D16Z6 HappyJack 1978 Civic 1200 engine swap

[steve.ewing@ottawa.ca]

It takes a brave soul to tackle someone else`s basket case. Well done so far. Keep up the good work.

[Blackbullet]

Good work so far.

[HappyJack]

Work on the Civic has slowed a little while I gather up missing parts. All I've been doing is sanding off the old black....not really paint... maybe primer?
Anyway, sanding it off. Found a little body filler in the doors, but nothing serious.

But the hood is another story.

I'll wait to get the hood completely stripped to see how bad. I'm sure it is salvageable, just the most rust I've seen on this car. I guess I've been spoiled.

I've also managed to find a few missing parts thanks to a member from this board who happens to live fairly close to me.

Another piece fell into my lap last night. Talking to a friend who happens to work at a wrecking yard, I mentioned my project. He said he had a motor out of a Del Sol I could have for free! It is a D16z6 I believe, and I pick it up tomorrow. He said they couldn't sell it because it smoked when you really revved it up, but it ran great. Well I was planning on a rebuild anyway, and it is free, so I can't complain.

I have some ideas for the front suspension. I've read the topics here, and it seems there is a 4X100 upgrade by switching the hubs, but you seem to be stuck with inserts for the struts, or going to second generation Civic struts, which aren't much easier to find around here anyway.

Well I started a little research on my own today. I may be way off, and the idea I have probably won't work, but I wanna see for myself.
I was wondering about struts from a first Gen CRX. The car is approximately the same weight, so it shouldn't be too stiff. And I know the car has torsion bar suspension, but I have an idea for that too. Actually it is my son's idea, to make the factory CRX strut into a coil over design.

Right now the idea is just in the planning stages. Like I said, we could be way out to lunch on this idea. We'll see.

So the first step was to do some measurements. I used to race mini stocks, and a lot of the guys I raced with were involved in garages, or wrecking yards or tow companies. So I used the resources I had and contacted a guy I raced with that raced a CRX, who's dad happened to own a tow company. In his yard were several CRX's 1st, and 2nd generations in various states of dismantlement.

I took lots of measurements and pictures of the CRX's and just in case, some of newer Civics. I even looked at a whole sub frame from a first gen CRX.

Who knows, maybe that will find its way into my Civic. Not likely, but my options are wide open. I'll keep you guys posted.

[Bill]

Good job, you are looking at all the possibilities. I don't think swapping the subframe in will be easy, but who knows, that might be the hot setup in the end!
We need a new direction to go and someones vision will get us there after all is said and done. Hey, they're just parts, right!?!

[HappyJack]

Today I crawled under my Civic to compare the sub frame to a CRX sub frame. As I expected it is a lot different. Not so much different as bigger. The CRX sub frame is 7 inches wider at the bolt holes. Also did some online research and the track width of a CRX is wider by almost 4 inches. I suppose it is doable, anything is with enough cutting and welding, but it is more than I want to do.

While under the car with the flood light on, I had a better look at the under side.

I found a hole on the front cross member.

And a couple of holes on the cross member that the steering rack mounts to.

Easy enough to fix, just fill in the holes with weld.
The rest of the floor looked good with only some surface rust where the undercoating had peeled away.

So I can clean that up and re apply some fresh undercoating and I should be good to go.

[Thor]

Welcome to the real world of the1stgen.
Get used to the underside, you'll se enough of it by the time you're finished.
A hint.
If you fabricate your own exhaust system, hang it off Honda's mounting points, if you don't and you go through the trunk floor, it will resonate like hell. The floor acts as a sound-board just going down the road, with the weight of the jack and spare.

Even full floor underlay glued under the back-seat boot floor cover only lessens it, it does not stop it in its entirety. That was reduced even moreon the 5doors by putting the luggage cover in, but thatstill does not stop the trunk resonance. What makes it worse is that the rear window angle reflects several bands of frequency straight at the back of the occupants' heads.

Anyone doubt this? Then get a decibel meter and plot the nodes, you will be surprised at the focal points.
I reckon that the only way to silence the back of the car is to weld stiffeners to the trunk floor and help them by bracing the turrets of the rear suspension.
Another option could be to create a false floor in the trunk and brace it using2 x12" electro-magnetic devices tuned to harmonise with an audio signal to drown out the car's bass reflex. If you can't hear a noise for another, then that's okay, innit?
Who's next?:shock:
Would see most reflected sounds off, eh, HJ?
Pete

[rusty]

Thor

Bloody Helll , you can't half rabbit, shut up and give some other poor mutt a chance.
:shock: :shock: :twisted:

[JAF Mugen Power]

I have the same year, trunk model too. I thought my car was bad. You are brave to tackle this one and bring it back to life. :D .

[HappyJack]

I have the same year, trunk model too. I thought my car was bad. You are brave to tackle this one and bring it back to life. :D .

It is just a big jigsaw puzzle. I consider myself lucky to have such a solid shell. I don't like major rust repair. Everything else is just reassembly.

[HappyJack]

Picked up my free motor the other night.

It ain't pretty, but it runs, and its free. I'll be tearing it down for a refresh, but for now I can test fit it and see where I need to cut. It's gonna be tight. I knew that, but seeing it in pictures, and seeing it person are two different things.

I gotta change that pulley to give me a bit more room.

Because I only got this much room for the transmission.