Just joined: 1987 CRX project 50mpg(or as close as possible)

[Project 50mpg]

Hey guys and gals, just thought I'd introduce myself. My name is Dan and I've been lurking around this site for a while now. Tons of good information, especially the d15z1 swap which i'll get to later. I currently drive a 2006 Nissan FRontier KingCab 2wd. Its lifted and I love it but its a freakn gas hog. I drive too much for work and my truck averages 14mpg. Theres no way I'm getting rid of it cause its too much fun so I figured a 2nd vehicle focused at mpg was needed. Trying to stay as cheap as possible with the least amount of inconviences as possible.

So tomorrow I'm purchasing an 1987 CRX SI with 191k for $500. I drove it today, and IMO its well worth it. Runs smooth and shifts smooth. Brakes need to be replaced. I'm pretty sure its mpfi 1.5, can someone confirm its mpfi??Engine and trans are original, which is great because I hate finding CRX with half done engine swaps in hopes of more performance, but never quite figure it out.. The spark plugs, fuel injectors, intake, engine air breather, fuel gauge, fuel pump, fuel filter, and fuel rail are all fresh, within 1000 miles. 17 year old kid owns it but has never been licensed. His friend lent him the money and he hasent paid yet, so the friend posted it on craigslist before he started ripping it apart. I met them both today and the kid looked pretty bummed at what was happening but oh well. Cosmeticly it has issues. A pretty nasty dent on the passenger side door that goes into the quater panel. I know thats gonna be a pain to fix. Small dent in the driver door. Sunroof is stuck open mechanically and feels like its ready to fall apart. Hope I can atleast close it. One flat tire. One of the dents is on the quater panel, which i know is going to be hell to fix, but whatever. Interior needs work too. No radio, broken hood release mount, One of the best things is the A/C still works but needs recharge. Great for Vegas summers. Also CarFAX checked out no accidents and passed emissions every 2 years and has been in NV for atleast 12 years.

Anyway, tomorrow I will check the coolant, oil, brake fluid, and take off the tires to get a look if the axles or trans is leaking before I buy. If everything looks good I'm an owner. Anything else you guys suggest checking?????

I'll probally milk this car as longas I can but really want to do a D15Z1 engine swap (92-95 civic vx) with a 88-91 CRX HF trans in hopes of hitting 50mpg or better one day. I allready found a nearly complete JDM engine at Nippon motors for $530 shipped. Total cost of the swap should run me about $1500 or so. Regardless of what i do, I dont wanna spend more then $2500 (within the year) on trying achieve a reliable vehicle with excellent gas mileage. I've done alot of research on the swap but I want your guys opinions on this. Is it a practical swap?? I would love to hear some feedback from the pros on here


Here's pic of my truck, I'll try to get a pic of the CRX tomorrow If everything goes well.

[theholycow]

I imagine the CRX can hit 50mpg with just the HF tranny swap and its current engine. I don't know much about them.

However, I do know that your truck can do better than 14mpg. EPA rating for the 2004 V6 4WD automatic is 15/19; I'm guessing that's approximately what your truck is. That's slightly better than my older, larger, heavier, more powerful, but not lifted truck. I bet you could squeeze more than 14mpg from it, if you've got any significant amount of rural or highway driving vs. city driving.

[nowhhs]

I spent $2500 to do my swap including the cost of the vehicle, and I had to re-ring the engine, as well as some optional things. If you're doing all your own work, you should be well under that amount. Be careful with those JDM engines, they're not always in as good a condition as claimed.

I know starting in 88, the SI was MPFI, but I'm not sure about 87. Some of those cars were still carbureted, but probably not the SI. It won't matter when you do the swap anyway, you'll want to use the JDM injection.

As for opinions as to whether its a practical swap, that depends on why you're doing it. You'll never recover the cost of the swap in gas savings, I almost agree with theholycow, just the transmission will get you into the mid to upper 40s at least. Having said that, I like having a 20 year old car that gets better mileage than anything you can buy today. I needed a new engine anyway, and although it would have been cheaper to just rebuild my old one, the Z1 gets better mileage as well as having more HP. I would do it again, which is the ultimate test of an engine swap. I'm currently contemplating putting a Z1 in my MG, But thats for another thread.