F-Series Swaps Just Got A Whole Lot Easier - Honda Tuning Magazine

The B-series engine became the first highly sought after swap for Honda enthusiasts in the early ’90s, revolutionizing the entire community. The aftermarket industry provided support for the engine swap throughout the decade, and it eventually became commonplace. Later, the more intelligent, more modern K series took over the limelight in the early 2000s. Companies were more than eager to adjust to the shifting consumer demand. Interestingly enough, the F series was introduced around the time of the B series’ reign; however, it wasn’t until the more popular S2000 powerplants, the F20C and F22C, that most became familiar with the F-series label. Although known for being extremely efficient, the S2000 powerplants wouldn’t make their way to street cars unless they were completely one-off, which was almost unheard of. Builds normally incorporate a B or K engine because of the arsenal of aftermarket support and relative ease of installation. The only drawback is that everyone and their nana tend to travel this route. There’s the B crowd and K crowd—both camps vying for supremacy even though they share similar goals under the same H badge. Then there’s a new contender presented by InlinePRO and its F2K Kit.

InlinePRO
Inline Performance Products (InlinePRO), founded by John Lee, began its humble beginnings as a retail store in 1997. The retail front evolved over the years into a one-stop performance shop—from simple part installation to complete engine builds including custom fabrication, machining, and tuning. The company specializes in Hondas and Acuras. It has become well known for its S2000 services and custom turbocharger applications. The 8,000-square-foot facility is located in Springfield, Virginia, 10 miles south of Washington, D.C.

“Our goal is very simple. We want to focus on the needs of our customers and to provide exceptional customer service, products, and tech support,” says General Manager Tom Clements.

F2K Kit
The F2K Kit consists of the essentials to install an F20C or F22C engine, paired with a K-series transmission (F2K) into the extremely popular ’94-’01 Integra, or a ’92-’95 Civic. The kit is adaptable to other models upon customer request. According to Tom, InlinePRO is the only company with such a kit at this particular time. The original concept behind the product offering was simple. “We wanted to attempt something completely original. Actively looking to do the impossible, the kit was just that,” Tom says. The kit was introduced in ’09 and is available to purchase on-site and also on its website: www.inlinepro.com. The shop can complete the installation from start to finish within three days with all required parts on hand at the beginning of the build.

Parts included:

• InlinePRO engine plate
• InlinePRO half shaft adapter
• InlinePRO custom engine mounts
• Competition Clutch custom flywheel and clutch kit (single plate)
• Driveshaft Shop Level 2.9 axles

To complete the swap, various other parts are needed that are not included in the kit. This includes:

• K-series shifter cables (Hybrid Racing recommended by InlinePRO)
• Shifter mounting kit (Karcepts recommended by InlinePRO)
• ECU (AEM or Hondata recommended by InlinePRO)
• S2000 OEM harness
• Ancillary parts such as an exhaust manifold, intake system, coolant hoses, etc.

Overview of the Installation (By InlinePRO):
The kit is similar to a K-series swap once the engine and transmission are mated together. The adaptor plate, passenger side engine mount, and shifter box require fabrication. Although we didn’t have a guinea pig to illustrate the process, it’s pretty self-explanatory for anyone who has ever seen or done a K swap.

As you can see, there are only a few more steps involved in comparison to a regular K swap.

Pricing

(excludes engine, transmission, and ancillary parts) F2K Kit $3,995 Hybrid Racing K-series shifter cables $350 Karcepts shifter mounting kit $125 ECU $1,500 to $2,200 Total $5,970 to $6,670

The main benefit of the F2K Kit is being able to drive an Integra or Civic with the high-revving performance-inspired F20C or F22C powerplant—exciting for street cars and an advantage for racers. Automotive enthusiasts aspire to be original, and the kit makes this all the more possible. More importantly, “S2000 engines are able to boost up to 30 psi with stock bottom end components,” Tom says. This distinction alone clearly distances the F2K swap from a K or B engine build.

The main drawback is cost. B- and K-series engine swaps cost less as they’ve become commonplace. “The F2K will cost about…well, more than the average K swap. But it really can’t be compared on the same level. Remember that this is a rear-wheel-drive engine in a front-wheel-drive chassis,” Tom explains.

Only time will tell if InlinePRO’s F2K Kit revolutionizes the competitive landscape. The matured B-series hype came and cemented itself in Honda performance history. The newer K-series contender’s popularity has spiked and is currently enjoying mainstream attention. Will the F2K challenger overthrow the current establishment? That’s up to the builders of tomorrow to decide today.

1. Prep engine and transmission by installing adapter plate, flywheel, and clutch assembly. This includes drilling out a few holes in order to properly fit InlinePRO’s adapter plate.
2. Drill and remove passenger-side OEM mount.
3. Install engine and transmission using the engine bracket, and side/rear transmission brackets.
4. Install shifter box and cables. At this point the rest of the transplant is similar to your run-of-the-mill K-series swap. There are two main options available: the OEM RSX shifter box with an adaptor plate or a premade shifter box intended for the swap in the same chassis. Both of these options require RSX ’02-’04 or RSX ’05-’06 shifter cables. The shifter weights need to be removed for the RSX ’05-’06 shifter cables. Aftermarket shifter cables are available as well.
5. Install an OEM S2000 engine harness from the same year as the engine being used. Plug the engine harness into an aftermarket ECU.
6. Lastly, connect six to eight wires onto the chassis.