F23 block + F22b dohc head: A simple engine build

[Mishakol129]

So I've made serious progress with this swap. I took the old engine out, wired in the knock sensor, washed the bay with a pressure washer (blue paint jokes aside), and I also swapped out the ps pressure hose with a h23 one. That was a pain in the ass though cause you gotta bend the line to make it work.

I also installed the fuel pressure gauge on the fuel rail, and I installed a stock rear mount. Needed a new front torque mount so I ordered that and it should be here tomorrow. Removed the butterflies from my double stacked plates, now I have just double stacks and no plates.

Here's some pics







I made a little ding here I think when I was removing the engine. Doesn't look like it will affect anything, will it?

[gloryaccordy]

I feel like this thing will barely run w/o a tune

What ECU are you going to run with this?

[dj_ender]

I feel like this thing will barely run w/o a tune

What ECU are you going to run with this?

He said he's getting a P14.

[Mishakol129]

I'm gonna see how the pt6 and the p14 ecu runs it.
But I got an update on it. I installed the driver side engine mount but I ended up stripping a good amount of threads out of the block, so now I only got 2 bolts instead of 3. I think this was because of the bolt length, I was using the F23 bolt which I believe was a little shorter than the F22a bolt.

I used this product called VersaChem on the bolt that was stripped out, its similar to JB weld. I would fix it the right way, but I don't know what size helicoil kit I need to get. It was one of the 14 mm bolts, does anyone know what size I need?

[Mishakol129]

So I ordered the correct helicoil kit and drill bit, M10 x 1.25. I just didn't have the patience to wait. I drank a few beers too. Don't think the beers is what caused me to strip the threads, that was just a freak accident and I would have stripped them even if I had not drunk anything. However the beers may have led me to use the apoxy on it. Even so I will still "do it right" and helicoil it.

Now for that process, do I need to use red loc tite or not? All I have is blue and I want to know if I need it.

That thing was messed up. I think we need to tell people which bolts to use for the F22a mount bracket cause the F23 bolts don't work well in them. This is the second time I have stripped 14 mm bolt in a F series block. First time was the alternator and all I did was use a tap and a larger bolt. This time it will be helicoil. Hope it works well, I just don't have the patience to wait for shipping.

[Mishakol129]

Well I found out that the previous tap, drill bit and bolt, could be used again for the exact same thing. Fixed the problem right up.

Been doing a ton of work and its been exhausting. Here's my progress thus far:

[Mishakol129]

I feel like this thing will barely run w/o a tune

What ECU are you going to run with this?

Yeah its P14, but I'm gonna try the Pt6 first cause that always seemed to run really good with the dohc setup. Maybe the P14 will run better this time because of the higher compression, idk. I'll only have to see with the seat dyno.

[Jarrett]

The PT4 from an F22A3/9 seems like it would be ideal for this. It would also eliminate the knock sensor from the equation. The F22A3 has 9.8:1 compression ratio and an even more aggressive camshaft profile that the F22A6. Good luck finding one, though. Maybe you can come across one on eBay.co.uk.

Edit, there's one for a little over $125 plus shipping to the US.

[Mishakol129]

The PT4 from an F22A3/9 seems like it would be ideal for this. It would also eliminate the knock sensor from the equation. The F22A3 has 9.3:1 compression ratio and an even more aggressive camshaft profile that the F22A6. Good luck finding one, though. Maybe you can come across one on eBay.co.uk.

Edit, there's one for a little over $125 plus shipping to the US.

That's very interesting. The compression calculator said I'd end up with about 9.59.1 compression, since I have the head milled 0.015" and also the smaller diameter head. That's a little higher than the A3 and the F23. Weird though how the A7 is said to have 9.8 compression but yet uses the same PT4 ecu as the A3.

Really tempted to get that ecu, so do you think it will be better than both the P14 and the PT6?

[Mishakol129]

Bought that ECU.... Its either gonna be that or the P14. Its got to be somewhere in the middle of the two I was gonna use. Its gotta be better than the PT6 though.

[Mishakol129]

When I get it and it turns out not to run it as good as the P14 I'll just sell it. It was about $170 and I can probably resell it for $120 to someone in the states.

[Jarrett]

That was a faith leap!

Just go easy on this rebuild and it has potential to be a strong, streetable build. Please enlist the help of someone who knows what they're doing if someone like that is nearby.

[Mishakol129]

That was a faith leap!

Just go easy on this rebuild and it has potential to be a strong, streetable build. Please enlist the help of someone who knows what they're doing if someone like that is nearby.

I jumped on it cause it looked rare as hell and also that the tune on it is probably great since its a euro ecu where they have less emissions over there.

I'm more than 3/4 of the way done now. Got the engine in, put the head on, halfshafts were a bit tricky cause for some reason the bolt would not thread in. Had to use a different bolt and even then I think it started to strip out.
Not gonna sweat it since its got 2 bolts already. In fact when I took the old engine out there were only 2 bolts, 1 was missing. I must have forgot to install it when I did my 5 speed swap. But It held up fine, even after all the hard launches and whatnot, so I'm not worried even if I only have 2 and 1/2 bolts in there.

The clutch looked immaculate though, flywheel too.

All I have to do now is install the dist., battery, radiator, accessories, belts, pass side axle, and time it... Then the moment of truth. I just hope I didn't mess anything up. Ah well and even if I did, I can just order an H23 Vtec engine right? lol.

[Mishakol129]

Soo I got the engine up and running good and took it for a test drive. My speedo is busted (needs a new sensor) and also it looks like there's a tiny leak in my clutch line. I think its the rubber part. So I went ahead and ordered those. The car ran good with the PT6 ECU but when I went to use the P14 it ran like it was in limp mode. It even threw cylinder position sensor for some odd reason. Maybe its a broken ECU? Anyways, I'm very glad that you told me about the PT4 cause without your suggestion I don't think I can get this thing running at its full potential. I got on in a few times and it felt more powerful, just not as much as I was expecting. Must be the ECU.

Either way this has been a very interesting swap, its now a F23 DOHC. Power steering setup was swapped too so its officially legit. My old power steering ran like crap but this one runs super good, and now I can close my hood without it hitting my hood. That rear mount seemed to help vibration too.

Got some pics:





H23 Prelude PS belt, pressure line, and some Honda fluid. Also the pump is one I rebuilt from the JY, must be part of why it runs so good.




F23... Its not boosted so its not crazy fast. It does feel like it runs much better than my old engine. It feels more reliable.

[Mishakol129]

The PT4 from an F22A3/9 seems like it would be ideal for this. It would also eliminate the knock sensor from the equation. The F22A3 has 9.8:1 compression ratio and an even more aggressive camshaft profile that the F22A6. Good luck finding one, though. Maybe you can come across one on eBay.co.uk.

Edit, there's one for a little over $125 plus shipping to the US.

Thank you for suggesting that. I just received the computer in the mail today. Can't use it yet cause I had to do some more repairs. My timing belt was loose and also I had a coolant pipe leak (the pipe the goes into the water pump). So I cleaned up the surfaces, replaced the o-ring, and used a generous amount of gray RTV. All I need to do is wait for it to cure now.


Straight from Great Britain... Came here fast too. Thanks again Jarrett for the suggestion.