EK CXi Non Vtec Head to Vtec Head Conversion...what is involved?

[Elmo]

Hi guys!

I'm contemplating on buying the Vtec head off Sex86c in the for sale section and I'm just wondering what is involved in the conversion. Is it a hard and expensive conversion? What really is the advantage of the conversion? Other question I'm sure will pop up but this is aI can think of at the moment.

thanks in advance for the replies!

:)

[mrwillz]

full conversion
half cut

[Zdster]

This covers most of your answers I would have thought:
http://www.jdmuniverse.com/forums/showthread.php?t=32971

Also search the numerous posts on honda-tech.com. Search for things like "mini me swaps".

[Zdster]

full conversion
half cut

:confused:

He is talking about putting a vtec head on a non-vtec block?

[Elmo]

:confused:

He is talking about putting a vtec head on a non-vtec block?

Thanks dude!

I was about to say that! :)

[bevis90]

should be a straght swap


just need ecu and wires

[mrwillz]

really jus str8 swap wif ecu wires?

how good is this for BFYB?
sorry dudes i missed seeing the head bit.. jus read title n fort yea

[Elmo]

really jus str8 swap wif ecu wires?

how good is this for BFYB?
sorry dudes i missed seeing the head bit.. jus read title n fort yea

All good...I've just updated the title now! :)

[Elmo]

This covers most of your answers I would have thought:
http://www.jdmuniverse.com/forums/showthread.php?t=32971

Also search the numerous posts on honda-tech.com. Search for things like "mini me swaps".

This is a great link. It looks like it's got all the info I will need read up on for the night! :)

Is it worth doing the conversion? Noob question maybe.....is the Vtec note really that much better? I guess I haven't really heard too many that I can compare with.

[Elmo]

well....if someone can advise me of exactly what other parts I will need to complete the mini conversion.....would be more than appreciated.
Here's the link to what's for sale: http://www.ozhonda.com/forum/showthread.php?t=59188

I have a stock standard 97 EK CXi. No mechanical/engine mods whatsoever!
Also, is it beneficial to change the exhaust and add a pod filter or something like that?

[bevis90]

shouldnt be hard.. if u see in the picture he just replaced his old head and put the new vtec head in

[turtleEK1]

plus the head is OBD1 and your block is OBD2a... so not just a straight swap... will have to be a delemour with the ECU

plus as far as i researched into it... the yanks get it easier than the ausdm EK d16... the d16y4 ecu is a one off with only 2 plugs where others have 3...

just my 2c worth

[Elmo]

plus the head is OBD1 and your block is OBD2a... so not just a straight swap... will have to be a delemour with the ECU

plus as far as i researched into it... the yanks get it easier than the ausdm EK d16... the d16y4 ecu is a one off with only 2 plugs where others have 3...

just my 2c worth

what's 'delemour'? What's involved in that? if I foun Vtec ecu...will that fix the problem or is it a bit more involved more than that?
But thanks for that. I appreciate the feedback.
This has been a very informative thread. Thanks again guys for the info.
:)

[mrwillz]

its mean to b dilemma
eg. nelly - dilemma

[NeRV]

its best if you got a Y8 head since your obd2, thats just my opinion.

[turtleEK1]

its mean to b dilemma
eg. nelly - dilemma

sorry... this forum doesn't come with spell check... lol

but nervs right... get one thats the same OBD as your block...

[Elmo]

hmmm....do the y8's sell for a similar price to the y1's? The only reason I'm considering the conversion is due to the possible low cost.
If it's too much of a hassle to use the y1...then I guess I will reconsider.
Oh well......I guess I haven't lost anything. It would have been cool to have VTec...but maybe next time.
If someone has any ideas for easy/practical way to make the head for sale suit my with less hassle and problems...I'm still open to the possiblity.

Thanks again for the quick feedback boys and girls! :)

[muhhan]

I am also thinking about doing a similar mini-me vtec conversion, but not just for the sound of vtec. Also consider the opportunity to modify compression ratios, drop in new cams, change out the valves, and get some sexy into your engine! Check out this thread for more details http://www.d-series.org/forums//showthread.php?t=21761

If you are thinking about using the Y1 head PM Edgeauto, he's a trader on this forum, he has conversion harnesses to change from OBD2a to OBD1 so you can run the ECU for the Y1 head.

Btw, switch to firefox as you can get spellchecker with it ;)

[sivic]

plus the head is OBD1 and your block is OBD2a... so not just a straight swap... will have to be a delemour with the ECU

plus as far as i researched into it... the yanks get it easier than the ausdm EK d16... the d16y4 ecu is a one off with only 2 plugs where others have 3...

just my 2c worth

you wouldn't be using the D16Y4 ECU anyway.

and yeah as mentioned it'd be much easier with a Y8 head/ECU combo not only due to the OBD2 factor but also due to the cam timing being a bit different between the Y1 and Y8. from memory there's about 4 deg difference. not a huge deal and can be solved with the use of a cam gear but can still mean more stuffing around.

as far as compression increases go: i'm not actually sure that you'll see any changes when doing the mini-me on a D16Y4. i was under the impression the Y4 and Y8 use the same bottom end, unlike with a D15B/D16Y1 mini me where it sees a healthy CR increase

[muhhan]

Just to clarify, the D16Y4 ECU is OBD2a and the D16Y8 ECU is OBD2 and they have different wiring/pinout, is that right? So the options are to add/rewire the existing D16Y4 harness OR replace the entire loom with one from a D16Y8? I know it's probably easier to rewire if only swapping the head, but I am thinking in the case of stripping the entire car down (for body work and respray) and building it back up.

Compression is predominantly changed by use of different pistons and headgasket thicknesses with a Y4 block/Y8 head combo, unlike the D15/Y1 combo as sivic mentioned.

[nine_7_six]

you will need the OBD2A SOHC VTEC ECU, D16Y8 Head VTEC Head, VTEC Solenoid, VTEC Distributor and oil supply for the VTEC solenoid.

When I went looking to do this I got recommended checkout "Golden Eagle" mini-me VTEC Oil Supply kits. I think it's about 250US which re-routes the pressuriesed oil feed rather then tapping into the non-vtec block.

IMO not worth the price for the power, 7-8 KW increase and you gain compression which is only good if you don't plan to go turbo later.

Do what i'm planning to do and just save up for turbo lol or if you really really really really want VTEC then sell your car and get a VTI-R or engine swap.

[nd55]

you will need the OBD2A SOHC VTEC ECU, D16Y8 Head VTEC Head, VTEC Solenoid, VTEC Distributor and oil supply for the VTEC solenoid.

When I went looking to do this I got recommended checkout "Golden Eagle" mini-me VTEC Oil Supply kits. I think it's about 250US which re-routes the pressuriesed oil feed rather then tapping into the non-vtec block.


[disclaimer: armchair mechanic in area.]

I'm pretty sure the Golden Eagle oil supply kits are specific to B16's.

D16's require an (existing) small oil restricter to be modified in the block to supply oil to the vtec mechanism. Too much oil to the head, and loss of oil pressure elsewhere. Not enough and problems up top.

If only I could remember the www.d-series.org links for this ...

Nick.

[bigjo5]

my opnion is with that money.. spent to do the conversion woulndt be worth the power.. probly jsut abit of power gain.. but abit noticeable. wouldn tbe worth it just save up and go b16a or b18c

[mrwillz]

yea save up
any money saved goes to b16/18
cant go rong

[kraiye]

this conversion will set you back about $500 depending on where you get your parts and the mechanical side of things seems fairly straight forward. obd1 & 2 both have their advantages/disadvantages. rewiring everything with an obd1 would be a bit of a pain in the butt but the ecu will plug straight and are apparently better for tuning, with obd2 you need (well, SHOULD) get a knock sensor going and secondary o2 sensor which means having an o2 bung welded to your zorst after the cat (but there's fixes for that too). the main drama here, which is what i'm working on, is wiring a normal obd2 ecu into the st00pid cxi ecu harness!!


you wouldn't be using the D16Y4 ECU anyway.
thats not the point. its all about the ecu harness. you cant just pull the y4 ecu out and plug in a P2P, the connections are different even though they're both obd2. as said earlier the cxi ecu was a one-off which makes putting anything else in annoying :(


i'm not actually sure that you'll see any changes when doing the mini-me on a D16Y4. i was under the impression the Y4 and Y8 use the same bottom end
true but its not the bottom end that makes the difference, its the shape of the head inside the combustion chamber that alters the compression in this case.

i'll be doing a minime when i get back from hollidays and get this ecu problem sorted out. are you in brisbane? if all goes well i'll give you a hand :)

[kraiye]

sorry... this forum doesn't come with spell check... lol


Btw, switch to firefox as you can get spellchecker with it ;)

^^^ what he said lol ;):thumbsup: