B18b in 97 civic cx hatch need help


Joeyjoe

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Feb 19, 2009
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Hi guys, i got a 97 cx hatchback(canadian model) and i'm plannig to swap the D16Y7 for a healthier B18b. I'm an automobile technician so i can do it myself but i didn't swap a lot of motors so i'm not sure which part i need for this. Those are axles, engine mounts, shifters rods, ecu and wiring harness. Thanks for the help!!!
 
Here is all the info you need:

Mounts

Other than the motor, tranny, linkage, etc; you'll need the mounts to accompany a b-swap. on a 6th gen civic, here's the part numbers for the OEM honda parts i used:

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif] 50827-S04-N10 [/FONT] [FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif] BRACKET, RR. [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif] 50825-S04-000 [/FONT][FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif] BRACKET, TRANS MTG [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif] 11910-P30-000 [/FONT][FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]BRKT, ENGINE MOUNT
[/FONT][FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif] 50843-S04-N10 [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]BRKT, R. FR. STOPPER

I have heard that the Trans mount bracket isn't needed, and upon inspection it wasn't. but, i ended up using the one i ordered so i could still move the old d16y8 around by that bracket with the cherry-picker.

For the torque mounts on the engines that the a/c condenser and the front tranny bracket mount to, you'll have to either get nuts to fit the b-series shafts, or just remove the shafts from the d series mounts and put them on the b-series bracket. they unscrew, so no worries there. there's a hex-head slightly hidden on them.

Other than that, use the civic rubber for all mounts.

Installation

It's nearly a drop-in affair, if you have the right tools available at your disposal. removing the crank pulley is the way to go to get this in, but if you don't have a pulley holder, you can remove the condenser, p/s pump, and alternator to get the right amount of twist and jimmy the engine in. but the alternator is a bitch to get back in, so i would suggest making your own pulley holder if you know how to weld, or know someone that does:

Get a nut thats the same size as the cutout in the pulley around the pulley nut, weld a hollow pipe for socket access to the pulley nut and a bar to hold onto to keep the pulley from moving, a diy pulley remover for about $10.

A/C stuff

There are brackets you can get to mount the d series compressor on a b-series motor, thus negating having to remove the compressor from the lines and evacuating the system. the part number for the bracket(s) i got are:
[/FONT][FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]
38930-P7J-000
[/FONT] [FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif] BRACKET, COMPRESSOR[/FONT][FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]38941-PR3-000 [/FONT] [FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif] BRACKET, IDLER[/FONT]
these cost about $120 to ship new from Honda. However, I wasn't smart enough to figure out to use this setup. also, the motor i bought came with the compressor, so i decided to use that.

When switching to a b-series compressor though, the stock high and low a/c lines are somewhat difficult (if not impossible) to use. i was told to bend the lines, and i was also told that an auto-air shop should be able to fabricate new ones relatively cheap. i have not ventured down that road yet.

Fuel line

The fuel line on the d16y8 has 2 prongs that stick out to prevent it from moving. this is a problem when attempting to fit the line from the filter to the fuel rail on the b18b1 because those prongs keep it from going on either the filter or the rail. so after deciding i was going to have to buy a new line anyway, we used an air grinder and ground the prongs down. unfortunately, dad got a little to happy with the grinder and nearly cut completely through the brass fitting. yes, I'm still using it at this time. it holds pressure fine, no fuel leaks as of 30,000 miles.

Transmission/clutch lines

The slave cylinder line that goes into the actual cylinder is slightly longer than what's on the d-series. once everything was in, we realized that this was losing fluid, and upon comparison, knew we had to change it. after driving all over town trying to find a place to buy a new line, we decided to run by a semi-truck place and just had them cut the d16y8 line, and put the b18b fitting on the old line, then flare the ends.

Power steering

The line for the d16y8 that goes into the top of the power steering pump (the steel line that screws in) the male end is too large to accomdate a b series pump, so this line will either have to be changed, or loop the lines. i may change the line someday, but for now the lines are looped.
Update - due to local laws, i had to get a line made. I sourced an integra line from the junkyard, and had a hose shop fab up a p/s integra end, and the civic rack end. it ended up costing about $80, and you can find b16 civic lines for ~$90 online in some places. however, i'm not certain the b16 line will work.

Wiring

The wiring is pretty straight forward when staying the same obd as you are. going from a 98 d16y8 to a 97 b18b1, there are 3 plugs leftover: two vtec plugs and the knock sensor. everything else is nearly in the same spot with the exception of the primary O2 sensor being at the end on the exhaust manifold just before the cat and must be extended; as well as the crankshaft fluctuation sensor and evap purge control solenoid sensor need to be exteneded.

The air intake temperature sensor on the d16y8 is built into the intake hose, but in the b18b1 it is on the opposite side on the intake manifold itself. the plugs are different, so having the teg harness is desirable, otherwise i'm sure you can get the plug from a dealer. but that needs to be wired in regardless.

Radiator

Possibly one of the biggest hurdles i faced was finding a 99-00 civic si radiator in one day. the d-series radiator has 30mm outlets, and the b series require 32mm outlets. we tried like hell to get the oem hose to work on the b18, but there wasn't a snowballs chance in hell of that. after sourcing the radiator, new hose had to be gotten, which was also kind of a bitch to find, ended up getting the lower from oreillys, and the upper from autozone. for the upper there were two parts that matched for the b18, so we bought both and test fitted before cutting them to fit. also had to have new hose clamps.

I was also told recently that you could take a dremel and ground the end of the radiator hoses down to fit onto the b series motor. might be worth a shot, since you're going to replace the line, so it's not going to hurt if you mess it up i guess.
 
RVM, You said ealier that i'll need axles and a ecu but which ones? Is the wiring of my motor(D16Y7) is compatible with the b18b?
 
RVM, You said ealier that i'll need axles and a ecu but which ones? Is the wiring of my motor(D16Y7) is compatible with the b18b?

What gearbox are you going to use?
 
I'm currently doing this same swap in my car, but I've got an automatic trans. Does anybody know which cable to use for the automatic trans? Integra or Civic SI?
 
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