Lean burn Honda Civic sedan: 93 Civic d15z1 swap into LX 4 door (VLX)

[slownugly]

I haven't seen a build thread on this swap yet so I'm going to start one for mine. Keep in mind I have 4 or 5 projects going on so if I don't update every day don't worry I will post as much as I can. As well as with my other projects. Enjoy!!

Donor car- 94 civic Vx. Bought in va drove flawlessly. After I got it home I noticed the twisted frame. Bad inspection on my part my loss. Frame shop said if he pulled it the welds would come apart. Car is all stock except for the header and air tube. Engine was supposed to be rebuilt and has a new exedy clutch.

Subject car- 93 lx 4 door. Owned for 2 years. Stock 285k on the odometer. Has rust. Already installed Vx wheels. I drove for a while and was able to achieve 47mpg average with eoc. However the engine recently started running funny. I've been planning this swap for some time and it's time to get started

[slownugly]

The Vx is one of the lightest hatches made in this generation due to manual operation of windows, mirrors, steering; as well as other weight saving techniques. The lx on the other hand would be one of the heavier models. 4 door sedan with power windows, mirrors, steering, locks; as well as a/c. I'm not worried about the power output of the z1 engine and I'm fairly confident the dfco will be fantastic. Ive noticed the heavier car coasts so much easier due to the increased weight. That paired with the tall Vx gears and the z1's love for low rpms/dfco will be a home run(im hoping)

Goals- 50 mpg average while maintaining the stock appearance. It will be the economy sedan Honda never made in this generation. A mesh of the 2 models. Basically what it would look like if someone special ordered it from the factory. Also while keeping the pros of both models ( fuel economy and power accessories) when the car gets painted VLX will be stenciled on the trunk lid. To follow are pics of both cars, Vx manifolds and ecus, rust free body parts, and quarter patch panels

[slownugly]

[slownugly]

[MetroMPG]

Subscribed & watching with interest.

[slownugly]

engine will be out of the hatchback within 2 weeks. i spent the last 2 weekends finishing up the engine swap in my future stepsons car. (96 toyota corolla) i have head gaskets to do in a customers cougar on the side this week. then its time to yank the engine in the vx and start prepping it for the 4 door. it will be running before the snow falls because i dont want to drive my vx in the snow with the harsh salt (or whatever) they put on the roads. we have never done so many brake lines on customer's cars! its ridiculous

[slownugly]

engine will be out saturday. i have most of it ready as you can see. i also cut the pigtails for the oxygen sensor,egr, and ecu to pinout the ecu externally from the harness instead of taking the dash apart to swap the cabin harness. also just got some extras in the mail. im slowly gathering parts for even another d15z1 swap. i took the vx instrument cluster apart and cleaned it. i also matched the mileage to the 4 door and buffed the clear lens it came out pretty good. last picture is with it all installed in the 4 door. note the shift indicater light

[Jakins]

I want to come play in your Honda garage and build Frankenstein gas milage cars. I found a nice 4 door chassis that I would like to do but I don't have a place

[slownugly]

Haha honestly I wish I could do this as my main profession. Sadly we work on junk all the time and personal projects as these get pushed to the weekend and lunch breaks. As promised I got the Vx engine out and started doing the wiring harness conversion. Pics to follow. We haven't had power at the garage since Sunday because of the hurricane

[slownugly]