First time post and i am totally new to honda's so bear with me while i sound noobish lol. So i just got a 93' civic si hatch from a friend of mine and i have some long term plans for it. I want to do an engine swap and possibly turbo it. The car will eventually be built as a rally car and secondary as a daily driver. I want this car's engine to last to be as reliable as possible. I would like to keep up with or be slightly faster then a stock nissan 350z ormy buddy'sstock new mustang v8. Knowing this what kind of target hp numbers should i be thinking of? Over 200 hp? 250 hp? 300hp? I know my friends mustang has 300hp but it weighs in at about 3300 lbs, about1200 lbsmore than my car. Next question is should i do an all motor build to reach these numbers or should i turbo? The engines i have been looking at are the b18b, b20b or perhaps the h22 even though its heavier and more difficult to install. Also, i think i can correct the weight and understeer problem associated with the h22 with a stiff rally suspension like i am planning on having. I'm just worried about ground clearance when i hit ruts and dips offroad. So what do all you pro's think? Thanks!

 

damn those are some high goals welcome, your going to need to build your motor to hold that much hp id say 250 you might be able to run with the 350z someone correct me if im wrong on that one.

 

Thanks for the welcome jpnolan. I do have some lofty goals in mind but primarily i want reliability and longetivity, if i cant quite reach these lofty goals then thats ok if the engine will last a long time. I have tried searching alot of forums and reading alot over the last 3 weeks or so but sometimes taking in all this information is overwhelming haha. There is just so much to learn. Fortunately for me i have a background in some machine work and some auto repair but most of what i have done has been domestic v8's and these imports are a totally new thing to me. Please keep the comments coming! Thanks!

 

So what do you guys think? NA or turbo? Which motor and if i went with the h22 do you guys think i could correct the weight and understeer problem with a properly stiff suspension? Keep those comments coming thanks!

 

Bump

 

i just found out that ill be in this one with you hopefully within this month im getting a hatch and my goal for it is 350hp idk if ill get there but i can dream. you wont be able to get past 250 without boost or spray. idk im thinking a gsr motor the b18c but its expensive hopefully i can save for it, h22 is harder to get into the engine bay but someone on here has a h22 hatch i believe its method im not sure look in the ride of the month forum

 

you read my mind jpnolan. I was thinking the gsr engine maybe sleeve it and bore it to 84.5 mm and maybe even use the ls crank and rods in it so i can achieve close to 2 liters of displacement. 11.5.1 pistons or maybe 12.1 at most so i can run it on pump gas. port/polish the head. I want to keep it smog legal or at least the appearance of smog legal so turbo or sc or even lsvtec is out. If i could achieve 225-250 crank hp or close to it with as much torque as i can get , i would be happy.

 

h22 isn't that heavier then the b18, its only 40 pounds more and much better torque.

 

when you say "rally car" are you actually talking about stage rally, or something else??

 

Method:
but with the h22 wont i have to use hood spacers because it wont fit under the hood or am i mistaken? Also, wont i lose the AC and power steering? I would like to keep my AC and power steering for now. If i did go that route i would do H2B or could i mate it with the tranny i have now in my SI?

MXS:
Yes, that might or might not be my eventual goal depending on how long i keep this car and how much i modify it but at first it would be road rally and rallycross events. I have always been interested in that sport but this would be my first attempt to try it out. I have raced my friends offroad on dirt fireroads with slightly modified cars for quite a few years now for fun but nothing serious or anythign that has been extensively modified.