99 Civic EX Swap

[99civicSTL]

I am about to purchase a 99 Civic EX and am wondering what is the best route to go as far as an engine swap. Should I get a b16a2 or an H22a? Which engine will handle a turbocharger more efficiently? What computer conflicts will I have with each engine?

any insight is appreciated
thanks.

[billab2ong]

If you are def. going to turbo i would suggest a b18b1. because of the low compression and relatively strong internals you can run a high boost like 12psi.

[maxspeedhonda]

Originally Posted by billab2ong

If you are def. going to turbo i would suggest a b18b1. because of the low compression and relatively strong internals you can run a high boost like 12psi.

Yeah but the b16 internals can run 12psi and the block is ok till about 14psi. I run 10psi daily on a b16 motor. Higher compression=more hp per pound of boost. So 10psi on a b16 would murder 12psi on a ls.

[boosted331]

Originally Posted by maxspeedhonda

Yeah but the b16 internals can run 12psi and the block is ok till about 14psi. I run 10psi daily on a b16 motor. Higher compression=more hp per pound of boost. So 10psi on a b16 would murder 12psi on a ls.

And then you come to the realization that you have no torque and the car isn't any fun to drive. B18B swap is good, B18C1 swap is better, and when you're going to turbo it toss on the Vtec head.

[S13GTR]

If I were you I would go with the h22 and get the jdm one with the higher compression. May sound stupid but heres why, on 91 octane you wont be able to boost more than about 5 or 6 psi but when you go to the track and put some race gas in there and crank the boost up to about 12 you will have a f**k load more power than a smaller motor with lower compression. Take my word for it. Plus whos doin the h22 swap for you? if you go that route.

[maxspeedhonda]

Originally Posted by boosted331

And then you come to the realization that you have no torque and the car isn't any fun to drive. B18B swap is good, B18C1 swap is better, and when you're going to turbo it toss on the Vtec head.

I am gonna have to disagree with you. Torque, are you kidding? First of all hondas have shit for torque. Second, I can't get any decent lauches b/c I dont have slicks. Even when I run street tires on my HEAVY 17's, they really dont hook up good till top of 2nd. The LS motor is excellent for turbo, I'll agree with that, but the ultimate turbo motor is a built, high compression HIGHLY TUNED motor. I had a b18c in my car with the turbo, and now it sitting in my garage waiting for a crx I plan to get. I opted for the b16 over the b18c because of the slightly lower CR and the fact that the rod stroke is damn near PERFECT for turbo. As far as VTEC is concerned with boost, it is worthless. I have the engagement point set all the way up on my vafc, just upgrade the freakin ls head.

[boosted331]

Originally Posted by maxspeedhonda

I am gonna have to disagree with you. Torque, are you kidding? First of all hondas have shit for torque. Second, I can't get any decent lauches b/c I dont have slicks. Even when I run street tires on my HEAVY 17's, they really dont hook up good till top of 2nd. The LS motor is excellent for turbo, I'll agree with that, but the ultimate turbo motor is a built, high compression HIGHLY TUNED motor. I had a b18c in my car with the turbo, and now it sitting in my garage waiting for a crx I plan to get. I opted for the b16 over the b18c because of the slightly lower CR and the fact that the rod stroke is damn near PERFECT for turbo. As far as VTEC is concerned with boost, it is worthless. I have the engagement point set all the way up on my vafc, just upgrade the freakin ls head.

Yeah, all hondas have shit for torque. B16's just have especially low torqe and absolutely nothing on the bottom end, where B18's just have a teeny bit. You have a good point that a high compression turbo motor makes for a better motor because it'll make more power off boost, spool the turbo faster, etc, so for something that's only going to see C16 a 10.5:1 motor will make gobs of power, For a street motor 9:1-9.5:1 is better because not everyone has a godly tuner, and not everyone can afford to run around on race gas.

I gotta disagree with you on B16's having the "perfect" rod/stroke ratio for boost, you can easily spin a B18C1 over 9 grand and have it live, and more cubes are more important than a slightly better r/s ratio. If rod/stroke meant more power, wouldn't all the fast people (jotech, laskey, etc) all be using B16's? And if vtec was a waste, wouldn't they all be using ported LS heads? I'm 100% sure that you're loosing power by setting the vtec activation point high up in the powerband, the vtec cams on hondas don't have much overlap to begin with, and activating at 5000 it's not like it's going to slow down turbo response anyway.

[maxspeedhonda]

Originally Posted by boosted331

I gotta disagree with you on B16's having the "perfect" rod/stroke ratio for boost, you can easily spin a B18C1 over 9 grand and have it live, and more cubes are more important than a slightly better r/s ratio. If rod/stroke meant more power, wouldn't all the fast people (jotech, laskey, etc) all be using B16's? And if vtec was a waste, wouldn't they all be using ported LS heads? I'm 100% sure that you're loosing power by setting the vtec activation point high up in the powerband, the vtec cams on hondas don't have much overlap to begin with, and activating at 5000 it's not like it's going to slow down turbo response anyway.

Maybe not perfect but better than the B18x motors which is my understanding. And I totally agree the an B18B is a good motor for steet/daily driven cars. There are plenty of pro drags using B16s, and alot of that is like you said torque but also displacment. I dont think vtec heads are a waste, just not neccesary for like you say street driven cars. AS for my car, I set it high enough for it not to even engage. I do my tuning myself via wideband o2 and egt, and Ive gotten it down pretty good. I find it easier to tune without vtec engagement leaning out the mixture, and if you played with the apexi things you would see that they are not the most consistent things. My power curve doesnt fall until about 7600 when the boost starts to drop off. I guess I missed the whole point of this post. For a efficient daily driven street car, the b18b is probably your best bet.