JDM F23 Swap (the fall and rise of my accord)

Gmoney

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hey guys,

im not a prominent poster here but i soon will be, ive been getting a few pm's about my f23 swap and if i had any issues so i decided to make a thread since i dont believe there is one.

the background-
i previously had the ulev f23 one day i was driving to visit some relatives about a 130 mile drive, about half way on the highway my cluster just goes crazy the oil light popped up, the check engine was blinking it was a catestrophic failure. the car felt as if it was going to stall but luckly it made it chugging along at a steady 50 mph because if i went faster it would feel as if it was going to shake apart. once i got to my destination i took it to a honda dealer since i didnt trust the techs there, they said there was a misfire on 3 out of 4 cylinders and no compression in cylinder 3 they wanted to charge me 2000 bucks i just bounced. the car sat in the driveway for 3 months

thinking it was over for the accord i stumbled upon an idea, there are a bunch of engine shops here in nj i called a few and they all wanted around 350 for a non ulev JDM engine so i was like i will give this a try. hearing of all the horror stories i wanted to go to a reputable shop, i remembered that there is this shop that everyone goes to purchase their b16's and type r's so i figured they would have a nice f23.

i called and they said they had 40 f23's to pick from so i got a ride there and it was motor heaven. i picked a mint f23 they charged me 45 bucks to deliver it to my shop of choice the engine has as they claim 30,000 to 65,000 miles max.

knowing this i took it to my shop were i had a friend install it, i had some worries about it the guy gave it to me for 300 so i though it was slightly fishy. i wanted this engine to last so there were a few things i changed:

-the knock sensor was broken (the one on the old engine was broken too maybe thats why it broke?)
-new water pump
-new thermostat
-new belts
-new timing belt
-new balancer shaft belt
-new oil filter
-and the obvious oil change

i picked up my car and it was like woah it never ran this good. i read online that the non-ulev engines have some extra ponies and i dont know if it was in my head but it felt a lot more powerful than the old engine i was in aw. my accord is now alive and well and my engine bay got a little upgrade

other than the knock sensor the engine was good, i changed those other parts to to make sure it lasts a while i have a lot of plans for my baby

**will post pics when i get them to work
 

Pat

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Thank you so much, this was exactly what I needed to hear.
I get my motor tomorrow. Same deal. I will be changing the same things except maybe not the thermostat.
I sure hope my experience is like yours. I will let you guys know in a week how it all pans out.
Thanks again Gmoney.
 

Pat

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Got my motor. $350 cash. Motor is super clean. Even my mechanic says its the cleanest used motor he has seen. Will be done this week. Will keep you posted after I get it home and put a few miles on it.
 

Gmoney

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sounds like a good start keep us posted. i wanna see if your first impression will be like mine
 

Pat

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I will. Its in the shop as we speak. Only problem is, cause I paid cash. No receipt. No warranty. Taxes here are absurd and it was only a 90 day warranty anyway, so I risked it.
 

Slowfinger

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Great Story Gmoney! Was thinking of doing the same with my '02 coupe 4cyl. First I need to take the pan off on the original engine just to rule out a possible simple repair (hearing a knocking sound around 2000rpm) instead of having to swap out the motor. But if have to swap it out then I guess I have to :shrug:
 

ChrisPuh_Gone

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Going this same route soon.. (as we discussed) lol, hope to have the same results too!
 

Pat

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Hey guys, just an update.
I spoke with my Mechanic. (He is a trusted friend of my fathers since before I was born, so I do believe what he says)
He had a few snags. He said the intake system was different. he had to switch over the Throttle Body and Intake and a few Coolant components.
For instance, my car has Cruise. The motor I got, did not.
I was kinda under the impression this was a direct swap, but there is a bit more to it than that, and he had to get a few parts he hadn't anticipated.

Anything like that on your deal Gmoney?

Patrick.
 

Pat

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"Re: What is the difference in the F23a reg & Black valve cover????
Exactly the same ****. No need to change any of the plugs or sensors. Just re-use your USDM intake and exhaust manifolds, and you'll be golden. I did the same for my swap and has been running fine for 2 yrs now.
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He had to switch Intake manifold... didn't see that before hand.
 
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Gmoney

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dont want to bad mouth your mechanic but he might be trying to charge you more money, it is a direct bolt on, besides the knock sensor and the maintenance stuff you just got to drop the motor in there
 
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