[NecroFIesh]

Sup guys, I'm in the middle of my 2nd swap right now...this one is a K20/24 Frank into an RSX chassis. Figured I'd start a thread detailing the build before it's too late. I'm just about ready to mount the motor to the chassis at this point...this is gonna be pic heavy so get your popcorn....

I bought an '02 RSX-S earlier this year. The seller brought it to the dealership with the motor locked up. She was a middle aged woman who had bought it for her son a few years back. Apparently, the son wasn't aware that driving the piss out of the car and not keeping up with oil changes tends to cause problems. I negotiated the blue book value of the car minus the cost of a new engine and took delivery early last May...

I got the oil pan off and soon realized the issue - rod bearing seized in cylinder 3. I removed all bearings, inspected the crank and looked for any other damage. Surprisingly, the crank was barely touched and the oil in the pan had zero metallic flake. The screen in the spool valve filter was also clear of anything so I thought I must've gotten lucky. I know I should've replaced the crank but considering replacement bearings were readily available and OEM cranks are stupid expensive, I opted for the former and replaced bearings only. The motor turned over super smooth by hand and once everything was bolted back up, the car fired right up. It got to temperature and idled fine, no codes present but had audible rod knock at about 2300 rpm in the same cylinder as the seized bearing. I was surprised the sensor didn't pick this up but figured at this point, let's do a swap and so now here we are...

Here's the car - 2002 Type-S in Nighthawk Black pearl with full OEM A-spec kit.....

Here's the motor - 2005 JDM K24a 3 lobe from HMotorsonline.com...

Shout out to Steve at HMotorsonline for the clean K24a. I highly recommend sourcing your engine from a trusted and reliable provider that's been in the game for over 20 years like these guys. The only catch was the wait time to receive the motor as it was just over a month for it to ship and arrive to me here in VA from Cali. The motor is super clean and came overpacked and strapped to a pallet as seen above. It's also in amazing condition as you'll see in the photos to follow...stay tuned.

-G

 

[NecroFIesh]

The plan for this build is simply to be a reliable daily driver with usable power for when I need it. Obviously the spike in torque is gonna be fun but I do need this car to last so I'm not gonna be revving it past 7600 - 7800rpm even with the Type-S pump. I have an AP2 and am no stranger to the K series as can be seen in my sig below...

Here are some more pics of us prepping the K20 to come out....

Here are a few pics of the K24 getting prepped...

More to follow with pics of the K24 stripped down, comment and subscribe if interested.

-G

 

[Stefanzoh]

That RSX is a hell of a score.

 

[yaggs]

Wow, great find! That rsx and engine look super clean! I have an 03 in nhbp also with the same engine on a stand. Really looking forward to this build thread! Are you pulling engine from the top or dropping it below?

I won't be swapping until my current clutch gives out. Again, nice score!

 

[NecroFIesh]

Wow, great find! That rsx and engine look super clean! I have an 03 in nhbp also with the same engine on a stand. Really looking forward to this build thread! Are you pulling engine from the top or dropping it below?

I won't be swapping until my current clutch gives out. Again, nice score!

Thanks, I've followed your posts and recall your car. I'm going to drop the motor from below since the head is already off. (See pics...)


K20a2 head removed and some pics of the cams...

After the head was taken off, I got started on bussin' down the K24...

I had been warned about the possibility of the water passage studs being seized to the block. Luckily, with the use of patience and hand tools, the removal was easy. I'm planning on using all of the accessories from my K20 as well as the water passage to utilize the oil cooler upgrade. Stay tuned...

-G

 

[NecroFIesh]

And now some pics of the timing cover off, the oil pan removed and the balance shaft oil pump to be replaced...

Here we are with removing the oil passage and plugging it up. Pics of the K20 head mounted and timing components installed in the next post...

 

[LotusElise]

Thanks for sharing your pictures from the Frankenstein-swap, very nice!

I have an AP2 and am no stranger to the K series as can be seen in my sig below...

I would love if you post some pictures of the engine bay of that ride too. The F20C1 engine is always nice to see, especially in an enginebay . Did you sell your K-swapped DC2?

Here are some more pics of us prepping the K20 to come out....

It lasts over 11 years in that car, didn't it?

 

[NecroFIesh]

Thanks for sharing your pictures from the Frankenstein-swap, very nice!

I would love if you post some pictures of the engine bay of that ride too. The F20C1 engine is always nice to see, especially in an enginebay . Did you sell your K-swapped DC2?



It lasts over 11 years in that car, didn't it?

Danke for your kind words and enthusiasm! I'll have to take some shots of the S2000 engine bay for you, I'm in love with that car. It's literally my daily driver and even in the cold winter months with the top up, it engages me completely. The driving experience in that chassis is second to none.

I did indeed sell the DC4 in June of 2014. I had just purchased a 2014 Acura TL SH-AWD 6 speed and had to let the Integra go. I posted it for sale in a local Virginia forum and a nice gentleman flew all the way from Chicago to pick it up. One of my favorite cars and a lot of blood, sweat and tears went into that build. I still miss it...

As for the lifespan of this latest RSX...well, let's see..it was a MY 2002 and the motor seized this past May so...20 years it lasted. I don't doubt that it would've continued to run strong had the previous owner kept up with maintenance and not starved the engine of oil.

 

[NecroFIesh]

A promised, here are some pics of the trimmed Type-S oil pump and refreshed cylinder head mounted to the K24 block, as well as the timing components bolted up...

Also, for your viewing pleasure...a little teaser of some upgraded components for the build.

-K20a OEM valve cover
-PW: JDM carbon fiber coil pack cover
-Drag Cartel billet oil dipstick

Thanks to everyone commenting and taking the time to view the thread. More to follow in 2023, everyone have a happy and safe new year.

-G

 

[LotusElise]

The driving experience in that chassis is second to none.

Here in Europe many use it as track car because of the almost 50/50 balance of front to rear.

One of my favorite cars and a lot of blood, sweat and tears went into that build. I still miss it...

Yeap, that chassis is unique and today it is a legend. Here in Germany these come quite expensive, with a K-series in it you need a good stand to keep up with those prices.

Well, let's see..it was a MY 2002 and the motor seized earlier this year so...20 years it lasted.

That's amazing .

Thanks to everyone commenting and taking the time to view the thread. More to follow in 2023, everyone have a happy and safe new year.

Same to you, a happy and safe new year.

 

[yaggs]

A promised, here are some pics of the trimmed Type-S oil pump and refreshed cylinder head mounted to the K24 block, as well as the timing components bolted up...

What kind of work was done on the head? I know the exhaust valve guides are prone to cracking with age/milage/over reving. That head looks in pretty good shape tho. Curious what all was done with it.

Really enjoying the quality pics! Keep em coming for sure!

Happy New Year!

 

[NecroFIesh]

What kind of work was done on the head? I know the exhaust valve guides are prone to cracking with age/milage/over reving. That head looks in pretty good shape tho. Curious what all was done with it.

Really enjoying the quality pics! Keep em coming for sure!

Happy New Year!

The head was completely broken down and inspected, ports cleaned out, valve guides and keepers replaced then reassembled. The valves were lashed and put into spec, the head was put back on using ARP head studs. The head was in great shape overall so not much else needed to be addressed with it....

I've only got a few pics to share right now, albeit integral parts of the build...enjoy!

Hondata K-Pro & Hybrid Racing throttle body adapter for RBC manifold:

Honda RBC intake manifold:

Taco Bell breakfast burrito :

Next up will be the pics of the oil cooler install using the Honda Prelude adapter. I'll update this thread soon with more of the process. Thanks guys,

-G

 

[yaggs]

I'm planning on using all of the accessories from my K20 as well as the water passage to utilize the oil cooler upgrade

I think I remember seeing a video that you might have to bend that coolant bypass pipe outward near the thermostat in order for it to make a good seal. Lmk if this is truly the case.

Curious who u went through for the IM and valve cover? Can't say how much I'm loving this build btw

 

[NecroFIesh]

I think I remember seeing a video that you might have to bend that coolant bypass pipe outward near the thermostat in order for it to make a good seal. Lmk if this is truly the case.

Curious who u went through for the IM and valve cover? Can't say how much I'm loving this build btw

So, I ended up not using the Prelude adapter piece....my K24a block was not capped off on the side port where the oil cooler mounts so I simply bolted the K20a2 oil cooler assembly onto the block and ran it that way. The 10mm allen plug remained in place and I used the uncapped side port to route the oil cooler. There was very slight manipulation of the coolant bypass pipe, if any to make it work. Here's the thread I referenced once I realized I didn't need the Prelude adapter, see post 63...

How to: type s water pump and oil cooler with k24


As for the intake manifold and valve cover, I sourced the manifold from my local Honda dealership and the valve cover from Matt at ICBMotorsport.com

ICB Motorsport

The manifold I'll trim myself and the valve cover will probably be the last thing I install as like a red cherry to this Frankenstein sundae. Thanks for your enthusiasm and comments, yaggs.


Making great progress so far, enjoy the pics....

Aaaaaaaaaaaand just about there, installed 90%:

There's a lot more still to do with the fuel system, intake and header but we're almost there. More updates soon,

-G

 

[yaggs]

Very smart putting the engine on the subframe first! Coming together quickly

 

[NecroFIesh]

The car is running...

As she sits right now, it's on the stock Type-S intake manifold, throttle body and air box. It's also running an open header because my PLM has not arrived yet. Reason why the stock intake components are on and not the RBC is because my dumb ass opted for a K24 Hondata intake manifold gasket and not a K20 as I require. Stupid me but yeah...I ordered the correct one and so we'll wait...

Starting it up for the first time with an open header in an empty shop was deafening. With this taking the place of the S2K as my daily, I need to keep exhaust diameter to 2.5". Please don't tell me how much more power I'll make with a 3" because I already know. I commute 30 miles round trip every day with 25 of those miles on the highway. For now, the setup will be the PLM Power Driven K-Series K24 K20 Header for the RSX/EP3 : PLM Header mated to the HKS Hi-power : HKS Hi-Power that was on the car when I bought it. We'll see what fits and what doesn't, make the adjustments then go from there...

Thanks to everyone viewing the thread, more updates to follow.

-G

 

[yaggs]

I need to keep exhaust diameter to 2.5". Please don't tell me how much more power I'll make with a 3" because I already know

What kind of exhaust are you thinking? I will be running into the same issue. 40 mi round trip. I was planning on the q300. Its 2.75" i believe. Hopefully drone isn't too bad.

 

[PIKA2]

Looking good. Are you just sticking with 2.5" exhaust to keep the noise down?

 

[Eh2gsr]

And now some pics of the timing cover off, the oil pan removed and the balance shaft oil pump to be replaced...

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Here we are with removing the oil passage and plugging it up. Pics of the K20 head mounted and timing components installed in the next post...

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Why do you plug up this oil passage? I’m doing a similar build sourced a k24a from hmo as well your a few steps ahead of me I’m about to do the oil pump, timing and such and was wondering what benefits this has

 

[Brotatochip]

That is an oil feed for the balance shaft on the stock oil pump. If you don't plug it (with K20 pump) it will cause low oil pressure.