90 Prelude Swap

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crix99

Junior Member
a friend of mine has a 90 prelude si, im not to familiar with older preludes. he said his rings are shot, and he wants to replace the block. i was wondering which engine came in these, i looked at his block but it was covered in oil, and i couldnt read it. also if anyone knows any sites dealing with older preludes that would be a great help too. i dont know much about anything other than crx's and civics, but i want to help him get it running without him having to spend a fortune. thanks
 
it doesn't matter which engine he has (B20a5 or B21) you should buy a B21 to replace it. everythinks hoods up and mounts the same, but the B21 makes approx 25ft lbs more torque than the B20a5.

or if he wants serious power, for around 4500.00 (not including labor) he can swap in the 200hp H22.
 
I've heard a couple of times that the A5 block holds up a little better, and is more reliable than the B21.
 
personally i think it is going to cost more to put an h22 in that prelude. if i were your friends i would turbo that b20a5, i think ludespeed.com makes a turbo kit for it. there is not a lot of after market support for that motor, and personally I would just get another car.
 
lol good lord i payed uner 2 grand for the jdm h22a swap and labor, but then again i have a 4th gen so it will be more expensive for you, if you really want an h22a look around, i got mine for 1400 shipped.
Zac
 
I think that the 89-91 Prelude VTEC conversion is probably something to pass on unless you have a great source of funding and absolutely have to have this particular engine.
This conversion is totally possible but I don't feel that it is a good value. (Driectly from ludespeed.com)
 
Don't get the B20A5 and B21 mixed up with the CRV B20....completely different...
 
Also..

He probably has a b21a cause they have the sleeves / rings that wear out and cause blow-by... I wouldn't give up on the car cause they handle awesome... and the car doesn't have a huge after market following like the civics and integras but it does have the ability to swap in aftermarket parts from the accord and newer prelude (not alot, but enough)
 
From what I've heard, the VTEC conversion didn't give much of an increase in power as Tom(the VTEC conversion mastermind) had expected. IMO, I wouldn't bother with it.

As far as the lack of aftermarket support goes, that's what I love about my 3rd gen. Whatever I can't order out of a magazine or online, means that if I can make it work, that there's a good damn chance that nobody else will have it done to their car. To me there's a sense of pride in doing things myself, instead of just having a crap-load of money and making my car look and perform like everyone elses.


Internal mods, custom turbo kit, custom interior, and custom carbon fiber: That's what I'm screamin', baby! WOOHOO!! :worthy:
 
Originally posted by Ima2nr@Feb 5 2003, 12:24 AM
it doesn't matter which engine he has (B20a5 or B21) you should buy a B21 to replace it. everythinks hoods up and mounts the same, but the B21 makes approx 25ft lbs more torque than the B20a5.

or if he wants serious power, for around 4500.00 (not including labor) he can swap in the 200hp H22.

The B21 is inferior to the B20 because it is not near as reliable. Also, it only has 8 more ft. lbs. of torque and 5 more horsepower. You are not going to notice that little bit of increase. The JDM B20 is your best bet. It is not that expensive and it has more power.
 
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