Like everyone my mind changes all the time. I wanted to see if anyone here has built there LS non vtec. Im looking to keep reliability as it is my daily. But what thing’s would i need to do to build the head? I prefer not to mess with the block. I know an upgraded intake mani, and throttle body will help but was wondering if anyone has any suggestions on parts or things necessary. If doing this i would upgrade to ARP head bolts no question. Any help would be appreciated.
There really isn’t one perfect approach, but I think a lot of us will agree that it’s a waste of time and money. Anything besides simple bolt ons like Intake/Exhaust are not worth it, save your money. If you want to build the block for boost or ls/vtec, they both make decent setups and it will be worth keeping the LS as a potential project. However, that was not your question and you also expressed that this is your daily. Have fun with an intake and exhaust and minor mods, make sure regular maintenance and tune up items are up to date (timing belt, valve adjustments, spark plugs etc etc) and just enjoy a reliable and decently fun motor. When your ready to move on or the motor nears the end of it’s life, you can decide on what move makes the most sense to spend your money on (B20 swap, boost, vtec, ls/vtec, K series).
Agreed. Personally I don’t see the point in building a non-vtec engine. Build costs will be the same as for a vtec engine but you’ll make more power and have a more streetable engine if it’s vtec. And if you’re not going to build the block then there’s no use in doing anything to the head. You can make good power if you went all out on the head but you’d need to mill it quite a bit to get the compression ratio where you want it.
If you’re looking for more power and more fun then I’d swap in a b16a or b18c depending on your budget and power level you want to achieve. A b16a swap would probably be about the same cost as building the top end of your b18a.
If you’re just looking for more fun and don’t want to swap the whole engine, then I’d suggest finding a short geared transmission to pair with your b18a. With a short geared trans the engine will take on a whole new feel. Pair that with a good clutch and a light flywheel and you’ll have a car that’s a whole lot more fun to drive even if it doesn’t have more power.
Yeah getting a gsr trans or b16 trans would be a good setup i’ve heard, the only thing that scares me about an lsvtec is that it’s not something that came factory you know what i mean? Like i would feel more comfortable with a full swap such as a b16a or something like that, that why i considered building the b18 since it’s the stock motor but after searching and searching it’s not worth the money. the only thing that sucks is i would have no where to do the swap, never swapped a motor before, and once again it’s my daily so it would be risky. i would have to pay to get it done. plus i would want to enjoy ac and ps as well. has anyone ever had this swap done by a shop? and if so what prices were you looking at?
im running a stock block with pr3 pistons, arp hardware. 9,000 miles on the rebuild and drive it to work everyday. it is a very fun daily. and the difference in torque is awesome. If you have more ?s shoot me a pm.
Ls vtec?
-stock crank
-stock pistons
-b16 head, with valves & springs and retainers
-aftermarket cam and cam gears (if anyone has a good recommendation plz lmk)
-upgraded intake mani (probably skunk 2)
-headers
-stock fuel pump & injectors
-tuned (recommendations appreciated)
-ARP bolts all around
- would like AC
- dont care about PS
- Reliability? anyone?