EK1 Head Pulled

[2ndGenGuy]

Well, I was going to pull the head on a 95 Civic that my friend is giving me. Since he has been unable to deliver the key so that I can get it, my other buddy and I decided to pull the head on his new $250 81 Accord we picked up a few days ago.


See Car Here: https://www.3geez.com/forum/showthread.php?t=52067

It doesn't look like the head gasket was blown, but I'm not exactly an expert. Below are the pics of our progress.

If anybody wants and pics of anything for reference while the engine is apart, let me know and I'll take em.

Click the pics below for full size images.
________________________
First thing we did was try to remove the hood, but the bolts to access the hood hinges were hidden behind the grille.



We pulled the grille off the front of the car.



Unbolted the hood. I guess it was the first time, because even after the bolts were pulled, the hood still seemed to be attached. We had to pry the hinges off of the body to unstick them.



Pulled the air cleaner box off.



Nasty oil in the valve cover.



Nasty oil in the head.



Valve cover and air cleaner all removed.



Carb pulled. What a mess of vacuum lines. Hopefully it will go back together.






Heat shield taken off. You can see the intake manifold now.

[2ndGenGuy]

Couldn't get the damn intake and exhaust manifolds off. We unbolted the exhaust and some bracketry and still they refused to come off. So we decided to take the head off with the manifolds.



Seems that there was somethin' getting in those two black crapped up cylinders...






The head and manifolds as one unit again. Valves and whatnot shall get a good cleaning.



Intake Manifold and some thingy attached to it.



Manifolds are much easier to remove when the head is not in the car. This all should get some good cleaning.




The vast array of parts from the engine! Should be fun putting it all back on and having the car running like a champ again!



For a full viewing of some more photos of this project go here:

http://localdomain.net/~john/pics/ek1-head-removal/

[Hazwan]

nice!

@ the vacuum lines, I'm glad mine doesnt have those

[2ndGenGuy]

Can I have your carbuerator?

Actually, do you have one you would be willing to sell? Might make this much easier to put back together...

Is your engine CVCC?

[Hazwan]

hehe I do have 2 extra carb, but mine is EL, non CVCC needs rebuilt though

I dunno, never actually done any international trades..

heres how mine looks like, its the one on the left:


and hey, no vacuum lines!:

[speedpenguin]

Cool to see!
Keep posting.

[MessyHonda]

wow looks like a job. i need to change my headgasket also...since at first it would drop oil and now it drop coolent but the oil did not get coolent. werid stuff

[Ichiban]

This sounds wierd but the two cylinders that are super clean probably had water leaking into them. BTW take that black hell box off and fire it into the bushes. you don't need all that vacuum crap.

[2ndGenGuy]

I just showed my dad the pictures and he said the same thing about the water leaking in. He says the water will clean out the cylinders.

I really do want to pull the black box off. Problem is that I don't know anything about carbuerators. I'm afraid I would pull something off that is necessary, and the car woudln't run again. It's going to be a new experience putting the head back on. I've never dug this much into an engine before.

Any tips on maybe an easy way to rip out all that emissions stuff without screwing anything up? I've seen the howtos for the 3rd gen, but this carb seems quite different.

[Cheeseburger]

sweet~!

[2ndGenGuy]

hehe I do have 2 extra carb, but mine is EL, non CVCC needs rebuilt though
I dunno, never actually done any international trades..
heres how mine looks like, its the one on the left:

Hey we're thinking about buying an EL head and manifolds for our block. We're going to go to Canada to get it, assuming we can find someone to do the deal for us.

How much would you be willing to sell us that carb for? Also would you be able to get us a rebuild kit for it, since we probably can't get one locally? We'd pay you for it of course. And prolly toss you a bit for your time.

For now, I'm just trying to get an idea of costs for us to do this.

Thanks!

[Hazwan]

Hey we're thinking about buying an EL head and manifolds for our block. We're going to go to Canada to get it, assuming we can find someone to do the deal for us.
How much would you be willing to sell us that carb for? Also would you be able to get us a rebuild kit for it, since we probably can't get one locally? We'd pay you for it of course. And prolly toss you a bit for your time.
For now, I'm just trying to get an idea of costs for us to do this.
Thanks!

Not sure how much I would sell it. Last time local junkyard asked for ~US$70 for an unknown condtion carb with 1 day warranty. But I need to check the condition first, IIRC one of them got leaking float. That could be another 2 weeks, as the carbs is at my father's house

No problem for the rebuilt kit, pretty cheap also, ~US$20 last time I rebuilt mine

[precision porting]

Okay guys, I will give you a bit of help. The cylinders washed are from Anti freeze. Very tough on rings and bearings. The oil also loooked to be a bit contaminated. You need to check both block and head in these older imports for warpage. These blocks tend to twist over the years. The head should also be checked by your local machine shop for cracks in and around EX seats for sure(they all crack there eventually).My 2 cents worth.
Chris

[2ndGenGuy]

Thanks for the info Chris!

How much does it usually cost to have the head checked? We're thinking about buying a different head off of a known good engine to avoid any potential problems and save a bit of cost. The engine only has 105,000 on it, so do you think that the block has a lower chance of being twisted?

Thanks!

[Ichiban]

Now that i've seen the rest of this thread...

I don't run the hellbox on either of my cars. Vacuum advance and EVAP systems will still work normally. I will show you how.

The heads are bad for warping, but can be shaved. I see no reason why the block should twist. Using a machined straight edge and feeler gauges will tell you (NOT a "t" square or level)

Either Waneta auto recyclers or Speedway salvage (Salmo, BC) can get you heads/intakes/carbs for the 1602 EL engine, at probably a minimal cost.

[precision porting]

Head clean and sguared is aout 65 Canuck bucks. The blocks have been known to move around in the old Toyota and honda's. Miliage and age of casting are big issues in early models(not near as good quality back then). The most important place to check between cylinder bores for low spots. I have 3 of those old blocks here, 1 toyota and 2 honda's that the blocks are fixable but would never be reliable again. Just letting you know a good used head with you said 105000 miles should be checked for guide wear and straightness before installing. Smaller motors rev more and even though the parts are lighter do wear alot differantly to a v-6 even.
Chris

[2ndGenGuy]

Everybody: Thanks for all the fantastic information. Unortunately, I came across a problem.

I didn't think to feel around inside the cylinders. When I did this afternoon, I could feel where the wall had worn away in a spot slightly. So I guess that the engine is toast. Is it possible to have the cylinders bored out and bigger pistons installed? I think it would be badass to have a bit larger displacement and a regular cylinder head. If it is possible, assuming the block isn't warped or twisted, how much would this cost? If I took in the block without the pistons in it?

Guyhatesmycar: I already PMed you about this, but would you be willing to part with a carb so that Hazwan and I don't have to deal with shipping? Plus if I come up to bring the parts, I can bring my 2gee and you can check it out... plus, I'd love to see some of your cars...

[Ichiban]

According to my chiltons book the max allowable rebore on these blocks is
.010 over, but if you can find pistons you can probably get pretty much anything. Boring, pistons, bearings and gaskets are gonna start costing you a fortune, and a basic rebuild isn't gonna be cheap. I just put about 1200 cdn into my 20R/22R combo, and that was using the original block, pistons and crank. (which might have been a mistake, i think im hearing a bit of piston slap when its cold but everything mic'ed out okay???)

I'll see what i can dig up for a carb, but it won't fit your intake. It will be for a 1602. I should still have a spare intake somewhere.

[precision porting]

I agree with last post. Once you start your into it. I have built those 20 over, done the crank etc and yes you will tie up enouph for a every day driver to have to drive it for 5 years to get your money out. Imports are good but also a little costly for hardcore parts.

[offthahook]

Headgaskets can look good and it takes a closeup to see if they are blown. It isn't obvious is what I'm saying, but I think the cracked cylinder wall is the main problem. I would be careful about going oversize on your cylinders. Hopefully, the fellas can tell you how to cheat the carb. vacuum lines. If something isn't "right", it will run like ass. I believe there is a bracket that holds the head to the exhaust manifold. Tuning these older imports isn't a great idea. Find a usable block, a straight head (if yours is warped, there is a chance a machine shop can mill it), hot tank the stuff that can be, bead blast the head, and start looking for internals. Keep posting!

[Ichiban]

Find a usable block, a straight head (if yours is warped, there is a chance a machine shop can mill it), hot tank the stuff that can be, bead blast the head, and start looking for internals. Keep posting!

Agreed.

I'll take a look at how/were i rigged up the vacuum lines on my 83 motor (now in the 81 and fried) It was dirt simple, vac advance and EVAP were all that was left. Also did a mech. secondary conversion. I drove the car over 13 000 km in 03 with this setup and no problems.

[offthahook]

Anyone know if you can reuse the head bolts on these cars? Are they the 12 pointed on top? Just curious.

[2ndGenGuy]

I've never rebuilt an engine before, but these bolts look like they're reusable. They aren't 12 point. I used a standard socket wrench to pull them out.

[2ndGenGuy]

According to my chiltons book the max allowable rebore on these blocks is
.010 over, but if you can find pistons you can probably get pretty much anything. Boring, pistons, bearings and gaskets are gonna start costing you a fortune, and a basic rebuild isn't gonna be cheap. I just put about 1200 cdn into my 20R/22R combo, and that was using the original block, pistons and crank. (which might have been a mistake, i think im hearing a bit of piston slap when its cold but everything mic'ed out okay???)
I'll see what i can dig up for a carb, but it won't fit your intake. It will be for a 1602. I should still have a spare intake somewhere.

Just wondering, but when do you think a good weekend would be that we might be able to come up and pick up some parts? I'm not in a huge hurry, and I don't wanna hurry you, so if you wanna decide when, we'll be up for it any time. I know you said something about a 5-speed transmission as well. Would you also happen to have the parts needed, like shifter, linkage, and pedal assembely too?

Not trying to be a mooch. I'd be willing to buy parts off of you. But if you are trying to get rid of stuff, we'd be happy to take them off your hands. Thanks!

Do you know about customs, and what they're gonna say about engine parts? I hope they won't make me pay duty to bring them back into the US. I'll contact them and find out if you don't know.

[88Accord-DX]

I've never rebuilt an engine before, but these bolts look like they're reusable. They aren't 12 point. I used a standard socket wrench to pull them out.

If the torque senquence on the head bolts require 90 degree torque angles, then you can't re-use them. (TTY bolts= no go)

If it is like 20 ft. lbs., then 50 ft lbs of torque, then you can re-use them.