new to 240 world, please help
08-05-2003, 11:15 AM
#1
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new to 240 world, please help
hey everyone,
well i'm in the process of becoming the owner of a '90 240sx. anyways, i have a couple questions i hope someone can help me with. first of all i want to appologize if these questions get asked to many times, i am new and am just looking for help.
1. i wanted to know what are the different engines that are generally used to swap into the 240? which is the best, easiest to swap, most worth my money?
2. where can i go on the net to look up performance and aftermarket parts for my car? i tried looking a little bit, but i was wondering if any of you know of any really good sites.
3. when i get this car it will be 100% stock. what are some easy mods i can do to right away to get some more power. i was thinking to upgrade the intake, header, exhaust system. a buddy of mine suggested getting an aftermarket ignition. what else can i do?
if anyone can help me on these questions i would really appreciate it! thank you in advance.
well i'm in the process of becoming the owner of a '90 240sx. anyways, i have a couple questions i hope someone can help me with. first of all i want to appologize if these questions get asked to many times, i am new and am just looking for help.
1. i wanted to know what are the different engines that are generally used to swap into the 240? which is the best, easiest to swap, most worth my money?
2. where can i go on the net to look up performance and aftermarket parts for my car? i tried looking a little bit, but i was wondering if any of you know of any really good sites.
3. when i get this car it will be 100% stock. what are some easy mods i can do to right away to get some more power. i was thinking to upgrade the intake, header, exhaust system. a buddy of mine suggested getting an aftermarket ignition. what else can i do?
if anyone can help me on these questions i would really appreciate it! thank you in advance.
08-05-2003, 11:54 AM
#2
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Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Harrisburg, PA
Posts: 8,440
Well first off welcome to the forums
Now I'll try to answer your questions as best as I can
1)The main engines that swap into the 240 are CA18DET, SR20DET,RB20DET, RB25DET, the easiest would be the CA and the SR, the RB20 is also relatively easy with the RB25 a little more harder because you have to have custom driveshafts and some other stuff I think. Anyone feel free to add to this...
2)You can try enjuku racing, I heard a lot of good stuff about them. Also as much as I hate to say this you can pick up the latest superstreet they have, I think, an 11 page buyers guide for 240's. I bought it simply because of that and it does have a lot of stuff in it...
3)Cant really say much here, because my car is still stock, but you could always take out the back seats and other stuff to take away some of the weight, you can do the basics like exhaust, intake, it wont give you that much power though. Unless you plan on building up your KA, I wouldnt get too involved with it and wait for the swap...
hope I helped somewhat
Now I'll try to answer your questions as best as I can1)The main engines that swap into the 240 are CA18DET, SR20DET,RB20DET, RB25DET, the easiest would be the CA and the SR, the RB20 is also relatively easy with the RB25 a little more harder because you have to have custom driveshafts and some other stuff I think. Anyone feel free to add to this...
2)You can try enjuku racing, I heard a lot of good stuff about them. Also as much as I hate to say this you can pick up the latest superstreet they have, I think, an 11 page buyers guide for 240's. I bought it simply because of that and it does have a lot of stuff in it...
3)Cant really say much here, because my car is still stock, but you could always take out the back seats and other stuff to take away some of the weight, you can do the basics like exhaust, intake, it wont give you that much power though. Unless you plan on building up your KA, I wouldnt get too involved with it and wait for the swap...
hope I helped somewhat
08-05-2003, 01:51 PM
#3
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Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: FL.
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08-05-2003, 08:54 PM
#4
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Join Date: Aug 2003
Location: canada
Posts: 5
thanx for the help guys!
a question on the engines....
which will give me the "biggest bang for my buck" (so to speak). i don't want to sign my life over just to put in an engine. it would have to be within a reasonable price range. i looked up those four engines that S13 240 mentioned. from what i could see, the SR20DET or RB20DET are my best bets. now from these 2, what does each one have to offer? basically, which engine would make me most happy (keep in mind a cost and pleasure balance).
from what i saw, the SR20DET puts out more HP, but the order the engines went in according to S13 240 showed that the RB20DET was a better engine. now i don't know if S13 240 put those engines in any order or not, i'm just assuming he did, i could be wrong.
so which direction should i go?
thank you again for helping me for those that do, i really do appreciate it.
a question on the engines....
which will give me the "biggest bang for my buck" (so to speak). i don't want to sign my life over just to put in an engine. it would have to be within a reasonable price range. i looked up those four engines that S13 240 mentioned. from what i could see, the SR20DET or RB20DET are my best bets. now from these 2, what does each one have to offer? basically, which engine would make me most happy (keep in mind a cost and pleasure balance).
from what i saw, the SR20DET puts out more HP, but the order the engines went in according to S13 240 showed that the RB20DET was a better engine. now i don't know if S13 240 put those engines in any order or not, i'm just assuming he did, i could be wrong.
so which direction should i go?
thank you again for helping me for those that do, i really do appreciate it.
08-05-2003, 10:52 PM
#5
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Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Harrisburg, PA
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I did't put them in any particular order, but out of the SR20 or the RB20 I would probably go with the SR. If I remember correctly the RB20 puts out like 5 hp more, but where I live I have easier access to SR parts than RB20 so that also helps sway my judgement. I guess though since we all do have internet access we could get just about any parts, like the RB parts though, but like I said, more places around here actually carry SR parts in stock. So basically its all personal preference
08-08-2003, 06:33 PM
#7
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Join Date: Aug 2003
Location: Canton, Ohio
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Engine Swap
I am also new to the 240 world, so I am in the same boat. I was looking at all the same engines you were, and reading everything i could get my hands on. I was initially gonna go with the sr20, but everywhere I looked to get one other than buying a clip, with uncut harness, ECU , and Igniter it was gonna be around 1800-2000 dollars. I don't know if you are gonna do the work yourself, I am and I am not that mechanically inclined, but I am gonna go with the RB25det, they're about 450 dollars more and you can put up to twice the hp through them on stock internals without a prob, at least that is what I have read, in different articles. Just a thought, but if you want bang for your buck, the RB is 279 hp stock, the SR is 205-225 hp. See how much it costs you to get that extra 70 hp outta your SR. Good luck, and If I happen to be wrong on any of this, lemme know , cuz I could sure use the info too.
08-09-2003, 10:21 AM
#8
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Actually the RB25 has 250HP, and one thing. If i were u i will buy a Front Clip..not a motor set because the front clip all ready has evrything u will need. The motor set might be cheaper but u get wut u paid for. You will still have to go around and buy more parts for the engine swap. And with the RB serious..that might be a little hard.
08-10-2003, 08:08 AM
#9
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Join Date: Oct 2002
Location: Raleigh, NC
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Originally posted by -HyJynX-
Actually the RB25 has 250HP, and one thing. If i were u i will buy a Front Clip..not a motor set because the front clip all ready has evrything u will need. The motor set might be cheaper but u get wut u paid for. You will still have to go around and buy more parts for the engine swap. And with the RB serious..that might be a little hard.
Actually the RB25 has 250HP, and one thing. If i were u i will buy a Front Clip..not a motor set because the front clip all ready has evrything u will need. The motor set might be cheaper but u get wut u paid for. You will still have to go around and buy more parts for the engine swap. And with the RB serious..that might be a little hard.
Jynx would know, since he's swappin an rb20 as we speak.
also, when considering motors, think about total cost (eg. custom driveshaft for the rb25), weight/weight distribution (rb25=custom motor mounts, battery relocation, etc), and purpose. for drifting/autox/track racing, the 'easiest' setup would be the sr20 or ca18 seeing how they were made for the 180sx/200sx/silvia/240 chassis to begin with. not that the rb's would be a bad choice, but would require a lil more work in the suspension/weight balance category. on the other hand, for straight line performace, the rb's start off with more hp, have stronger bottom ends (although i hear the ca18's are kinda stout, too), and have more available torque at lower rpm's...
08-10-2003, 09:57 AM
#10
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I haven't checked into the cost of a custom shaft, for the RB yet. I am guessing 300 or so. But its my understanding that the motor will sit on the stock mounts in the 240. I got that info from a post at nissan performance mag.com. He could be wrong but i am just going on what I have read. I prolly will get a clip cuz i am thinkin about doing an all wheel drive conversion if the clip were to come with an awd setup. Not only do you have to relocate the battery, but you cannot run the stock fan on the RB unless you relocate the radiator. You will need to go with slim electric fans. I am not sayin that the sr 20 isn't a great motor, that it definately is. I dont personally think that the weight is gonna be a big deal. You prolly will be adding another 5% of your total weight to the front of the car. It is definatly a personal choice, due to money, use of car, and how much time and effort you want or can afford to spend on the install. I personnaly have nothing but time. I am also doing a RHD conversion on my 240, my buddy bought a clip to do his swap and i got what was left after the swap. So mine is at least a year and a half away from hitting the road. So any way happy installing
08-10-2003, 10:03 AM
#12
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I haven't checked into the cost of a custom shaft, for the RB yet. I am guessing 300 or so. But its my understanding that the motor will sit on the stock mounts in the 240. I got that info from a post at nissan performance mag.com. He could be wrong but i am just going on what I have read. I prolly will get a clip cuz i am thinkin about doing an all wheel drive conversion if the clip were to come with an awd setup. Not only do you have to relocate the battery, but you cannot run the stock fan on the RB unless you relocate the radiator. You will need to go with slim electric fans. I am not sayin that the sr 20 isn't a great motor, that it definately is. I dont personally think that the weight is gonna be a big deal. You prolly will be adding another 5% of your total weight to the front of the car. It is definatly a personal choice, due to money, use of car, and how much time and effort you want or can afford to spend on the install. I personnaly have nothing but time. I am also doing a RHD conversion on my 240, my buddy bought a clip to do his swap and i got what was left after the swap. So mine is at least a year and a half away from hitting the road. So any way happy installing
08-10-2003, 10:23 AM
#13
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The RB is only about 55-65 pounds heavier then the KA. If u take off the A/C condenssor and all the A/C stuff (if u dont wanna use ac)Then thats about..25-35 pounds off. Then take the battery to the back, thats about 30-40 pounds. So in all, the Swap should kome out to be equal .
08-10-2003, 10:38 AM
#14
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yeah, the rb25 will fit with the stock mounts, but the custom ones r supposed to let it sit lower in the engine bay and closer to the firewall or some shizz like that... also, i'm not going super hardcore with my setup, so ac is a must!
i believe that most of the parts for the n/a ca18de (usdm nissan pulsar?) can be used w/the 'det.
so i imagine that would provide a good support base for that swap. i dunno what i'm gonna get, personally, but my broke *** needs to scrape together the cash first!
i like the power and internal strength of the rb's, but i also like the availabilty of the sr's and the price and high-revving nature of the ca18's (not to mention their strength
). decisions, decisions...
i believe that most of the parts for the n/a ca18de (usdm nissan pulsar?) can be used w/the 'det. so i imagine that would provide a good support base for that swap. i dunno what i'm gonna get, personally, but my broke *** needs to scrape together the cash first! i like the power and internal strength of the rb's, but i also like the availabilty of the sr's and the price and high-revving nature of the ca18's (not to mention their strength ). decisions, decisions...
that will own lol