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  1. #1
    OpelAus Participant NoX-Troniq's Avatar
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    Question Corsa B Engine conversion..... but what to?!?!?!

    I posted this here because I wanted more people to see it and get more peoples opinions.

    So I recently decided that I want an engine conversion for my stock 1.4i Corsa B, but I don't know what to.

    Ideally I'd love a red-top, but they are rare and hard to find in good condition without needing a rebuild these days (unless anyone can help with that, I don't know)

    So my other two options are to either have a stock GSi engine put in (Replace the gaskets and clean it up best I can etc.) The reason I'm thinking of this compared to an Astra engine is because it's quite literally a drop 'n' swap.

    OR

    Find an Astra engine (I can't remember which one) and drop that in instead.

    Now I'd like the Astra engine simply because it's bigger but I'm not sure what it's gonna be like to live with and whether or not it's likely will have any problems. I'd also like something with a stronger clutch, the reason being is because the one in mine currently is slowly wearing away and I can feel it in it's deteriorated state, that's all that really matters to me at this moment in time, however, I'll be oredering an M-Tech Shift kit for it after the conversion (Which is why I put it off for now).

    Thanks for reading and I hope to get some constructive feedback from you all :)

    Rikky.

    @chris_r, @corsaford
    Click here to enlarge Warning: This is an Old Thread
    This discussion is older than 120 days. information contained in it may no longer be current . Please think of the children before resurrecting this ancient thread!
    2000 Corsa B 1.4i
    GSi Body Kit | GSi Throttle body | GSi Sway bar | ProSport Coilovers | Morette Headlights | 2" Cannon exhaust w/ burn tip | Genuine OMP strut brace | Sports spoiler | Calibra calipers and Machined/Slotted RDA discs | 15" 'Cav Slab' Alloys
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  2. #2
    Cruise Co-ordinator adam_92's Avatar
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    You could find a decent redtop if you search hard and have patience... a 1.6 from a gsi will still need wiring looms swapping. If you are swapping wiring looms then you may aswell go with the 1.8 z18xe astra engine. It weighs the same as the x16/c16 but its 100kw straight out of the box. And a hell of a lot more common than the 1.6 engine so parts etc are cheaper. You can pick up an engine with under 100,000kms for $500.

    Good luck with whatever you decide
    OPEL ADDICT 1994 CORSA B 1.5D (ENGLAND) 2001 CORSA C 1.2L (ENGLAND) 2004 CORSA C 1.4L (SOLD) 2004 3.2 V6 VECTRA GTS (SOLD)
    1994 CORSA B GSI C16 CONVERTED TO Z18XE (SOLD) 2001 ASTRA VAN Z16SE (CURRENT)

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  3. #3
    OpelAus Participant NoX-Troniq's Avatar
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    I thought as much, thanks Click here to enlarge
    2000 Corsa B 1.4i
    GSi Body Kit | GSi Throttle body | GSi Sway bar | ProSport Coilovers | Morette Headlights | 2" Cannon exhaust w/ burn tip | Genuine OMP strut brace | Sports spoiler | Calibra calipers and Machined/Slotted RDA discs | 15" 'Cav Slab' Alloys
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  4. #4
    OpelAus Forum Addict chris_r's Avatar
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    Just to add to this, the 1.8 with F15/F17 gearbox is about 40-50kgs lighter than a redtop and F20 box behind it. So really, any power difference that the redtop will have in stock form will have it running on par with the 1.8 in terms of power to weight ratios, but the 1.8 will have a slight handling advantage over the C20XE in the Corsa B.

    Sure, you want big power and what not, then go for a C20XE and mod the crap out of it. But for the daily driven streeter, the Z18XE is a no-brainer. If you drive a car with a Z18XE, you'll find it's often a very smooth and free revving engine. In an Astra it's okay, but it is much more suited to the Corsa B & C models. Before I had the Z18 in my GSi, I had the C16 with the Mantzel-style "Powerbox" intake manifold. That manifold made a massive difference in top end speed and caused the engine to suffer a little down the bottom end of the rev range. Going from that to the Z18 gave me pretty much the same if not more in the top end, but was much more driveable down low too.
    2001 Opel Corsa C SRi: Z20LET EDS stage 3.5 173.9kW @ the wheels Build thread and here on FB: http://www.facebook.com/corsasriz20let
    2018 Ford Transit 290S: Transit #2, in that order and it's also a POS
    1998 Opel Combo B: It has begun, and it's stalled - Build thread and FB page
    2009 Holden Commodore VE SS: Gen IV LS power for the inner bogan

  5. #5
    OpelAus Participant NoX-Troniq's Avatar
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    I'm not looking massively at speed, it's pure acceleration I'm interested in, and to have a better ability on the overtake.

    Ok so It's set then I guess, 1.8 it is. What kind of mods can I do with one of those engines in terms of better intake and such? Do they use fly-by-wire throttles? (I hate those things >Click here to enlarge )
    2000 Corsa B 1.4i
    GSi Body Kit | GSi Throttle body | GSi Sway bar | ProSport Coilovers | Morette Headlights | 2" Cannon exhaust w/ burn tip | Genuine OMP strut brace | Sports spoiler | Calibra calipers and Machined/Slotted RDA discs | 15" 'Cav Slab' Alloys
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  6. #6
    OpelAus Forum Addict chris_r's Avatar
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    Click here to enlarge Originally Posted by NoX-Troniq Click here to enlarge
    I'm not looking massively at speed, it's pure acceleration I'm interested in, and to have a better ability on the overtake.

    Ok so It's set then I guess, 1.8 it is. What kind of mods can I do with one of those engines in terms of better intake and such? Do they use fly-by-wire throttles? (I hate those things >Click here to enlarge )
    In terms of intake for the Z18, there is a dBilas intake manifold out there, but it's ridiculously overpriced and it'll net you 2/3s of SFA in power/torque, unless you have a turbo. There was a guy on eBay who was selling a clone of this particular manifold, but had stopped a couple of years ago (VX Performance, same guy who does the clone powerboxes for the C16/X16). C16/X16 manifolds also differ to the Z18, hence you cannot use a GSi powerbox intake.

    Z18XE is drive by wire, X18XE1 is cable throttle, but in the Corsa B swap, you don't use either throttle, as you're using the Corsa B GSi's electronics and neither of these TBs are compatible with the GSi ECU. In my Corsa B swap, I originally used a throttle body from the GSi's C16XE and modified the cable bracket to suit. If you use a GSi throttle body, you need to redrill and tap the intake manifold where the TB mounts. I, however found another way around this in the form of a throttle body from the Holden JF Viva/Daewoo Lacetti. The Viva uses a F18D3 engine that is almost the same Opel Z18XE/X18XE1 engines, it differs in the fact it does not use a drive by wire throttle, has a different engine management system and it has a different thermostat housing that allows you to just replace the thermostat, rather than the entire housing. What this means is, the throttle body from the Viva bolts to the Z18's intake manifold without having to redrill/tap new holes, you do need a modified C14SE throttle cable (needs the inner Bowden cable to be 50mm longer and have a 5mm cable nipple fitted, Adelaide Cable Co at Regency Park charge about $35 to do it properly). The other upside to the Viva TB is the fact it's 80mm in size, the same as the Z18XE TB, versus the 60mm of the GSi TB. Again, I've got these bits all floating around from the GSi swap too.
    2001 Opel Corsa C SRi: Z20LET EDS stage 3.5 173.9kW @ the wheels Build thread and here on FB: http://www.facebook.com/corsasriz20let
    2018 Ford Transit 290S: Transit #2, in that order and it's also a POS
    1998 Opel Combo B: It has begun, and it's stalled - Build thread and FB page
    2009 Holden Commodore VE SS: Gen IV LS power for the inner bogan

  7. #7
    OpelAus Participant NoX-Troniq's Avatar
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    I'd rather just take pretty much the whole front end out of the an Astra and use that (if it fits) and I'd much prefer having the solid throttle cable instead of the fly-by one.
    I didn't kow you could use the GSi ECU with the Astra engines? wouldn't it be better to use the Astra ECU?
    Remember that when I get all the parts I need and such, I'll only have 5 days to do it. So the easier the better I guess.
    2000 Corsa B 1.4i
    GSi Body Kit | GSi Throttle body | GSi Sway bar | ProSport Coilovers | Morette Headlights | 2" Cannon exhaust w/ burn tip | Genuine OMP strut brace | Sports spoiler | Calibra calipers and Machined/Slotted RDA discs | 15" 'Cav Slab' Alloys
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  8. #8
    Cruise Co-ordinator adam_92's Avatar
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    You cant just use the astra subframe as the corsa is smaller and doesn't have a subframe. It would be better to use the gsi ecu as it is setup to work with the corsa b components (speedo etc) the throttle body that you use will either be a gsi one or a viva one which are both cable throttles not drive by wire (electronic)
    OPEL ADDICT 1994 CORSA B 1.5D (ENGLAND) 2001 CORSA C 1.2L (ENGLAND) 2004 CORSA C 1.4L (SOLD) 2004 3.2 V6 VECTRA GTS (SOLD)
    1994 CORSA B GSI C16 CONVERTED TO Z18XE (SOLD) 2001 ASTRA VAN Z16SE (CURRENT)

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  9. #9
    OpelAus Forum Hierarchy Wraith's Avatar
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    Threads like this come up all the time and in the end you can pretty much do what you want depending mainly on your budget, skies the limit all dependant on how much you want to spend in terms of money, time and effort.

    However if this is going to be a daily driver I'd advise against it unless your prepared to also do all the necessary things that need to be done to get it all legal, a lot of people never even think about that part of it until it's too late !

    If your swapping out the engine to another type of engine, you need to get it all engineer certified and RTA approved, otherwise you will never get it insured (as well as other legal issues if you get pulled over for a random RW inspection) and in the worst case scenario of an accident your on your own !

    The additional mods you need to do and the $$$ that come with it are IMHO not worth it unless it's something you really want and go all the way with it, these days it's getting harder and harder to get that sort of thing done, most people who do it are doing it for an offroad or drag or club car, not a daily driver...

    You can get away with doing mods to your existing set up and getting it insured a lot easier than a total different engine and other parts transplant - not trying to put you off just a heads up and something to think about if you havn't already done so.

    Good luck with it whichever way you go...
    My rides: 2004 Opel/Bertone TS Astra turbo convertible - 2012 Mercedes Benz C204 C Class coupe
    Others: 2009 Honda City VTiL sedan - 2015 Fiat 500
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  10. #10
    OpelAus Participant NoX-Troniq's Avatar
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    In that case, if you think about it, if I end up putting a 1.6 in it, it would essentially be a GSi wouldn't it?
    Not sure about car frames and stuff but isn't the car the same with the exception of the sporty parts. I can't imagine it'd be too hard to actually get it legally registered if if just got sports model parts and engine because they seem like virtually the same car.

    So optionally a GSi engine would be best, and considering you have one ready to go @adam_92 that's close by, it seems like it would be easiest.

    Yes, it really is something I want to do, I'ts honestly way to sluggish for my liking. Buy a whole new GSi seems ok too, but the problem with that is I can't take trust anything that's in it, unlike adam's which he said it works, I'd like to clean up the one adam has as much as possible before putting it in too, so new gaskets and such...

    What say you, guys?
    2000 Corsa B 1.4i
    GSi Body Kit | GSi Throttle body | GSi Sway bar | ProSport Coilovers | Morette Headlights | 2" Cannon exhaust w/ burn tip | Genuine OMP strut brace | Sports spoiler | Calibra calipers and Machined/Slotted RDA discs | 15" 'Cav Slab' Alloys
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