I've been pondering this idea for some time now, and I think it is a definite possibility.

Imagine having 140hp and 130 ft lbs of torque, better gear ratios for highway driving (120km/h @ buzzing rpms isn't cool), better fuel economy, and all this on 87 octane pump gas!

I'm speaking of the R18 - 1.8L i-vtec motor from the 2006-07 Honda Civic. Now I've done some searching, and I definitely think that this swap is more than do-able.

If the K20 can fit in the civic si, and the R18 is the base model civic motor... and since the K20 can fit in the Fit, the R18 should definitely fit into the Fit!

The R18 is a lighter motor than the K20, and is smaller by a fair bit.

The final kicker... the biggest thing with the R-series swap is that you can pretty much get a brand new R18 motor off ebay for under 2k. I saw one this morning with 1,134 miles selling for $1600US "buy it now". Compare that to a $10k swap (when all is said and done) with a K20, or spending $4-5k on a turbo/supercharger... and don't forget you have to run +91 octane fuel with the K20 and FI options.

I believe the total cost for motor, mounts, tranny, ECU, not including labor, would be around $2k. That's way less than any other option for that much power. Well, besides nitrous.... but that's another ticking time bomb option.

Have I peaked anyones interest? I think if we have enough interest we can make this swap a reality.. I haven't seen one done yet, but the cost is so minimal and practical.. I know its not 200hp, and its not boosted.. but 140hp/130tq in our little cars will help a lot and I think would be a blast to drive. The reliability factor is huge aswell... a stock honda motor and with no boost.

I tried Hasport to see if there is a swap kit/engine mounts in the process, but I couldn't get through.. hopefully there is cause this swap is filled with positives.

How sweet would a Fit 1.8 badge look on the back hatch

 

That's a pretty good idea! The numbers would be similar to a small FI setup around 5-6 psi. You got my attention!

 

I like, and we just had a 1.8 motor pulled out of a crashed civic too

 

I'm in for answers on the mounts... sounds interesting.

 

it's an interesting idea, but i don't get it; what are we trying to do here? are we trying to get an many people as we can to contact hasport?

 

I was initially trying to see how much interest there is in doing this swap... and to find out if it is possible.

Also, since this post is in the Greater Calgary Community, I was hoping to see if there are people willing to try this, cause if I do, and do my swap myself, and it works out good and others are interested then perhaps we can all help one another out and do the swap ourselves to make things easier.

I've heard rumors of this being done, but no actual evidence...

And a little extra persuasion to Hasport from members wouldn't hurt either

 

wow, this sounds like a good alternative to FI and a K-swap... Tagged for interest.

 

I'd definitely be up to do some work if you are planning on doing this...

 

That is one of the most apealing project for our Fit!!!

 

Thats one of the first things I've thought of with engine swap. I hate the fact that I have to use 91 octane for FI or K20. The R18 gets amazing gas mileage and its readily available.

Another option is the K24 from a Honda Accord. Its got 165hp (IIRC) and it still takes regular gas

 

There is plenty of evidence right here in FitFreak. If you look hard enough you can find a big post with photos and all it has been done no biggy.

 

So you wanna throw us the link then if it's no trouble for you to find??

 

So yeah, I did a search...no one has done the R18a swap yet...only a K20...gettinafit has Hasport working on the K20 swap with him. Good thing about the K20 swap is that the setup of the engine is similar to ours in that the exhaust manifold and headers are towards the firewall. Hasport is making custom headers for the K20 swap into the Fit. This looks like a doable project for a few of us over a weekend. I'd be up for something like this. I think the R18a is possible, but it's going to take a bit more work since the setup is different. How much will a K20 cost anyways?

Anyone know people who can get engines in? My cousin knows the owner of JDM Source I believe so I might be able to get a helping hand sourcing some of these engines for transplants

 

K20 is way outta the price range of what I was initially thinking.. not that I don't think its a good swap, but for the motor, trans, ecu, tuning, mounts etc. It'll end up costing close to $10gs. Seriously. Plus you need to run premium fuel.

I know the R18 has a different setup (ie. header in the front, intake in the back) but the cost is under $2gs. The reason why I brought this up is cause of the practicality of the R18 swap, regular octane pump gas, good power, and mileage.

 

hmmm I thought it would be a $3k to $4k project. Thought most of the money was for the installers. I saw one on eBay for $3k that includes the tranny, but didn't mention ECU's etc. We'd need all of that good stuff for the R18 as well and will probably need custom motor mounts too, that'll be pricey as well...

 

I think engine mounts are around 5-600US.. I spoke to one of the guys at speedtech about a K20 swap, and they mentioned that it would be around 6500 for a K20 with tranny, plus the ecu, mounts, tuning, and install.. I think he said it'd be around 8-10k.. thats where I got that number from..

I just wanted an alternative to the K20, FI premium fuel necessity... I wanted regular pump gas, and just a little more power..

A K20 in a fit would be too much power IMO..

 

Custom drive axles are also needed....the list is huge.

There was an article in Super Street a few months back that had a break down of parts needed to do the swap. So 10k is a reasonable price tag for such an undertaking.

too much power? no such thing

 

lol well install we can do ourselves!! And I think we can get a decent K20 for $4k with all the goods...bah there is just too much crap here to take into account...Yeefit just stick with a turbo hahaha

 

A turbo would be fun, but it would reduce the engine life etc... I thought this would be a viable option, and I still think it could be.. maybe i'll make sure its doable before I look into it anymore..

 

I'd be up for the work if we can make this R18a fit without modifying everything up front. It sounds like a daunting task and if we don't figure out all the angles, I can see the bill racking up really fast...