Hoffman5982's Super Awesome Driveway Swap- Finally Running

[Gabes13]

Now onto the decision:
SR20 or RB20?

I know the turbo on the rb20 is crap, so I was thinking of maybe swapping the one from the sr over to it. Is this a good or bad idea? I figured if I got the rb, I could part out or sell the sr as a whole and make back most if not all of my money, which kind of looks like a good option right now. Tell me what you guys thing!

no one really knows the measurements on the rb20 turbo bc there are no markings on it (ex "Nissan, Garrett, a/r 64 etc). The turbo is probably very similar in size to the sr though, so theoretically you could use it. However, you'd need a t3-t2 conversion bracket, since the rb manifold/turbo is a t3 flange. And using a conversion bracket like that would most likely give you steering column issues, since there are already issues with the stock turbo.

Sorry to hear about the car. Was one of my favorites here on nico.

[Hoffman5982]

Wow that sucks dude. Your thread makes me enjoy my slow KA a bit more lol... But I hope whatever you decide to do turns out for the better. P.S. doing an oil pan gasket isn't too bad of a job, at least on the KA. Sr wouldn't be different I imagine. I removed my sway bar, un bolted motor mounts from the subframe, removed transmission adapter plates, and lifted the motor as high as it would go. Then I had all the room I needed. It was a messy job and honestly cleaning off the 15 year old RTV was the worst part. Took me about 5 hours total and I let it sit overnight with no oil in it to let the new RTV cure. Just a thought.

Really? I'll have to consider that then. If I don't have to completely pull it that'd be great. And yea I know what you mean about the ka. If I could go back, I would have left the ka alone, bought a shell, and put the sr in that. Having your project car as your only form of transportation is not a good idea. Thanks for the advice though, Ill be giving that a shot.

no one really knows the measurements on the rb20 turbo bc there are no markings on it (ex "Nissan, Garrett, a/r 64 etc). The turbo is probably very similar in size to the sr though, so theoretically you could use it. However, you'd need a t3-t2 conversion bracket, since the rb manifold/turbo is a t3 flange. And using a conversion bracket like that would most likely give you steering column issues, since there are already issues with the stock turbo.

Sorry to hear about the car. Was one of my favorites here on nico.

Yea I looked that info up afterwards. I think Im going to stick with the SR. It'd be dumb to swap in a motor with the same amount of power. But I definitely appreciate the info. I will be swapping an RB in after college, so Ill get to enjoy the amazing sound of a straight 6 eventually

[Hoffman5982]

Ok quick question. I was trying to find an answer as to whether I can do what Grilled said and not completely pull the engine to remove the upper oil pan, but I can't find an answer anywhere. I know there are 2 bolts near the flywheel. I read somewhere that there is an access panel to get to these. Is this true? If I had the car I would just get up under it and look, but I can't. Hopefully there is some way of getting to them without removing the transmission, but if not I guess Ill have to suck it up and take a week off from work to get this done.

[Hoffman5982]

anyone know?

[amolao]

Sorry to hear about the car, but at least the weather is getting better. If you look directly under your engine and straight down the transmission there is a little metal panel attached with 2 screws that cover the hidden screws for your oil pan. The link to the fsm (sr20) is on the fsm nico page. It gives you a better view of where the panel is......MAke sure the contact areas are super clean, use the "right stuff" gasket maker, let it cure overnight and you will be set.

I never done an sr while inside the car, not sure of much room you will have. The ka is very hard even if you take mounts off and tilting the engine.

[Hoffman5982]

Awesome, thanks a lot man. You have no idea how much that helps. I couldn't find anything in the fsm about the panel but I might not have looked enough. I guess Im going to give it a shot without puling the engine

[SX APPEAL]

Ummm, maybe I missed something here, but if you have oil spewed all up around the top of the engine around the turbo and whatnot, why the hell are you changing the oil pan gasket? If you have that much oil coming out (coating the whole underside of the car) then I'd be looking very hard at the pressurized oil feed line to your turbo, not just blindly replacing parts hoping it'll magically fix itself.

[Hoffman5982]

You did miss something then. There was no oil on the turbo. Ut came from under the valve cover on the drivers side. And Im not blindly replacing parts. I've been saying that I needed to replace the head gasket for a while now, and this incident just made me crack down and do it so that I might find the problem while I had the turbo torn down. Im changing the oil pan gasket out because I can see oil leaking from it, therefor it needs to be replaced so that I don't leave oil spots everywhere I park.

[GrilledCheese33]

Really? I'll have to consider that then. If I don't have to completely pull it that'd be great. And yea I know what you mean about the ka. If I could go back, I would have left the ka alone, bought a shell, and put the sr in that. Having your project car as your only form of transportation is not a good idea. Thanks for the advice though, Ill be giving that a shot.

Your welcome sir, best of luck. Its a pita, but much better than pulling the motor for sure. Just FYI the pan will be stuck on there due to the old rtv after you pull the bolts. I tried prying it but that wasn't gonna happen and i didn't want to pry hard. So I hit it good with a rubber mallet to break it loose. It put a very slight dent in my oil pan but nothing major. I feel like thats better than prying.

[Hoffman5982]

135-135-135-60.

Thats the compression test results.


F*** this car

[badbob2121]

135-135-135-60.

ekk... even the consistant 135 is low... this swap has been a nightmare...

[Hoffman5982]

Yea your telling me. Looks like Ill be driving it around in its sh**y condition and slowly buy all of the stuff I need to rebuild it. I would go Wiseco pistons and all that jazz, but I work at BestBuy and Ive only been averaging around 25 hours a week. I don't make enough. So new rings, gasket set, and ARP head studs. What else do I need or might be a good idea to go ahead and install? Should buy all new oem pistons? Should I buy new bearings? I've never had an engine rebuilt, so I need a little guidance. After this rebuild Im done with it. If the motor fu** up again Im lighting the car on fire

[GrilledCheese33]

135-135-135-60.

Thats the compression test results.


F*** this car

Dislike.

[Hoffman5982]

From what I've read and what I see, I think it might be a valve issue, whether its a bent valve or just a valve seal. If it was bad rings Id have a butt load of smoke right? Id hate to rebuild the bottom end just to find out it was a problem with the head, or vice versa. Good news about that is that labor will be a lot less. If its the bottom end Im just taking it to a shop and they can tear it down. I don't have the time or energy to do that again.

[SX APPEAL]

Idk about you area, but around here I had a head cleaned and checked and it only cost $25. Just pop it off and take it down to a machine shop, you might have to find the specs for them (LOL) unless they deal with a lot of 240's/SR20's, but that'd be your best bet. You could also do a cylinder leak down test if you could borrow/rent the right equipment. That'll tell you if you're blowing past the valves, rings, or out the head gasket.

[Hoffman5982]

Ray666 and Grilled, I was going to PM you this but ya'll don't have your PM's enabled. Do either of you, or anyone else in the Pensacola/Pace area, know of a good shop to either A)take my car there and have them fix it if it's the rings, or B) take my head to have it cleaned inspected and all of that good stuff? Around here no one really works with these engines, but that doesn't matter since the car is stuck down there. Thanks in advance!

[GrilledCheese33]

Ray666 and Grilled, I was going to PM you this but ya'll don't have your PM's enabled. Do either of you, or anyone else in the Pensacola/Pace area, know of a good shop to either A)take my car there and have them fix it if it's the rings, or B) take my head to have it cleaned inspected and all of that good stuff? Around here no one really works with these engines, but that doesn't matter since the car is stuck down there. Thanks in advance!

You weren't able to pm me? Thats weird b/c they normally work. Anyway i'm not much help as I live in Daytona Beach, thats a looooong way from Pensacola lol.

[Raz007]

Damn Hoff, I scroll thru your thread often, and it hurts to see all these problems you are having. It sucks that you are doing things right, nothing half assed, and the car seems to be rebelling at you......... but don't give up man! When you finally get it all worked out, which you will, you will have one of the nicest S14s on this site. Your car and GrilledCheese's car are my favorites..... keep with it dude!!!

[Hoffman5982]

You weren't able to pm me? Thats weird b/c they normally work. Anyway i'm not much help as I live in Daytona Beach, thats a looooong way from Pensacola lol.

Lol I figured it was worth a shot. Thanks anyways!

Damn Hoff, I scroll thru your thread often, and it hurts to see all these problems you are having. It sucks that you are doing things right, nothing half assed, and the car seems to be rebelling at you......... but don't give up man! When you finally get it all worked out, which you will, you will have one of the nicest S14s on this site. Your car and GrilledCheese's car are my favorites..... keep with it dude!!!

Thanks man, I really appreciate that. Maybe its because I have the BOV ghetto rigged still. Its trying to punish me for that. I haven't ghetto rigged anything else. Ill fix it though. And when something else breaks, Ill fix that too. Stupid addiction

[GrilledCheese33]

Lol I figured it was worth a shot. Thanks anyways!

No problem sir. I do know people/places but your talking around an 8 hour drive over here...

[Hoffman5982]

Ok guys quick update. I did a leak down test and it turns out its the valve seals. That's the first good new I've heard in a while. I already have the head off and I'm going to drop it off hopefully tomorrow.

Also. I replaced the power steering line with my own de line using earls fittings and Russell performance hose. But for that you have to use earls sub earls and Russell with Russell because the outside diameter of the Russell hose is too small for the earls line so the hose blew off instantly. So I'm going to order new fitting but I wanted to see if there was any I.merest for the earls fittings. Brand new from summitracing they're about 40 bucks. These are basically new and ill sell them for 20 bucks + shipping. They're basically new so you'd get them for half off. I'll post links to the exact ones when I get home.

[Hoffman5982]

These are the fittings

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/EAR-134606ERL/
http://www.summitracing.com/parts/EAR-139106ERL/

And that was 20+ shipping for both of them, not each

[GrilledCheese33]

Ok guys quick update. I did a leak down test and it turns out its the valve seals. That's the first good new I've heard in a while. I already have the head off and I'm going to drop it off hopefully tomorrow.

Wow that is awesome news! Sure beats a total rebuild thats for sure...

[Hoffman5982]

Yea I had a big sigh of relief when I got the results.

That morning I started my car for the first time in a week and let it idle for a few minutes. I came around the backside of the car and there was gas flooding out. After looking I popped off the access panel in the top and saw that there was gas all inside of the fuel pump cover. the 3 hoses that connect to it could be twisted by hand, so I took the old clip off and put 2 clips per plug, and problem solved. How the hell does that happen??

[homeslicej2]

If you're going to get new headstuds, go with the ones Mazworxs sells. They are ARP material, just to Mazworxs specs and are only a little more than ARPs. They are a bit longer so that they seat fully into the block, whereas the standard ARP ones do not. Sorry you've had such crappy luck with the swap.

[StryfeS13]

Just read through this whole thread man. Sucks about all the problems you've had with your engine. Best of luck!

[Hoffman5982]

Alright guys, now that Im back from my ban I can update this. I've been a little busy getting the car back up so I'll just start where I left off.

Got the head off and took it to a machine shop to have the valve seals replaced. It cost me about 50 bucks and I also had them resurface the head. I received my Cometic head gasket and ARP head studs from a Nico member while it there. They took about a week and a half before they even started on it. I was a bit upset but that gave me time to clean up some stuff.

First:
You might remember my fan controller location. If not, here you go


Well I didn't like it because when I mounted it I forgot that the probe had to go on the other side of the radiator with the sr. So I had it stretch across and it really bother me. So I found a little bit better location for it:

I painted over the screws to hid it better and also repainted a few spot that were scratched pretty bad.

Next I started replacing quite a bit of the hardware with new shiny bolts to make it look all pretty.
Here's the headlights and hoodlatch, and you can also see the fan controller knob.


Then I decided to ditch the red valve cover. I painted it titanium and painted the coil pack cover black(not pictured) along with the exhaust mani heat cover



Then I finally got my head back and whenever I got back down to my parents house I immediately went to work. Along with the head gasket and head studs I bought new spark plugs, new pcv valve and pcv valve insulator, recirc adapter for the bov, and new fitting for the power steering hose which is leaking. I think i just need to unhook the hose and put more plumbers tape on. Anyways, Ill let the pictures do the rest of the talking.










Well I guess what ya'll are wanting to know is if it runs or not. Well after getting it back together I cranked it. It turned over about 10 times and as I was about to let go of the key I pushed the gas a little and she cranked right up. The idle was smooth which was great. The exhaust has a steady note now vs the intermittent fart that it used to have. If I gave it gas it would hesitate just as before, but after some tweaking that has gotten better. It's still there, but not as bad. I have a slight suspicion its a power issue as my brake light and battery light are back on, but I don't have a multimeter at the moment to go in and find the issue. I'll be driving her home tomorrow so hopefully nothing blows up.

Also, I bought some 10mm slip on spacers for the rear, but the lugs only threaded on about 3 threads, so I ordered some circuit sports 60mm studs from Enjuku.

[GrilledCheese33]

Glad its running again, have a safe ride back home man.

[Razi]

Valve cover looks nice!

I never saw titanium color paint, where did you find it?

[Speckid4]

Lookin good, what happened to your brake lines?