KA or SR? swap vs keeping & rebuild

[metal240]

Well, it crossed my mind to keep the old KA and just rebuild it. That way i wont have to risk what i get off of a clip, being old and possibly not taken care of. EVerything will be new. Plus i'll be one of the few with a KA..

Quick question though, on a 1990 240sx, is that a SOHC or a DOHC?

And if it's a SOHC which i know has less potential, but lets say i spend a good 4g's on rebuilding the engine + turboing it of course... Wouldn't i basically get a good 250hp/250lbs? I'd like to keep the engine i have vs. risking it and not having a car for more than 3 days at a time...

So Ka20(d)e vs SR20DET? 4g's gets me?? lol?

[ghostchild316]

Ka20?Single cam KA has less potential?You're an I D I O T . . . !

[J SPEC SilEighty]

Originally Posted by metal240

Quick question though, on a 1990 240sx, is that a SOHC or a DOHC?

SOHC

Originally Posted by metal240

And if it's a SOHC which i know has less potential

not necessarily

Originally Posted by metal240

but lets say i spend a good 4g's on rebuilding the engine + turboing it of course... Wouldn't i basically get a good 250hp/250lbs?

Be more specific on what you mean when you say "rebuild"

Originally Posted by metal240

So Ka20(d)e vs SR20DET?

There was never a KA20. And nobody can answer this question, it's an opinionated question.

Originally Posted by metal240

4g's gets me??

A blown motor if you don't know what you're doing

Originally Posted by metal240

lol?

No

[metal240]

Woops, KA24E, rebuild meaning replacing the cams, new higer pressure pistons, port & polish, crankshaft. Sorry i'm just now learning everything and yea idiot w/e, had the sr on my mind. As for SOHC i read somwhere it had less potential, one of these threads.. DOHC gets you 20hp extra right?

[nissanfanatic]

Originally Posted by metal240

Woops, KA24E, rebuild meaning replacing the cams, new higer pressure pistons, port & polish, crankshaft. Sorry i'm just now learning everything and yea idiot w/e, had the sr on my mind. As for SOHC i read somwhere it had less potential, one of these threads.. DOHC gets you 20hp extra right?

High compression pistons are not a good idea if you plan to turbo. If you don't know a lot or know somebody who does then the SR is the way to go. What do you want to do with the car? DOHC get you 20 more from the factory, but there are plenty of people who have built hella-fast SOHC 240's. Earlier you said you'd like to not have the car gone for more than 3 days at a time. I hope you have another motor because rebuilding will take a little while unless you don't run into any problems(yeah right).

[metal240]

i read in heavy throttle that a SR swap causes me to loose A/C and have to adjust my steering rods or something..
What do i want to do with my car? Zip around lol. Daily driver and sometimes go out on the tracks. I'm not looking for 400 500hp or 10's in the quarter, just like 250hp and 14's on the tracks, feels good.
I guess i'll have to ignore the 3 days then, because the more i think about it the more i see you're right.

Lets say i get a clip, and xfer everything over, a clip would cost around 2500 cheapest right? Maybe 1k in labor? Then of course new exhuast/clutch total maybe 1k roughly. 4500 almost 5k? and if i wanted rebuild my engine so to speak, it'd be about the same?
Only reason i said all of this above is so that people may correct me on my possibly horrible figures.

If it'll cost within 1k between a SR20 and a rebuild, i'll defently go for the SR20, but i thought it would be cheaper to rebuild.

[Ben B. Draggen]

Woops, KA24E, rebuild meaning replacing the cams, new higer pressure pistons, port & polish, crankshaft. Sorry i'm just now learning everything and yea idiot w/e, had the sr on my mind. As for SOHC i read somwhere it had less potential, one of these threads.. DOHC gets you 20hp extra right?[/quote]
High compression eh? Your not too bright are ya?!
I guess you could put high compression if your fond of blowing your engine.

[nissanfanatic]

What would be so hard about doing the swap yourself? Equipment may be a problem, but I'm sure you could rent the strff pretty cheap too. From what i've heard, the swap is pretty simple if you can use a wrench.

[zeroneonzn]

u want 250hp and 14's on track just get an sr front clip and drop it in its gana take some time and money to save BUT BUT BUT trust me on this once u have it and put it in its all worth it, just get a s14 front clip for 3k-4k front clip ok trust me and ull bust ur 14's on drag and ur 250 hp wont be far SHIT rite now i have a 98 sr20det in my car i just upgrade the fuel pump to a denso supra pump and im boosting 278 from stock 227

[DWF Engineering]

$4K should be more than enough to get you 250 WHP and even if its high miles I wouldn't rebuild unless its smoking/rattling real bad. You should be able to get intake, sport cam and adj. gear, header, straight pipe replacing the CAT, name brand exhaust, injectors, and piggy-back electronics for about $2600 if you install the parts and tune it yourself. If you, or the shop of your choice, tunes everything well you could make about 190 WHP with NO TURBO on a KA24DE. A SOHC KA with the same mods should make about 171 WHP. The afformentioned KA24DE with 7 PSI and an intercooler should make around 260 WHP. You can build a turbo system for the KA24DE for around $1000 if you shop around for your parts. So there is $3600 in parts. How fast will it go??? You should see low 13s in the 1/4 mile if you don't burn out or bog down on launch. This could be your biggest challenge if you stay with stock rubber.

BTW, a guy here in Waco has 6 KA24DEs w/ transmissions / complete except for the cut hoses and harness, all about 80K miles, $100 each, delivery extra. The reason, he said, is that the KA24DE will go about 400K miles without a majar overhaul if its properly maintained. The only things you need to replace ever are the accessories, timing chain, valve shims, and electronics. Though these things can cost more than a whole engine and transmission from a salvage dealer, they're less labor intensive than changing the entire engine; not to mention the fact that the used engine may have the same problems

[nissanfanatic]

Will that guy in Waco ship? Mine is at 130k, but the compression is still at 160 on all four. No problems except for a slack timing chain. I want a back up engine in case something goes wrong.

[DWF Engineering]

You can call him at 1 (254) 799-1186!

[Autofreefindersguy]

DWF: You can get a Turbo system for the KA24DE for around $1000?
Not including FMIC?
Hmmm? Sounds interesting....