fc3857

Hey, I want to know what kinds of problems come with converting a Front wheel drive car into a Rear wheel drive car? Other than the fact that converting a ff car to rwd is probably very expensive. Would it be easy to mess up any wiring or anything? Because, I want to have my future civic hatch to be able to drift. Thanks for the responses. P.S. Please don't flame me I am only fifteen and I am still learning.

MindBomber

it would be easy to mess up everything, since there wouldn't be a single stock part left in the car and extensive fabrication would be required.

jono237

it has been done on a 2000 si using a s2000 motor and id imagine a lot more parts from the s2000 but in the end probably cost as much as just buying a s2000

FordSlayer

Its not worth the PITA or the money. If you know how to drive, you can drift a FWD, and honestly, I've never seen a civic engine that would have enough power for burnout drifting.

MindBomber

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FordSlayer

Were you quoting me because you were agreeing with me, or did you have something else to say that just didn't post?

MindBomber

A stock Civic doesn't have enough power to drift, but neither does an S13 or Cressida, they all need to be boosted.

sdaidoji

iTrader: (1)

so many builds around there... civette, cibaru, etc, etc...
15y-old...
first thing to learn - search first, then ask. nothing is actually free in life, you always need to pay something, even if it's efforts and sweating.

jono237

they sell 4wd versions of the sedan oversees so im sure you could source most of your parts from there as well.

MindBomber

4wd wagovans were available domestically as well, they're hard to come by though.

05gen7ex

not sure how long ago it was, but honda tuning had an article on it and the guy was putting together kits using parts from a CRV. I will see if i can find a link. i have the actual mag somewhere will get back to you. but it is very possible. i would imagine you would have to make a little ore power some how as well.

sdaidoji

iTrader: (1)

^eeeeehhhh! finally, someone else that goes to mag stands and read useful stuff and buy them!

scooty

Just buy a late 80's early 90's Camaro or Firebird and be done with it. You'll spend way less money and with good tires those cars handle amazing.

If you want to drift get something that was RWD to begin with. Converting a FWD car to RWD will involve a lot of fabricating and custom work skills.

Beta

Can you? Yes. Is it worth the money? Depends on your opinion of "Worth it".

Whether it's worth it or not is subjective to who you are and what you want. Like, Is it worth it to repair a car that needs $2000 worth of work on a car that is worth less than $2000 in perfect condition? To some, absolutely not. To a person who's had the car since he was 15? It absolutely is.

You could convert the car. It would require some fabrication skills, but isn't impossible. You'd have to make motor mounts that would work. You'd have to reroute the exhaust in such a way that it doesn't interfere with the driveshaft. Rear hubs would have to be changed for some that have the ability to mount an axle. A rear differential would have to be bolted to the frame of the car, and a mount would need to be made. CV joints would be needed for this and at the correct length.

It'd probably be easier to just buy an S2000. But if you really want a RWD Civic to "Drift" in, it is possible.

The problems I'd see would be to fit the engine and trans for longitudinal mounting. I don't know about the civic, but I don't think there's much of a transmission tunnel there, and the length of the engine bay would be limited.

It'd probably be easiest to take an early Miata NA, and take the entire front and rear subframe assemblies off of it with the powertrain and drivetrain, all mounted to the Power plant frame and fabricate it in place of the civic hardware.

Basically this



You'd fab that up in place of the civic suspension and drivetrain platform. Easier said than done. The PPF would probably need to be modified for the civic wheelbase. The shift linkage would have to be worked out.

Even then, you'd still be left with a car that has an underpowered drivetrain for sustained corner to corner drifting. You could supercharge or turbocharge it.

It'd be a really big project, but if you pull it off with class and don't ghetto rig the thing and make it look really clean, you'd have people wishing they had a RWD civic that was done cleanly and professionally that has a powerplant for driving.

Not to say it will drift well. I don't know what the balance of weight would be and things.

It will be a lot of work. I'm not a drifter type myself, but personal preference. I'd just take an MX-5 or an S2000 and drop an LSx motor in it to play around in, but that's me. You do what you want to do with your toys. It's your life just as mine is mine.

This is all assuming you want a dedicated RWD straight mounted engine setup instead of using a transfercase and transverse mounted engine. Transverse would probably be easier if parts are available from an AWD version.

05gen7ex

Quick correction... it was an AWD civic with CRV parts. and an s2000 drivetrain on a '99 Si. July 2011 issue of honda tuning. so it can be done just with modification. As far as everyone saying it's not worth it, if its is what you want then why isn't it worth it? Isnt it this kind of thinking that has kept all of these aftermarket companies alive? I read an article about the guy from HCP Engineering, was it "worth" it for him to put all of this time money and effort into these motor mounts? where would we be at today is he hadn't? who knows you could do the swap and then piece kits together, and become a millionaire for it... So is it worth it... Of course it is. You never know until someone tries. I know i would do it if i hade the recourses time and money to... If you do chose to do it leep us posted i am interested on seeing it. *RANT COMPLETE*

Roxie

OP, being that you're 15, I must say you have plenty of time to learn about what cars will drift best. I'm not thinking a Civic hatch will be much of a drifter unless you 1) boost it, and 2) put some serious time and money into it.

If you're looking for a project car, and something to eventually have as a "There, I did it. And I love it" kind of deal, then go for it! If you're looking to make a statement, well that will definitely happen lol. If you're thinking that this hatch will be a car that's going to keep up on the track with everyone else... I'd talk to some serious drifters first. Personally, I'd find a stock RWD car that I would want to use. But, it's a matter of what you think is "worth it". You're call kiddo.

When you think about it, all us who do motor swaps, tuning, or any sort of modification to our cars, we think the choice is worth it. I find it funny when some people say knock on custom cars like this RWD Civic, but they have a custom hot rod in their garage. Different strokes for different folks. Just make a decision you are sure of and stick to it.

DarkSouljur

Hey we made it to the moon, making a rwd civic cant be much harder... Can it? If its what you want go for it cuz anything is possible! Do i win the cliche award?

Shift-E

lol, OP is probably dumbfounded by all your responses. He probably had no idea what the differences between FWD and RWD realy where when it came to everything else between the wheels :P

Not flaming you OP, we've all been there once haha. Point is, it is a big job. It'll take knowledge on how everything works so that it's done properly. If you have a mechanic in the family, that helps lol. If you're doing this all on your own, with no prior knowledge, then good luck!

G3rain1

Hah! Recognized that Miata sub-frame right away before even reading your post.

pjb3

Just to make it interesting I'll suggest another possibility. You could do something similar to what GM did with the Fiero, mount the whole front subframe in the rear. You remove the steering and lock the wheels in line and end up with a mid-engine, rear wheel drive setup.