What should I do? Swap or Rebuilt?

[etvergara23]

My dad bought this accord when it was brand spanking new. The model that we have is the 1987 Accord LXi Hatch Automatic.

It has approx 137,000+ miles. I want to suprise my dad and do some work into this accord. I am thinking of either doing a rebuilt, or a engine swap. I have been hearing about the B20A. But I am not sure.

What do you guys think? It would be awesome on telling me how much I will be spending on either the two options.

Thanks!

p.s. with the B20A swap is it possible to keep the auto tranny? (btw i know you all will say, Y AUTO? its for my dad, he retired from driving a stick shift)

[SteveDX89]

You can find B20's with autos without much problem. The 5 speed is the hard one to find. Rebuilding the current engine will be cheaper than a swap but it's still only as fast as when he bought it. The B20 will be a nice kick in the pants for him. Use the search button to find out more info. on the swap. You should find a lot of great threads.

[RobT5580]

If you want a automatic that is good news if you want a B20A. You should be able to find a complete swap for roughtly $500-$1200. Some people here were able to get them even cheaper but that was by luck. So do some research and you will find the B20A is the easiest and cheapest but as far as performance parts there is a lack of them. But you can do all the basic bolt ons like headers, intake, ignition etc. But if you buy any swap your still going to want to do some basics like timing belt and waterpump at minimum along with a compression check.

[etvergara23]

sounds awesome! Are maintenance parts such as timing belt and water pump easy to find here at the states?

If you want a automatic that is good news if you want a B20A. You should be able to find a complete swap for roughtly $500-$1200. Some people here were able to get them even cheaper but that was by luck. So do some research and you will find the B20A is the easiest and cheapest but as far as performance parts there is a lack of them. But you can do all the basic bolt ons like headers, intake, ignition etc. But if you buy any swap your still going to want to do some basics like timing belt and waterpump at minimum along with a compression check.

[RobT5580]

sounds awesome! Are maintenance parts such as timing belt and water pump easy to find here at the states?

You can convert it to use USDM parts which is what most people do. They use a 88-91 Prelude water pump, lower timing sprocket, B16A cam gears and a H23 timing belt. I wanted to use all JDM parts and i have a vendor in Japan that ships parts to the US within a week. The only JDM part that you will need is a headgasket which i have a spare that i would sell for the right price.

[etvergara23]

thank you very much.

You can convert it to use USDM parts which is what most people do. They use a 88-91 Prelude water pump, lower timing sprocket, B16A cam gears and a H23 timing belt. I wanted to use all JDM parts and i have a vendor in Japan that ships parts to the US within a week. The only JDM part that you will need is a headgasket which i have a spare that i would sell for the right price.

[SteveDX89]

Rob is the B20 man. Talk to him about the B20 swap. You'll be in good hands.

[RobT5580]

Well mines still not running but it will be very shortly. But its very simple and easy once you get the right stuff. Im hoping to have mine up and running by the end of the month but i had another delay with the machine shop. So if my overnight parts come in tomorrow i should have the engine back friday evening and i can begin the final assembly and install it. If you get a b20 just make sure you get the rear mount, upper and lower exhaust manifold, and a complete engine. You can use stuff off of your car but those pieces there will make the job very easy.

[etvergara23]

sweet...how much did you spend so far?

Well mines still not running but it will be very shortly. But its very simple and easy once you get the right stuff. Im hoping to have mine up and running by the end of the month but i had another delay with the machine shop. So if my overnight parts come in tomorrow i should have the engine back friday evening and i can begin the final assembly and install it. If you get a b20 just make sure you get the rear mount, upper and lower exhaust manifold, and a complete engine. You can use stuff off of your car but those pieces there will make the job very easy.

[johndej]

if you swap it, keep the a20 somewhere so when the b20 goes in a few hundred thousand miles you can put the a20 in and drive for another few 100k

[RobT5580]

I put over $10,000 into mine which is extreme but i wanted to be able to boost high. I have a lot of custom parts into mine that didnt come cheap along with a full stand alone ECU. You can see my extensive parts list here https://www.3geez.com/vbgarage.php?do=view&id=151 . So you dont want to base anything on what i have done since its all custom. I wanted to build something nice since i could swing the extra cash this summer and next summer will be a whole new game since i will be done with college and expanding my company. If i were you i would get a full B20A swap and replace the headgasket, waterpump, timing belt, oil pump, and the other basics and work off of that.