My Ka is getting old so I'm thinking about reviving it. I has 91,000 miles on it so I'm wondering what I should put in it to prep for a turbo. First a complete rebuild, I Know I want a lower compression ratio to be compatable with the turbo I get. I a novice when it comes to the world of engines. So if you could through me ideas about the right pistons, cams, fuel pump, head, or anything else I need to upgrade\change, throw out brand names and websites if you can. Any information is appreciated.

Thanks - Jefferson240

i'm no pro at this, but im pretty much in the same situation as you "lower miles tho)anyways, heres what i know.....

- new fuel pump- new injectors

and i think it would be a good idea to replace your head gasket if it hasnt been done before. maybe just polish your cams, pistons and cylinders.just some advice

I think it would be a good idea to sell it and buy an SR20. I was pro KA for a long while, but after owning a Turbo KA, I have absolutely changed my mind. Not only do you get an engine that is meant to be turbo, you get an engine with a much larger aftermarket that can easily outrev the KA any day.

There's no set compression ratio that is compatible with a turbo. Lower compression is more turbo friendly, especially when it comes to higher boost. But the trade off is drivability off-boost. If you are rebuilding your entire motor, there's not much you need to check as long as it's done right. Most other upgrades will involve tuning the engine management to compensate for the turbo.

I didn't say anything about the compression ratio. I just said that the KA wasn't designed from the factory to be turbocharged. That doesn't single out compression, any one of a hundred other little things.

What I'm trying to get across is that it seems to me that most people with positive experiences that I've talked to have the SR and most people with negative ones have a turbo KA.

cnichols wrote:I think it would be a good idea to sell it and buy an SR20. I was pro KA for a long while, but after owning a Turbo KA, I have absolutely changed my mind. Not only do a get an engine that is meant to be turbo, you get an engine with a much larger aftermarket that can easily outrev the KA any day.

It seems you have a very strong opinion about this. Ive seen you post pro-SR messages in other threads. So tell me...what exactly do you mean by a motor that is meant for a turbo. Other than lower compression, the SR doesn't really have anything significant that makes it more of a turbo ready motor then a KA.

Part of tuning is building the motor to handle more power/boost. Remove the weak points to gain real power. Look at the Jun Drag Silvia. Do you realize how much modification the motor went through to handle that kind of power?

And just because an engine wasn't originally built to be turbo'd doesn't meant it isn't a good motor for it. A great example is the 2JZ Motor(Supra). The motor wasn't originally built as a Turbo motor. The first versions came NA. After Toyota brought out the Supra TT, the aftermarket now considers it to be one of the most bulletproof turbo motors ever made.

As such, keep in mind the SR has a NA version as well. Nissan uses some different parts on the turbo version to make it more suitable for turbo as do other manufacturers that have NA and turbo variants of the same motor. Having said that, there is no reason why the rest of us can not make these kinds of changes. If the Honda boys can do it, so can the KA guys.

Don't get me wrong, the SR is a great motor, and yes, it's better suited to withstand higher boost from the factory because of lower compression. But that's comparing apples to oranges. Build up the KA and there should be no reason the KA can't match an SR's output. And has an SR in the states even matched Duy's 500+ RWHP yet(Aside from JUN, they have tons of money)?

And I do respect your opinion. But you said nothing to back it up.

You're 100% right on all counts. What I'm really trying to say is that it seems almost like a curse. If it wasn't from the factory it just doesn't seem to work right even though everything should. Just look at what Chris May went through. Granted, he was racing it...

But...mostly I think I'm just pissed that mine didn't turn out as well as I hoped, and I'm left with no option but to swap out everything because nobody seems to be able to pinpoint the problem.

cnichols wrote:I think it would be a good idea to sell it and buy an SR20. I was pro KA for a long while, but after owning a Turbo KA, I have absolutely changed my mind. Not only do you get an engine that is meant to be turbo, you get an engine with a much larger aftermarket that can easily outrev the KA any day.

Out rev? Maybe. Out power? No way!

If you know how to build a ka for turbo properly, you can get whatever you want out of it.

cnichols wrote:You're 100% right on all counts. What I'm really trying to say is that it seems almost like a curse. If it wasn't from the factory it just doesn't seem to work right even though everything should. Just look at what Chris May went through. Granted, he was racing it...

But...mostly I think I'm just pissed that mine didn't turn out as well as I hoped, and I'm left with no option but to swap out everything because nobody seems to be able to pinpoint the problem.

What problems are you having? I have gone through 4 Ka-T motors myself. It was a little expensive learning experience, but worth it now i that i know what i am doing.I am building a Ka-T for my 92 now for a goal of 900hp. I dont know if i could ever reach it, but it will be fun to try.Take an Sr and a KA. Build both using the same upgrades and etc. The ka will end up with more torque and power than the Sr. i have done this comparison actually. Too many people are comparing an Sr20det to a Ka24de. This is a wrong comparison. What people should actually be comparing is an sr20de (138hp/130ftlbs) to a ka24de (155hp/157ftlbs) or a sr20det (205hp) and a KA24det (235hp) with equal build.

Hey, did you say you were on the KY/TN border? Where? I'm in Bowling Green.

900 hp? I don't know it that's possible without some serious $$$ if possible at all, but I wish you as much luck as possible, because that would be unbelievable and insane!

The other thing to take into account on the 235 KA-T versus 205 SR argument is that the KA-T comes with a much larger turbo than the SR.....You could equally argue the S15 SR20 which comes with 250hp and a smaller turbo...