eurostartech
New Member
congrats on the passing i am in the process of doing the same thing with my ek 4-door and your build thread has been so very much helpful
OBDII 97 EK swap to B18B1 non-vtec
- Thread starter bfraley
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bfraley
Active Member
Glad the info can help someone else!
eurostartech
New Member
so just to clarify something bfraley this P75 A03 ECU is the usdm spec ls ecu obd2a?
bfraley
Active Member
yes it is. Purchased from a salvage yard with a 97 Integra LS 5-speed manual. It was pulled from the car and handed to me. I then installed it on the spot and drove away with CELs. Then worked to clear CELs per above info.
IanB
MB4 X2
Great thread, just read through it again in anticipation of my swap (some things came up that set me back a bit, lol).
If you haven't already sorted out your shifter issue, yes an Integra shifter should fit that Integra shift linkage with no play. Also, I highly recommend a poly shifter bushing kit, really firms up the feel, and only about $10.
If you haven't already sorted out your shifter issue, yes an Integra shifter should fit that Integra shift linkage with no play. Also, I highly recommend a poly shifter bushing kit, really firms up the feel, and only about $10.
bfraley
Active Member
Thanks for the info. Been on the road with the swap for 2 years now. Used OEM shift bushings.
bfraley
Active Member
Update on the Civic Swap
It's been 2 years since the swap was completed and I'm happy to report all is well. The car just turned over 200,000 miles and the B18 now has 100,000 total miles logged. The drivetrain pulls as good as ever. I frequently tow a small thule trailer loaded with sound gear and I also have an 1100lb teardrop camper I tow with the Civic on occasion. I installed an ebay seal kit when I did the swap and most of those seals have since been replaced by Honda OEM seals. Pilot 93 octane fuel gives me the best gas mileage for some reason. My last tank of gas yeilded 33mpg on a road trip from Erie, PA to Connecticut. A Golf GTI jumped me on I-80E in PA during the return trip and I actually kept up with the guy 'till 110. I have H rated tires and didn't want to push it with a turn coming up. He slowed down a nd let me pass. Bet he was surprised to see a Civic DX keeping up.
It's been 2 years since the swap was completed and I'm happy to report all is well. The car just turned over 200,000 miles and the B18 now has 100,000 total miles logged. The drivetrain pulls as good as ever. I frequently tow a small thule trailer loaded with sound gear and I also have an 1100lb teardrop camper I tow with the Civic on occasion. I installed an ebay seal kit when I did the swap and most of those seals have since been replaced by Honda OEM seals. Pilot 93 octane fuel gives me the best gas mileage for some reason. My last tank of gas yeilded 33mpg on a road trip from Erie, PA to Connecticut. A Golf GTI jumped me on I-80E in PA during the return trip and I actually kept up with the guy 'till 110. I have H rated tires and didn't want to push it with a turn coming up. He slowed down a nd let me pass. Bet he was surprised to see a Civic DX keeping up.
bfraley
Active Member
Had an issue with my emergency brakes sticking on after the e-brake handle was released. Pulled the rear brakes apart yesterday. I still ahve stock drums in the back. I do have disc brakes for the rear off of an Integra but need to get new bushings etc... before installation. So, found the driver's side e-brake cable sticking. I tried to lube it but no help. Picked up a new drivers side e-brake cable at NAPA for $24. It was a perfect fit. Adjusted the cable tension and everything works good now.
I've decided not to do the rear disc brake conversion, at least not in the immediate future. The disc brakes I had were totally rusted up and the calipers were trash.....rubber bushings shot. The rear drum brakes work great so I'm not looking at changing them.
I've decided not to do the rear disc brake conversion, at least not in the immediate future. The disc brakes I had were totally rusted up and the calipers were trash.....rubber bushings shot. The rear drum brakes work great so I'm not looking at changing them.
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bfraley
Active Member
new seats!!
I found front seats from a 2008 Civic Si on craigslist. I researched and found two similar methods of installing the seats for a 97(EK) civic. I bought the seats and fabricated new frame rails that I welded to the bottom seat rails on the new seats. The seats sit a bit high compare to the original DX seats and they are almost the same height at the 2000 civic Si seats I'm taking out of the car. after a lot of work and measurements both seats have been successfully installed and are much better than the original EK dx or si seats.
I found front seats from a 2008 Civic Si on craigslist. I researched and found two similar methods of installing the seats for a 97(EK) civic. I bought the seats and fabricated new frame rails that I welded to the bottom seat rails on the new seats. The seats sit a bit high compare to the original DX seats and they are almost the same height at the 2000 civic Si seats I'm taking out of the car. after a lot of work and measurements both seats have been successfully installed and are much better than the original EK dx or si seats.
Dude great post !
I have a 1997 EX (D16Y) and my motor just started going 60 psi & 90psi in 2 cyl. And seeing that she has 216,000 miles the motor is a bit tired.. But the rest of the car is still in good shape.
I have been looking on Ebay and I can score a B18B (with everything) for 1500 shipped right to my door... with the small parts & exhaust I hope to do the swap for under 2500. I love the fact you can still keep 30 MPG with your foot out of the pedal ! My biggest worries are ECU (wiring) and axels everthing else looks easy.
You have done a lot of the research and hard work for this swap. Thank you for sharing the info ! I will be pulling up this thread over the next few weeks as I collect parts...
I need to get 2 more years out of this civic.. then my wife Honda Pilot will be paid off...
-Dave
I have a 1997 EX (D16Y) and my motor just started going 60 psi & 90psi in 2 cyl. And seeing that she has 216,000 miles the motor is a bit tired.. But the rest of the car is still in good shape.
I have been looking on Ebay and I can score a B18B (with everything) for 1500 shipped right to my door... with the small parts & exhaust I hope to do the swap for under 2500. I love the fact you can still keep 30 MPG with your foot out of the pedal ! My biggest worries are ECU (wiring) and axels everthing else looks easy.
You have done a lot of the research and hard work for this swap. Thank you for sharing the info ! I will be pulling up this thread over the next few weeks as I collect parts...
I need to get 2 more years out of this civic.. then my wife Honda Pilot will be paid off...
-Dave
RedRckt96ek
New Member
Thanks guys!!! I am new to the Import scene.(4wd enthusiast).... I am in the Army, currently deployed to Afghanistan. I was home a few weeks ago on R&R and purchased a 96 ek. Its already built and has the same swap already done. The only problem is the swap was done kinda sloppy. I am having alot of emission issues that you addressed in this post. There was alot of good insight in this, and I am itching to get out of this Hell Hole desert, and get back to the garage so I can tackle the rebuild of this motor. Thanks again guys!!!
I didn't know about this. I'll have to check into it. I've got 00' si seats in my ek, and I've been sliding all over the place in them.
bfraley
Active Member
LS tranny is giving up the ghost
Well, the day has finally come. My LS tranny that came with the swap is slowly dying. 3rd gear grinds once in awhile and pops out of gear frequently. I called my brother in Ohio last night and he promptly found me a 99 Civic Si S4C tranny with 113,000 miles for $550. It's garanteed not to grind. I think this is a good find and it will have more torque in lower gears for towing the teardrop camper around. I'm heading to my brother's place this weekend to do the job. I'd like to replace the throw-out bearing/pilot bearing/clutch/etc... but not sure which part numbers to use. From all the forum reading I've done, I understand the B series S4C will bolt right up to my B18B1 motor and tranny mounts with no issues. I hope this is true! If anyone has any info on which bearings and clutch to use with this setup I would appreciate it. I'm leaning toward S4C tranny parts but not sure. Thanks!!
Well, the day has finally come. My LS tranny that came with the swap is slowly dying. 3rd gear grinds once in awhile and pops out of gear frequently. I called my brother in Ohio last night and he promptly found me a 99 Civic Si S4C tranny with 113,000 miles for $550. It's garanteed not to grind. I think this is a good find and it will have more torque in lower gears for towing the teardrop camper around. I'm heading to my brother's place this weekend to do the job. I'd like to replace the throw-out bearing/pilot bearing/clutch/etc... but not sure which part numbers to use. From all the forum reading I've done, I understand the B series S4C will bolt right up to my B18B1 motor and tranny mounts with no issues. I hope this is true! If anyone has any info on which bearings and clutch to use with this setup I would appreciate it. I'm leaning toward S4C tranny parts but not sure. Thanks!!
bfraley
Active Member
Glad my information can help out. I did my time in UAE and Saudi during the first gulf war. I was working F-16 avionics in the Air Force. Keep your head down so you can come home to work on the EK! Be safe.
bfraley
Active Member
Dude great post !
I have a 1997 EX (D16Y) and my motor just started going 60 psi & 90psi in 2 cyl. And seeing that she has 216,000 miles the motor is a bit tired.. But the rest of the car is still in good shape.
I have been looking on Ebay and I can score a B18B (with everything) for 1500 shipped right to my door... with the small parts & exhaust I hope to do the swap for under 2500. I love the fact you can still keep 30 MPG with your foot out of the pedal ! My biggest worries are ECU (wiring) and axels everthing else looks easy.
You have done a lot of the research and hard work for this swap. Thank you for sharing the info ! I will be pulling up this thread over the next few weeks as I collect parts...
I need to get 2 more years out of this civic.. then my wife Honda Pilot will be paid off...
-Dave
Your welcome! I hope your swap is working out ok. I have been extremely happy with mine so far. The amont of money I put into the car is pretty low overhead for the miles I put on it....and it's fun to drive as well! I have another 3 years before the youngest is out of college. Hoping the swap monster can hang on until then.
I'd go for an exedy oem replacement clutch. Pick up an OEM throwout bearing while you are at it. I hope you realize that LS motor will be spinning at 4k rpms at 70mph. Makes for a loud ride and will hurt mileage. Something to consider if you plan on piling on the miles.
bfraley
Active Member
I considered the lower highway speed to keep the mpg high, but I really need a transmission that will hold up to the teardrop camper towing. The new tranny is an S4C with LSD.....much better for winter driving too. I'll need to get used to 65mph on the highway. I was very surprised the LS tranny started failing and I'm hoping the new si tranny holds up better. When I compared the S4C with the LS tranny I noticed a lot of PNs were the same, but the flywheel, pressure plate, clutch plate and throw-out bearing are different PNs. I'll more than likely stay with the LS clutch parts.
bfraley
Active Member
SI tranny installed!
Update from the latest Ohio trip......All is well with the mighty Civic again.....almost! The tranny swap went good and the new tranny spins with no noise at all. I'm actually pulling 4000rpm at 75mph. The Si tranny pulls hard through all 5 gears which makes regular driving a bit more exciting. Fuel economy is very good as long as I keep the speed between 65-70mph. Four things I found that threw me a bit: 1) the passenger axle seal failed which meant I was driving for how long? with no tranny fluid. Needless to say, the LS tranny is trash. 2) I replaced the oil pan seal only to find the engine oil leak is still present. Either cam shaft seals or main seal can be causing the issue. Will look to fix when it warms up. 3) driver side axle inner boot was ripped. I replaced the axle. 4) Both lower ball joints were worn which caused some uneven tire wear in the front-end. replaced the ball joints with lifetime Moog joints and had the car aligned. 100,000 miles and 3 years has taken a toll for sure.
Update from the latest Ohio trip......All is well with the mighty Civic again.....almost! The tranny swap went good and the new tranny spins with no noise at all. I'm actually pulling 4000rpm at 75mph. The Si tranny pulls hard through all 5 gears which makes regular driving a bit more exciting. Fuel economy is very good as long as I keep the speed between 65-70mph. Four things I found that threw me a bit: 1) the passenger axle seal failed which meant I was driving for how long? with no tranny fluid. Needless to say, the LS tranny is trash. 2) I replaced the oil pan seal only to find the engine oil leak is still present. Either cam shaft seals or main seal can be causing the issue. Will look to fix when it warms up. 3) driver side axle inner boot was ripped. I replaced the axle. 4) Both lower ball joints were worn which caused some uneven tire wear in the front-end. replaced the ball joints with lifetime Moog joints and had the car aligned. 100,000 miles and 3 years has taken a toll for sure.
