B16A2 NA dd rebuild. What to do?

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Flying Dutchy

New Member
Greetings,

I've been browsing about the forum for threads that could be helpfull in my quest for more knowledge. I learned a lot, but still want to make sure I'm not about to cock things up by asking you guys what specific parts and labour I need done.

In short, here is where I currently stand:

I have a B16A2 from a '92 del sol, swapped into my '00 Civic EK, running on an adapter harness.
ITR flywheel paired with an exedy stage 1 clutch
Bent and slammed 4-1 manifold (it's gonna have to be replaced)
Spoon N1 cat-back

The engine has run a good 300k, revved hard every single day.

Last time I drove it it still ran perfectly fine, did however, have some cooling issues on hard drives. Noticed that my aftermarket (I think its a C&R but dont pin me on that) radiator was deformed at the edges. By lack of a better description I have to say it looked a little as if it was overpressured, and then bent out similar to the way a rifle does in a cartoon when the main character sticks his finger in the barrel. Unorthodox description, but there you have it. Could that be a gasket issue? Also found oil in my coolant.

Now, I was thinking that the engine probably needs some work seen as the incredible abuse it has seen over the past decade plus. I definitly do not want to swap another engine, we've seen too much crazy shit togetter.

What I want is a naturally aspirated build. Good for another 300k miles, at the very least. Budget is roughly 3-5k which will have to include labour.

My question is what you guys would do, keeping in mind that endurance is extremely important. I go to the scandinavian arctic in the winter when it permits. Don't know if you reckon that will affect the build, but thought I should mention the -25 degrees C it will occasionally be entering.

I hope I have provided enough information, and hope you guys can help me out!

Thanks in advance
 
I"m assuming you mean that you have 300,000 kilometer on the engine. Correct me if you are referring to miles. If you are in km, 300,000 isn't an exceedingly high amount.

Before considering a full rebuild, I would do leakdown and compression tests. It will test your piston rings, valves, and cylinder walls for engine wear. If everything checks out good, I would consider an overhaul of the coolant system. If you aren't leaking or burning any coolant or oil, you are probably ok. Definitely fix the areas with noticeable wear and tear. A full tune up would be a good idea as well.
 
Those are miles. So you dont reckon the head gasket has gone?

The headgasket is bad if you are burning fluids or losing compression. If it's not bad, I wouldn't change it.
 
If you have oil in your coolant, you could also have coolant in your oil which is a much bigger problem.

could be the HG, or piston rings are letting it pass.

do the leakdown, then compression test. post the figures.
i can't think of a reason why a rad would 'burst' out like that... that's what the overflow tank is for-- it comes out the cap. did you have a proper cap on it? it basically can't make more than a few psi before it overflows out the cap.
 
Yeah after I stopped laughing I was wondering the same thing. I did change the radiator cap and checked the overflow bottle. All seemed to be fine. Might have to do a more thorough inspection. My wtf-rating shot through the roof after I saw that so was preparing for the worst case scenario. I will get the car to get it checked for leakdown and compression as soon I have time to do that.

Thanks for your input guys!
 
P.S. Apart from the obvious engine trouble, I was also hoping to gain a few extra horses. So the build would've been the perfect excuse. However, I'm not that eager on spending too much money as I have another project that is feeding on my wallet like a pack of piranhas. Any ideas what would be the most cost effective way to gain some horses considering my setup? I have no experiences with cams so I'm a little in the dark here, however, that and a chiptuning of some sort was on my mind, but have no idea where to start.
 
Cams need a bump in compression, valve springs to hold them, and vs retainers to hold those... and a tune to match the new power band. it's pricey.

honestly, if it's a DD - i wouldn't bother with any of that. focus on stuff like suspension and brakes
 
Cams need a bump in compression, valve springs to hold them, and vs retainers to hold those... and a tune to match the new power band. it's pricey.

honestly, if it's a DD - i wouldn't bother with any of that. focus on stuff like suspension and brakes

yep, it's a lot of work and a lot of money for just a little gain. great tires, suspension, and brakes will improve the car's "fun factor" by quite a lot. More than just a few more ponies under the hood will.
 
I have Spoon calipers and rotors, and a rear disc conversion. Tein Flex suspension, Spoon struts front and back, and a lower spoon brace rear. Also have a Skunk2 straight shortshifter, and have plastic windows in the rear sides and rear hatch, Spoon engine mounts and an engine damper. Also I'm running on Gramlights so I think I'm covered in that department. Handling is always by default the 1st thing I do before adding power. But thats really what it breaks down to at this point: power.
 
I have Spoon calipers and rotors, and a rear disc conversion. Tein Flex suspension, Spoon struts front and back, and a lower spoon brace rear. Also have a Skunk2 straight shortshifter, and have plastic windows in the rear sides and rear hatch, Spoon engine mounts and an engine damper. Also I'm running on Gramlights so I think I'm covered in that department. Handling is always by default the 1st thing I do before adding power. But thats really what it breaks down to at this point: power.

sounds like you have everything set to go. if you have 3-5k for a build, i would consider just swapping the engine and adding a few bolt-ons with a good tune. assuming the engine is shot and you need new pistons, rings, resurface the head, etc, it will get spendy. For $500-$1000, you can find a GSR long block and have a lot of money left over.
 
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