crv b20/ vtec

[CRX]

AFAIK, only the Type-R had a block girdle as OE? There are some pretty good aftermarket ones available. The OE honda one is the cheapest, but it will not 'bolt on' as the non-girdled blocks have a taller centre main-bearing cap, and the Type-R does not. I had mine machined to match the others. There is also some machining required for the dowels etc if you want to do it properly. Lastly, you will need to modify the oil pickup, or use the Type-R one.

For me, the girdle is extra 'insurance' for if you want to rev up into 9+.

Some people say block-guards are the best but I would only use one if I was going to hand-fit (ie NOT tap it in) and then have it welded in place, and then bored. Compared to that - I'd rather put a bit more effort in and go with Darton MID sleeves.

The weak points of the LS / B20 bottom ends are (in order):
> rod bolts
> conrods
> head gasket stability
> sleeves

(ie: if you are only going to do only one thing it must be ARP rod bolts)

My motor runs stock sleeves, and I did put a Type-R girdle on (seeing as I was doing it myself it was uber cheap to do). The only thing I did to improve block rigidity is I have solid inserts and used ARP head studs with a bit of extra torque on them. The extra 'squash' sandwitching the head gasket and stopping vibration at high revs from unsettling the top end. I race my car and it will run all day long up to 8500. I believe it would rev higher safely too but my cams only make power till there so I have set the rev limiter at 8500.

BTW, similar to boosted applications, with even a mildly modded B20 the tuning is super important. Saving money by using a piggy-back and VAFC "dash-candy" on your B20 is like applying to join the club of guys that say the B20 has pi$$-poor sleeves and they crack "just like that"...

I have a very basic (ie cheap) stand-alone ECU, I was able to install it myself, and spent the money on getting it set-up on a dyno. You need to have the will and ability to sort out all the other parameters yourself: start-up enrichment; cold-running; temperature compensation; etc etc

Oops! I'm waffling...