d15z1 into a 95 integra ls, please help
 

I JUST BOUGHT A 95 INTEGRA LS AND I WANT TO DO A D15Z1 SWAP. I FOUND THE ENGINE AND TRANSMISSION AT A GOOD PRICE, BUT WHAT ELSE DO I NEED? ENGINE MOUNTS, ECU, WIRING HARNESS, AXELS, O2 SENSOR, ETC? i HAVE NEVER SWAPPED AN ENGINE. I AM AN AMATEUR AT THIS SO THE MORE FEEDBACK THE BETTER. pleeeeeeeeeeeeeease! thanks

I hate to say it. But this swap is probably not the best idea. The problem here is that the gearing on the D15Z1 transmission is REALLY tall - even in first gear. Starting out in first with this transmission in a Civic usually involves a fair amount of clutch slipping. How do you think things are going to be in a car that weighs 700 pounds more than a Civic VX? Honestly, you are going to have problems getting that car to move. It may not even be possible to get it to move if you have to come to a stop on a decently steep hill. Also, fifth is sufficiently tall (and the torque of a D15Z1 sufficiently small) that you are NOT going to be able to maintain freeway speeds in fifth gear in an Integra. Of course, try what you want. After all, it's your car. But I just don't think that a drivetrain that is on the slow side for a 2000 pound car is a good idea in a 2700 pound car.

dude, i drive 700 miles a week, 90 percent highway. i figured that if a cold air intake and maybe an exhaust won't give me enough power to move, then i will swap in an EX tranny with a vx 5th gear. i am going to do some weight reduction on the integra also. after i am done it should only be about 200 pounds heavier. but could you please give me some suggestions on the swap, i really need help. thanks for your comment -BRAD-

ex tranny with VX 5th gear... sounds like a DX trans to me. ask MistaBone in honda-tech or D-seriers.. he is the guru at trans for them Dseries. at least use a stage 2 clutch

best of luck. how has swap gone so far? old post...?

The D15Z1 responds poorly to a CAI and exhaust. In most cases these modifications actually cause driveability issues. The intake diameter on the Z1 is especially small in order to keep up the speed of airflow at the exceptionally low (1000 RPM) cruising RPM. A CAI will significantly REDUCE power at your cruising RPM. As for the exhaust, again it was designed for peak efficiency at very low cruising RPM. Increasing the size of the intake and exhaust moves your power band up beyond where it is useful on the Z1. Notice that the redline is at 6000 RPM. It has absolutely NO power beyond 4000 RPM.

You definitely do NOT want to swap gearing on the VX. VE on this engine is exceptionally quirky. The factory tune is at the ragged edge; and if you throw off the RPM's, you'll lose all power and efficiency as well as create driveability problems. At that point you'd need to retune the calibration.

Someone swapped a Z1 into an Integra and reported satisfactory results. I think you could compare a Z1 swapped Integra to a VX loaded with passengers. I'd be a dog but not altogether undriveable especially if you live in a flat area.

My friend swapped one into his del sol and has no issues at all (which is a bit heavier than a VX). The power it has with two people in it really feels the same as my VX does.

I've thought about doing this swap as well since I've always liked the 94-97 Integras more than the 92-95 civic hatches, but since I have a vx body that is fine for now, I'll wait until I have to do this.

Good luck with it, and stick to it. Don't let the nay-sayers get to you.

And in response to having to slip the clutch in first. This is something that I had to do when I had a poorly running VX with a clogged filter and oversized intake pipe, but now with a properly running vx, you really don't have to slip the clutch more than any other Honda I've owned.

i think you will be fine, i mean the vx has 92 hp, still beats out a cx which has only 70, and the cx still has enough power for daily driving.


also isnt the eg civics in europe has 1.3 liters?

dont listen to the other people

I agree with civic94, especially if you've lightened things up a bit, you'll be fine. I have a Z1 in an EF hatch with the hf transmission, which has even taller gears than the VX and it works ok. I can't offer any help with the swap other than whats already been said though. Good luck.