Honda Civic Engine Swap Compatibility: Things You Should Know

Being a car nerd, you may wonder if the engines of the Honda Civic model years are interchangeable. Honda Civic is one of the few vehicles with the highest modification adaptability, allowing you to swap the engines conveniently.

Before doing that, several factors need understanding, such as trim version, body type, engine size, etc., while doing an engine swap in your Honda Civic. Since engine swapping is costly and tedious, you must understand the Honda Civic engine swap compatibility.

Go through this article, and it will present you with all the facts, instructions, and compatibility for doing a viable engine swap.

Honda Civic Engine Interchangeability

Honda released the Civic globally back in 1972. Since then, eleven generations of Honda Civic have been introduced. There have been many changes in cars leaping from generation to generation.

An engine change is one of the best ones among them. But most of the engines from 1992 to 2021 are similar in some categories, which ensures many Honda Civic engine swap options.

Honda Civic Engine Swap Within Same Generation

Till now, there are eleven distinguished generations of Honda Civic starting from the model year 1972, which was released as the 1973 model. The engines back then were mostly extinct and could not be found in a way for swapping.

Currently, the generations of Honda Civic capable of engine swapping are stated below.

• Fifth Generation (1991-1994)
• Sixth Generation (1995-1999)
• Seventh generation (2000-2004)
• Eighth Generation (2005-2011)
• Tenth Generation (2011-2014)
• Eleventh generation (2015-2020)

The essential engine specification remains almost identical within the mentioned model years of the same generation. That is why swapping the engine with the same generation is easy and cost-effective.

Moreover, you do not have to pay extra for changing the car body or buying extra components for the engine swapping. For example, while swapping a 1998 Civic engine with 1996 one, you must know the 1998 Honda Civic engine swap compatibility beforehand.

The 1998 Honda Civic had a four-cylinder, 106 horsepower producing, 1.6-liter gasoline Engine. A similar 16-valve, 1.6L engine is used in the 1996 Honda Civic models. This makes the perfect fit for upgrading the engine in your 1996 Civic using the engine of the 1998 Civic.

Honda Civic Engine Swap of the OBD Engines

2000 and the earlier year models of Honda Civic were the OBD series. And most of those engines were allowed to swap between the same models or other OBD series only. So, if you get to know the OBD series name in those different year models, it can be helpful for you to swap.

3rd Gen Honda Civic Engine Swap(1984-1987)

The 3rd gen Honda Civic came with EV, EW, and ZC engines. And some of the D series engines can be suitabale for these engine swaps. And these are- D16Z6, D16Y8. However, B18B1 is also interchangeable with the 3rd gen Honda Civic engines. Besides, DOHC D16A can be used as a 3rd gen CIvic swap for its being bolt-on mounting system.

4th Gen Honda Civic Engine Swap(1987-1990)

Well, if you have the 4th gen Honda Civic, B16A, B16A2, B16B, B17A, B18A, D16A8, D16A9, and ZC engines can be the most easy swap. However, there are some twist as some of these engines can be swapped without additional bolt in mount and some need mount. nd the following table can help you in this-

5th Gen Honda Civic Engine Swap(1991-1994)

For 5th gen Honda Civic engine interchangeability, you have options of B16A2, B16A3, B16B, B17A, B18B, B18C1, B18C5, D16Y8, D16Z6, and H22A engines. Well, all of these come with bolt-in options so you can find these easily installable, except one thing you need is VTEC wiring. However, in case of installing a H22A egine, you need additional mounting kits as the swap with this engine won’t be as easy as the other ones.

Warning:

B16A engine is not recommended for 5th gen Honda Civic engine swap as it might be pretty expensive along with a lot of modifications.

6th Gen Honda Civic Engine Swap(1995-1999)

Well, for the 6th gen Honda Civic, engine swapping options are- B16A2, B16A3, B16B, B18B1, B18C1, B18C5, D16Y8, D16Z6, H22A engines. And here not all the engines are easy and quick to mount. SOme of these VTEC wiring while other needs OBD conversions. And the following table can help, we guess-

7th Gen Honda Civic Engine Swap(2000-2004)

For the 7th gen Honda Civic, K20A2, K20A3, and K24 are the best options for engine swap. However, both needs shift linkage modifications.

8th Gen Honda Civic Engine Swap(2005-2010)

In the case of 8th gen Honda Civic engine swap, you can swap the K series engines with R18. It would be the best option. But experts recommend not to swap R18 engines with B series B20.

9th Gen Honda Civic Engine Swap(2011-2014)

K20A, K20Z3, and K24 are some of the 9th gen Honda Civic engine swap options that you can opt for. among these K20Z3 is known to be the best option.

Cross-Generation Honda Civic Engine Swap

The Honda Civic has been very friendly in terms of high-end modifications. This is possible due to various trim and body types available in all the model years of Honda Civic within different generations.

Therefore, by making minor changes, you can also swap the engines of different generations of Honda Civic. The 2008 Honda Civic, which is an eighth-generation model, comprises 140 HP, 1.8L, four cylinders, and sixteen valve engine (gasoline fuel) as the base engine.

On the contrary, the 2018 Civic comes with a 158 HP, 2.0L four-cylinder, sixteen valve engine (gasoline fuel). Therefore, except for the displacement, the size of the engines is almost similar.

As a result, by doing some adjustments and fine-tuning, you can use the 2018 engine on the 2008 Honda Civic. There have been many series of engines since 1992. The most compatible engines for swapping in the Honda Civic irrespective of generation are below.

And among these, the K series are very powerful types of engines enabled with turbo and considered the best engine swap for Honda Civic. These are swappable within the 2002-2006 Honda Civic

Things To Keep In Mind While Swapping Engine

Although most engine models are swappable in Honda Civic models, you need to keep track of some points as an additional precaution.

• Transmission model and type
• Fuel compatibility (gasoline and natural gas)
• OBD compatibility of the engine
• Availability of turbo and VTEC technology. (Earlier models of Civic engines didn’t possess VTEC)
• Trims and body type selection.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Conclusion

If you have a Honda Civic or any model year, you must take advantage of the versatility and compatibility of this car. You can swap the Civic engine with another engine within the same generation or with some mods.

You can also put in engines from higher generations of Honda Civic for a powerful performance. To avoid additional costs of adjustment and tuning, you must know the Honda Civic engine swap compatibility first.

We hope this post has been informative and helpful in assisting you in swapping the engine in your Honda Civic easily.

You Can Also Read:

• Honda Civic ECU Problems: Detect the Issues and Solve Them
• [We’ve Included Everyting] Solving the P1361 Code Honda Civic Error!
• Who Makes Honda Batteries? [Everything You Should Know]

M A Susama

Here is our Front-end technician who has worked on hundreds of vehicles of different renowned brands so far. And her 8 years of experiences help her monitor and manage the whole workflow of this website and run the site smoothly. After graduation, she finds her interest in aiding people through her writing offline or online. This interest ignites and inspires her every time to present you with the most effective and secure tips and guides to troubleshoot your car.