My Si has a DX motor!

I don't think it's a case of simply rebadging a DX as an Si, unless
someone grafted all of the Si suspension and braking upgrades on as well
- Sis had 4-wheel discs in 1990, and AFAIK 4-wheel discs were unique to
the Si in the CRX model range.

And yeah, to say that I'm a bit chapped is probably an understatement.
This should've been disclosed by the dealer.

Dave

 

Huh. I just replied to this thread in the other group, being unaware
somebody would try to be clever and remove the crossposting, then continue
the thread with info now invisible to the other group. Dumb.

All you need to determine the engine that was shipped with the car is the
first eight digits of the VIN. It's the last six that reveal your specific
car.

There are many VIN decoding sites on the Internet.

 

Hey Dan, don't remove crossposting that has been correctly done. You've
left an orphan thread in the other group.

 

well, yes and no. if they got the vehicle from a trade, and they took
it in good faith, then it may not be their fault. just looking under
the hood doesn't tell you what the motor is - the externals are identical.

 

well, yes and no. if they got the vehicle from a trade, and they took
it in good faith, then it may not be their fault. just looking under
the hood doesn't tell you what the motor is - the externals are identical.

 

i don't do rebuilds so i don't know for sure, but afaik, the blocks and
heads are identical. the crank is slightly longer stroke [to give the
extra few cc's of capacity] and the cam is a little more punchy, but
other than that, they're the same.

are you sure?

are you sure?

yes & yes.

not if you use a cable transmission.

define "professional"! if you've had this crx for a while and know its
history, stick with it. otherwise you have no idea what you're getting
into. the most important thing is to find someone to do the swap that's
not going to rip you. by the sound of it, half the stuff you've just
mentioned is coming from a source that's trying to set you up to put
their kids through college.

find out if the zc will pass your local emissions laws, then do the zc
swap. that motor is cheap, hella fast [160hp from a 1600 motor], and a
straight bolt-in. then you can keep everything else. and be careful
who you ask!!! talk with a smog person. here in ca, we have "test
only" stations that are forbidden to do work on the vehicles so have no
interest in trying to sell you on stuff you don't need. my local guy is
a honda fan and was delighted to me about what i can and can't do for
egr systems if i want to do mods without getting the vehicle refereed.

one last thing: if you want to be cheap, just get the si cam and swap it
into your d15. you're only losing 97cc's. you could probably do that
yourself. better yet, get an hot aftermarket cam. no problems with
a/c, vtec, transmission, mounts, etc., etc. do it with the engine still
in the car.

 

i don't do rebuilds so i don't know for sure, but afaik, the blocks and
heads are identical. the crank is slightly longer stroke [to give the
extra few cc's of capacity] and the cam is a little more punchy, but
other than that, they're the same.

are you sure?

are you sure?

yes & yes.

not if you use a cable transmission.

define "professional"! if you've had this crx for a while and know its
history, stick with it. otherwise you have no idea what you're getting
into. the most important thing is to find someone to do the swap that's
not going to rip you. by the sound of it, half the stuff you've just
mentioned is coming from a source that's trying to set you up to put
their kids through college.

find out if the zc will pass your local emissions laws, then do the zc
swap. that motor is cheap, hella fast [160hp from a 1600 motor], and a
straight bolt-in. then you can keep everything else. and be careful
who you ask!!! talk with a smog person. here in ca, we have "test
only" stations that are forbidden to do work on the vehicles so have no
interest in trying to sell you on stuff you don't need. my local guy is
a honda fan and was delighted to me about what i can and can't do for
egr systems if i want to do mods without getting the vehicle refereed.

one last thing: if you want to be cheap, just get the si cam and swap it
into your d15. you're only losing 97cc's. you could probably do that
yourself. better yet, get an hot aftermarket cam. no problems with
a/c, vtec, transmission, mounts, etc., etc. do it with the engine still
in the car.

 

Well, in that case...JHMED9364LSxxxxxx.

And to answer the question you asked in your other post, I am in the US.

First Google result for "Honda VIN Code",
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_Automotive_VIN_codes,
indicates that this VIN is a 1.6L CRX Si built in Suzuka, Japan. So it
appears that, at a minimum, the block was swapped out at some point.

Dave

 

Well, in that case...JHMED9364LSxxxxxx.

And to answer the question you asked in your other post, I am in the US.

First Google result for "Honda VIN Code",
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_Automotive_VIN_codes,
indicates that this VIN is a 1.6L CRX Si built in Suzuka, Japan. So it
appears that, at a minimum, the block was swapped out at some point.

Dave

 

1990 Honda CRX
D16A6 SOHC 1.6 engine.

This vehicle does not appear to be an Si, but I could be wrong. I believe
the Si would have a "7" where you have a "6"..

Try this one as well:
http://www.autocheck.com/consumers/gatewayAction.do?siteID=444

 

1990 Honda CRX
D16A6 SOHC 1.6 engine.

This vehicle does not appear to be an Si, but I could be wrong. I believe
the Si would have a "7" where you have a "6"..

Try this one as well:
http://www.autocheck.com/consumers/gatewayAction.do?siteID=444

 

What's the difference with the Si? could you just get the "Si" badge on
ebay or something and just stick it on?

dan

 

What's the difference with the Si? could you just get the "Si" badge on
ebay or something and just stick it on?

dan

 

no, as the op said, it's got rear disks and it's 4pfi. the only thing
that's not "si" is the lump under the hood - all systems are present and
correct by the sound of it.

 

no, as the op said, it's got rear disks and it's 4pfi. the only thing
that's not "si" is the lump under the hood - all systems are present and
correct by the sound of it.

 

Not according to the Wikipedia link I posted, but I also checked this
site:

http://www.answers.com/topic/honda-automotive-vin-codes

and they say the same thing as the Wikipedia entry:

JHM = Japan/Honda/Passenger car

ED9 = CRX, 1.6L

3 = 3 door

6 = multiple entries, including both the CRX HF and Si. The DX would
have a 5 here. 7 = various models of Civic, Accord, and Prelude, but no
CRXes.

Another data point: per the owner's manual, there's supposed to be a
identification plate next to the radiator (right above the driver's side
headlight) containing the engine number. This plate is missing on my
car.

Dave

 

Not according to the Wikipedia link I posted, but I also checked this
site:

http://www.answers.com/topic/honda-automotive-vin-codes

and they say the same thing as the Wikipedia entry:

JHM = Japan/Honda/Passenger car

ED9 = CRX, 1.6L

3 = 3 door

6 = multiple entries, including both the CRX HF and Si. The DX would
have a 5 here. 7 = various models of Civic, Accord, and Prelude, but no
CRXes.

Another data point: per the owner's manual, there's supposed to be a
identification plate next to the radiator (right above the driver's side
headlight) containing the engine number. This plate is missing on my
car.

Dave

 

That's what I was wondering, if the block was the same and the longer
stroke was from a different crank. Thanks for confirming that.

Well, I haven't talked to anyone yet about doing this, I'm just at the
point of doing research online to see what's involved. Most of the swap
sites I've looked at state that new motor mounts are required to plug a
B16 into a CRX, and the favored choice seems to be Hasport. As far as
axles, again, given the significant power increase, I've not seen too
many recommendations for using the D16/D15 axles, and I was also under
the impression that they didn't bolt directly up to a B16.

But yeah, your point about "professional" is well-taken - there's no
real way to know if modifications of this sort were done correctly
unless you've done them yourself or you have a shop you can implicitly
trust to do the job you ask them to do without screwing you over. I'm
definitely not interested in building a show car, or trying to squeeze
as much power as possible out of a setup that spends more time being
tuned and repaired than being driven. I'm more interested in building
the CRX that it seems like Honda everywhere but in the US, namely, a
naturally-aspirated, B16-powered one with somewhere between 160-200hp
that will be driven daily. However...

Again, good points. A ZC would certainly be easier, and a lot cheaper,
but I assume you're talking about a tuned one? I've never heard of a
stock ZC with 160hp. I'm in Texas, so the smog laws are not nearly as
much of an issue as they are in CA.

I'm still wondering exactly what it is that I have under the hood in my
car - it's starting to sound like someone blew the original 1.6 motor
and either swapped in a D15 or used a D15 block and crank with perhaps
some D16 internals to get it running again.

Thanks for the advice - maybe I'll start with a ZC swap and see how long
it takes me to get bored with that.

Dave

 

That's what I was wondering, if the block was the same and the longer
stroke was from a different crank. Thanks for confirming that.

Well, I haven't talked to anyone yet about doing this, I'm just at the
point of doing research online to see what's involved. Most of the swap
sites I've looked at state that new motor mounts are required to plug a
B16 into a CRX, and the favored choice seems to be Hasport. As far as
axles, again, given the significant power increase, I've not seen too
many recommendations for using the D16/D15 axles, and I was also under
the impression that they didn't bolt directly up to a B16.

But yeah, your point about "professional" is well-taken - there's no
real way to know if modifications of this sort were done correctly
unless you've done them yourself or you have a shop you can implicitly
trust to do the job you ask them to do without screwing you over. I'm
definitely not interested in building a show car, or trying to squeeze
as much power as possible out of a setup that spends more time being
tuned and repaired than being driven. I'm more interested in building
the CRX that it seems like Honda everywhere but in the US, namely, a
naturally-aspirated, B16-powered one with somewhere between 160-200hp
that will be driven daily. However...

Again, good points. A ZC would certainly be easier, and a lot cheaper,
but I assume you're talking about a tuned one? I've never heard of a
stock ZC with 160hp. I'm in Texas, so the smog laws are not nearly as
much of an issue as they are in CA.

I'm still wondering exactly what it is that I have under the hood in my
car - it's starting to sound like someone blew the original 1.6 motor
and either swapped in a D15 or used a D15 block and crank with perhaps
some D16 internals to get it running again.

Thanks for the advice - maybe I'll start with a ZC swap and see how long
it takes me to get bored with that.

Dave

 

Um, no, you should have opened the hood and looked and known exactly
what you were buying.

The used car dealer's job is merely to present the car to you. It's not
his job to be your friend, hold your hand, and look out for your best
interests. You're on your own.

That's not meant to be mean; it's simply reality. It's time you owned
up to the fact that you live in reality.

Did you do a carfax? What did it say?