Page 1 of 3

My sw20 build thread

Posted: Wed Jan 30, 2019 8:00 pm
by Im6bl
G'day all, new around these parts ( not new to cars or modifying them )

Anyway onto the car at hand, been thinking about doing this build since i saw a certain 1320 video 5 years ago and was like *Sheeeeeiiiit* thats cool.

Having had a project car at that time which i recently sold and somehow made some money on i had some spare change and decided why not give the swap a go.

So the search was on for a Hardtop sw20 shell ( don't like the t-top, just personal taste) didn't mind the condition as long as the frame rail was straight, rust wasn't much of a concern as i am going to respray and re weld up any rust in that process anyway.

After a few weeks of searching i found me a 1993 factory manual black hardtop :)
50683991_596833554088949_1402290741786443776_n.jpg
50683991_596833554088949_1402290741786443776_n.jpg (90.52 KiB) Viewed 6042 times
50277493_2523474554335526_4164131940644945920_n.jpg
Car had a stuffed alternator ( i figured out why.... Change your VALVE COVER GASKET PEOPLE)

Anyway decided to get to work straight away and remove the seats, center console to give them a clean and most likely replace

Also got started on dropping the motor , deicded to pull the rear control arms as well and give them a thorough cleaning and will buy the poly bush kit to make sure everything is all dandy in the back

51047006_368463150618532_5063455701100134400_n.jpg
The cheeky before and after photo, this was after 5 minutes, crazy how dirty these things can get, after i finish cleaning them all will get them powder coated black
51243152_281373459224085_8139408383963824128_n.jpg
And that brings us up to the current progress, managed to remove the old 3sge and s54 gearbox this afternoon ( i've done a few engine removals in my day but none like this, was a definite learning experience )

51010644_317071045589910_4903875598511767552_n (1).jpg
51268223_831303587241326_2105026655033491456_n.jpg
50979321_2229522270656342_9203555379873579008_n.jpg
Also went and purchased the replacement heart for the old girl ;)
51064532_1059681060884663_1790893494328360960_n.jpg

Re: My sw20 build thread

Posted: Thu Jan 31, 2019 7:22 am
by 4CylinderSpecial
Looks like a fun project! Not many Honda swaps in NZ so this will be quite unique. Are you going to go turbo or get it running in NA form first?

Re: My sw20 build thread

Posted: Thu Jan 31, 2019 8:38 am
by Benckj
Looks like you have some work cut out for you. Should be an interesting build.
What trans are you mating the VTEC to?

Re: My sw20 build thread

Posted: Thu Jan 31, 2019 10:16 am
by Im6bl
4CylinderSpecial wrote:Looks like a fun project! Not many Honda swaps in NZ so this will be quite unique. Are you going to go turbo or get it running in NA form first?
As far as I'm aware in NZ they're aren't any sw20 k swaps. At this stage I'll be building the k24 with rods and pistons and a 6262 turbo, most likely a high compression (around 10:1) and running her on e85 only

Re: My sw20 build thread

Posted: Thu Jan 31, 2019 10:23 am
by Im6bl
Benckj wrote:Looks like you have some work cut out for you. Should be an interesting build.
What trans are you mating the VTEC to?
It seems straight forward enough but as with all car projects, nothing is as it seems. At this stage i am undecided with either building a k series gear ( carbon synco's etc ) and getting DSS axles. Or doing a e153 swap. Both should work for the power that i'll be putting through them just wanting to see which is the most cost effective and reliable.

Ps sorry for double posting, still getting the hang of this forum stuff

Re: My sw20 build thread

Posted: Thu Jan 31, 2019 11:56 am
by Benckj
The E153 would be the most straight forward given it is used in the turbo versions of the MR2. It is getting hard to find decent ones though and new parts are limited. Would guess its the more expensive option.

Re: My sw20 build thread

Posted: Thu Jan 31, 2019 12:06 pm
by GDII
Plenty of places make Honda gearbox to Toyota Hub axles so the E153 isn't a must for this swap.

Re: My sw20 build thread

Posted: Thu Jan 31, 2019 2:43 pm
by Im6bl
Benckj wrote:The E153 would be the most straight forward given it is used in the turbo versions of the MR2. It is getting hard to find decent ones though and new parts are limited. Would guess its the more expensive option.
Yeah, thats why im leaning towards it, and also it has been proven to handle a large amount of power. I'm not too adverse about sourcing one overseas , i know i'll need shifter cables, axles and hubs along with the gearbox itself.
GDII wrote:Plenty of places make Honda gearbox to Toyota Hub axles so the E153 isn't a must for this swap.
That is true, the k series box is "decently" strong on dc5's and cl7's etc. But from what hux racing has told me they tend to shred even at stock power levels given the extra traction the Mid engine chassis has. If i went down this path it would need to be built to handle quite a bit of abuse, and that includes the axles.

Re: My sw20 build thread

Posted: Thu Jan 31, 2019 3:13 pm
by GDII
Im6bl wrote:
Benckj wrote:The E153 would be the most straight forward given it is used in the turbo versions of the MR2. It is getting hard to find decent ones though and new parts are limited. Would guess its the more expensive option.
Yeah, thats why im leaning towards it, and also it has been proven to handle a large amount of power. I'm not too adverse about sourcing one overseas , i know i'll need shifter cables, axles and hubs along with the gearbox itself.
GDII wrote:Plenty of places make Honda gearbox to Toyota Hub axles so the E153 isn't a must for this swap.
That is true, the k series box is "decently" strong on dc5's and cl7's etc. But from what hux racing has told me they tend to shred even at stock power levels given the extra traction the Mid engine chassis has. If i went down this path it would need to be built to handle quite a bit of abuse, and that includes the axles.
I don't know much about Honda but from that and your power goals the E153 does sound better. You can look at importing from Japan. Quite a lot run TRD LSDs already but you'd still need axles and the rest you listed. Also it is possible to use Camry hubs however they have been known to break so best get genuine SW20 ones.

Re: My sw20 build thread

Posted: Thu Jan 31, 2019 3:45 pm
by mknz
Source? I've only heard of aftermarket breaking

Re: My sw20 build thread

Posted: Thu Jan 31, 2019 4:26 pm
by Im6bl
GDII wrote:
Im6bl wrote:
Benckj wrote:The E153 would be the most straight forward given it is used in the turbo versions of the MR2. It is getting hard to find decent ones though and new parts are limited. Would guess its the more expensive option.
Yeah, thats why im leaning towards it, and also it has been proven to handle a large amount of power. I'm not too adverse about sourcing one overseas , i know i'll need shifter cables, axles and hubs along with the gearbox itself.
GDII wrote:Plenty of places make Honda gearbox to Toyota Hub axles so the E153 isn't a must for this swap.
That is true, the k series box is "decently" strong on dc5's and cl7's etc. But from what hux racing has told me they tend to shred even at stock power levels given the extra traction the Mid engine chassis has. If i went down this path it would need to be built to handle quite a bit of abuse, and that includes the axles.
I don't know much about Honda but from that and your power goals the E153 does sound better. You can look at importing from Japan. Quite a lot run TRD LSDs already but you'd still need axles and the rest you listed. Also it is possible to use Camry hubs however they have been known to break so best get genuine SW20 ones.
Might do some more research, also i guess on the cards would be getting a e154f if i can get it for cheap and converting it to the "rwd" spec with an aftermarket lsd as the gt4 box seems to go quite cheap. Regardless gearbox choice at the moment isn't up there, fixing rust/painting car and starting the K series build is the priorities right now. Im sure the gearbox situation will get resolved ( i'm sure i'll find a deal on something which will sway me one way or another knowing me )

Re: My sw20 build thread

Posted: Sun Feb 10, 2019 10:24 pm
by Im6bl
So end of the week update, got quite a bit done i feel in the limited time i've had to muck around with the old girl. Listed some of the parts on trademe that i know for a fact i dont need, got a turbo engine cover for the extra jdm points.

Also picked up and started tearing into the K24. The motor is out of a CL9 that was crashed i believe the official number is a K24A3 ( 200hp 3 lobe cam etc) Its an 06 model too which has the longer duration and higher lift intake cam from my understanding which is a bonus to me due to the fact im not touching the head at all on this build ( atleast at this stage)

Anyway got her down to bare block with sump on, still decent cross hatching on the bores so thats promisng will hopefully bust out the dial bore gauge this week and see how out of round she is and if i can get away with the old hone and go with a set of wiseco pistons.
51571759_383210102471451_3846841759933923328_n.jpg
51885866_529901030832975_1351752974010941440_n.jpg
I also managed to snag a deal on a 1991 E153 so i guess what gearbox im going with has been decided at this stage, came with both stub shafts and an axle so not much to get the whole drivetrain looking spic and span.
51785921_2062230547146094_3882628612855169024_n.jpg
52303873_538874189930597_389133215362711552_n.jpg
51638111_248580559399900_2185891251310559232_n.jpg
From looking through the whole i can see it doesn't have a bar across it and being 1991 it is most likely open diff? But from my reading if it has a pencil sized whole ( which this seems to be ) it could be an aftermarket LSD like a TRD or Kaaz for example?

Lemme know what you think people, next weeks tasks include dropping the steering rank, front control arms and hubs and painting all of the control arms, rack and the hubs at this stage.

Re: My sw20 build thread

Posted: Wed Feb 20, 2019 12:07 am
by Im6bl
Manged to paint most of the rear control arms and subframe this afternoon so that was a success.

Also managed to strip the front down, removed everything again to get painted etc.

Got pistons and crank, sump girdle etc off the k24 will be borrowing a nice Mic and dial bore gauge set from a friend and will see if i need to bore or if a cheeky hone and go will be sweet :)

after than will most likely order pistons.

Still on a look out for a 1990-1993 spoiler with the side pieces. Also anyone wrecking a MR2 in nz or hamilton willing to cut out a section of the c pillar from the the passenger side so i can go about fixing that

Re: My sw20 build thread

Posted: Wed Feb 20, 2019 12:38 am
by mknz
Looks like you got the mounting brackets on your gearbox, the turbo and NA ones are different. I'm keen to see your build progress, good luck!

Re: My sw20 build thread

Posted: Wed Feb 20, 2019 10:13 am
by Im6bl
mknz wrote:Looks like you got the mounting brackets on your gearbox, the turbo and NA ones are different. I'm keen to see your build progress, good luck!
Yeah I did realise that, the mounts themselves have a different part number from my understanding but the S54 ones work with the e153? Also any idea if that's an open or aftermarket lsd in there from the pictures?