D16 potential

[rockinout5432]

Hey everyone, newbie here. I just bought a '98 Civic HX. Is the D16 engine in this car even worth building up, or should I just go right for a swap? A guy I know says they have weak internals and don't respond well to bolt-ons. Also, when I look at the motor, there's no VTEC badging. Is this normal? Doesn't Honda usually put "VTEC" on the valve cover, or is that only for higher performance VTECs and not the lowly VTEC-E?

 

[Prez]

swap it...your D16 is meant for a really low fuel economy ride...swap it for something better...B16 or so...

 

[Mr. Lin]

A fully built dseries motor will push out about 300hp max. Oh, and that's bhp, not whp.

 

[robs99si]

If you want an extra 80-120 horses you could install a turbo on it. check out www.homemadeturbo.com
I would install a turbo vs. a swap. here's why, a b16 puts out 135hp to the wheels. your engine puts out about 95 whp with a turbo at 10psi you're gonna be in the 200-225 wheel horse power range. If you go with the turbo and the decide to do a swap later on you could use all of your turbo parts and they'll fit perfectly except for the turbo exhaust manifold which you can sell. Also a turbo setup will be less expensive depending on wether you do it yourself or buy a kit and pay a shop to install it for you.

 

[robs99si]

A fully built dseries motor will push out about 300hp max. Oh, and that's bhp, not whp.

not all motor, boost & built internals will get you there.

 

[6sic6]

Another good place is www.turbod16.com....
You'll see the possibilities of a d16.

 

[funkyfels]

a 96-98 vtec or ex/hx will not say vtec on the valve cover. the 92-95 vtec model will.
reccomend a b series swap of your choice
hope i was helpful

 

[Mr. Lin]

not all motor, boost & built internals will get you there.

The most I've seen out of a n/a Dseries is about 275bhp.

 

[rockinout5432]

Thanks for the replies, guys. It's been helpful. I have a question for Rob, though. I won't be able to run 10 psi of boost on a stock motor, right? Also, my car is high mileage for the year (107K), so how will that affect turbo performance and longevity?

 

[6sic6]

You can run 10psi on stock internals but, a better range is 7-8psi.
A turbo is always going to effect your engines longevity.

 

[D16sokdo]

do the right thing save up some cash and get a b16a2 my boi did that after he tried to build his ex motor. Me on the other hand im might do a b18b with a b16 head then turbo (if thats possible i think it is) but ill prob do a B16A2 swap

 

[anfrey]

the d16y5 (hx) has the same potential as the d16y8. your decision will end up depending on how m uch $$$ u have and wish to spend, as well as your goals. it is by far cheaper to turbocharge a d16 than to swap, however, in the long run swapping -> engine buildup -> turbo might give you higher results, but for most people a built d16 + turbo will satisfy

 

[green]

man, it sucks when you click to see some new pics of a member's ride and see this kind of stuff....

 

[00civic24]

if i were you i would get a sohc z6 or y8 head and install that and then go turbo

 

[robs99si]

Thanks for the replies, guys. It's been helpful. I have a question for Rob, though. I won't be able to run 10 psi of boost on a stock motor, right? Also, my car is high mileage for the year (107K), so how will that affect turbo performance and longevity?

You can safely run 10psi with good tunning done on a dyno so you can see the air/fuel ratio of coarse you're going to need some good engine management. i'm using an apexxi vafc & dsm450 injectors. i'm running 10-11psi on a stock intenal b16 dyno tunned 250 horeses at the wheels. i've never hade any problems with it. as far as your milage 107k miles is stil very reasonable for boost. there are guys running boost on engines with 170k miles +. you're pistons, rods, or sleevs are what can break if you don't have good tunning. even though your engine has 107k miles the internals haven't recieved much abuse. unless you've ran 10 100hp shot of NOS tanks through it. check out those web sites that where recomended. most of the engines on there are over 100k miles young. "It's all about the tunning" you'll need a stronger clutch if you're gonna boost too. Hope you don't mind if I post pics of my baby:

boosting 10-11psi 250whp
nissan .60 trim t3 w/custom made tubular manifold
ebay front mount ic & rfl BOV
apexxi vafc & dsm 450s
2 1/2" mandrel charge pipe & 2 1/2" exhaust no catalytic
turbo xs manual boost controller
weapon r coil overs w/camber kits
ebay short shifter & type r shift knob

 

[rockinout5432]

Thanks. Sorry about posting in the wrong spot, too. I don't know how I ended up here. I actually had to run a search for my own post because I couldn't find where I put it. My bad.

 

[Green Machine]

I Built a d16y8 to have 465bhp and still hade a lot of other s**t i could of done to it it is a good motor and does not get the credit. it is a great motor to boost on. my friend built a sohc d motor to pull 11 in the 1/4 and they keep coming out with more you can to to them. i would get rid of the motor you have now though it is a non-vtec motor you can pick up a jdm d15b for like 400 to 900 bucks id it is about 160 hp stock it is an obd1 though but a good motor. but also if you have to swap motors you should just go with a b series to save time because you gat you d series to big hp you putting in more$ then you would have to with a b series.

 

[emerge]

Another good place is www.turbod16.com....
You'll see the possibilities of a d16.

ditt0...............

 

[nd4sped]

jdm d15b for like 400 to 900 bucks id it is about 160 hp stock .

Um fella...I beleive you have your engine codes mixed up....D15B 160HP....no no buddy. Let me help you out with a little link we have here on CC.

CLICK BELOW
CLICK TO THE RIGHTHonda Engine CodesCLICK TO THE LEFT
CLICK ABOVE
​

 

[Shiznit]

your engine is good for a turbo setup. D-series has some good potential behind it, a B-series has more. so most people think its always better to swap the engine. but thats obviously not always true.