d16y8 mpg???

[xxcrewmemberxx]

Hey guys I just bought a 96 EX civic coupe stick with the d16y8 vtec engine. Im not looking for HP I'm looking for MPG. At first I was looking at 92-95 vx's but every one i found was over priced or rusted out so I bought this coupe and am looking to change some things to make it more fuel efficient. Know i would like some input on my options here and what would be the best route to take.

I want to try to keep costs to a min so i dont wanna do a complete engine swap just yet. I wanna know is it possible to put the z1 head or z6 ( 3 stage vtec) head on this block, and if so what parts do i need to complete this swap? will my ecu work with this head? if not what ecu should i use? will the compression be to high?

 

[99sidude]

Get the civic cx or vx transmission. The tall as hell gearing will help with the mpg's. As for the head swap- yes this can be done, however you will need a custom tune to take advantage (hondata s300, crome, ect...). Honda's are tuned by the factory to have extremely low emissions - not highest mpg (there is a difference). You can tune the car so that the closed loop (cruising on freeway) target is 18-19:1 afr instead of stock 14.7:1.

Check out ecomodders.com. I've been lurking on there because I've been dabbling with the idea of going for MPG's for my next build.

 

[xxcrewmemberxx]

yes i was looking at getting the cx/vx trans or the hf trans from the crx also but first i want to get the engine done. would i still need a tune if i use the ecu that comes in the vx along with the z1 head?? the only difference then would be the displacement going from a 1.5 to the 1.6 thats in my civic now. also the vx is obd1 and my 96 ex is obd2. i saw that i can connect the vx ecu but with a special wire harness. but i also want to keep the obd2 so i can hook up a mpg tracker which would show me my current mpg and trip mpg so i can adjust my driving style to get the most MPG

 

[xxcrewmemberxx]

im looking to get the z1 head and put it on my d16y8... can anyone tell me what parts i will need?? pistons, ecu, timing belt, etc...

 

[xxcrewmemberxx]

z1 or y5 head

again im looking for max mpg with the lowest cost to swap. my choices are the z1 head from the 92-95 honda civic hatchback vx or the y5 from the 96-00 honda civic hx. I currently have the d16y8 engine in my 96 ex coupe and i dont wanna change the whole engine out unless i have to so im only planning on changing the head which is the brains of the operation. the z1 is rated at a higher mpg at 36/46 vs the y5 which is 33/41 but i think that the difference in the numbers comes from the weight of the two cars and that the z1 is a 1.5block vs the y5 which is a 1.6. i believe that the y5 would be easier to install than the z1 cause my civic is already obdII so i thnk it would just be as easy as changing the head and ecu. someone please correct me if im wrong here. any input would be appreciated here thanks

 

[phunky.buddha]

Y5 into your OBD2 car will be much easier. As for your earlier question about using the Z1 ECU with the Z1 engine and not needing a tune, that would be correct- but you'd have to convert your car over to OBD1 (not too hard) and you wouldn't be able to pass an emissions inspection if they plug into your OBD2 port.

A head and ECU swap should be all you need. I'm not sure if the blocks are different or not- but a slight change in compression shouldn't affect your tune too much. The HX engine might also want to see a different kind of O2 sensor (wideband) than the EX engine's ECU- you'd have to add the wires for it in that case and use the higher dollar O2 sensor.

As far as tuning for max fuel economy- that would be easier with the OBD1 ECU since it can be modded with programs like Hondata and Uberdata. The OBD2 setups are a little harder to hack. If you're happy with the stock mileage which is already pretty good, don't worry about hacking up the ECU for more economy. It probably won't pay off until LOT of miles later if you do the math for fuel savings vs ECU mod cost.

 

[tabKola]

If you don't feel like pulling the head you can also just swap in the Y5 rockers,camshaft, and intake springs as the heads are physically the same as are the blocks,valves, and exhaust springs.

 

[xxcrewmemberxx]

If you don't feel like pulling the head you can also just swap in the Y5 rockers,camshaft, and intake springs as the heads are physically the same as are the blocks,valves, and exhaust springs.

i thought that there was something on the y5 head that only opens one intake valve at low rpms??
if i were able to just swap out these internals you think i should get the head machined while im at it or would that just be a waste of time and money??

 

[tabKola]

There is something that only opens one valve in a Y5, its the rocker arm assembly/camshaft. It will physically bolt onto a Y8 head if you remove the current assembly and cam. As far as milling goes I have no experience with it so I can't say.

 

[xxcrewmemberxx]

where would i find the parts, ive been looking on the internet and ebay and i cant find them??? you know of any places?? other than the dealer