Diy
if you really want to do it yourself i don't think you need to remove the engine for piston/rod swap, we didn't have to when we took em out of civics at my auto tech school, i think basically, you'd have to drain the oil, drain the coolant, take the head off, take the oil pan off to start. unbolt the rod caps to free the rods from the crankshaft, you're supposed to stamp or or mark the rod cap with its mating rod so they don't get mixed up, also, you have to cover the now exposed threads of the rod with rubber tubing pieces or some tape to keep it from knicking or scratching the crankshaft, and push the piston/rod assembly out from the top. our engines are too new to need a ridge cutter to get them out, but its good to check for a ridge first. i think you need to heat the new piston to get the wrist pin through it and the small end of the rod and i guess it depends on if there are those locking things for the free floating type but i'm not sure about that part. you'll need the two compression piston rings and the oil ring with the proper gaps and then one of those metal sleeves you can get at the auto parts store. you need to liberally oil the sleeve and tighten around the piston so that the piston rings are flush within the ringlands. place the new rod/piston assembly through the cylinder, be sure the piston is positioned the right way, usually there's an arrow pointing to the front, make sure the threads are covered, cause you can really scratch that crank easily, then when its all lined up, get a mallet and bang the piston into the oiled cylinder and out of the sleeve then pull the whole thing down lower and turn the crank so that the journal lines up and then bolt the rod cap to the right torque specs...make sure everything lines up or the rod can bend...on yeah don't mix up the bearings from the crank journals and if you want to, you can plastigauge the clearance....oh you need to check the tolerances and taper on the cylinders to see if they need boring and honing, cylinders by the way should never be polished completely smooth, honing creates the small fine scratches that help hold oil to the surface, this can be done at a machine shop, don't use a ruler, use a caliper or micrometer set (or mike set) that can measure thousandths of an inch, also you might need a long straight edge to check the head for warpage, you check it lengthwise, widthwise, and diagonally with a feeler gauge....you can't reuse the head gasket so you need a gasket set, which should have the head, crank case, manifold gaskets, etc. and will cost you some money too, you may need to use a special rtv sealant, (hondas use hondabond) when everything is together, replace all fluids and do all the necessary tests, i.e. visual test for leaks, compression tests, vaccum tests, leakdown, etc. I'm not sure if you need to adjust timing with a light....anyway, don't do any of this unless you have the dealer shop manual, i got it on cd from ebay, it will tell you torque and pretorque specs, the order in which to remove bolts, special directions, tests and warnings, all the proper stuff....you can even call the dealership for help, a lot of mechanics there will help...you should ask around if you should use loctite on the head bolts....theres some stuff i probably left out, and put steps in that are unneccessary, but i wouldn't know....i only know enough to be afraid and let a professional work on my engine....this kind of work is expensive and i agree with some of the other posts that your first few thousand dollars are better spent on a low-boost turbo kit. if you spend the money now on lowering your compression you'll get bad fuel economy and less power until you can save up 4 grand for the turbo, plus the cost of gauges....but good luck in whatever you decide
