Time to rebuild the A20A1 (PICS INCLUDED)

[88Accord-DX]

Well guys, I finally got around to working on my Accord. I pulled the head off to replace a head gasket, but I think I want to go ahead and rebuild it. This car has more vacuum lines than I've ever seen on a car.
Opened up a can of worms!!! Here is my progress so far. I'll post pics as I come along with it. It'll be a long project, due to lack of funds at the moment. Waiting on income tax around the corner.



http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1pic2.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1pic1.jpg

Bottom of head with intake attached.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1intakebottom.jpg

Intake
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1intake.jpg

[Vanilla Sky]

well, i see your problem, it's in the last pic there :p

so, how does everything look in person now that it's all apart? with your comression numbers, i would assume it's not in bad shape overall for almost 200,000 miles.

[AccordEpicenter]

everything i can see looks like its in pretty good shape... are there any scratches in your cylinders?

[Kabuki]

Just remember to have the head resurfaced...

[88Accord-DX]

well, i see your problem, it's in the last pic there :p
so, how does everything look in person now that it's all apart? with your comression numbers, i would assume it's not in bad shape overall for almost 200,000 miles.
Yeah, that carburetor is a PITA!! Things look pretty good so far.


everything i can see looks like its in pretty good shape... are there any scratches in your cylinders?
The cylinder walls look damn good on 2 & 3 since it's at TDC. There is very minimal wear. I broke thermovalve "c" which I was going to replace anyway. The freaking hose that goes up to the PCV valve on the bottom on the intake broke off at the top.
I'll be replacing them parts with a few hoses, most all the vacuum lines, timing belt & tensioner. I could have just replaced rings & few other things to make it run good, but if I'm going this far, a rebuild isn't shit for me to do.

Just remember to have the head resurfaced...
Yeah, it will be resurfaced if needed & rebuilt by a machine shop. I don't mess with trying to rebuild the head when I rebuild the motor, don't have the equiptment to do it. (grinding valves, seats, pressure testing, etc.)

EDIT- I'll probably bore it out to .020 or .040 depending on the measurements taken on all the cylinders.

[speedpenguin]

keep us posted...
i like to watch... a rebuild in progress... yes...

[Kabuki]

Yeah, that carburetor is a PITA!! Things look pretty good so far.
The cylinder walls look damn good on 2 & 3 since it's at TDC. There is very minimal wear. I broke thermovalve "c" which I was going to replace anyway. The freaking hose that goes up to the PVC valve on the bottom on the intake broke off at the top.
I'll be replacing them parts with a few hoses, most all the vacuum lines, timing belt & tensioner. I could have just replaced rings & few other things to make it run good, but if I'm going this far, a rebuild isn't shit for me to do.
Yeah, it will be resurfaced if needed & rebuilt by a machine shop.
EDIT- I'll probably bore it out to .020 or .040 depending on the measurements taken on all the cylinders.


I would suggest boring the cylinders the smallest amount possible. There are piston sets that are made for 83mm, to accomadate this practice on this engine.

[speedpenguin]

are you rebuilding the carb, too?

[88Accord-DX]

I would suggest boring the cylinders the smallest amount possible.
Yeah, I know. I'll dial bore gauge every cylinder. Which ever one is the largest, I'll bore out the rest to that spec.


are you rebuilding the carb, too?
That is a brand new rebuilt carburetor from Holley. Pretty penny there. :)

[AccordEpicenter]

id just give them a quick deglazing hone and no overbore

[88Accord-DX]

Edit- After looking at the cylinder walls today, I beleive I can get away with deglazing them. Still need to take some measurements though.

[davke]

everything i can see looks like its in pretty good shape... are there any scratches in your cylinders?

i saw some scratches in my cilinders. what does it mean? i gues something wrong..:sad2:

[mykwikcoupe]

I would have went the way of the weber and lost all but a few of those vac lines. Im with the rest of the guys dial it for safty and reassemble with new rings and bearing and call it a day. You can test your valve seats yourself by pouring a fliud compound into the combustion chamber with the head upside down and see if any seeps through. If not you know your good. Thats what I do anyway. good luck

[88Accord-DX]

i saw some scratches in my cilinders. what does it mean? i gues something wrong..:sad2:
Using a droplight, closely inspect the surface of each cylinder wall. Look for vertical scratches, scoring, & cracks. Rub your fingernail around the cylinder wall.
If you had to remove a large ring ridge or you find deep scratches, the cylinder is badly worn. Cylinder boring & oversized pistons may be required.


I would have went the way of the weber and lost all but a few of those vac lines. good luck
I have spent too much money on the rebuilt carb. from Holley to go that route. I know about that valve testing with fluid. I'll get the head rebuilt for less than a bill. (get a discount)

The thing about just throwing rings & bearings at it, is I want to replace the timing belt, tensioner, all the gaskets, front & rear main seal, oil pump. So buying all that seperately would add up to the same as a rebuild kit.

[speedpenguin]

i guess this is kind of an idiotic question, but exactly what entails a rebuild kit?

[TheWatcher]

This car has more vacuum lines than I've ever seen on a car.
Yep, the A20 is the OCTOPUS. :lol:

Nice pics. :)

Peace.

[88Accord-DX]

i guess this is kind of an idiotic question, but exactly what entails a rebuild kit?
For this particular motor, it should come with pistons, rings, rod & main bearings, all gaskets, front & rear main seal, timing belt & tensioner, valve stem seals, oil pump, freeze plugs..


Yep, the A20 is the OCTOPUS.
Nice pics. :)
Thanks, You aint lying about it being an OCTOPUS. Maybe X 10. :lol:

[speedpenguin]

i'm still confused, do you just go out and buy a rebuild kit and that's what it comes with?
or you buy all those parts seperately and call it a rebuild kit?
that's what my question is :)
sorry i just haven't heard this term before

[Vanilla Sky]

Thanks, You aint lying about it being an OCTOPUS. Maybe X 10. :lol:

what can i say? it's a japanese engine. we all know how much they like thier tentacles :p

[speedpenguin]

ok never mind, i figured out what it was.
i guess it really was completely self-explanatory, hehe :lol:

[AccordEpicenter]

just so you know ddude... there are piston kits on eGay for the A20A1... like new pistons/rings/wristpins... i think they were like seriously $12... i searched under 89 accord

[Cant Stop]

pita? is that good?

[88Accord-DX]

pita? is that good?

PITA= Pain in the ass. No, not good.

Well, this isn't much of an up-date, but I have removed & disconnected some stuff in the way so I can pull the engine out. (vacuum lines, hoses, emissions box & wiring harness) I'll have time to pull the engine next week. I'm in no hurry, sort of waiting for W-2 to come in.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20pic3.jpg

[88Accord-DX]

Making little more progress.

Yanked the engine out.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1noengineinbay.jpg

Engine on stand, getting ready to clean & measure clearances.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1sideenginepicdirty.jpg

[3gn86lxi]

:)
Does not look like fun to me D! Good progress, I hope all goes well on the reinstall.
Don't let that thing :Owned: you bro.

[88Accord-DX]

Got the crank & pistons out, plastigauged rod & crank journals.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1blocknopistons.jpg

Pistons & crankshaft. It looks great, no pits, scoring, nothing.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1pistonremovedfromblock.jpg

[Bglad420]

Looks like fun, good luck!:chainsaw:

[88Accord-DX]

Keep tuned for more pics.

[Kabuki]

Looks good! Good luck! Need any parts? Wink, wink...

[88Accord-DX]

I ordered a Top-Line rebuild kit from this site for $306 after shipping.

http://www.importperformanceparts.net/imports/topekits-honda2.html

I ordered it on the 1-27-06, it got here 1-31-06. Talk about fast shipping.

Well, let the fun begin. :)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/RebuildkitforA20A1.jpg

[mkymonkey]

holy shit dude...thats looking nice

[3rdgenhatchDX]

just so you know ddude... there are piston kits on eGay for the A20A1... like new pistons/rings/wristpins... i think they were like seriously $12... i searched under 89 accord
I got these! um $20 total, got em in the mail toto pistons, original, but seem to be alot of aluminum, everything said above is included, haven't installed no need to just $20 pistons day-um ya know? i'd say their fine as long as your running stock components no turbos/nos.

[88Accord-DX]

holy shit dude...thats looking nice
Nice is still to come.

What size pistons?
Went ahead with .040 thousandths of an inch oversized pistons. Decided to bore the block out, two of the cylinder bores had a little ring grove on the bottom.

[88Accord-DX]

Awesome. The pistons look dished though.
They are little dished. Here is what I just ordered.


Part Number Description Quantity ............. Price
13213-463-003 BOLT, CONNECTING ROD 2 $10.28 ---- ---(for #1 rod, stretched threads)
91205-PC8-935 OIL SEAL (38X54X8) 2 $12.78------------(half shaft seals in transaxle)
11856-PH2-000 TUBE A, PCV 1 $13.00 = -------------(PCV tube from intake to breather box)
17350-PH4-661 VALVE ASSY. 1 $48.63 ------------------(Thermovalve)
44319-SE0-000 SET-RING (28X2.0) 2 $3.22 --------------(half shaft C-clips)
Tax $0.00
Shipping $9.61
Total $97.52

[88Accord-DX]

Picked up a few things today.

Rebuilt head with new valve guides pressed in on exhaust side.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1topofrebuilthead.jpg

Bottom of head.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1bottomofrebuilthead.jpg

.040 Oversized pistons pressed on rods.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1rodspressedon.jpg

.040 bored over block, painted.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1paintedblock.jpg

[Cheeseburger]

looking good dude!

[gfrg88]

wow dude, thats looking good :rockon:

[kaltenacht]

Probably the most interesting topic on this board in a while, keep it up!

[2ndGenGuy]

That rocks man. Nice job so far. Great job with all the detailed pics!

[mkymonkey]

ok so is this what you call nice...cuz i like it..gj

[3rdgenhatchDX]

:werd: looking good let us know about the final $$$

[carotman]

Nice job indeed!

[88Accord-DX]

Thanks for the compliments so far. I'm waiting on some dealer parts, but still pushing on. Just spent $63 for a NEW timing belt tensioner & NEW water pump today. I'll have a total bill on $$$ when it's all done & said. Keep tuned for more pics to come. :)

Edit--That is $63 for both, new water pump & new belt tensioner.. (cke)

[3gn86lxi]

Hey Dereck,
Are you going to use your stock cam?? Just curious.:) :slap:

[88Accord-DX]

Are you going to use your stock cam?
Yeah, I don't have a Delta cam for it, unlike yourself. :hs:

Edit- Keeped tuned for more pics you die hard 3geez'ers!!

[gfrg88]

how much have you spent so far and how much more do you plan on spending?? i plan on rebuilding mine soon too :hs:

[88Accord-DX]

how much have you spent so far and how much more do you plan on spending?

$138 - Hot tanked, magnufluxed, pressed on pistons, bored .040 on the block
$162 - Rebuilt Cylinder head w/ ALL new valve guides pressed in on exhaust side
$306 - Top Line rebuilt kit
$97 - Dealer parts; thermovalve, C-clips for halfshafts, PCV tube, Transaxle seals (both)
$63 - New water pump & New timing belt tensioner
$10 - paint & misc.
---------------
Total= $776

Still more money to spend on things to come.

[B16KILLA]

Money well spent......:)

[gfrg88]

well i guess its time to start saving up all my pennies.......

[88Accord-DX]

PISTONS INSTALLED


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1pistonsinstalled.jpg

[Cheeseburger]

sweet bro~!

[BITESIZE]

Looks bitching bro

[gfrg88]

man thats looking sweet dude, now i really want to rebuild mine :hs:

[88Accord-DX]

Things are coming along. Got the head on.

New parts installed ; oil pump, belt, tensioner, water pump.

This pics got a little blurry.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1timingbeltinstalled.jpg

Few other things installed. Painted the oil pan.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1headonsidepic.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1headintastalled.jpg

[racerx]

yeah, doncha hate it when you have a perfectly beautiful, shiney new engine, and then you gotta put a bunch of dirty ass accessories and parts on it? lol...

good job man! I hope everything went together well. when i rebuilt the a20 (almost exactly the same things done as you, just a little more), i had a few leaks here and there that drove me nuts!!!

i forgot to put a cam seal on the driver's side of the shaft... duh... and the oil pan had a few leaks because i used the wrong torque setting... duh again...

so hopefully everything goes together well for ya! good luck. putting it back in is actually the easier part. :)

[88Accord-DX]

Appreciate it racerx & everyone.

I have cleaned & painted everything that bolts on to the engine, but that water pipe & exhaust mounting bracket, air breather box, intake brackets. That stuff will be hidden. I made sure I torqued everything to specs., & I have all the seals in too, with a little gasket maker around some for extra insurance. Wouldn't mind a wild cam, but my pocket book hurts as it allready is. Car should run good after it is all done. Probably could sell it for $3,500 if I wanted too.

[racerx]

yeah, my rebuild runs flippin sweet, even when it wasn't broken in!

[B16KILLA]

Looks like its coming along great.Cant wait to see it in the car.

[racerx]

go teflon. slick as snot! :D

[gfrg88]

looks great :rockon:

[A18A]

man ur lucky, u got all the tools, and the money, i cant wait till a job comes my way. but i got heaps of time on my hands atm

[mkymonkey]

hahahahahaha... yeah dude the only way you can get shit done is to get off your ass and do it. i mean if you want a car that goes 200 mph...build one...simple as that. if you dont know how to do it....learn!

[Gemini2003]

hahahahahaha... yeah dude the only way you can get shit done is to get off your ass and do it. I mean if you want a car that goes 200 mph...build one...simple as that. if you don't know how to do it....learn!

Word! I'm doing the Winter Project in the appearance forum and that just it. I got off my ass and started and I'm learning along the way. I'm even rebuilding my engine as well but that will be in a month or so...

[3gn86lxi]

Update D...........update!! Whats the latest, still waiting for parts?

[88Accord-DX]

I'm taking my time with it. Tried finding some head bolts, but can't. Waiting for tax return to have the flywheel turned & few other things I need. It will be together before too long. I'll keep the updating as things progress. Patience is a virtue. LOL

[88Accord-DX]

Got the intake & carburetor back on. Trying to get all the vacuum lines figured out. Valve cover is being sanded down. Flywheel is being turned.

Slowing coming back to life.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1intakeintstalled.jpg

[racerx]

lookin good! you'll be pleased when it's all done

[Deadhead]

awesome... looks like fun. I need to do something like that. Get a B18 and overbore it .040 with pistons to match. Then the civic would be a blast to drive.

[88Accord-DX]

Here is the firewall I made look a little better, no it isn't perfect. There is the resurfaced flywheel next & tranny bolted to the engine. Things aren't ready for it to be dropped in yet, waiting for one last dealer part. Not done with the valve cover either.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1firewallpic1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1firewallpic2.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1resurfacedflywheel.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1enginetrannyboltedtogether.jpg

[89AccordResto]

Sweet pics dude.

[88Accord-DX]

Sweet pics dude.
Thanks, here is one last bit of eye candy that I left out before the valve cover is on. Some more cosmetics are going to the tranny. Will have one last pic before it is installed. Keep tuned ..................


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1enginetotrannypic2.jpg

[MessyHonda]

man that engine looks hecka sick...are thoes headers OEM or after market...im just trying to clean my engine and my headers looks rusted and i want to clean them up and paint them...i got a friend with a lift....all i need is recomendations on what paint to use and how to do it... same with my oil pan i hit a rock or something and that thing had a big o'l dent and it started to rust... well keep up the good work.

[88Accord-DX]

are thoes headers OEM or after market....all i need is recomendations on what paint to use and how to do it... same with my oil pan i hit a rock or something and that thing had a big o'l dent and it started to rust.
Seriously, I just have OEM headers. I'll have to wait for some headers later on. The headers are rusted like yours, just didn't do nothing with them. Tried to make everything look better but them rusty ass headers. I'm not sure what paint can handle such high temps. If anyone has opinions, send MessyHonda88dx a p.m.

As far as the oil pan, my pan was rusted up too. I sanded it down past the rust to the metal as best I could. That is nothing that I was concerned about, but the internals was my main focus with the specifications.

[88Accord-DX]

Been finishing up on the final touches today with the valve cover. Here is a little pic of my progress. I'll have a good pic of the final project in a few days. I've been working on it too.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/valvecover.jpg

[mkymonkey]

is that flat black? or is it gun metal? or maybe just primer :D lol anyway it looks good. now i havent searched this because i dont own a carburated accord, but cant you switch to the other valve cover?



edit: nvm i just remembered youre not going efi yet. but can you switch when you do? i think it would look a hell of a lot better :D

[gfrg88]

i think all the valve covers are interchangeable(sp?) between all the A series engines....

[SQ is the SQUAD]

i am not sure how the clutch disc looks but the pressure plate looks kinds scorn, id change it now

[88Accord-DX]

is that flat black? or is it gun metal? or maybe just primer :D lol
It is #1615 engine ceramic paint (aluminum). Purchased at O'Reillys. <my favorite parts store>



i am not sure how the clutch disc looks but the pressure plate looks kinds scorn, id change it now
That clutch disc is brand new. If you look at it, you can see white stamp labels from the manufacturer. The pressure plate looks like that cause of the lighting. It was only 5 months old, not many miles. I cleaned it up real good with the wire brush on a dual bench grinder/wire brush set up.
It looks better in person, that is lighting & my digicam. Anyway. I'll pop a few more pics of my oil pressure gauge & one last shot of the engine all pretty before I drop it in tomm. :)

Edit- Here is a pic of my oil pressure gauge. It is blurry cause my dicam can't focus real close.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1oilpressuregauge.jpg

[88Accord-DX]

Here is the final rebuilt engine done. It is installed in the engine bay. I haven't got everything hook up yet. I'll have it running soon, can't wait. This rebuild cost me in a rough neighborhood of about $1,000..


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1finishedrebuild.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1onlift.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1backonlift.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1installed.jpg

[SQ is the SQUAD]

its in the bay

[Acid X]

Wow, you rebuilt that thing FAST. Sweetness.. I'll swap you a20a1's!! :D

Hah. Nice job bud.

[racerx]

dude, hookin stuff up is the easy part! finish that thing, man!

[Mike's89AccordLX]

Nice rebuild, but I would have taken the time and put on all the performance parts so you don't have to keep tearing it apart when you decide to put them on.

I've considered rebuilding mine, but I think I will wait until something goes wrong since I should spend the money elsewhere when I have a decent motor.

Nitrous for me :)

[AccordEpicenter]

wow this rebuild looks like its going excellent dereck, and $1000 rebuild with all the stuff you did is a deal. Somebody should sticky this thread (so you wanna rebuild?)

[88Accord-DX]

I fired up the Accord today for the first time. It started on the first try. Couldn't beleive how easy it started & how it sounded! I replaced one thermovalve on it & it done the carb. tremendous results.. I'll have one last picture tomm. of what it looks like running & final touches. I'll even make a full list of how much work & cost was involved.... :)

[speedpenguin]

Congratulations, man!
How long before it's broken in? I want to hear what it's like when you really open it up!

[88Accord-DX]

Here are the last pics of it running & everything done to it. Going to buy a remanufactured distributor in time. There is a little anti-freeze on it from testing the cooling system. I still need to tune the carburetor some more. Don't feel like listing everything done to it. The cost was a little over a grand.
Thanks for all the compliments too.



http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1startedup.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1startedfront.jpg

[B16KILLA]

:eek5: WOW!! Thats the nicest carbed a20 ever great job dude she's beautiful!!!!

[speedpenguin]

You must be extremely proud.
Again, congratulations.

[mkymonkey]

that looks awesome!


now clean the rest of the engine bay to match the shiny valve cover and breather cap!

[kaltenacht]

Wow, great job, this has been an interesting thread to follow! Looks good, hope your pleased with the results.

[Vanilla Sky]

you should dyno the engine after you break it in. i'd like to see the difference in a fresh rebuild and the original builds that 90% of us are using. i'm willing to bet that it'll be way up there.

[Cheeseburger]

wow dude that looks clean, like vanilla ice said u should dyno it to see how she is running. whoops did i call Derick vanilla ice lol jk

[88Accord-DX]

Once again I thank you guys for the comments & the support. It has been an expensive investment in my car, but worth it. I'm very proud of the results & how it came out.

I would like to dyno the engine after the break in, but I live too far from St. Louis to mess with it. I did drive it home today finally, with no problems at all. It needs the carb (headache) tuned a little more. Overall all, I'm impressed, no leaks anywhere. It has 60 psi. oil pressure on my mechanical gauge, the least it dropped was about 50. I did fix a couple hoses that had tried to leak a little, good thing I have tools to pressure test the cooling system. Anyway, I'm drinking some beer tonight to celebrate. :cheers:

Here is one last pic of it making it home finally...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/RebuiltA20A13-23-06.jpg

[B16KILLA]

Drink one for me :beer: , since I have to cut back on my drunken escapades.

[speedpenguin]

You are an inspiration to us all.
Or to me at least. :)

[BITESIZE]

I'm currently doing all the same work on my A20A3. I can appreciate the time you spent on yours, I know what it takes! Congrats!

[88Accord-DX]

----

[w00tw00t111]

Wow Dereck....finally got around to reading the whole thread and yeah...just wow! That's just awesome! I'm sure you're really proud and impressed with the hp gains that can be made by just replacing worn out parts! :) GL w/ the break in.