Just bought a '93 Black Si with VTEC head! wondering some things.. - Honda Prelude Forum

madpriest · 08-16-2004, 12:15 PM

Hail fellow Luders, I have ascended from the darkness

After about 10 months of being stuck with a 96 Monte Carlo I finally have saved up enough money and am getting a 1993 Black on Black Prelude Si/SR with only
110k miles. Has a good record on carfax, is inexcellent condition, and looks almost brand new. This car is way faster than my '92 S I previously had!
I have given the dealer most of the money and am giving them the rest, as well as picking up my car in about a week. I'm VERYYYYYYYYYYYY EXCITED TO FINALLY BE BACK IN ACTION SOON!!!!!! WOOOOOOOOO

Anyways the car is fantastic, though to my surprise when I opened the hood, it has a VTEC head on the H23A engine with a nice CAI and performance wires.

Just so it is already known, I did a search and read, for a couple of hours, every thread practically, about the whole Si with a Vtec head thing, so I could learn all about it. All I'm really doing is looking at all the options.

Weird thing is, I don't know if the previous owner who put the VTEC head on, did it the "correct" way, I dont know if they changed the cams, pistons, cpu, oil squirters...etc...

Main thing I'm really wondering about is, if indeed they did change all they were suppose to ..or even if they didn't... and IF I decided to & I found an Si Head to put back on the Si block, would it be good to keep all the "new" parts they replaced, if they did, , or would I need to revert back to the Si components, not knowing what has been changed? heh

I want nothing strange to worry about and I've no problem with a straight up H23A. I just want reliability and safely drive all over Texas if I want..etc..
I've read people spin the main bearing or whatever, and people question the reliability on the H23A with VTEC Head. .... But really not many specifics are given anywhere besides the main bearing thing that I recall...also I'm not one to ever really go over 6500 rpms....
(side note, I'm mostly a newbie on such situations, most I've ever done is changed O2 sensor on last prelude)

This is a somewhat odd situation haha, but I really want reliability and dont want things to screw up like this sickening Monte Carlo I've had for 10 months always does!!!!! its quite stressful heh. Hope I at least generally explained everything haha

red92si · 08-16-2004, 12:24 PM

Are you buying the car from the owner or is it from a lot somewhere? Someone must know about the car. They might know who the regular mechanic was, and he could tell you a lot.

I would have it checked out by a reputable mechanic, and if the engine is running fine, I would say just leave it the way it is. I'd much rather have the VTEC head on there to tell the truth.

grlielude · 08-16-2004, 01:21 PM

if you didn't have to do the work to get the vtec head on there, keep it and just make sure tht you maintain it....

Like tyler said^^ get it checked out though!

ancient · 08-16-2004, 01:45 PM

Maybe they stuck a h22a valve cover on it and called it quits... lol

Just make sure the vtec solenoid is on the side of the head, and ure good to go... Just check oil regularliy every week or twice a week... To be absoultely safe...

Preludeian · 08-16-2004, 02:06 PM

You think by chance that maybe DMV would keep track of cars to the point of knowing who's owned what car and not? IF SO, maybe you could backtrack owners and find out and talk to them, but I highly doubt this would work considering DMV probably doesn't do this, owners have moved, etc.

preludex2 · 08-16-2004, 05:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ancient

Maybe they stuck a h22a valve cover on it and called it quits... lol

Just make sure the vtec solenoid is on the side of the head, and ure good to go... Just check oil regularliy every week or twice a week... To be absoultely safe...

The VTEC valve cover will not bolt on the Si head.

Dana-

trancedprelude · 08-16-2004, 08:26 PM

wow... lucky... i was gonna do that vtec head swap but it was too much work/money and also the reliability issue. but i guess if your buying it from a dealer, don't they give you a warranty on the engine if anything shall go wrong? let us know how it turns out.

ancient · 08-17-2004, 01:58 AM

I didn't think it did, but I wasn't sure as I don't have a Si nor have I tried it before.

Quote:

Originally Posted by preludex2

The VTEC valve cover will not bolt on the Si head.

Dana-

UWNTSUM · 08-17-2004, 11:25 AM

Isn't the H23 block basically the same as the h22 block? The only difference is the h23 has a longer stroke and has no oil squiters rite? From what i was told, the h22 head will bolt right up to a h23 block with no modifications, all you really need to do is use the h22 oil squiters and your pretty much good to go.

grlielude · 08-17-2004, 12:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by UWNTSUM

Isn't the H23 block basically the same as the h22 block? The only difference is the h23 has a longer stroke and has no oil squiters rite? From what i was told, the h22 head will bolt right up to a h23 block with no modifications, all you really need to do is use the h22 oil squiters and your pretty much good to go.

for the most part, but you would still have to buy H22 Headers, intake, fuel injectors and so forth....

Do a search, this topic has been covered a lot.

MidNKight-lude · 08-17-2004, 12:30 PM

there is alot more you would need. some changes to the outside is needed. h22 oil pump, some gears... etc. i have the complete list somewhere. but i woudl also check out the ecu. reason is that one of the guys on here, had a shop do it, and they put his fuel cut out at 9k, and he miss shifted, and well lets just say he bents some valves... so check what ecu is used, if it is chip, maybe even get it tune out.

SkyHighBB2 · 08-17-2004, 12:52 PM

are you even sure that its an h23 bottom end????

rentien · 08-17-2004, 12:58 PM

have you floored it into vtec? does it feel good?

UWNTSUM · 08-17-2004, 06:16 PM

I was just talking about the physical aspect of the block. I kno the head is different. But the block is basically the same as the h22 minus the longer stroke on the crank and the oil squiters... Oh btw, a prelude s, si and vtec intake will fit any of the cars. Also injectors don't really make a difference... you can use dsm injectors on our cars. a injector is a injector. And its a HEADER not HEADERS. Our car is a 4cylinder motor. please tell me where do you find another exhaust manifold.

preludex2 · 08-17-2004, 07:49 PM

The intake manifold is different for VTEC than the S and Si. It bolts up differently (as does the exhaust manifold). You may be able to use the same aftermarket intake tube, but the manifold is different. The injectors are also different. The VTEC injectors are 310cc I think and the Si's are 290cc. Those numbers may be off a little, I can't remember exactly, but the VTEC's are bigger. And if you put DSM injectors in with the stock ECU it will run too rich, like crap. They are 440cc injectors.

Dana-

UWNTSUM · 08-18-2004, 12:33 AM

all i simply stated was you can put a h22 head on a h23 block w/out any major modifications. The h23 is just about the exact same block as the h22 minus the oil squiters and longer stroke. I know that with a h22 head you will need to run all h22 parts.

And i never sed the INTAKE manifold were the same,(if u are referring to me) i sed u can use the same intake (i meant arm, sorry for the confusion). And yes the injetor size is different from a dsm and a h22. I was just making a point that a injector is a injector and it can used on other cars as well. The DSM eclipse injectors are bigger, they are actually 450cc peak/hold injectors. And yes will make your car run rich if the motor is not setup to use that much fuel. The 92-96 h22 injectors are 345cc peak/hold injectors while the 92-96 non vtec injectors are 240cc peak/hold. The 97-01 h22 uses 280cc saturated injectors.

I don't want this to be a argument about injector size or if you need the h22 exhaust manifold, intake manifold, ecu, etc... all i simply wanted to point out (actually asked in my 1st post) was that you can put a h22 head on a h23 block with out any major modification. Not exhaust manifold, intake manifold, injectors, etc...

Si_g · 08-18-2004, 12:43 AM

if you want reliability and safe driving without having to worry about stuff, then a h23 vtec is not the way to go with what you have in mind. From what i have read, this is often a project that doesnt last wether it has been done the right way or not. I have yet to hear about someone that has done it the right way with the motor being safe and reliable over a long period of time. If I were you i d keep it as is for now, and drive the hell out of it, and save for a motor swap such as a younger h23 or h22 depending on what you want. Your better off saving your cash and ride it til the wheels fall off, then swappin a motor and startin from there, then to spend money fixin this think with parts here and there when you know its not gonna last anyway. Also notice how very few people have that set up, not only that, everyone giving you advice bout it such as me, only base our facts on what we have read from the very few people that have actually tried it, and i can tell you if you ask someone who has done it, i bet you they wouldnt do it again. But then again, thats just what i would do, ride that bish til it give you its last gasp of air, and then swap with a fresh h22 or h23 and take it from there, that ll save u time, effort, and money expecially with the fact that you are a newbie to this, you d have more fun drivin your car then fixin it, especially when you dont know what has been done to start with.

rkonfire · 08-18-2004, 04:33 AM

Yeah, if you're looking for reliability, an h22 head on an h23 block is not the way to go.

yohan420 · 08-18-2004, 05:59 PM

Ok ... this is a lot that has been reposted from the H23 Vtec hybrid post in the N/A forum ..

Does vtec engage ? .. if yes, then its an H23A Vtec. If not, then they probably slapped an H22 head on an H23 .. but chancing if somebody did this they knew what they were doing.

OR some oddball chance an H23A vtec engine made its way from japan with a black valve cover (it is black right? not blue?) ..

if you want to keep this thing running good, dont bag it up to 7000 all the time ... as far as the bottom end, they can leave it the same it'l ljust be a 9:1 CR with the H23 pistons .. not necessarily a bad thing, youll just have an H23 with a lot of top end power and low end torque ..

hurray. Enjoy your new H23A vtec you found and brag to us all ! (I'm already jealous)

congratz. now go get some pictures and a bill of sale.

preludestud11 · 08-18-2004, 11:50 PM

Is it h23a or h23a1? If its a1 then it had the head changed over, and the car wouldnt be running unless they changed over everything that needed to be changed. its just minor things that need to be changed. Reliablilty should be exactly the same as an h23. the only thing that will affect realabilaty is over revving. The h23 block cant rev as high as the h22 due to not having piston squirters for lubrication and having a longer stroke. I just built an h23vtec and its one motor to be happy about.

Rich