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This is my first post. My car is an 2002 Honda Civic EX Coupe. About 2 years ago my father gave me his EM2 civic. He always talked about supercharging it and changing the engine to make it go fast. He passed on 2/16/24, and yesterday my d17a2 started knocking so I’m not driving it and now looking to upgrade it. My main question is what’s the best components to put in the EM2 body. I’m thinking a K series engine that’s turbo or supercharged. Problem is I don’t know what engine, transmission, chassis, drivetrain, etc. that will fit into the EM2. Im new when it comes to swaps as this is my first car but I could use all the help. Thank you

(EDIT: My budget is $7k)

 
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K20a (DC5 RSX-R), -a2 (DC5 RSX-S), -a3 (DC5 Base RSX/EP3 Civic) has always been a popular swap in the EM2

If you're feeling frisky, K24/20 Frankenstein Swap (K24 block with K20 head) is a good choice.

nevertheless, hasport mounts and kpro tuning. IIRC, you'll need to 5-lug swap it, too (unless doing a front knuckle swap with a 02-03 EP3 will work, but I'm not 100% on that. It's pure speculation)

https://www.civicforums.com/forums/79-engine-swaps

 
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K24a2 also popular and more common.

K swap and turbo for $7k is going to be difficult. Unless it's an Ebay turbo kit.

 
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Sorry about your dad.

Sounds like a project you need to break out in 2-3 iterations because 7 grand won’t be a quality product.

1. K-swap (K24A2 is the move)
2. Suspension/brakes/tires
3. Forced induction

That’s how I’d do it. I’d usually swap 1 and 2 but you obviously need a functioning car and a K alone probably won’t be too much for a stock car. If you have transportation in the meantime, it’s probably worth doing all the chassis upgrades first.

 
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Just wondering has anyone done a L15b7 swap on an EM2? I know that engine isn't liked by many and others would recommend another engine. But I'm wondering if that's an option since I have a 10th Gen Civic SI and I would like to learn on how to work with that engine using my EM2. I don't plan on making crazy power I'm just looking to bring out the power on using a lightweight engine reliably and if my research was correct the L15b7 is 200lbs less than a K20. If I ever plan going over 400 I know I would need to beef up the internals but that's part of my learning experience I'm looking forward to.

 
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Probably hasn’t been done. Not a good project for a newbie. End up with 2 cars you can’t use for a long time.

 
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L swaps becoming more popular but you'd probably be the first in a 7th gen. Meaning you'd have to make custom mounts, exhaust, figure out axles, and much more. A K swap is well documented and would be easier.