CRX B18a1 swap

[clutchmuch]

Well last friday i met with a dude on craiglist, who was selling a nice looking CRX. i've always wanted one for a project to fuck around with. So i picked it up. Its in pretty nice shape, tiny bit of rust on rear quarters nothing terrible. Its got a B18a1 engine swap from a 91 integra, the motor has 85k and the crx body has like 188k. Its already got a APR cold air intake, custom exhaust and header pretty sure thats it on performance on it. And a wings west body kit. All in all i like it so far. Oh yeah and its 91' CRX si

Ill post more pics here just a quick snap of the engine.

[attachment=0:v1cpxj5y]166178_1810703711252_1349765382_2022137_577018_n.j pg[/attachment:v1cpxj5y]

[sLoWnStEaDy]

pics of the car? I sold a 91 CRX with a B18A1 swap and a Wings West body kit a couple years back. Doubt it is the same car but...

[clutchmuch]

Yeah ill have em up later, i got it from a guy in IC who just moved down from Davenport, maybe same car, that would be funny haha. It was blue, but its black now.

[TbTalon94]

lol that "cold air intake" is funny.

[Ricky]

i wouldnt say it is "cold air"... lol

Its a filter on the intake mani

[Drifte]

I would change the intake asap. I have pipes laying around for honda intakes you could have one for like $10. Engine bay looks pretty clean, hopefully the rest of the car is just as nice.

[85XR7Project]

Warm air intake is more like it...

[Drifte]

googly moogly

http://iowacity.craigslist.org/cto/2140669528.html

[JacobS]

if you need any parts let me know! i have extras somehow haha

[boostedsohc]

needs stock bumpers. then it will look much better.
and please tell me you didnt pay 3400 for it.

but a crx is a great car to start with.

[boostedsohc]

if you need any parts let me know! i have extras somehow haha

honda put extras on the cars cause they know how you always have extra bolts when your dont putting it back together! :bigthumb:

[AutoMods]

my first car was a 87 crx 15 years ago when i was 16, paid $3k for it with 105k miles, that was before the import craze. damn things are still seling for that much money is crazy

[clutchmuch]

needs stock bumpers. then it will look much better.
and please tell me you didnt pay 3400 for it.

but a crx is a great car to start with.


No i didn't pay 3,400 haha i would never, i did a straight trade for my audi which is fine with me considering this engine has 85k and my audi had 203k i think i got the better end of the deal, and also it wont cost a billion dollars for parts like my audi haha, its also came with a set 16'' rims and hella extra parts and all the stock parts that were on it.

[Clinical]

gotta say not a fan of the body kit but either way I think you did well getting rid of that audi for it.

Audi was nice but honestly at 200k+ miles, this crx will be a lot cheaper/easier to maintain and has a lot more potential.

I think you should start looking into a good snail :)

[clutchmuch]

Good snail? lol

[Clinical]

http://www.89ssp.com/Images/89-SSP--0353.jpg

[clutchmuch]

Ahhh, haha i got you now. yeah im going to save up some more money from my new job to start throwing parts into the car.

[clutchmuch]

http://www.revhardinc.com/turbochargers/

You think this is alright? Or what would you perfer?
I'm not even sure if this will fit on my engine but yeah
im not looking for the best of best, more on the "cheaper" side of things.

[AutoMods]

thats not a real product, if your paying $100 for a new turbo its going to be a paper weight. Expect to pay $600+ for the turbo alone.

[clutchmuch]

Oh haha i didn't know, i just saw 99 and i was like awesome, i found a nice turbo kit for b series engine for like 510 + 80 shipping.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/TURBO-TU ... 791wt_1164 (http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/TURBO-TURBOCHARGER-KIT-4-BSERIES-INTEGRA-1990-2001-DC-_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQhashZitem2a08f9f49fQQitemZ18053 9225247QQptZMotorsQ5fCarQ5fTruckQ5fPartsQ5fAccesso ries#ht_5791wt_1164)

Desc?

[Clinical]

Do NOT buy an egay kit.
It will either end up not fitting at all or cause you more trouble than anything and will crap out.

Just piece together a turbo setup, it'll be much better in the long run and if you do it right you still won't spend much.

[clutchmuch]

but but but im pooooooooooooooooor:( haha, LEMONADE STAND TIME!

[AutoMods]

Do you buy your girlfriend knock off clothing and jewelry or the real thing? Tell me what brand turbo, wastegate, air filter and bov is in the auction. Tell me the phone number and shipping location of the company selling the product and the warranty. Tell me more specifics about the turbo such as compressor wheel inducer and excucer because there are over 10 different t3/t4 turbos sizes ranging from fast spooling to slow.

Its not about brand names really but it is about quality and reliability and saving you labor when your manifold cracks or turbo blows a seal or sends metal through your engine. Or the wastegate sticks causing you to overboost.

[clutchmuch]

Well i don't know much about turbos, as i have never owned one,put one on,or seen one. So i'm looking for some help. Obviously i don't know what to buy haha

[AutoMods]

well all the questions I asked you are unanswerable because all the stufff comes from china. i'd stay away from it.

do some reading on the honda forums before you buy anything. by research I'm mean at least 100 hours of reading and learning .

but basically you'd have to spend at least $1200 for the most budget build if your buying new. turbo, wastegate, bov, fmic, exhaust manifold, injectors, tuning software, fuel pump, clutch?

[clutchmuch]

Damn. Well i'll be holding off on this for awhile. Clutch should be good though 10k on it. This damn job isn't giving me shit for hours. suckss. Thanks for the help though.

[Clinical]

This is a very rough list but prepare to have money for the following things:
Turbo: $200-600. Expect to pay 600+ for a serious turbo new. Otherwise you can pay less if you find some used turbo. I know they make adapter flanges for dsm turbos and you could run a used 14b or 16g for 200 or less.
Wastegate: You can getaway with ebay wastegates, they run around $100.. I personally will always use Tial.
FMIC: An ebay FMIC core can be ran, I think my friend payed around $100 for his core, and made his own piping and ended up with around 150-200 in his FMIC setup which isnt a 'race setup' but has ran 11's and still works decent.
manifold: $150+, I know I've seen some cheap durable cast manis for the d series, not sure about the bseries.
Injectors: really a ballpark on this one, if you buy used again, expect to pay $150-300 depending how big you're looking for, 550s would work fine for pump, and I'd want at least 1000's on E85.
Tuning Software: I'm pretty much addicted to standalones, and wouldn't have it any other way anymore. Hondata runs around $500
Fuel Pump: You can get a walbro 255 for right around 80
Bov: steal a 1g bov for like $20

There's still many things needed missing here. I'd want an FPR, wideband, boost gauge, a heavy duty clutch, LSD, etc. You don't NEED all of it, but I wouldn't build a honda without it.

[clutchmuch]

This is a very rough list but prepare to have money for the following things:
Turbo: $200-600. Expect to pay 600+ for a serious turbo new. Otherwise you can pay less if you find some used turbo. I know they make adapter flanges for dsm turbos and you could run a used 14b or 16g for 200 or less.
Wastegate: You can getaway with ebay wastegates, they run around $100.. I personally will always use Tial.
FMIC: An ebay FMIC core can be ran, I think my friend payed around $100 for his core, and made his own piping and ended up with around 150-200 in his FMIC setup which isnt a 'race setup' but has ran 11's and still works decent.
manifold: $150+, I know I've seen some cheap durable cast manis for the d series, not sure about the bseries.
Injectors: really a ballpark on this one, if you buy used again, expect to pay $150-300 depending how big you're looking for, 550s would work fine for pump, and I'd want at least 1000's on E85.
Tuning Software: I'm pretty much addicted to standalones, and wouldn't have it any other way anymore. Hondata runs around $500
Fuel Pump: You can get a walbro 255 for right around 80
Bov: steal a 1g bov for like $20

There's still many things needed missing here. I'd want an FPR, wideband, boost gauge, a heavy duty clutch, LSD, etc. You don't NEED all of it, but I wouldn't build a honda without it.

Thank you very helpful.

[JacobS]

just build an LS/Vtec with higher compression. with the amount of weight you have, it would be plenty of fun. get a GSR trans and a good clutch and you have yourself a good setup. no need to boost such a light car unless your trying to set the world on fire haha

[JacobS]

eh scratch that, you would need a J1 trans, since youre cable and not hydraulic...

[Ricky]

If you go turbo (some day) you will need a new clutch. I had a friend that turbo'ed his CRX and the first time it saw boost the clutch just spun and smoked. Stock clutch will not hold lol

[qoncept]

This is a very rough list but prepare to have money for the following things:
Turbo: $200-600. Expect to pay 600+ for a serious turbo new. Otherwise you can pay less if you find some used turbo. I know they make adapter flanges for dsm turbos and you could run a used 14b or 16g for 200 or less.
+1. If you an find a used turbo that's stock on another car you'll be set. The issue is always going to be making it fit. If there are adapters available for Subaru turbos, you can get a TD04 for $100-200. Probably a lot of DSM turbos out there and stock, they're all going to be close to the same size, which is small. And perfect for a non-built 1.8l.


FMIC: An ebay FMIC core can be ran, I think my friend payed around $100 for his core, and made his own piping and ended up with around 150-200 in his FMIC setup which isnt a 'race setup' but has ran 11's and still works decent.
+1 again. Absolutely use an ebay FMIC, and make sure you don't get one too big for your purpose. If you're using a stock takeoff turbo above, you probably don't want anything bigger than like 24"x8"x3", if that. Unless you plan on a bigger turbo later.


Injectors: really a ballpark on this one, if you buy used again, expect to pay $150-300 depending how big you're looking for, 550s would work fine for pump, and I'd want at least 1000's on E85.
Can Honda injectors be modified? Subaru injectors were easy. Cut the cap off and 440cc injectors now flow 800. Look in to it.


Tuning Software: I'm pretty much addicted to standalones, and wouldn't have it any other way anymore. Hondata runs around $500
This thing is OBD-I, I would absolutely go with Crome/Ostrich. Can't beat the price (I think everything you need might cost $100, including having a ZIF slot soldered in your ECU) and you have all the power of the stock ECU. I had a buddy in Alabama running a 700hp Integra tuned with Crome.


There's still many things needed missing here. I'd want an FPR, wideband, boost gauge, a heavy duty clutch, LSD, etc. You don't NEED all of it, but I wouldn't build a honda without it.
Definitely need a boost referenced FPR, might be able to use one from a WRX or DSM. Would definitely be nice to match the stock pressure so you won't have as much tuning to do out of boost, but not really that big of a deal anyway. Wideband $200, boost gauge for next to nothing (I have a VDO if you want it). Clutch and LSD are things to look at later but out of the scope of adding a turbo. Doesn't a CRX Si already have an LSD?

Most important thing is to read. A lot. A million people have turbo'd that engine before you. There's no need to discover anything yourself. Learn from their experiences. You can probably buy a whole kit somebody decided they can't afford. And definitely don't buy an ebay turbo. They're junk made in China. Like everything made in China, the materials are shitty and tolerances high. When you're dealing with bearings and 100k rpms that just doesn't cut it.

[Ricky]

FMIC: An ebay FMIC core can be ran, I think my friend payed around $100 for his core, and made his own piping and ended up with around 150-200 in his FMIC setup which isnt a 'race setup' but has ran 11's and still works decent.



My WRX has a eBay FMIC. It is an exact copy of the TurboXS version and mine works just fine. I got it with everything i needed for about $250

[AutoMods]

out of all the china stuff the intercoolers are the safest china part to use. even if they develop a small leak they still will work. or perhaps they aren't the most efficient but they get the job done.

[Drifte]

better than no intercooler...right? LOL jp

[TbTalon94]

better than no intercooler...right? LOL jp

Ha i was going to say that.

China intercoolers are good if you aren't looking to make a bunch of power. They just heat soak faster then good cores that's all. They do their job just fine on mild set-ups.

Ebay manifolds will crack, it's just a matter of time when, they also almost always have gasket matching problems and fitment issues. I could build you a manifold but for a budget minded person i'd look into the many cast manifolds that are available.

I've used ebay wastegates, worked for awhile..but i've seen them go bad and it can be very bad.

[qoncept]

Yeah, I don't think wastegates are a good place to cheap out. If it suddenly gets a big leak you'll be overboosting big time.

[AutoMods]

better than no intercooler...right? LOL jp

don't hate cuz i keep it light weight bro

[Drifte]

Whatever happened to putting that car on a diet anyway? It has far to many amenities for a race car.