Honda Civic Questions ITB's...Swap

Im in college therefore i dont have much money but in the summer i always say im gonna do this or im gonna do that. Well my car is staring to run like a tird (it’s a 99 honda civic ex…always ran like a tird but its nearing 100,000 miles and i’ve been beating on it so now its real a tird plus i need a new clutch) and i want to do something to it Heres my questions… how much is it to get someone to make an itb setup for a d16 how hard is it to install an itb setup how much horsepower would that add I know nothing about itb’s so this all might be stupid This is my daily driver so should i do somethin unique and keep an all motor d16 with maybe a small shot of nos? Or should I just say fuck it and do a swap. If your answer is do a swap (which it probably is going to be)…whats the best “bang for my buck” b18 ls…b16?..b18c1…b18 ls/vtec? i’d love to turbo it but i need it to be street legal and when it boils down to it an obd1 ecu in an obd2 car will not legally pass inspection although i know there are ways around it i dont want to deal with that right now so go ahead…cut up on me…call me a newb…as long as you gimme some answers thanks

best “bang for your buck” is gonna be an LS swap with a b16 or GSR transmission. might only be a 15hp upgrade, but where it matters(torque), you get like 20ft/lbs. plus the short gearing of either trans will put it to the ground easier. on paper it doesnt look like much, but its a HUGE difference. then once you actually have the b motor in there, potential is practically limitless. LS/V, turbo LS, bolt in an ITR motor, etc etc.

(Erring on the shorter side of answers) ITB’s are not going to get you anything from your current setup, especially on a stock SOHC…

A swap is fine, and if cost is an issue a b18b1 would suffice…and provide a starting point to build a real package. Issues will arise with all that is needed to get a b-swap into your car, and if money is tight be prepared for downtime. For the cost of a swap, you could freshen up your motor and sticka smaller turbo kit on it and have instant fun.

The short of it is this: What are your goals as far as useage and power levels?

What’s your budget?

well my goals as far as h.p. right now i really dont know…i’d like to run high 13’s in the 1/4 but be able to drive it everyday without any worries

i’ve often contemplated boosting it cause i know it’d work and what not but the whole tuning issue really is what changes my mind…if there was a way to tune an obd2 ecu and pass inspection with no problems or if there was a programmer you could just plug in and go then i’d be all for doing a turbo

as far as cost goes…as of right now i dont have much money but i’m gonna be saving up here and there and hopefully by mid spring it hopefully won’t be an issue

so doing anything all motor sohc is retarded then?

est. 1/4 time for a b18b1 with gsr lsd tranny full exhaust and intake and thats it???

budget right now…im really not sure…i want to make up my mind on what im gonna do then go from there

im thinking in the 1500-2000 range

For 1500-2000 bux, and knowing the right people and where to get the right parts you can be doing big things…My buddy just built a high 13 second hatch for under 600 bux…I think it ran 13.9 spinning 1st and 2nd gear down the track…Ill try to find out the exact setup, but Im almost positive its on a single cam…Oh and its not a POS either, well built…

no matter how much power you wanna make, if you’re gonna turbo, b18b is probably the best b series to use just because you’ll always make decent torque. if you’re gonna stay n/a you should go ls-vtec. either way i’d get an ls motor because you can take either route that and the fact that they’re ridiculously cheap. ls motors with intake and exhaust typically go low 14’s with a gsr or b16 tranny if you can drive. all the parts for the two vtec motors are more expensive too.

sell the car and go v8 rwd prob cheapest and most reliable

yea bgblock and you can pay for my gas and insurance haha

so i’m thinkin an ls/vtec swap would be the most reliable horsepower for the cheapest

can anyone explain what all is included in a swap like this

gsr head and ecu?
ls bottom end?
gsr tranny?

does it all bolt right up or do i need any sort of adapter plates or anything like that

if anyone can gimme any websites or anything thatd be great

thanks

umm there’s most def a write-up on this on honda-tech.com you’ll need at least eagle rods and new bearings so you can rev the motor into the vtec powerband. i put forged rods and pistons into my block for 1000. there’s an lsvtec conversion kit on golden eagle’s website. there’s a couple other small things i can’t remember but you should be able to find it easy enough online. gsr tranny will be perfect. btw i have an ls block that’s already disassembled i’ll sell cheap.

we need to break this down into a finalized goal, but for starters.

  1. if you haven’t already, completely ditch the idea of an all motor single cam, especially with ITBs. To put it quite simply, getting all motor horsepower out of a single cam is like trying to fill a swimming pool with a squirtgun.

IMHO, if you are looking to build a quick car on the cheap, i’d go turbo d-series. a t25 setup on 10 psi will get you around the 200whp mark, and be good for mid 13’s if you can drive.

If reliability is more your issue, i’d stick with an obd2 LS swap. Nice driveability with enough power to keep you satisfied, and is always an awesome point to build off of.

think about what you wanna do, then reply with a less scattered goal.

i was kinda in a rush when i left my previous post, so now that i have some time i will give it a real shot.

in “bang for the buck” im sticking to my guns on a B18B/LS swap with a B16 or GSR trans.

now, given you have a “$1500-2000” budget, options are somewhat limited on what you can do.

if you need 13’s with your budget, the obvious choice here is a greddy turbo kit. simply for ease of install, one box full of parts, and its legal. the only catch is although its complete, its not 100% complete. you really should add a turbo timer, blow off valve, boost gauge, intercooler and bigger exhaust. the good news is, you can have it all for around $2200 shipped to your door, and no tuning is required as the greddy e-manage comes with the kit.

yes, you can source used and rebuilt parts and make more power for a lot less money, but for simplicity’s sake, the greddy kit its basically 1 solution. only real “fab work” required is to drill your oil pan, but you can use one of those sandwich adaptors these days to avoid even that.

then theres the option to swap motors.

in your price range the only real option is a B18B/LS swap. unless you can find a VTEC swap from a private seller or online for super cheap, your not gonna have the cash required to go that route. most importers are charging around $2300 for an OBD1 B16 swap, so im guessing OBD2 to be a couple hundred more. then theres shipping.

so if you dont want to turbo your SOHC, or are looking for endless potential down the road, or just want to take someones advice, heres your plan of attack:

OBD2 B18B/LS motor from a private seller or junkyard with all sensors, ECU, wiring harness and mounts - est $500-600.
GSR tranny from a private seller, junkyard, or online, your gonna need the axles, shift linkage, intermediate shaft, and T bracket. anywhere from $400-700

then theres rad hoses and crap like that, source from a del sol or integra, whatever.

since the motor will be on a stand at some point, i highly suggest you change the water pump and timing belt, as these are common “fail” items with used motors and uncertain mileage. spark plugs, wires, “tune-up parts” etc should also be replaced.

if your really frugal and are a smart shopper, you CAN have a complete turbo LS swap in a car for your budget, just depends on how much time you actually take to look around for parts and know how to haggle.

for instance, a couple weeks ago i picked up a complete LS bottom end on craigslist for $20, i just had to drive 80 miles to get it. i have a grind-free GSR trans in my car i picked up for $300. DC 4-1 header i got for $50, Tanabe axle back i got from a member on here for $100.

bargains can be had, you just need to keep your eyes and ears open, and have cash. theres an OBD0 b16 swap with a bad trans on craigslist right now for $1000. all you would need to do is update OBD and score a new trans. everything else is already there. id bet you could get a tranny off of a member on here somewhere

at any rate, good luck on your build

:stupid:

Look, you said yourself that you’re new to this, and while you could probably push your way through a B-series swap (and yes there are people around who would help), IMO it’s going to be a bigger headache and there’s a lot more potential to get halfway and be like “oh shit, i have no idea, screw it I gotta unload this project so I have something to drive.” It seems to happen to people a lot. Putting on a small turbo is not going to be nearly as hard, and if you’re worried about reliability you can always dial the boost down a bit. You could put things together in a weekend, get a quick $100 tune and go enjoy yourself.

best quote ever…

you will be happy with the ls swap if u go that way…my civic ran a 15 flat with a fucked up transmission…i never ran it once i got it swapped for a b16 transmission but it was def alot faster

ok i stated above that i dont want to boost it because I need it to legally pass inspection because right now it is my daily driver

and the greddy kit that is all legal…i heard bad things about the e-manage so im not gonna fuck with that

i’m thinkin ls swap and in 2 years when I get a job and this car isnt my daily then i will have a good platform to boost and not worry bout inspection

thanks for all the input hough guys