trikky74

I have a 2005 Honda Civic EX, it has been using a boatload of oil lately with no visible smoke and no leaks anywhere. I have traced the problem to the valve seals (?), I guess in like .00000001% of these motors this happens and the repairs cost around 2500.00 if you can't fix it yourself (which I can't).

I love this car, its paid for, and I drive almost 200 miles day to work, that being said I figured why not swap out the motor instead of fixing my old one that has 152k on it. I am running into a problem trying to figure out what motor will give me the most bang for my buck, and provide some added pep on the road (AT).

Any suggestions would be appreciated, I have been looking at K20 and same year SI engines but I am not sure if they will fit/work. I live in small town kentucky so the chances of some mechanic being an import tuning genius are, well, null.

Thanks guys!

PS, anything I will need to get with the motor in order to make the car as close to exceptional as possible would also be great!

mac25

the EX has the d17a2 which engine with the most power from the two options d17a1 and d17a2. so don't pop an A1 in, you'd also have to change the exhaust and wiring for the O2 sensors to use a d17a1, so stick with the A2.

that is the most cost efficient engine the d17a2 which your car came with.

there is no point in you dropping in a K20 series engine if you don't know how to do it your self, the money involved in paying for the parts, the custom fab and the labor to install the K will set you back a few thousand dollars.

if you knew what you were doing then the K could be a logical swap.


if you really want your car with a K series engine the cheapest and safest route would be to sell your car and buy an rsx-s which is basically the em2 coupe with better exhaust, engine and suspension. in fact they're so closely related that the suspension parts are mostly directly interchangeable.

trikky74

Thanks!

EŽik

You can probably find a K20a3 AT (from a base RSX) for cheap. As for a parts needed for the swap, you can look at my build thread stickied at the top of the page. A lot of the item needed can be found cheap at a local salvage yard.

The wiring can be solved with a Rywire kit. It saves you from having to do a lot of custom wiring.

If your looking for a cheaper solution, then swap out another D17 engine.

Might I also add these engines (D17's) are prone to blowing head gaskets as well. I noticed mine was on the way out when I could smell burning oil when I had my heat on. No leaks, and no visible burning oil out the exhaust. ANd I was loosing oil in between oil changes as well.

ezone

testing 123

trikky74

So I have decided to go the route advised and get the same engine that I have now since I have an AT and its not really worth the money dropping a K series engine in it when you factor in cost with install etc...

That being said here is what I am looking at:

D17a with AT transmission, around 45k miles for 1400.00
Mishimoto Aluminum Radiator
Mishimoto Power Steering and Transmission Oil Cooler Kit
Weapon R Aluminum Coolant Tank
Mishimoto Racing Thermostat
FAL (Flex-a-lite) High Performance Electric Fans
Injen Cold Air Intake
Skunk2 MegaPower Exhaust System
Skunk2 Alpha Series Header (I believe this is the cheap skunk2 header alternative and should fit with the Megapower exhaust)

I thought that since I am going to have the motor/tranny out I might as well replace as much as I can, within reason of course, but I wanted to know if I was forgetting anything that should be replaced at the same time? I can cut around 500-700 off of the Engine if I keep my current tranny which at 151k hasn't shown any issues, but I keep reading that if I can get an engine that is already mated to a tranny thats the best way to go. This is my everyday driver that will do almost 200 miles a day commuting to work which is why I was thinking that I should put a bit more money into the motor, any helpful advice would be appreciated.

If anyone can think of alternatives that would be just as effective at a lesser price, or if I am missing a part that would be better from a different manufacturer, please let me know.

Thanks,

mac25

it better not be $1400 just to buy the engine/trans.

honestly the cooling system i wouldn't worry about while running a stock engine.

just grab an engine/transmission from the scrap yard, they're $500 around here.

get it installed and call it a day.

if you want an intake buy a cheap ebay on or make your own, it's just a metal pipe with a mount and a hole for the air sensor, no need to buy an expensive brand, save your money and buy a stage 1 camshaft from crower ($380). as for the exhaust buy used or get an exhaust shop to fabricate one for you, even with the custom fab job, the installation it will be cheaper then buying one and then getting it installed after or if you know someone with a lift or a pit like an oil shop you could install a system your self.

trikky74

I was looking around for motors and found that one on ebay, it came with the tranny, delivered for 1400.00. I have oil in my radiator/reservoir so I figured while I had the engine out I should get a new one, never thought about keeping it stock but I guess that makes sense. The reason behind all the additions was because of the miles I put on the car, around 1k a week, and wanting it to run as perfect as possible for as long as possible.

I never thought about getting an aftermarket camshaft, I guess I always associated those kinds of upgrades with high end engine work but it makes sense. I guess what I am hearing is that because I am keeping the engine stock I should go as cheap as possible and save up for the RSX-S I am looking at?

I really have no idea where to find the engine, but I will call my junkyard tomorrow and see what kind of prices I am looking at from them, thanks a lot for your input and help.

PS
Do I buy headers or run off of the stock ones?

j_dock69

Car-part.com

trikky74

Thank you Sir!

mac25

google maps "auto wrecker", "auto scrap", "import auto" those should bring up places with civics in stock for scrapping. that's where you'll get it the cheapest, then find a shop with a low installation fee you trust and get them to drop it in.

flush the radiator with a garden hose, the oil in it will be fine.

to save costs keep everything stock.



if you want to mod it after you have a stable engine installed then:

-Crower stage 1 camshaft

-intake=ebay + buy good filter like AEM

-exhaust = used from craigslist or ebay, or custom at an exhaust shop (not an aftermarket shop, they'll chrome everything and charge you up the a$$).

-don't worry about the header since the stock header is the same size as the exhaust ports you won't gain any flow by adding a large header (unless you were boosted where the displacment will be higher from the boost then stock).

-then lower

-front and rear strut bars and rear swaybar.


that's all going to cost quite a bit but it will make the car handle amazing and feel more powerful, which will get you a nice autoX racing car. but the transmission and the power on a D17 without boosting it will never be fast enough to be in the class of a sports car. if after you have the camshaft and you still want more power boost it, the cam. will add power on top of the boost as well, so it's not a wasted cost if boosting.

trikky74

I am so pissed right now,

I brought my car to grease monkey and had the oil changed, the tranny fluid changed, and the radiator flushed.

200.00 dollars and a week later my car overheats, I pull over and the radiator overflow container has oil coating the inside and is bone dry. I call the guys who did the work and they said, basically, **** off your headgasket is bad.

Here's the thing, the car doesn't smoke, doesn't shudder or drop out, and there are no leaks of any kind anywhere. Honda dealership is charging me 650.00 to fix the car and I don't even know if it is the damn headgasket or if those assclowns didn't break something when they were doing the work. That is the reason for deciding if I need to replace the engine or not, I really need to find a decent mechanic in this town.

FML

EŽik

If there's oil in the overflow, then yes, your headgasket is blown. I had said that in a previous post. Get that fixed, or swap out another D17, and risk having the same problem. I had close to 200k on my old D and the headgasket was on it's way out. So if you can find a D17 with low miles on it, then you should be fine, if the previous owner took car of the engine.