caught between rock and hard place (need b20a info)

[LudeSi]

Okay here's the score. I have a 2nd gen a20a3 prelude. I've gotten 15.6's out of it no prob, but that's just not fast enough. The lude a20 is only an 8.8:1 cr ratio, which kinda sucks. So, I was planning on ganking an a18 head which is no prob to get, rebuilding my extra a20 with 3rd gen lxi pistonm and topping it off with a pair of webber dcoe's. Head i can get, carbs i can get, it's that damn manifold i cant find. So upon my quest for speed, i came across a place that has a jdm b20a lude/accord motor with under 70k on it for $450 and that's including uncut wiring harness and ecu. Now, they told me that my tranny should bolt right up. But before i start getting all wacky and buying this motor, i need to know a few things. I have a 10 lbd aluminum flywheel on my a20 that i paid quite a bit for. Will this bolt onto the b20a? Are those motors hard to get parts for? Is there anything that is similar to the a20? Should I not even bother and keep searching for a dcoe conversion manifold and go with my origional plan? I know the stock b20a makes a good 50 hp more than my a20. But what about aftermarket on the b20a. Can i get cams for this thing? cam gears? will my a20 header bolt onto the a20 head? I'm kinda limited on cash , so im looking for the best bang for my buck. I am no stranger to tuning carbs or building engines, so difficulty is not an issue, just availability of parts mainly. Any info you guys could toss my way would be awesome. Thanks in advance.

[shepherd79]

the tranny from A20 won't won't bolt up to JDM B20.
i assume you have A20 EFI motor. talk to sean about turbo setup.
if you don't have EFI, still talk to sean and he can hook you up with GM ECU conversion.

[Gregg86DX]

Tranny won't work,
Flywheel won't work,
Header won't work.

Finding a 5 speed for a B20A borders on impossible, unless you are overseas. Trust me, I've looked. A lot. Where are you located?

If you are on a budget, your original plan looked pretty good. A20 DCOE manifolds are out there, and a B series manifold should fit with a little modification. It would probably be more cost effective to have a custom manifold made than try to find a B20A 5 speed.

Gregg

[LudeSi]

Tranny won't work,
Flywheel won't work,
Header won't work.

Finding a 5 speed for a B20A borders on impossible, unless you are overseas. Trust me, I've looked. A lot. Where are you located?

If you are on a budget, your original plan looked pretty good. A20 DCOE manifolds are out there, and a B series manifold should fit with a little modification. It would probably be more cost effective to have a custom manifold made than try to find a B20A 5 speed.

Gregg

Okay, so those tranny's are impossible to find. I think I'll stick with my a20/a18 hybrid with dcoe plan. Im located near Cleveland , Ohio. The place that has the motor is somewhere in canada, so i'd probably get raped on shipping anyways. So, I'll just stick with my origional plan until i can afford a b16 swap. Just gotta find an a18 dcoe manifold. Oh , and what's this gm ecu swap? easier to program i take it? The main reason im going carb is that obd0 sucks. Granted I'd rather have obd0 than obd2, but it still sucks. I can tune a carb to work out better. Thanks for all your help guys.

[LudeSi]

the tranny from A20 won't won't bolt up to JDM B20.
i assume you have A20 EFI motor. talk to sean about turbo setup.
if you don't have EFI, still talk to sean and he can hook you up with GM ECU conversion.

I thought I heard boost really isnt a good idea on the a20 due to it's weak cast internals. I've heard of people destroying stuff with like 5-8 psi. But that is wierd to because my buddies dodge shadow with 215k miles on it has all cast internals and he runs 25psi and the thing just wont die. Wierd.

[Gregg86DX]

I thought I heard boost really isnt a good idea on the a20 due to it's weak cast internals. I've heard of people destroying stuff with like 5-8 psi. But that is wierd to because my buddies dodge shadow with 215k miles on it has all cast internals and he runs 25psi and the thing just wont die. Wierd.

It's all in the tune. Most stock motors can tolerate a low levels of boost (5-7 lbs) but if the tune is not right, and they lean out and start detonating. Then something is going to break. With good fuel and spark control, a stock motor can handle surprisingly large amounts of boost.

The nice thing about Sean's GM ECU is the high level of control over spark and fuel. It should be flexible enough to handle almost any combination you can build.

With that said, if you don't have to worry about emmissions, and you are willing to spend some time tuning them, dual Webers are an elegant and powerful option.

Gregg

[SteveDX89]

Cast iron blocks, which the A20 has, will stand up to anything basically. I believe Johnny O is running 35 lbs. of boost on his car. Don't quote me on that cause I'm not totally sure. Also, the internals of the A20 will stand up to something in the range of 15 lbs. Look for threads about Sean's turbo setup. He's got info on how much boost you can have on stock internals. Good luck with your project. Hope it turns out how you want. :cool2:

[shepherd79]

i think if you talk to sean, he can make your car run 8psi on stock internals with no problem.

[LudeSi]

i think if you talk to sean, he can make your car run 8psi on stock internals with no problem.

Awesome. How do i get a hold of this sean. Cuz i got access to turbo's , plumbing, and i have an intercooler i can weld new tanks on and use. So now the decision is carbs or boooooooostah!

[SteveDX89]

Just go into private messages and send one to Sean. That's his username too.