreme Clutch, put a new timing belt, and cleaned and flushed the head twice before putting it back on. The reason why i was not getting an extended redline was because there is an "oil control orifice" on the H23 block that needs to be removed. I removed this "plug" and reassembled the head. Sure enough, my redline goes to almost 8000 RPM (approx. 7800). And you can hear the VTEC clearly kick on at approx. 5400-5500 RPM.

Of course you need to run the VTEC power wire from the solenoid to the ECU/ECM. And you need to wire the VTEC pressure switch which has two leads/wires, one lead goes to ground and the other goes to the ECU/ECM as well. My car was already wired for VTEC. I dont know if all Preludes come like that or it varies from year to year however, the pressure switch signal and VTEC solenoid power was already in the main harness from the ECU/ECM to the engine bay.

RECOMMENDATION

As you have noticed, i did not open the block at all which is why i did not do this to begin with. Today i ordered the "oil jet(s)" also known as "piston squirters" from Honda. I think it would be safe to do this now than be sorry later. Obviously the H23 block is only designed for 6400RPM... so it may only be able to handle 7800 RPM for so long. I think this would be a safe measure to protect the pistons at higher RPMS. It doesnt cost much and shouldnt be too much work. Open up the oil pan and remove the plate covering the rods and it should bolt right in. I will install this very soon, probably by the next oil change.

[hondacivic99sivtec]

just buy an h22 swap.

you cannot just put dohc parts on a sohc.

[MOY]

Thanks For The Help Im Just Goin To Buy A Whole Engine I Been Looking In Junk Yards Not One H22a
But I Found A Place That Will Sell It To Me For 455dollars Which I Think Its Not To Bad (compare To Ebay,or Japanesse Engine Places)after That I Would Need A Tranny Which Havent Really Check How Much It Would Be. If Im Buying A Engine Should I Get The H22a4 Since Im Already Going For A Engine I Know They Push 200hp Or More Or Stick To The H22a Both Been Vtec

[O'Dailigh]

The H22a4 was in thte 5th gen prelude.

[MOY]

But It Could Be Done Right! I Know You Going To Need Engine,tranny, Computer And Wire Harness