'82 Civic b-series swap: Just the drivetrain, or the whole front end?

So I bought a junkyard 2nd gen Civic hatchback for the approximate cost of a Donkey Kong Country cartridge. It looks like this:

I'm currently in the process of pulling everything out for a b-series swap, and started wondering if it wouldn't make sense to just adapt the whole front suspension from a more recent Civic. Something with lots of aftermarket support.

I'm prepared to do a bunch of mechanical and metal work on this project, but I have very little experience with suspension stuff. Could somebody point me to a build thread where something similar was done? Tips? Suggestions?

You're most likely charting this path 100% on your own..

Wild idea... Good luck!

In reply to spacecadet (Forum Supporter) :

Nah-civic swaps are like a million monkeys at a million keyboards. Every permutation has been tried, and occasionally a masterpiece emerges. 

I'm like 99% sure that we have a forum guy who did a k-swap into a yellow 1st or 2nd gen. Hope he pops in.

I put a D16Z6 in my '76. It barely fits, there is about 1" clearance all around the motor.  The transmission side (right side) sheet metal had to be massaged -beaten in so the trans would fit. I've heard of a B done but it would be super tight but the 2nd gen is a bit bigger. 
I left the suspension stock except for all new urethane bushings & thankfully BCR made custom coilovers for the '72-'77 Civic/CVCC's. 
My friend & I made custom motor mounts , axle shop made custom Hy-Tuff axles, I put together rear discs made from Prelude parts & modified EG rear hubs & lots of other newer Civic brake parts. For the shifter just take both years & after the motor/trans is in, it's just a matter of cutting off the unused ends & welding the  shifter torsion bar & shifter linkage together. 
An EG suspension would definitely handle much better but being so light-weight it handles really well even without a rear sway bar. 

A B would reduce torque steer because of the aux axle.  The torque steer on this is substantial.  The Si cable trans has LSD, the motor is 11.3:1, tuned on Hondata S300, Supertech valve train, ported head, Bissimoto clone header, straight exhaust with 2 resonators, revs to 7500 very quickly. 
A K would be awesome but really tall but someone has probably done it. 
For your budget, figure out exactly how much time & money it will take.......then double it.

You wouldn't be doing "suspension stuff" so much as grafting everything forward of the firewall to the car.

I know not very much about this generation, I ass-ume they have torsion bars like the next generation cars, in which case using a first generation Integra as a parts donor guide would be smartest.

Smartest isn't always funnest though.  It does tend to result in finished projects more of the time.

They don't have torsion bars from what I remember on the 2nd gen. 
At least it has 100x4 hubs. I had to convert to that from 120x4.

In reply to mdshaw :

Looks fantastic! I will definitely be reading up on your '76 swap. (Link for anyone else who hasn't seen it.)

Pete. (l33t FS)

You wouldn't be doing "suspension stuff" so much as grafting everything forward of the firewall to the car.

That's kind of what I'm afraid of, and kind of what I want to happen. And good tip on the Integra -- no torsion bars on this gen Civic though:

More suspension/subframe/support info: The 45 degree bar on the driver side going from the front main support to the spindle arm will go right through the outside corner of your oil pan. Just notch it & reweld it. 
The lower motor/trans support won't be used because you will make 3 new mounts - right, left & rear. Don't use the T bar mount from the B. I got 3 - 2" x 2" sleeved DOM mounts & made the 3 mounts. 
The biggest work was that front main mount. The oil pan wanted to be in the same spot. So we cut out a section in the middle & added a 1 1/2" support bar tieing them back together.  

 



Then make a 1/2" pipe support for the aluminum EG radiator. 

Hopefully you have a lift.

You'll have lots to remove from the fire wall & holes to fill. 

Newer brake boosters have the same bolt pattern. I used an EG with an Si booster. Hopefully your booster is also on the right side. On the 1gen, it would hit the intake.