hey folks im usually a classic american type guy but i just had to try my hand in this so i went out and bought a 90 prelude si b20 engine well the head is new but they dident replace the valve guide seals and well it smokes so i have to do head work anyway so i figured ide try here and see what you all told me i found a civic with a f22a running but the car isent worth anything rear ended HARD so i can get the harness and engine for 125$ but i only want to do head work sence the lower end only has 90xxx miles so my questions are. will the f22a head work on the b20 block? will i gain anything by doing this (if it does work) would i be better off putting the b16 head on the b20? im a mechanic for a living and im close friends with the guys who run my local machine shop so the work isnt anything for me to do but i would like to get the most HP possable thanks for your help also im new to the forms and idk how to do this so if it doesnt work for me but you can read this please email me at bbigc01@yahoo.com im NOT spam or a scammer please help me out
my new tuner
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K2e2vin
Senior Member
Nope, F-series head doesn't work on B-series blocks.
It's possible to do B16 head on a B20A, just haven't seen much people do it. If it's the B20A5, most people just avoid it.
I don't really know much about those gen Preludes and their engines so hopefully someone more knowledgeable will chime in.
It's possible to do B16 head on a B20A, just haven't seen much people do it. If it's the B20A5, most people just avoid it.
I don't really know much about those gen Preludes and their engines so hopefully someone more knowledgeable will chime in.
Yeah, the B20s that came in those cars are a completely different thing than the later B20s that came in the CR-V. The CR-V B20 blocks are the ones that you can easily swap a B16 or B18 VTEC head on to. With your engine though, it doesn't bolt up. And unfortunately, there are no other popular tuner motors that will bolt in to that chassis. Something like an H22 or B18 is doable, but it will need to be a custom deal...
95b16coupe
Well-Known Member
the heads aren't compatible.
you would be better off rebuilding that engine and getting a small turbo kit or just doing a swap entirely.
unfortunately, if you wanted a tuner honda, that is pretty much the worst platform to start with. most people go with the civic or integra. the prelude came with a shitty motor in the u.s. and japan. most hondas had a better motor in the japanese model, so people in the u.s. pull their engine and swap in the japanese counterpart. with the prelude, it sucked in japan too so there isnt' much to swap.
you would be better off rebuilding that engine and getting a small turbo kit or just doing a swap entirely.
unfortunately, if you wanted a tuner honda, that is pretty much the worst platform to start with. most people go with the civic or integra. the prelude came with a shitty motor in the u.s. and japan. most hondas had a better motor in the japanese model, so people in the u.s. pull their engine and swap in the japanese counterpart. with the prelude, it sucked in japan too so there isnt' much to swap.
No, those heads aren't compatible with your engine either. Like I said previously, those particular engines (some of them are 2.0s, and some of them are 2.1s) are the red-headed stepchildren of the B-series. You can't mix and match them with anything besides themselves, so B16, GS-R, LS, B20 from the CR-V, Type R engines are all off the table for building a hybrid motor...
I mean, it's great that you want to get in to Hondas. Unfortunately though, you inadvertantly picked one of the worst possible chassis to start with (at least in terms of swap options, after-market availability, etc.). The people that tune the 88-91 Preludes usually do so because they like that particular version of the car and because they want to build something challenging and unique. The 92-96 and 97-01 versions are much more tuner friendly and have lots more after-market support...
well ive always wanted the 4ws square body style. but sence its a clean car with only 90xxx miles i figured ide take it for 400bucks. if i wanted to make a good easy head swap that matches what would be the one you would look for to put on the b20 fully stock but when the head i get i plan on putting over size valves and valve springs new cams shave port and polish a header with new full cat back exhaust and a true k&n kit on it. i know that im going to gain hp by doing all of that but i want to know with out doing that what head would give the the most hp. thanks you all for helping
There's literally nothing that will bolt up besides other B20A heads. As I mentioned previously, there is also a 2.1 liter version (the B21A). That motor is slightly more powerful than the B20A, but the power bump comes from the displacement. The head will bolt up, but it's pretty much identical to the 2 liter version's, so no advantage to swapping.
The stock head should work fine for the build you're planning, and it's pretty much your only choice anyway...
The stock head should work fine for the build you're planning, and it's pretty much your only choice anyway...
95b16coupe
Well-Known Member
unless you like the chassis, i would suggest selling it for something more compatible to being a tuner car.
95b16coupe
Well-Known Member
too much work will have to be done to make the vtec conversion worthwhile. if you want to do anything, build a custom turbo kit.
really dude, the prelude is a shitty chassis for having a tuner car. either buy something new or just accept the fact that generation prelude sucks.
really dude, the prelude is a shitty chassis for having a tuner car. either buy something new or just accept the fact that generation prelude sucks.
B21A1 lude head question
Not sure if I should be posting here, but I have a silly question about a B21 head. I'm replacing the valve seals and noticed as I'm tearing the head down that the nuts, that the ball on the underside of the rockers sits on, are all loose. Are these suppose to be "finger tight?" Or is there a torque spec for them? Or, are they adjustment nuts for "tweaking." Any help with this would be very much appreciated as there doesn't seem to be any reference to them in the on-line shop manual I'm using. 
Not sure if I should be posting here, but I have a silly question about a B21 head. I'm replacing the valve seals and noticed as I'm tearing the head down that the nuts, that the ball on the underside of the rockers sits on, are all loose. Are these suppose to be "finger tight?" Or is there a torque spec for them? Or, are they adjustment nuts for "tweaking." Any help with this would be very much appreciated as there doesn't seem to be any reference to them in the on-line shop manual I'm using. 
95b16coupe
Well-Known Member
No it doesn't. I call 
makewheelies304
New Member
noob central up in here!
ok smart guy go to www.autozone.com check the head set for a 1991 prelude dohc 2.0l wright down the part number then and get the part number for a 1993 1.6l vtec and you will be proved wrong
95b16coupe
Well-Known Member
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