KA24DE questions

I'm a newb and want to know if is possible to find a KA24DE motor that has low miles because I want to turbocharge one. If not what parts would I need to rebuild to boost safely? I want a 240SX coupe(S13), but if I have to I will get the S14. thx any help appreciated.

good 7th post, newb. www.renewedimport.com sells low mileage ka's our of calgary, alberta, canada for pretty cheap. if you're looking to turbo, you could buy one of those and work on it yourself

OR

www.boostdesigns.com has a block they're selling for $2000 which includes an exhaust manifold and downpipe
http://boostdesigns.com/store/product_info.php?cPath=26&products_id=115

your best bet is to read up on turbos too
http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=201348
thats a great thread to learn on

also, do a search of automotiveforums.com for ka24det, ka24de turbo, ka24de-t, ka-t or any other combo you can think of to find the ka-t threads. there's a ton of them

you can also pm nissanfanatic, tatII or tims240 since they're boosting (tim's almost there) ka24de's

good luck with it

actually i heard the ka24e was better for boost because of its lower compression.
the s13 (89-90)comes with the ka24e, the s14 (91-up) comes with the ka24de. btw, the s14 came coupe and fast back up till 93. read up on your facts, you know a little, but not enough to even consider turboing a car.

actually i heard the ka24e was better for boost because of its lower compression.
the s13 (89-90)comes with the ka24e, the s14 (91-up) comes with the ka24de. btw, the s14 came coupe and fast back up till 93. read up on your facts, you know a little, but not enough to even consider turboing a car.

you must've had a typo becasue S13's came coupe and hatchback until 95. 94 is in japan. the 94 models we have here are the S13 convertables. they only comp automatic and should be kept away like the plague. there are some powerful single camed KA's, but there just isn't enough support for them. nobody makes a turbo manifold for them, so it needs to be customed. also the are usually in the 200K mile range since they're like 16 years old. not to mention that they only have 3 valves per head.

ur right. i was mistakin. its been a while since ive been here. but yeah, the s13 is 89-93 right? with the vert in 94 and i believe the end of 93 as well. then the s14, only coupe was 95-98. for some reason i was going by engine, with the new DE in 91 i thought s13-ka24E, and the s14-ka24DE. just a little mix up is all. thanks tat for correcting me.

both engines have their pros and cons but i'd rather have the dual overhead cam.. personal preference.
also, the ka24de is easier to find than a good ka24e


add: the cams in the 91-93 ka24de engines are also more popular but i don't totally understand the duration numbers.. someone else can explain that

convertable is also 93

If your compression numbers (well your engines) are good then you can turbo your current engine. You will need: Turbo Manifold, Downpipe, Turbo, BOV, Wastegate (if turbo does not have an internal one on it), Piping, Intercooler (very recomended, but not needed for low boost), Fuel Management, Fuel Pump (for higher boost), Fuel Injectors (for higher boost), Piping, Gaskets and possible any other hardware. Or you could just get a kit if you want to, such as greddy which comes with almost everything I listed above. If you search you will find A LOT of info. Also check www.ka-t.org, good KA24DE-T forums.

Actually there is a guy on www.ka-t.org that makes a good manifold for the KA24E. His SN is Jordan Gladman. From pics, I'd buy it no prob. Search on E-bay as he sells a lot of stuff on there.

Your fuel pump should be upgraded before the engine sees any boost. If I were to start over, I'd prolly buy a fuel pump before anything.

www.pdm-racing.com can explain the cams very well.

www.renewedimport.com can sell you everything you need for th de but i have no clue about the e. i don't think they make them anymore, not even in japan. if you can find a good ka24e then do it for sure

oh yea and another question. Around what time should i be running (1/4 mile) with just a fuel pump and a turbo(8 lbs of boost) in the KA24DE?

with good driver, proper fuel, intercooled, you should be in the high 13's. with a S13 running a T4 turbo.

oh yea and another thing i would REALLY like to clear up. I always hear that SR20DET is better than KA24DE-T for road races. Wouldn't stopping at a red light and taking off from there be very similar to drag racing(actually it would be drag racing right? just not at the track)? But I really dont know why a SR20 iz better than KA-T at road racing.

ka-t has more torque. the sr is a high revving motor so it has better drifting capabilities because you need high rpms. the ka-t is fast off the line but doesnt have nearly any revving capabilities. the sr is better if you are doing twisties or a road course.

so basically the KA24DE has a shorter power band so it's not good for drifting. doesn't matter because im not really interested in drifting because i don't feel like crashing my car. So to sum it up SR20 is better than KA-T in turning and handling and the KA-T is better for going straight?

How is an engine better for turning? Damnit, thney are both good engines! They are both good for drifting since the engine plays such a small part in the process and they are both good for dragging because you are obviously not looking for 10 second runs!

George Is Getting Upset!!

both motors can do either. sr can be built to make an amazing amount of power and so can the ka. suspesion plays a lot of work in drift vs drag they are bascially opposites of a spectrum. in my opinion the sr is just easier. it was designed for forced induction so all i have to do is swap and wire (obvisouly it takes more than that). the ka has to be rebuilt (that is if you want to push higher boost). sr is illegal unless you have ways around it, which most people do, that could be your decideing factor as well. if i were you i'd just take some time read up on the pro's and con's of each see how easy of an install or build it takes and average amount of cash then make your decision. you really can't go wrong with either motor.

KA-T is also illegal, and to push big boost, you'd have to rebuild the SR to.

how is the ka-t illegal? just curious never heard anything on that. really doesn't matter to me where i live. we have yearly inspections, but they don't know the difference between anything.

It's illegal to add a turbocharger to an engine that was N/A from the factory, it just most states don't care, like with the SR.

huh, i never knew that before. never even thought that making a car more efficent is illegal. guess i learn something knew every day. will look into that. think there is a loophole where if there is a turbo model, but you take the n/a model and add aftermarket turbo?

if you put a kat and sr beside eachother and do both drag and drift, there won't be a significant difference.. the ka has more torque therefore can put out more hp as an sr with about the same mods but the sr's rpm range is bigger and you therefore have more rpm to go through to keep control in a drift. but considerin both those facts, you can still drift like a champ with a kat and the sr will still put out some good 1/4 mile times. then there will be other differences, like sound and weight that you could take into account but that would then become anal retentive.. i personally think one is just as good as the other but they both have their pros and relative cons. i'm only going with the kat cause of the sound and torque and cause people around here frown at me when i say i don't want an sr..

i'm sorry, but could you site where you got the information on aftermarket turbos are illegal on n/a cars. because i have never heard anything on it and not finding any information on it.

most companies will put a diclaimer on their product saying it is not legal for street use

i was talking to a guy at DEQ and he said in no way is any imported engine (JDM) legel in any USDM car, which pretty much rules out the SR. And the KA-t would be considered legel because its supposably not legel mod or change aspects of your vehicle. That is just what i got from the bitchy DEQ guy though, could be different in many states or so..

did u mean to say the ka-t is illegal?

whoops, i meant to say illegel, not legal.

yeah, i have become quite curious on this subject now. first time i have ever heard anything about turbocharges being illegal to install on n/a car. i understand certain turbo upgrades are illegal because of not passing emissions or going out certian specs, but if aftermarket turbos are illegal why not even stock turbos?

havent you ever noticed how a stock turbo is usually quite small and is made to add a bit more horsepower for the buyer, or be more effecient, but they dont want people to just take these turbos and install them for racing and such..

i mean i can believe it, but it tough sinking in. it's just very odd because all around i hear of people turbocharging this and that. it's just weird because at my brother's shop they just did two turbo installs. one is a prelude compeltely rebuilt from ground, and a rebuilt gti now tubrocharged. those are just two of the more recents installs they have done. and i have yet to hear any concern from anyone about it being illegal. but whatever not like it changes anything i am going to do, but just doesn't seem right to me.

thats cause no one gives a damn if its legal or not. unless they get checked in thier state. there are some aftermarket turbos made that are street legal but they arent anything that badass

That's weird i never knew turbocharging a car that was originally N/A was illegal. I thought there was a reason for some of the turbo kits being legal in all 50 states. Also, around how many miles is too high to turbocharge without rebuilding on the KA?

"george" i wasnt saying the ka-t couldnt drift. im just saying its more efficient to drift the sr because of its power band. you can drift any car, any motor, it just takes more practice. i could drift my ff corolla if i wanted to. just get a damn good ebrake and very stiff sidewalls. plus a lot of suspension mods. actually, it wouldnt be drifting, it'd be powersliding, but still. i didnt mean to say what it sounded like i said. i personally prefer ka-t because of the torque its able to put out with smaller funds.

well, i think the main issue is that the ka runs higher compression ratio because it is n/a. tubrocharged cars run a lot lower. the sr i belive runs 8.5:1 though the s15 is 10:1, which is high for forced induction i've heard. where i think the ka runs 11 or 12 to 1 compression not entirely sure on it. by lowering your compression you can run more boost and it will be easier on the motor. only reason why i say rebuild is because if you're going to go as far as lower compression might as well replace any tensoners rods and such. turbos put a lot of stress on a car and i'd hate to see anyone that just install one with a month it break down. i'd say if your motor has over 70k miles on it rebuild. if you don't rebuild i doubt you could make more than 8psi. i mean you could, but i doubt it would be good on the motor.
and by the way i could be entirely wrong i haven't done the ka-t only things i have read and what i have understood about going from n/a to turbo and such. what i say is what i would do if i did ka-t.

ka is like 9.6:1 i think for the DE. no fucking way it is 11 or 12 buddy.

wow it's that low. man i was wrong then. hmm you might be able to get away without lowering compression. i'd still say rebuild though if you over 70k miles

lol i just read my post sorry for sounding like a dick. but yeah i would not be comfortable turboing my KA without rebuilding pretty much no matter what the mileage. my cutoff would be like 30-50k miles maybe leave it

So what would be cheapest? best?
S14 SR20DET swap OR
swap a low mile KA motor and turbo OR
rebuild KA and turbo?

one issue with the internet is the lack of tones. neglecting caps there are none. so if some one says something or actually anything it's hard to take it any way. so no hard feelings.

well if you got sr20 you should get a clip. s13 sr20 isn't bad either other than the newer better turbo and vvt there isn't much of a difference between the s13 and s14. and of course lesser miles. there are more differences but those a the big things. though you have to rebuild the ka, add a turbo, and intercooler. you will be doing something that is needed at some point down the road anyway. if you buy the sr the first mods most people do is turbo and intercooler, so right there you are ahead of the game. though when i do my sr swap going to try to do everything else than lastly turbo. it really comes down to what do you want. i beleive there are tons of older threads that do compare the motors. i just personally feel that the sr was bit better of a build for what i want out of my car. i wish i could give you exact prices.

So what would be cheapest? best?
S14 SR20DET swap OR
swap a low mile KA motor and turbo OR
rebuild KA and turbo?


that can depend. if, for example, say your valvetrain, timing chain, and transmission all need work, then rebuilding is going to be a bigger process. if you have a beauty of a KA then there is nothing wrong with just turboing it as is. if your ka is completely fucked then you might look into what you want to swap in there. either a better KA or see how cheap you can pull off getting an SR. all things considered they are ALL GOOD. its all gravy baby we have hella good enignes to choose from.

i completely agree with orestes. either one going to take some money and some time. and both are amazing respectable motors. so really choose what you think you'd like. we can't tell you what to do that wouldn't make it your car.

The thing with adding a turbo is that factory turbos are for one, FACTORY, they are legal, that's all there is to it, some aftermarket turbo kits like some GReddy ones are CARB legal or exempt because they got the state sign a little piece of paper, but putting your own turbo on an engine is illegal, technically, adding an air intake that isn't CARB legal/exempt is illegal, but no one gives a shit.

So what would be cheapest? best?
S14 SR20DET swap OR
swap a low mile KA motor and turbo OR
rebuild KA and turbo?

you're gonna spend about the same to get to about the same hp. you can buy a ka from www.renewedimport.com which have anywhere from 25-40,000 miles.. they're compression tested and come with a warrantee. once you buy that all you need is to buy a turbo kit or piece one together yourself. you can do that or you can buy the boostdesigns block for $2000 which they call bulletproof and add on turbo parts from there. OR you can buy the renewed import engine and send it to fla to have all the bells and whistles put on (which i will probably do) then finish the turbo kit when you get it.

for the sr, you can buy a clip and upgrade the turbo.

the sr is already reliable but after getting bd to work on a ka, i'd personally rather have the ka than the sr.

i'd say rebuild ka and turbo

go over this whole thread yourself and you should have a better idea of what you want

id say find a 240 with a blown motor for about or under 500$ then buy the BD motor for 2000$, and spend money turboing that.

Alright,
Just an opinion, but everybody at the site has a favor for either the SR or the KA, so pretty much everyone is giving you there opinion, there just trying to help you, but i wouldnt souly base everything you do of us. YOUR car not ours. We are just saying what we would do to our cars.
Like i would take the KA over the SR, but thats me, someone else is gonna take the SR over the KA, just a none stop thing.

for a very long time it was SR>KA....
now its starting to become KA-t>SR. Its all personal preference and what you want to do with the car (powerband wise)..

I say compresssion test. Good? Cool. Boost, tune, and ride.

/\ I agree with that 100%. It doesn't really mater much about the milage, I mean I would not turbo a 300000 mile engine, but if your engine has good compression, was well maintained and was driven without abuse then the engine is definitely good for turbo. I would of course freshen the engine up before turboing by changing the plugs, dis cap, rotor, wires and coil, maybe water pump if current has higher milage. Then you can safely run ~10psi, I would recomend under 8 for daily driving though.
nissanfanatic- your sig rules!

Actually I did do some rather spirited drivng before I turboed. Acutally, I'm not gonna lie. I drove the hell out of my car.lol I raced it damn near daily from day one. Just kept up on oil changes and matinence along with only buying mobil 1 synthetic. And now look, almost 20k later(18k no boost with lots of racing, 2k boosted at 6psi with prolly a boost a day) and at 136k, my compression is still 180 across all four. Shit the engine Ivan made 404whp on was a 114,000mile bone stock engine.

And you know what? Built engines pop damn near as easy as stockers if your tuning is equally sloppy on either.

Lol thanks Pavlo.

ZOLTAN!

for a very long time it was SR>KA....
now its starting to become KA-t>SR. Its all personal preference and what you want to do with the car (powerband wise)..



I think everyone agress they are both great engines, but KA-T is growing in popularity because people don't feel like swapping an engine when they got a perfectly good one already in the engine bay, I'm sure they'd all be happy with an SR if they had a Silvia.

its all about how picky you are. look at minor details cause they're both great in different respects.

well certain things piss me off about wanting to do the KA because it would end up at so much power i know and i know at least my clutch would have to go for a new one, and then still deal with the timing chain cliking and shit. but i really would rather have the 5 speed in the Silvia because of how the gearing works out. That and the rear end gears from a 1.5 way LSD that i need anyways make a big difference in powerband, feel of the car etc. and that seems like the SR wins in that category. But hey the KA is a whole .4 L bigger so how can you argue with that. i think another argument that can take you one way or the other is the head design/valvetrain with KA>SR even with the intake manifold the same.

also consider the fact that the ka block is iron and the sr is aluminum

I can't see a stock SR20 clutch lasting out much longer than a stock KA clutch. If you were smart, before you were to KA-T or swap an SR, you would replace the clutch while the engine is out period. I did on mine even though the OEM replacement was only like 10k old. Def time to be replaced though.lol

The KA has a pretty good powerband if you ask me. Even with my late spooler.

yeah but who was it mysimo i think that was talking about 1st takes you to 37, 2nd takes youto like 65 (MPH) and i shift out of first at like 25 in the KA i think. and the thing about the SR for me is i would just swap it in there and not go too crazy maybe get like 225 at the wheels, i think the stock clutch could handle that, whereas if i went KA i would want it to be more HP. but i guess i would be happy with a boosted KA w/ 225 at the wheels too but its too tempting to go crazy with it.

ok thanks for all of the info. ive seen various prices on engine internals so im wondering approximately how much would it cost to rebuild the KA? name the separate parts and prices please

It would depend on approximately what you plan to do/what you plan to use for parts/if you plan to do the work yourself.;)

Also, doesn't the turbo kits come with some parts needed to rebuild anways such as the injectors, fuel pump, fuel pressure regulator and some other. So with that in mind is it ok to just get the turbo kit without any extra parts? Again I'm not looking for huge amounts of boost right now so maybe I can settle for 10lbs at most for now.

I woudln't call fuel pump, injectors or such rebuild parts. Those are considered upgrades. For 10psi depending on the turbo, you should probably at least do a SAFC, 300zx mafs, and 400cc+injectors. I'd go with 550cc personally. Adn definately upgrade the fuel pump no matter what.