I need some swap help

We may earn a small commission from affiliate links and paid advertisements. Terms

9

91integrab16a

New Member
ok so heres my delima, im not so new to the honda community but im not a pro by any means....i have a 1990 honda civic DX hatchback, i am looking to do a motor swap and i need some help in doing so. i want to swap an OBD0 LS motor into my car, i need to know everything that i need, i know it sounds like i havent researched this swap at all, but i have and i have hit way too many dead ends in my research process. i know that i need the basics...ECU, axels, trans...etc. but i would like to know how to put it all together, and i would also know what a good price would be. i have been thinking about swapping a b18 in my car every since i blew my d15 up in november. i am in desperate need of some pointers from some actual honda techs. anyways comment me and let me know whats up.
 
you need to search more....but i will give you some info

you will need a set of B series mounts to a EF and you will also need to make sure the mounts are for a cable trany..

you will need a 1/2 radiator...i belive...but dont hold me to that...research it.

you could get an ls swap for 1500....obd0 should be less money...other than that...i cant remember if the side wall in the engine bay needs a little hamering...but that might be for a H series....been a while sence i did any research on a ef......

keep searching and youll find what ya need.....
 
i know that i will have to bang the fire wall back alittle bit to make room for the alternator, i know about the mount kit that hasport makes and i also know about converting my dpfi to mpfi do to a diagram that i found on this site....i guess my real question is about what wiring harness to use and shift linkage to use, can i use the stock integra harness in my civic or do i need to pick up an SI harness and also will the stock DA ecu plug in and go or do i need to modify anything for that ecu. and then theres the shift linkage....can i use the stock integra linkage or do i need to pick something else up?
 
91integrab16a said:
i know that i will have to bang the fire wall back alittle bit to make room for the alternator, i know about the mount kit that hasport makes and i also know about converting my dpfi to mpfi do to a diagram that i found on this site....i guess my real question is about what wiring harness to use and shift linkage to use, can i use the stock integra harness in my civic or do i need to pick up an SI harness and also will the stock DA ecu plug in and go or do i need to modify anything for that ecu. and then theres the shift linkage....can i use the stock integra linkage or do i need to pick something else up?
Click to expand...


100% honest with ya i dont know about the wire harness 100%...
I know for a rex you need a special shiftlinkage, im not sure if that is with all the EFs to.....
I know if you are just going to be runing a stock ls motor, then you need to use the ecu that came with the swap, or any ls ecu.. inorder to do that depending on what ecu you use wether it be obd1 obd2 obd0...you will need a difrent obd conversion harness...


but again search...this informaion is out there......
search this site, homemadeturbo.com and pgmfi.org but i leave you with go to these sites and search or you will not get any informaiton...they will not want to just hand it out....so SEARCH
 
As far as the wiring harness goes you will want to use the harness that is currently in your car. I would not recommend removing your current harness and swaping it out for a harness that went to the original car that the motor came from. DPFI to MPFI is not that bad. Also search on google, there are alot of independent websites out there that have there own webpages dedicated to swaps and write ups. Best of luck to you. If you have any more specific questions dont hesitate to ask, but make sure you know exactly what you want information on.
 
ok so i picked up my LS motor out of a 1990 GS integra tonight, i got the motor and the two axels for the price of $200.00 which i thought was a pretty good deal..i am thinking about buying some ITR pistons for the swap but i dont really know if it is worth it, i would like to know if it will make a noticable difference in my horsepower gain or if it is just not worth the money...any feedback is greatly appriciated thanks
 
in my opinion, no thats not worth it.....the only pistons id put in a ls would be some forged so you can boost a little more.. : ) .....other than that, not really worth it...
 
i know boost boost boost its all about boost....unfortunatly boost is out of my leauge for the moment. so the ITR pistons wont give me a noticable gain?
 
91integrab16a said:
ok so i picked up my LS motor out of a 1990 GS integra tonight, i got the motor and the two axels for the price of $200.00 which i thought was a pretty good deal..i am thinking about buying some ITR pistons for the swap but i dont really know if it is worth it, i would like to know if it will make a noticable difference in my horsepower gain or if it is just not worth the money...any feedback is greatly appriciated thanks
Click to expand...
did you also get the Integra transmission? you will need it
 
i did NOT get the trans or ECU in the deal because they were automatic:( but i am hopefull to pick those up on craigslist...i would like to switch the topic back to wiring.....i have heard that i should keep my DX harness, but i have also heard to pick up a SI wiring harness. i am confused and need some help :please:
 
engine wiring harnesses are not interchangeable between different models and sometimes are not even interchangeable between different years of the same model - you need to use the engine harness that came on your DX and do the necessary DPFI to MPFI wiring changes to it - Si engine harness will not work in a DX
 
Last edited:
Thank you very much i am going to stick with my stock wiring, but i also need a resistor box right? is that included in the DPFI to MPFI conversion?
 
almost there!

Ok so i picked up my ECU from a friend and i am going to pick up his tranny at a later date:D. But i still have a couple of questions: will a radiator off a newer civic work with my swap? i really dont like the look of my stock radiator, for now it will have to do but i would like to switch to a newer style radiator aka shorter and fatter. Also I have 2 1/2 inch catback exaust, and i was wondering if i were to put a header on the B18A1 if it would bolt right up and fit fine. I am kinda worried about the exaust so any help would again be greatly appriciated.
 
You can use the newer civic (one's out of the dodge neon have been used also) half radiators but they are a little too tall and the hood won't close. There's two options: 1) custom front crossmember which allows the radiator to set lower, or 2) lean the radiator back far enough for the hood to clear, shorten your top hose and fab up some sort of bracket to hold it secure. I know it sounds kinda ghetto but it works fine.

As for the exhaust, I'm not possitive on the B18a but I think the downpipe of the header comes back farther and the exhaust will have to be shortend
 
13g-crx said:
As for the exhaust, I'm not possitive on the B18a but I think the downpipe of the header comes back farther and the exhaust will have to be shortend
Click to expand...

I dont know if it makes a difference but the header is going to be a 4-1 set up. Haha i know all about custom fabing brakets as i had to do it for my del sol seats when i put them in^_^ , thanks for the advice man. i figured that it would have to be shortend bcuz the motor is bigger but i was just making sure. any other pointers are still appriciated...ill probably have more questions later on so bare with me lol.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top