The Honda D16Z6 Engine – Is It A Good Engine? (Detailed Specs)
The D16Z6 engine is part of a long lineage of epic engines which are all part of the Honda D series of engines. It is one of the most varied engine families that Honda came out with during the early 1980s until well into the 2000s.
The subtle changes in everything from size to power have led to the D series cropping up all over the place as Honda themselves make good use of their new and improved engines, but also so do petrol heads hot-swapping the D series into their project car. But what is the Honda D series, the D16Z6, and what makes it stand out from the pack? To find out the answers to that you’ll need to read on.
The Honda D Series Engines
The Honda D series first hit the scene in 1984 and actually stayed in production, in one way or another, for 21 years following this. They stopped being produced in 2005 with the 8th Gen Civics, but actually, you might find a D series in cars up until 2007 in some cases. The D series has changed a lot over the years, naturally, it has evolved as technology has evolved but even the core components of the structure and purpose of the engine have been considerably adjusted.
During the 21 years the D series was in production you would have been able to find everything from a 1.2L engine up to 1.7 with VTEC being opted for in some models and not in others. It is important to link the popularity of the D series with this huge range of options as it explains how it seemed like everyone was trying to pick one up, no matter their ride. Out of all of the D series engines the most popular, you will likely find, is the D16Z6.
The Honda D16z6 Engine
The D16Z6 engine is the second to last member of the D series of engines. The only engine to follow it would be the D16Z9 before Honda would move onto the D17 family. The D16Z6 engine was around from about 1992-1995 though there were cases in some factories where the D16Z6 engine would still be used slightly after the fact for repairs and maintenance purposes.
You would find this specific engine, as stock, in the Honda Civic Si, Honda Civic EX (EX-V also), Honda Civic ESI, Honda Del Sol Si, and the Honda Del Sol Esi. But, as you likely know, the D16Z6 engine was coveted by other Honda owners and it was regularly swapped into other Honda vehicles.
The Honda D16Z6 Engine – Specs
The Honda D16Z6 engine was incredibly popular, and for a good reason, it gave you excellent bang for your buck and was versatile enough to be suitable for many other Honda vehicles or even outside of the Honda make altogether. Here are the engine specs:
- Brake Horsepower – 125 hp at 6600rpm
- Torque – 106 ft/lb at 5200rpm
- Displacement – 1590cc
- Bore and Stroke – 75mm x 90mm (3 Inch x 3.5 Inch)
- Rod Length – 137MM
- Rod/Stroke – 1.52
- Compression 9.2:1
- Volumetric Efficiency – 87.68%
- Redline – 7200rpm
- Fuel Cut – 7411rpm
- VTEC Switchover – 4800rpm
- Fuel Control – 0BD-1 MPFI
- Head Code – P08
- ECU Code – P28
- Turbocharging Suitability – High
The Honda D16Z6 engine vs The D16Y8 engine
Given they came out at very similar times and are indeed very similar engines it is only natural that someone might want to compare both of these two members of the Honda D series family. Yes, they are super similar. But there are some key differences. For example, the D16Z6 engine has 125 brake horsepower whereas the D16Y8 engine has 127. The d16Z6 engine has slightly less torque but redlines at 7200rpm vs the 6800rpm redline of the D16Y8 engine.
The D16Z6 engine has more power at low revs whereas the D16Y8 engine has more power at high revs. While they are very similar, the D16Z6 engine has been far more popular for one simple reason. Its compression ratio is about 9.2:1 compared to the 9.6:1 of the D16Y8. Why does this matter? Because when it comes to after-market upgrades, like turbocharging and upgrading the ECU, you can squeeze a lot more power out of the D16Z6 engine without having to recalibrate the engine compression levels.
Honda D16Z6 Engine – Availability
The D series was around for about 21 years, but the D16Z6 engine was only available for 5 of them. Even so, the D16Z6 engine was made in such high volumes that you can quite easily find them even today for a reasonable price.
Honda Civics may have developed quite a lot in the past 10 years but the core concepts of what made the car great are unchanged. Part of what made them great was a small but powerful engine with enough torque to make you forget you were in a safe and reliable car.
Is The Honda D16Z6 Engine Popular?
The Honda D16Z6 engine is incredibly popular even to this day. Many people choose to replace their older D series engines with the newer and much-improved D16Z6. It’s an easy fit because the engine size and most core components are the same as the older versions, making the change more suitable and sustainable than moving on from the D series altogether.
Is The Honda D16Z6 Engine Worth The Money?
You can probably pick up a D16Z6 engine from a secondhand dealer for about $300-$500 with anything from 80k-120k miles on the clock. The D16Z6 is supposed to be good for well over 200k with proper maintenance so you could get a lot more life out of the engine than you might expect. For $400-ish, it is probably worth the gamble.
Conclusion
So now you know exactly what the D16Z6 engine is and hopefully understand why it was so popular. Its specs are pretty solid, nothing exceptional but no glaring issues, and it is clearly the better option over many other members of the D series family. Whether this 20-year-old engine is something you want to take a flyer on is another matter altogether.
