FWD REAR SUBFRAME... CAN I SWAP IT?

NJCIVICWAGON1NJCIVICWAGON1 Council Member
in Suspension, Braking & Wheels
Whats up guys.... Now that I slammed my wagon. My rear subframe is hitting the street hard. Im sparking all over the road. I dont want to raise the car. Does anyone here tried to swap the rear subframe with a 88-91 EF hatch or CRX. They dont seem to drop as low as the wagons rear subframe. Let me know. Thanks in advance.
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Comments

  • wagodizzlewagodizzle Council Member and EDM expert
    when i looked at the Hatchback sub frame it looks like its welded to the chassis. i never really checked though but thats my first impression. of course im wrong :lol:

    i searched through Hondapartsdeals.com to see the part but i couldnt find it :|
    the Wagon one has it under "rear lower arm" but the hatchback and sedan dont, which may mean they are in fact be part of the lower pan.

    whatevahsss
  • NJCIVICWAGON1NJCIVICWAGON1 Council Member
    I never really noticed if the EF's rear subframes are bolted on like the wagons. Its that mine is taking a beating. :(
  • ThaClutcHThaClutcH Senior Wagonist
    I was gonna try to put an ASR one from an EG on mines. I just need to find one for cheap incase I gotta do something to it. Haha.
  • Old SkoolOld Skool Council Member
    what about airbags? You can ride low, slammed when wanted.. and lifted to clear the main obstacles?
  • jpciiijpciii familEE
    If your rear subframe has taken a beating, you might have some alignment issues back there since the lower control arms attach to it. I bet a decent fabricator could modify a wagon subframe so that it doesn't hang down so low...
  • NJCIVICWAGON1NJCIVICWAGON1 Council Member
    ThaClutcH wrote:
    I was gonna try to put an ASR one from an EG on mines. I just need to find one for cheap incase I gotta do something to it. Haha.
    Yeah. Another reason I want to change the rear subframe. I want an ASR subframe brace to compliment the rear sway bar I got for my wagon. :mrgreen:
    Old Skool wrote:
    what about airbags? You can ride low, slammed when wanted.. and lifted to clear the main obstacles?
    No airbags for me. I want to keep it slammed with custom shocks/coilovers. I'll do bags on a VIP project in the future thou. :wink:
    jpciii wrote:
    If your rear subframe has taken a beating, you might have some alignment issues back there since the lower control arms attach to it. I bet a decent fabricator could modify a wagon subframe so that it doesn't hang down so low...
    My wagon is currently as slammed as possible. If a custom subframe is the answer then I shouldnt be doing this. Lets see what I come up with. Thanks for the input fellas...

    1163.jpg
    Call me crazy but I might just want to go a tad lower. :twisted:
  • skinnyskinny Senior Wagonist
    yeah the top of those type r's should be just under the the funder lip. hell the rubber should be all the way in the fenders.


    Q,
    how much room do you have above the tire? Dropping it more may require some fabbing to tuck it up in there.


    Another Q,
    How is that on your axles? They must be blowing like a hooker in vegas.
  • JakerJaker familEE
    The hatch/CRX/sedan rear subframes are all integral parts of the unibody. Not bolted inlike the Wagon.
  • ThaClutcHThaClutcH Senior Wagonist
    Your wagon is so clean. Can't wait to see it in person at IA in July.
  • durfeecdurfeec Wagonist
    Jaker wrote:
    The hatch/CRX/sedan rear subframes are all integral parts of the unibody. Not bolted inlike the Wagon.

    correct. its really hard to explain. but i dont see any way you could use a ASR subframe brace with a wagon rear subframe. the only way would be to take a crx/civic subframe and copy it to the wagon frame rails. but then idk if the lcas are in the exact same spots in the frame rail.

    overall i just dont think it would be worth it.
  • ThaClutcHThaClutcH Senior Wagonist
    I dont get it. Isnt an ASR subframe suppose to bolted on. And since ours is bolted on also isn't there a possibility of it working?
  • durfeecdurfeec Wagonist
    the first pic is of a ef/eg/ek rear subframe. notice it is welded into the frame rail and a very large part of the frame. the ASR brace bolts to the subframe from the back of the car. its purpose is to stop the subframe welds from breaking from the pressure of the lcas on a hard corner.

    the second pic is a wagon subframe. notice it isnt built the same but it also bolts from the bottom up. the design just isnt the same to use a ASR brace.

    also for what he is trying to use it for it wouldnt help anyways. im guessing he is hitting the bottom of the subframe and the ASR covers the backside of a normal subframe.

    hope this helps. i cant find how to really explain it. :oops:

  • JakerJaker familEE
    That bottom pic is nothing like the Wagon subframe. Here's what the Wagon subframe really looks like, and you can probably understand from the photos why there's a problem with dumped cars dragging the thing on the ground. This one is 4WD, but the 2WD is identical, except for the little bracket on the top for holding the diff mount.

    I don't think it would be very difficult at all for someone with a little welding and fabrication know how to mod that for more ground clearance. If it were for a 4WD that would be a totally different story, but 2WD, there plenty of room to raise it up. You could probably even make it so the ASR subframe brace/swaybar mount would bolt up.

    1.jpg
  • NJCIVICWAGON1NJCIVICWAGON1 Council Member
    I appreciate that input. You just did the research for me. Thanks.
  • durfeecdurfeec Wagonist
    hmmm...the bottom pic was from google images. i just assumed it would be correct cause of the title.
  • ThaClutcHThaClutcH Senior Wagonist
    Hmm. Interesting.
  • MrM3MrM3 Council Member
    What suspension are you using if you don't mind me asking?
  • NJCIVICWAGON1NJCIVICWAGON1 Council Member
    MrM3 wrote:
    What suspension are you using if you don't mind me asking?
    Im using Tokico shocks/Ground-Control coilovers all around. But I just swapped my rear tokico shocks to original monroe rear shocks for a 91 wagon for extra dump in the back. :wink:
  • MrM3MrM3 Council Member
    How much more adjustment do you have down?
  • NJCIVICWAGON1NJCIVICWAGON1 Council Member
    All the way down. Very bouncy. I need top hats asap!
  • MrM3MrM3 Council Member
    Awesome, thanks for the help.
  • secretcitizensecretcitizen Wagonist
    Bump because I am interested in doing a ASR or Function7 subframe brace on my 2wd wagon.
  • P.S.I GarageP.S.I Garage Wagonist
    secretcitizen wrote:
    Bump because I am interested in doing a ASR or Function7 subframe brace on my 2wd wagon.

    The only way you can do it is with a custom rear sub frame. I can probably make one. I'm just lazy. :lol:
  • secretcitizensecretcitizen Wagonist
    I figured you could just fab one up but idk if I would want to start welding on a subframe. It seems like it would just make it weaker.
  • KllrWagonKllrWagon Band Wagon
    So what can I do to beef up my wagon's rear suspension. Does having that subframe get in the way?? If I only have FWD what is the need of a subframe that is to support the rear dif cant I get a different one?
  • JakerJaker familEE
    You won't find an OEM subframe that will bolt up to the Wagon chassis and provide extra ground clearance. The FWD subframe has the exact same shape as the RT4WD subframe, the only difference being the extra mount for the diff. Any attempts to gain additional ground clearance will have to be a custom one off effort.
  • HaydzHaydz Moderator
    ^^ What he said.
  • KllrWagonKllrWagon Band Wagon
    And no one makes anykind of aftermarket one??
  • suspendedHatchsuspendedHatch Wagonist
    You sound surprised. An aftermarket rear subframe would cost upwards of $600 and you'd probably have less than 5 customers.
  • secretcitizensecretcitizen Wagonist
    rtwsubframe.jpgef
    Green = ef rear lower strut bar. Red = subframe pan hangs low and curves outwards so that a straight strut bar will not mount onto its intended location.
    SLB-024A.jpg
    371.jpg

    Ok, if you just want a support bar on a wagon subframe you could do what I wanted to do a couple of years ago. I get a ef rear lower strut bar and mount it on the front side of the subframe instead of the back side. You will have to cut out the welded nuts on the lca mounts and buy longer lca bolts. I don't know if you get the picture but the idea really won't do much for looks, because it will be on the front of the subframe, but you could have it there for peace of mind.
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