Best drag swap

[here2chill]

I got a few n00b questions to pop at you oldtimers out there Recently my 87 Fiero that was going to be a 3800 SC swap was stolen, after recieving the insurance money I have been shopping for what I should have bought off the start. A 5th gen civic. When looking at possible mods alot of questions landed in my head, given I don't know a whole lot about 5th gen's, swaps, or car tech at all for that matter. I want to buy the right car and do the right swap the first time, and not end up getting my rear bumper kicked by a guy that made the right choice.

That being said. Does it matter (towards my swap abilities) at all what trim of civic I buy(LX,DX,Si)? Secondly, money is a small issue, but performance is my target. The b18b, b16c5 and h22 seem to be the target market for swaps. But I also know money saved on a cheaper engine may land a better turbo/head package/ecu reprogam etc. What engine would haul the best 1/4's? Would the price be drastically higher then one pulling nice times? What engine provides the most potential if the money was put to it? Thirdly, a mint 92HB landed in my local paper, unfortunately it's an auto. When doing a swap I change tranny/engine/ecu/shift linkage anyways... would doing an auto to manual swap(at time of engine swap) be much more frustrating and/or expensive?

Well that about sums up my first set of questions, any help would be terrific, especially any regarding that auto to manual job, cause if it's not to hard on me or my wallet, I wanna get that auto HB before it goes.

 

[civicious]

95 cx > all other civics. 2096 lbs. can't beat that shit unless you get a crx. b18c1 in a cx should lay around mid 14's stock.

get a 5spd chassy if you can. you'd have to get a different harness if you get an auto. its not a humongous amount of trouble to fix it if you get an auto, but its less of a hassle to just stay 5spd from the start.

 

[Slammed90Lude]

go and read the reference article about 5th gen civic chassies- don't remember who wrote it- but it's damn good stuff y0!

 

[here2chill]

Never heard of a CX before.... that must be a American trimline.. I am from Canada. The one I was looking at was a 1992 Civic HB, DX, auto. 5,800 bones, but in mint cond. like I said. And don't forget my prices are high due to currencies. I do not want a crx though. I want a civic hatch what would be the best swap for me... not sure what the others cost but I prices a b18b/hydro trans/ecu/harness for 2500 from a local chopper. Quite reasonable. What do you guys think?

 

[Incredib1e]

Um I'm pretty sure they make the cx in Canada, Its a hatchback. they usually come in kmph vs mph. Its basically the dx model but doesn't come with AC or a stereo (I think thats right) maybe some other stuff too. Look on Hondaclassifieds.com they have some pretty good deals, I'm not sure what the exchange rate it for Canada but $5,800 seems like a lot for a 92.

 

[syphonz420]

well uve got a fifth gen...in ur not worried about fucking up ur front end handling then get the h22...it has loads of torque comparitively. The motor with most potential would be the type r or gsr...which ever u prefer. plus the b-series wouldnt wreck ur front end...

 

[red95solsi]

he said the 5800 was 5800 canadian not american

 

[here2chill]

I was looking at buying any model hatchback, the higher trim level the better, simply for the options, sunroof/ac/power controls etc. I am just wondering if the trimline I get will effect the swap at all. If I get a Si/LX is it very hard to unwire the VteC during the swap? After talking to Civicious last night I have decided I will go for the b18b turbo'ed. Torque and horse can get pretty high on em while still keeping good handeling. What kind of horsepower can I be looking at with that swap?

 

[saturn_boy96]

if you're gonna swap into a civic at least get something with vtec, if you just want a boosted b18b than buy the teg it came in. just my $.02.

if you don't want vtec find a dx hatch with ac, but i think those will be harder to find (my dx coupe was basically a cx, eg. no ac). i bought it 2 years ago with 70k on it for $5600 and it's a 95. body was mint until some fuck face decided to hit and run it while it was parked.

anyway, if you go with the b18b you will need an integra ecu obd1 p75 or pr4. you will also need integra shiftlinkage and axles also the integra motor mounts. as far as unwiring the vtec you will just end up with a few extra plugs that wont plug in anywhere.

as far as hp/tq figures, if you go boost it all depends on the turbo selected and the rest of the setup. you couldrun anywhere from 200-500whp just depends on the build.

 

[here2chill]

There's many reasons I want a 5th gen civic instead of a teg. Looks, availability, and reliability. Parts for a teg are hard as hell to get here without huge shipping costs. Hondas are a little easier. Anyways What other engine would you drop in? b16c5? Is that swap easier? would it offer same 1/4 times for the same dollar?

 

[here2chill]

There's many reasons I want a 5th gen civic instead of a teg. Looks, availability, and reliability. Parts for a teg are hard as hell to get here without huge shipping costs. Hondas are a little easier. Anyways What other engine would you drop in? b16c5? Is that swap easier? would it offer same 1/4 times for the same dollar?

My bad, I was refering to the b18c5.... :/

 

[mwvnos]

iv got a cx with a h22 swap(see sig) you can get one of those, put very little money in mods and lay down mid 13's easily....with slicks and a good driver, you could do better...h22 def best for drag IMO...

 

[dohch22a4]

Originally posted by civicious@Jan 27 2004, 06:33 PM
95 cx > all other civics. 2096 lbs. can't beat that shit unless you get a crx. b18c1 in a cx should lay around mid 14's stock.

get a 5spd chassy if you can. you'd have to get a different harness if you get an auto. its not a humongous amount of trouble to fix it if you get an auto, but its less of a hassle to just stay 5spd from the start.

The VX owns the CX, dude. It weighs exactly the same, is pre-wired for VTEC, and comes with an 8,000 RPM tach.

 

[mwvnos]

all 92 civics were wired for vtec no matter what trim level it was....

 

[here2chill]

What kinda times could I expect out of a b18c5 stock? with turbo+light mods, what would I be looking at? I know the swap itself would be alot easier for me then a h22, considering the h22 takes mount/wiring mods.

 

[dohch22a4]

Originally posted by here2chill@Jan 28 2004, 04:06 PM
What kinda times could I expect out of a b18c5 stock? with turbo+light mods, what would I be looking at? I know the swap itself would be alot easier for me then a h22, considering the h22 takes mount/wiring mods.

Don't get a c5 if you are looking to turbocharge. Get a GSR, save $2000 and put that toward a turbo kit.

 

[dohch22a4]

Originally posted by mwvnos@Jan 28 2004, 04:03 PM
all 92 civics were wired for vtec no matter what trim level it was....

Right, but the VX is pre-wired ALL years and comes with a tach, so...

VX > CX, DX, and Si (IMO, b/c it is about 300 lbs lighter, although rear discs are nice)

 

[Incredib1e]

In my opinion I would buy a decent 5th gen hatch and go with the B18b turbo.
Your gonna save a lot more money then going out and buyin a ITR motor. I've seen some for as high as 5-6k US currency thats a lot of money for a motor. Isn't the B18c5 more for autocross anyway? I mean I would love to have one but cost wise go with the B18b. Best Bang for your Buck (Even in Canada.)

And it won't even matter if the car is wired for Vtec your not gonna have it.