CA18DET into B12 Swap

[Sentrastic]

So I have a B12 sentra with a bad engine I was about to rebuild. However, I've started to consider to upgrade to a better engine. First I thought of the SR20DET however, heard that many fabs were needed so now I'm looking to do CA18DET. I've started to research but can't find enough information and I'm still confused. If there are any detailed guides or parts list or anything already posted that would be great if you could link it. If not any answers would be great. What I'm wanting to accomplish is put the CA18DET in my 90 Sentra B12 the easiest way possible, which I'm thinking put in the engine, harness, ECU, 5-speed FWD transmission and call it good. But I still have a lot of questions.

What exactly are all the parts I will be needing and what cars can I find them from?
Will anything need to be custom fabricated?
How hard is it to do this swap?

And of course any details on how to do this would be great

This will be my first engine swap, so the most information anyone can give will be greatly appreciated.


The Process and the beginning!





11/19/13 **EDIT**

Man...2 years later...VOILA!






Nearly 200HP to the wheels @ 8 PSI. Some minor tuning still needed. Been through ALOT with this damn engine, overheated it once, created too many problems. Camshafts were binding, spun #1 Rod, and so on. Glad that its up now, suspension is still what it came with lol...so I will UP the boost when its safe.


MUCH Thanks to Dee (boost_boy) for all the help, guidance, support, and of course 95% of the parts that were provided by him and used in this project. Couldn't have done crap without him.

[nissangirl74]

You need to hit up boost_boy. He's one of the mods for the CA forum and he has done the swap you want to do. Good luck with the build!

[boost_boy]

So I have a B12 sentra with a bad engine I was about to rebuild. However, I've started to consider to upgrade to a better engine. First I thought of the SR20DET however, heard that many fabs were needed so now I'm looking to do CA18DET. I've started to research but can't find enough information and I'm still confused. If there are any detailed guides or parts list or anything already posted that would be great if you could link it. If not any answers would be great. What I'm wanting to accomplish is put the CA18DET in my 90 Sentra B12 the easiest way possible, which I'm thinking put in the engine, harness, ECU, 5-speed FWD transmission and call it good. But I still have a lot of questions.

What exactly are all the parts I will be needing and what cars can I find them from?
Will anything need to be custom fabricated?
How hard is it to do this swap?

And of course any details on how to do this would be great

This will be my first engine swap, so the most information anyone can give will be greatly appreciated.

I want you to do a comprehensive search for the info you seek and continue on this thread with your findings and questions. A sentra in a B12 is a blast . I have one that's really powerful with a LSD and another that will put that one to shame as well, but that's kinda complicated and we can cover that another time.

[Sentrastic]

Great. So far, Ive decided to work on it today and got the engine and transmission out finally with the axles. Alot of mess in my garage -_-, but now im depending on buying a CA18DET engine pretty soon. The only hard part for me will be the wiring. :/ I'll be posting a few pics and my process pretty soon. But i hope all will work out.

@boost_boy If you can provide me with any additional information or anything i would need to watch out for it'd be helpful. As I do this I'd like to help other members also who are looking forward to do this. Thanks.

[boost_boy]

Great. So far, Ive decided to work on it today and got the engine and transmission out finally with the axles. Alot of mess in my garage -_-, but now im depending on buying a CA18DET engine pretty soon. The only hard part for me will be the wiring. :/ I'll be posting a few pics and my process pretty soon. But i hope all will work out.

@boost_boy If you can provide me with any additional information or anything i would need to watch out for it'd be helpful. As I do this I'd like to help other members also who are looking forward to do this. Thanks.

Basically, you will need to find an 88 or 89 Pulsar SE and rape it . Yes, you must take all the pedals, shifter and linkage, 5spd transmission and bracket, bracket that the transmission mount bolts to, clutch master and slave, passenger side bracket that connect the engine to the mount, bracket that's bolted to the block and has the a/c compressor and alternator attached to it, bracket that the P/S pump attaches, radiator and hoses if they are good and most importantly, don't forget to keep all bolts you removed assigned to the areas you removed them from. Hope this jump starts your project.

[Sentrastic]

Thanks! First thing I'll be doing is getting my hands on a 88 or 89 Pulsar. The only thing I'll be scared of is the wiring and ECU and what not.

But hopefully Boost_boy you can help me with this. Btw, out of curiosity is a CA18DET in a 90 Sentra really worth it? I've had this car for 20 years, and I am NOT letting it go.

[boost_boy]

Thanks! First thing I'll be doing is getting my hands on a 88 or 89 Pulsar. The only thing I'll be scared of is the wiring and ECU and what not.

But hopefully Boost_boy you can help me with this. Btw, out of curiosity is a CA18DET in a 90 Sentra really worth it? I've had this car for 20 years, and I am NOT letting it go.

It is worth it. You'll definitely will be one in a few and you'll be sitting on a serious classic that most don't and won't ever see as a performance machine. The only thing I say, if you're going to do it, do it and make it hard-core. Don't bs with little wimpy T25/T28 turbochargers. Since the car is cheap, spend the money to make it right. And as for the wiring, I'll do my best to assist you.

[Sentrastic]

I was pretty sure any CA18DET engine will work. Correct? I called up a guy today and told him I needed the engine for the swap, and he said that the mounts were for a RWD and it wouldn't work. But if i was switch to the FWD transmission, isn't it all the same and the car that the engine comes from doesn't matter? So just to clarify, can i get ANY CA18DET? Or does it need to be from a specific car? or any other requirements?

I'm going tomorrow to Pick N Pull to get all the parts you've listed, hopefully I can find them all.

I'll be posting pics soon.

[boost_boy]

I was pretty sure any CA18DET engine will work. Correct? I called up a guy today and told him I needed the engine for the swap, and he said that the mounts were for a RWD and it wouldn't work. But if i was switch to the FWD transmission, isn't it all the same and the car that the engine comes from doesn't matter? So just to clarify, can i get ANY CA18DET? Or does it need to be from a specific car? or any other requirements?

I'm going tomorrow to Pick N Pull to get all the parts you've listed, hopefully I can find them all.

I'll be posting pics soon.

Any CA will work, but you have to have the necessary hardware to use it in whatever application you chose. The older CA18DET, which is the one with the turbo intake pipe that crosses the valve covers, is the one you should avoid and you have been warned.

[Sentrastic]

So to keep a long story short, we are having a very hard time finding a Nissan Pulsar SE with the parts we need, am I doing something wrong or is this a very rare car? If you happen to know where I can get any of the parts I need please let me know. We even tried contacting Nissan but as expected they want a ridiculous amount of money and they don't even have all the parts.

[Sentrastic]

Hey I forgot to mention, my Sentra is a XE Version, and it has a carburetor, will this be an issue?

Also, some more background info about the car, it's a 4 speed Manual, no A/C, no Power steering, Also I'm assuming I need more braking power, while I'm part hunting, should i be on a look out for any easily interchangeable brake systems?

Also the wiring harness is becoming increasingly big fear of mine, I was wondering if I paid you, would you be interested in making one for me? It's fine if that's too much.

EDIT: I've been doing some more research, and saw that a Stanza transmission would work, is this true? And if so what model? Apparently getting my hands on a Pulsar SE in CA is a pain in the a** and impossible.

I appreciate the help. Sorry for the double Post.

[boost_boy]

Hey I forgot to mention, my Sentra is a XE Version, and it has a carburetor, will this be an issue?

Also, some more background info about the car, it's a 4 speed Manual, no A/C, no Power steering, Also I'm assuming I need more braking power, while I'm part hunting, should i be on a look out for any easily interchangeable brake systems?

Also the wiring harness is becoming increasingly big fear of mine, I was wondering if I paid you, would you be interested in making one for me? It's fine if that's too much.

EDIT: I've been doing some more research, and saw that a Stanza transmission would work, is this true? And if so what model? Apparently getting my hands on a Pulsar SE in CA is a pain in the a** and impossible.

I appreciate the help. Sorry for the double Post.

If this is a "MUST-HAVE" project, then you are in it a for a long ride. I can assist with some of the parts you request, but in reality, since your car is carbureted, it's going to be a bit trivial as you'll have to prepare the car for fuel injection. I don't know how good your skills are at wrenching and wiring, but this project will be a bit of a pain in the tail because of where you're starting from which is next to nothing. The transmission on a stanza will indeed work, but good luck finding one of those as well. I have an extra transmission, but you need to decide if it's worth it because it will have to be shipped to you. If I had a carbureted car and knew what I know now, I would have taken a different approach as far as engine management is concerned, but that's just me. Like I said, I have some parts, but no where near what you need at this point.

P.S.: Don't get involved with spending money on anything like that pre-made harness because again, your situation is different from these S-chasis guys and you need to properly plan this if you want to pull this project off. It won't be plug and play for you and you will be asking for migraine headaches if you don't listen.

[Sentrastic]

Yea I kinda figured. -_- Getting the transmission isn't that much of a problem, but if your willing to sell yours, how much are you asking for? I just need the rest of the parts from a Pulsar SE, mounts, linkage, etc. But you said if you had a carbureted car, you would've taken a different approach, just curious what would you do as far as engine management?

Do you have any mounts, shift linkage, wiring, etc, from the Pulsar? I'm aware of carbureted to fuel injected conversion, and that It'll be a pain. But I really want to get this through. Lol.

My wrenching skills are Moderate to advanced, however wiring skills are pretty novice. Thats why I was seeing if you would be interested in making a harness for me. I'll go ahead and take my name off the Pre-Made wire list. I thought it'd be a good setup, but obviously not.

EDIT: After further research, It seems that the GA16i is actually single point fuel injection, which is why I thought it was carburated. So will this relieve the complexity?

[boost_boy]

I was waiting on you to figure that out . I saw you said you had a 1990 sentra B12, but mentioned carburation and I'm like . So now that you've figured that out, you can actually splice into the sentra's harness to make things work with a stock harness, but you gotta know what you're doing. So to answer your question, YES AND NO on relieving the complexity because you still have to wire a CA18DET RWD harness into the FWD sentra's harness to make things functional.

[Sentrastic]

Haha, boost_boy, your killing me! So far I've been searching for a few Pulsar SE's and they are all way too far from me, so I'm probably gunna have to order most of them online, I can't seem to find the Pulsar Shifter and Linkage, other than that I need to get going on this project. I want to order the Engine pretty soon, I found one by JDM Planet, its from Canada, I'm not sure if thats a safe option however. I believe he said he has a FWD CA18DET, would i still need the specific CA18DET RWD harness?

Like I said, I'm not that great on wiring at all! Therefore I wouldn't know what I'm doing with splicing different harnesses. -_- But if you can email me, I was hoping I could possibly send you any of the Harnesses or items you need, and I can pay you for your labor and in return you can send me the full functional wiring harness for the B12 CA18DET I'm going to be working on. If this is too much to ask for please let me know.

If you can email me: [email protected]

[10psitx]

sentrastic, i have some experience with this swap, the ca 18DE was a factory option in Japan for your model sentra ( aka nissan sunny and some were also called the Laurel spirit in japan), so putting a DET in there is a bolt in matter. Boost boy is correct in saying you will need to get the 88-89 pulsar nx se donor car. There is one in a junk yard close to where i live that i have been getting parts for my ca rwd, unfortunately i live in austin tx. It will be easier to get a fwd engine/ transmission than try to adapt a rwd as the trrottle body will be very close to the passenger shock tower, the alternator in on the oppisite side not to mention the various braces, brackets and mounts you will need. Ther are a few FWD ca18det for sale on ebay for around $1200 shipped. As for the wiring it's a bit involved do some research. When i did mine i got lucky when i found a complete front clip with a CA18 DE here in texas which is what started the whole thing. The body parts were missing and no one knew what car it belonged to originally so i got the whole thing for $400. But i encourage you to do it i starts out as a task and turns into a learning experience. I will be glad to help, good luck

[Sentrastic]

Yea the only problem for me is I can't find a 88 or 89 Pulsar SE anywhere in California at all! -_- I'm trying to find a good CA18DET Engine through ebay, best one I've found so far is the one from Canada selling for $850 by JDM Planet, I've done some research and I've read people wouldn't suggest buying an engine from Canada, and yet I'm not sure why.

Someone tell me If I should consider buying this engine:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/200sx-G2 ... 505wt_1165

It seems like a good deal, they said they have a FWD engine, passed compression test, but they don't know the background of it, like miles, etc.

PLUS it's free shipping, which is a killer deal to me if it's a good engine.

And here is a website where I'm considering to get my mounts and other parts from.

http://www.partstrain.com/store/?D=puls ... sion+Mount

Overall, what do you guys think? I've found a transmission someone is selling, Used, 60 miles away, $250 plus tax, so $300 for the transmission.

Thanks!

[boost_boy]

That engine is an AWD auto engine. It has the necessary accessories, but you will need a flywheel, all the brackets, harness, ecu, blah, blah. And most importantly, that turbo will be up for a rebuild almost as soon as you start the engine, so make room for that or an upgrade. This will be better than a RWD motor, but you can use the RWD motor as well, but will have to source the accessories, so not bad for $850.

[Sentrastic]

Ok great, I might start ordering then, like I said I called JDM Planet, they said they have 2 in stock, a FWD and a AWD as boost_boy seen. It seems maybe getting the FWD is better since it comes with the flywheel? But neither of the engines have mounts, harness, and ecu. So I'm going to have to worry about that anyways, then again buying a new flywheel isn't a big deal either. My main concern is getting a good engine, low miles, well maintained, however JDM Planet are located in Canada, not sure if whether they're good or bad.

But now that I think about it getting the CA18DET Harness and ECU is gunna be a pain, so I'm sort of debating whether I should spend a bit more that come's with everything. -_-

[boost_boy]

Have them send pictures of the FWD and let's see what we are working with. I'll get with you tomorrow and let you know what I have for you. Don't worry, I should be able to help with the harness and ecu as well, but be patient as I got a ton of things going on at my house, so my time is limited in the car areas this weekend (Home improvement time).

[Sentrastic]

So I contacted JDM Planet, and they said the pictures on the link I gave out are all the pictures. They stated they have a FWD and an AWD Engine, both are less than 55k Miles, all pass compression test. I'm considering on buying the FWD as soon as I get the mounts.

However Boost_boy, if you can take a look at that link with the mounts and confirm its fine for me to purchase them.

I currently got my entire wiring harness out of the car, and its all set to go. :]

[conley]

I began to take on this swap myself ( with an 89 Sentra), and finding the 88/89 NX SE is definitely the hard part. Finding all those brackets and s*** is next to impossible as they simply dont have them anywhere and they never made replacements for some of that stuff. I looked for almost a year before I finally bought a whole CA18DE car in oregon and had it shipped here (in Arizona) and since then, i've decided to just swap the CA18DET into the Pulsar and leave the Sentra with its wimpy GA (mines not blown). As of now I am collecting parts for the DET before I put it in.
Also I have a wire harness and ECU from an 5 speed CA18DET S13 (the RWD one) that I am not using so if you need it let me know.
Good luck with your swap!

[Sentrastic]

Haha, yea I wish I had a Pulsar SE on my hands. However I'm just buying rebuilt car parts for the SE from different sites and what not. It's better than buying a used one without knowing whats wrong with it or how its been taken care of.

So far from the website with the mounts they have 3 Mounts out of the 5 I need, what they DON'T have is Rear lower and Transmission mount. If anyone has any of those I'm willing to buy them. Axles I can get from Kragen for $60 each, rebuilt with warranty. I'm planning to buy the transmission really soon, and the engine will be the next thing.

So all I need are 2 mounts, shift linkage and lever, and get the wiring done by Boost_ boy. Haha.

But yea Conley, I'll definitely keep you in mind for the harness. I have a choice between a FWD and AWD CA18DET engine, and It seems more beneficial for me to go with the FWD one.

And thanks!!!

[stewy485]

I am thinking about doing this swap... but i have a few questions such as with the clutch master cylinder how would you convert from the sentra being cable to hydraulic.
you say to stay away from the ca18det with the piping coming across the valve cover why is that boost_boy?

[boost_boy]

I am thinking about doing this swap... but i have a few questions such as with the clutch master cylinder how would you convert from the sentra being cable to hydraulic.
you say to stay away from the ca18det with the piping coming across the valve cover why is that boost_boy?

Avoid that model CA18DET if you must because it has a crappy intake manifold and the head is designed to accept the crappy manifold which is not compatible with the later CA18 heads and intake manifolds. Also, the gearbox using bigger axles than the USDM oulsar SE transmission, so steer clear if you don't want a migraine. As for hydraulic clutch conversion, you will need the hydraulic set-up out of a pulsar and the pedal as well. Hope this helps some.

[stewy485]

ok thanks for the help... so when i put the clutch master cylinder in I do not need to drill holes or anything? So what I need to do is find a ca18det then a stanza FWD transmission. Which year do I need for the transmission?

[boost_boy]

ok thanks for the help... so when i put the clutch master cylinder in I do not need to drill holes or anything? So what I need to do is find a ca18det then a stanza FWD transmission. Which year do I need for the transmission?

No drilling required as everything is a bolt-up affair, but mind you sourcing the correct parts to make this work will be challenging and the best way to do that is to find a complete pulsar. The transmission needed is from a 86-89 stanza. But doing this swap is so much more than you think because I'm putting together one for "Sentrastic" and though I'm nearly finished, it has not been an easy journey, even for me .

[stewy485]

I found a site that has all the parts i need but i just need help putting together all the what pieces for the motor mounts. Here is the link i found what pieces doe i need?

http://www.nissanpartszone.com/Page_Pro ... ntsIndex=4

[stewy485]

you'll have to copy and paste that link sorry it didnt make it a full link...

[boost_boy]

I found a site that has all the parts i need but i just need help putting together all the what pieces for the motor mounts. Here is the link i found what pieces doe i need?

http://www.nissanpartszone.com/Page_Pro ... ntsIndex=4

It's going to take more than that website to begin to help you with doing such a project. It's not simple nor cheap, so be prepared to spend a bunch of money and have a bunch of down time.