ok i have seen a lot of threads on the tech fourm on the loss of torque in the b16a engine. now i have a 90 gs with 180k on thsi engine and i need to swap a new engine in it, but with all this loss of torque in the b16a i am starting to change my mind on if i want to get that engine or not. the problem is i don’t have very much more money to drop a gsr in it, so now my question is: how much loss of torque are we talking about in the b16a, and what engine would all u suggest to go with 4 under lets say 4,500?
I’d buy a full b16a swap as well as a gsr block. Have the block rebuild with all new bearings and rings, bore it over, and put in some oversized jdm itr pistons.
Put together the gsr block, b16a head, intake manifold, ecu, and tranny.
After all that you’ll have a good chunk of $$ left over. I’d get the itr valvetrain, itr/ctr cam combo, lightened flywheel, and a good clutch. Swap your LS 5th gear into the b16a tranny and throw that monster of an engine into your teg. Essentially you’ve built a poorman’s ITR.
COSTS:
-b16a swap $1200 (you can probably find it for less)
-b18c1 block $500-$1000 (look for a blown one, since you’ll be rebuilding it anyway)
-jdm itr pistons/rings $350
-acl bearings $200
-bore/hone/deck/balance bottom end $450
-head gasket $65
-timing belt $65
-oil pan gasket $25
Thats about $3100 and you’ve got a really nice engine. And another $1400 to spend which should cover the itr valvetrain and itr/ctr cam combo.
deamn man that’s a lot of dough. gimme a call today or justcome over or something and we’ll discuss options. $4500??? are you kidding?? you could do a b16a and a turbo for just about tha tmuch. that’s a lot of dough. wwhhhhoooooeeeee. essnetially what 91INTeg gs said is correct. do that…man . im still excitied. later
you might as well just use the whole GSR…I would get a B20 block…I have a LS/Vtec (1.8) now and it kills GSRs and believe it or not I can keep up with a RSX type-s pretty damn well.
Out here in Cali you can easily get complete GSR change-over for about $4500…I got a friend who did a Civic type-r in his 98 civic for $4000…complete with LSD tranny.
why should he just get a full gsr swap? IMO thats a waste. You just have to sell the tranny, and deal with more wiring stuff, and also with finding the right parts (like tranny).
if you buy a gsr block and a full b16a swap you will have ALL the parts you need to finish the swap. And the b16a head is the same as the itr head (well, the itr one is port/polished a tad and has the diff valvetrain. but its a pr3 head still, which means the ports, combustion chamber and intake manifold mounting points will be the same----GSR heads are different!)
thats why its often referred to as a “poor man’s itr” cause its basically an itr once its done, just cheaper.
a plus about the pr3 head (b16a, b17a, b18c5) is that the itr intake manifold will bolt to it-------the itr manifold WILL NOT bolt to a GSR head, you’d need a skunk2 piece which costs a bit more.
doing the poorman’s itr is cheaper than a b18c1 swap, and its also going to be in better condition considering you have the extra money to rebuild the block and add higher compression pistons.
G2Teg: yes everything matches up. As i said before the b16a uses a pr3 head, as does the b18c5----its just polished a bit and has different cams/springs/…
I’m not really sure on specific whp numbers for that setup. Dan built himself a b18c1/5 engine and is running about 200whp----but its heavily modded. the b16a head/tranny/… with gsr block, itr pisons, and if you had the itr cams and valvetrain, and i/h/e I would make a dumb guess of maybe 180whp? maybe more? Like i said, i’m really not familiar with the specifics, you’ll have to ask around.
Hey I am in the process of getting similar work to my car… I should have some dyno results in a week. I bought a b16a swap for my 90 GS, got itr mani, valvetrain, cams, getting 3 angle job, 20k mill, all happening right now… can’t wait.