B20 swap need help

[johnnymd]

There was a problem with a b18 block so I swaped the vtec (ITR I believe) head on to a B20 block for somebody reinstalled the engine and now it won't start, and I can't figure it out.

Two things I did not reinstall the knock sensor and the crank case breather box. I can not find a allen wrench big enough to remove the plug for the knock sensor.. but I'm under the understanding that, that would not cause the engine not to start.

I've gone over the timing marks several times... they seem to be right, I will say when the cams were lined up perfectly (both dots next to each other) the crank pulley seemed to be a half tooth off. After the engine wouldn't start I loosened the skunk2 adjustable cams and then moved the crank the half tooth to make it exactly tdc. Still won't start

The cylinders are reading around 180psi, and the spark plugs are wet with fuel. The issue seems to be the distributor... at TDC it seems to be pointing closer to the number 2 terminal than the number 1. (which doesn't make sense to me since the engine was supposivly running with the same head and distributor before) The only thing I can imagine is that the cam needs to be adjusted so that the distributor is in the right location... but I have no experience adjusting cams (except for the half tooth I already adjusted). I never moved the cams between engine blocks but possibly they were adusted while the machine shop had them.

The distributor is off of a SOHC engine... but I was told that they had made it work.

Would the B20 block change the timing from a B18 block... maybe thats my problem and the distributor being the wrong one just won't adjust far enough for the new block?

I did move the wires clockwise on the distributor one terminal and it did spit and sputter.

Can anyone offer some advice to what the problem might be? I'm a pretty good mechanic but as far as import tuning and vtec engines this is my first at bat. Please Help

[klungemonger]

I had the same issue when I put a B18B into my Civic and used SOHC distributor internals installed into the B18B distributor housing, which I did to keep the proper dist. plug for my harness to mate up with. That is what I discovered also, that the sohc dist. mechanism is 90-degrees off, and you can't adjust it that far. Took me a couple days of cranking and checking everything before I figured that out! I suppose if you did index all your plug wires back one post you might be able to dial it in, but I would just get the VTEC dohc distributor and make that the end of your troubles.

One thing though...try moving the wires counterclockwise on the dist rather than clockwise, see if it helps. I say that because I can't remember if the sohc fires 90 degrees retarded or advanced on a B-motor.

Have you properly set up the oil lines and stuff for the VTEC head on the B20?

[johnnymd]

Thank you for your reply. Your the only one that has confirmed what I had thought. And your right it was 90 degrees off. Although, the engine that was in it before the B20b was a b18 and it was supposivly running before. I've put a lot of threads out on different sites and have gotten a lot of info back but, none seemed to be right, that may be because I'm not very good at explaining my problem, but I think its that most people wouldn't have used a SOHC distributor to begin with The car is now at the import tuners, because it wasn't my car I was working on it for somebody else and had gotten where I spent way too much time on it, and my guess is that putting the correct distributor on will mean reprograming the computer? And that is beyond my scope of knowledge and/or desire But I'm glad to hear from you, because it confirms what I had thought. Thank You.

[johnnymd]

oh, and yes, the oil lines were set up for the vetec head. The Vtec head was already in the car and the lines already set up for it, all I had to do was take out the oil sensor plug and replace it with the fitting and connect the steel braided hose.

[klungemonger]

Putting the correct distributor on shouldn't require any reprogramming. Electrically all the distributors are the same, only the mechanical part is off.