hi all. im fairly new to the world of moding. my wife has a 2000 civic DX 4-door. the engine is a D16Y7. I really like driving her car (even though its an automatic). It makes a great change from my big old dodge dakota fullsize. Id like to put some mods on her car to give it a bit more zip, and I was hoping for some suggestions on where to begin. Im thinking of starting with a cold-air intake, as that seems to be the most universal mod. Id like to do the work myself, and with the help of friends. what else would you all suggest? Is the D16Y7 a good engine? is this a solid platform for creating a racer? any input is greatly appreciated, and remember to dumb it down for me, since I am a rookie.

 

Honestly, the Y7 is a solid, reliable, and economical motor. However, it was not designed to be a top performer, and no simple bolt on is going to make it anywhere close to fast. Simple bolt ons, like intake, exhaust, and a header, will make it sound much more aggressive, as well as shift the power curve into the upper RPM range, but the performance gain will be minimal, but still noticable. Bolt on modding is great practice for real building, if you ask me. It's where most people start.

However, if you want to build a real racer, there are a couple good options.

1. Turbo kit. This is by far the easiest way to make a rocket out of a Civic. There are a number of kits that are a simple, bolt on affair, my favorite being the Greddy kit, easily found new for around $1000.

2. Motor swap. Honda performance engines are easy to find, the base point being the D16Y8 (125 hp), or single cam VTEC motor available in the EX models. Next up is the B18B (140 hp), the non-VTEC motor available in the LS Acura Integra. The B16A2/3 (160/157 hp) found in the Civic SI/Del Sol, and the B18C/C5 (170-180/195 hp) found in the Integra GS-R/Type R. A plethora of Japanese spec engines are also available, however, these will be more difficult to pass emissions with in such a new American vehicle.

Good luck! Search is your friend, and don't be afraid to ask questions.

 

ahh good info thanks. Couple follow up questions for you. You mentioned the bolt-on turbo. Is this something that is easily done at home with standard garage tools?

and as for an engine swap, is that possible at home? If not where would I go to get the work done? I assume I would need to obtain a chain pull to swap an engine.

also where is a good place to get used engines?

 

If you have a decent set of tools, you should be able to do a true bolt-on kit in a day. Probably the most difficult part is tapping the oil pan to accept the return line, and that is relatively easy.

Lots of people do engine swaps in their garage, and it is much simplified using a cherry picker, and air tools will save you a lot of heartache.

The guys around here love hmotorsonline.com for used motors, or you could always look local.