How much can I run?

[VertexS14]

I have a 1998 Nissan 240sx. It has a Turbod Ka24

It's a GReddy TD06 20G turbo. It has a Front mount intercooler, intake, SSQV, exhaust, radiator, and a few other small things. all the internals are stock though

I'm trying to figure out how much i can run safely on the car without worrying about blowing it up. i tried to see how much the car was running and the needle on the boost gauge only got up to .4bar which im guessing is about 3 or 4psi. how many pounds of boost or how much bar can i run on the car safely?

here are pictures of the car

[ghx407]

It largely depends on the fuel management and current health of the engine's internals... Do a compression test on your motor and post your fuel system and engine management components.

Nice looking car!

[NateDogg]

If you're only running 4psi, you probably have a boost leak. I believe 7psi is standard on the kit and I would not exceed that, especially since you only have 370cc injectors, and even more especially since those manifolds have boost creep in higher rpm.

[SeanC]

.4 bar = 5.8 psi

[480sx]

.4 boost is almost 6 psi...

So whats the rest of your setup? It all depends on what supporting mods you have.

[Zippy69]

.4 boost is almost 6 psi...

So whats the rest of your setup? It all depends on what supporting mods you have.

Definitely need know what type of management you have; ecu tune? piggy back? standalone? What is it set up for? you can safely run more than 7psi if your fuel and timing are right and your engine is in good shape>

[Riubens]

I bet you bought the car like that. because if your ka-t and asking us these questions then theres a problem, but like everybody said just give us your compresion #, injector size, maf sensor its using, and engine management and we will try to help you.

[darkforcejackal]

The Greddy kit is set for 6 PSI, so boost-wise it's running perfectly, just as it should.

If you want to take it further, you'll need bigger injectors (assuming you've still got the 370cc's it's supposed to come with), something to control them & timing (got the e-Manage I guess?), a boost controller of some form, and finally i'd highly recommend a wideband right off the bat if you don't have one, such as the AEM Uego to make sure your AFR's NEVER go lean in boost.

You'll also have to factor in when your turbo will be working too hard (it's effective PSI limit) and how far you want to push your engine internals as well.

I would guess 10-12 PSI, and arguably more, should be pretty safe assuming the AFR's are happy.

Good luck.

[VertexS14]

I bet you bought the car like that. because if your ka-t and asking us these questions then theres a problem, but like everybody said just give us your compresion #, injector size, maf sensor its using, and engine management and we will try to help you.

Yes..most of the stuff was already on the car when I bought it. I paid for the wheels, hood, seats, harnesses, and exhaust. There's no problem. I just want to see how much power I can get on stock internals before I have to rebuild the engine. When I get another car to drive around daily, I'll start getting into more engine work on my car. My goal is to get around 350 to the wheels which I know I'll have to rebuild the engine fore that...I just want to see how much I can get as of right now without having to rebuild the engine.

[VertexS14]

The Greddy kit is set for 6 PSI, so boost-wise it's running perfectly, just as it should.

If you want to take it further, you'll need bigger injectors (assuming you've still got the 370cc's it's supposed to come with), something to control them & timing (got the e-Manage I guess?), a boost controller of some form, and finally i'd highly recommend a wideband right off the bat if you don't have one, such as the AEM Uego to make sure your AFR's NEVER go lean in boost.

You'll also have to factor in when your turbo will be working too hard (it's effective PSI limit) and how far you want to push your engine internals as well.

I would guess 10-12 PSI, and arguably more, should be pretty safe assuming the AFR's are happy.

Good luck.

Yes. I've got the E-Manage and I have a GReddy Profec-S boost controller

[Riubens]

what you should do is get some bigger injectors because the turbo you got will give you up to 350whp I bet , I say get sum 550cc and a bigger MAF and turn the boost to 10-12 psi on a dyno with a profesional tuning the car for you ,make sure you call around and ask the dyno place if they know how to tune your e-manage and if they have had experiance w/ka-t running e-manage first! remember its all about the tuning. just dont go crazy with it!!!

btw love your car!

[lrb_2000]

without changing anything, probably 8psi.

[VertexS14]

what you should do is get some bigger injectors because the turbo you got will give you up to 350whp I bet , I say get sum 550cc and a bigger MAF and turn the boost to 10-12 psi on a dyno with a profesional tuning the car for you ,make sure you call around and ask the dyno place if they know how to tune your e-manage and if they have had experiance w/ka-t running e-manage first! remember its all about the tuning. just dont go crazy with it!!!

btw love your car!

350hp is my goal when i swap in the an SR20..but I'm not going to do that until I get another car to drive around daily. My car with the KA-T right now has 241hp...I just wanna see how much more I can give it.

[lrb_2000]

It's making 241hp on 5psi? damn.

[Riubens]

no ofense man but why are you going to swap an sr20 in,when you got a perfectly running car thats faster than the sr20 you are going to swap inn??

[coolbone28]

cause thats what you gotta do to be cool these days...

[480sx]

Wow.. You will be so disappointed in your sr after you'v driven a Ka-T. Your gona stomp on it and be like wait, wheres my torque curve... My rocker what broke?

Im not going to get into a big debate about it, or the usual lengthy post.. So ill just say this KA-T > SR .

But you gotta get the cool factor, all the uninformed kids with their JDM > USDM mentality. Its why iv picked up 4 ka's for less than 300 dollars, god im lovin it ^^.

EDIT - THAT FKIN ENGINE BAY IS SO CLEAN OMG, dude, if you swaped that out for a SR it would be a crime against 240's everywhere. What a waist..

[ghx407]

Damn bro, changing your KA-T for a stock SR makes as much sense as changing an SR for a stock KA.

Whatever your KA/SR preference is, you'd be downgrading. Why take out a perfectly fine KA-T, whose potential you've barely explored, to spend thousands of dollars to buy a new engine, wiring harness, ECU, gauge cluster, radiator, etc. and end up with 175WHP?

This is obviously your car and your choice, but I'd rather spend no money and keep a fast car than spend thousands to have a slow, "jdm tyte" ride.

[480sx]

Any stock sr with a FMIC puts out about 250 hp. A stock ka bottom end is good till atleast 350, with a much nicer power curve.

[ourmartyr]

350hp is my goal when i swap in the an SR20..but I'm not going to do that until I get another car to drive around daily. My car with the KA-T right now has 241hp...I just wanna see how much more I can give it.

DUMBBBBBB. three things to remember here.

1. theres no replacement for displacement.2. check out the avatar. the ladies love the KA.3. http://www.ka-t.org/forums/viewtopic.php?t=6263 read and enjoy the possibilities.

[Zippy69]

For the price of an sr swap you can build your Ka to handle just about any power output that you would want to drive on the street and then some.Remember, sr's are junkyard engines. Alot of people have this grand idea that They are going to get 30,000 mile pristine engine, that is perfect in every way. You have no idea how they were treated,( oil changes, maintenance etc,).Do the right thing, you are already ahead of alot of folks since you are already Ka-t

[HighPsiS13]

Well everybody has there own path but I can only hope that you take some advice from us.

I have know a couple SR drivers that have sold there setups to go back to KA .. yes its true but these are usually big HP guys.

I have had 3 KAde-T's, 3' SRdet's(2 300whp, 350whp>), one RB20 and one KA-e. I just bought another KAde 2wks ago and KA-t is what im going to stick to because i want to try to prove a point and have my KA vs. SR projects side by side that way people can see 6 of one half dozen of the other.

KA's if not done correctly cost you engines.. thats not too hard to replace.

SR's are very limp out of the box and require significant $$ to make good power with power adders. And if you blow a SR/RB you are SOL!! And you endup having to build the motor anyway for more money.

If you are already setup for KA-t i would say to stick with it and get some more support mods and a tuned ecu. If the motor lets go there are tons of spare motors and building is just as much as a built SR .. more displacement more torque and just about the same drivability at 350+ whp levels.

From my experience i would say that a KA is a perfect middle man between a SR and a RB25 .. all the revs and fun with all the power and torque.

I have a 1998 Nissan 240sx. It has a Turbod Ka24

It's a GReddy TD06 20G turbo. It has a Front mount intercooler, intake, SSQV, exhaust, radiator, and a few other small things. all the internals are stock though

I'm trying to figure out how much i can run safely on the car without worrying about blowing it up. i tried to see how much the car was running and the needle on the boost gauge only got up to .4bar which im guessing is about 3 or 4psi. how many pounds of boost or how much bar can i run on the car safely?

[HighPsiS13]

Also a little tidbit of useless information...

That KA-e was in jamaica and had about 240K+ miles on it.. and in that very very very stock 240sx won the womens autox championship, the 2nd place in the mens rwd non-lsd, qualified two drivers for the local entry level circuit championship and was driven every day.

The car also tested for the lacal gravel spprint championship.

the only mods being a muffler (non a system), air filter, two corbeau race seats and a rollcage.

How many SR's do you see make it to 255K Km's much less miles.

[ourmartyr]

Also a little tidbit of useless information...

That KA-e was in jamaica and had about 240K+ miles on it.. and in that very very very stock 240sx won the womens autox championship, the 2nd place in the mens rwd non-lsd, qualified two drivers for the local entry level circuit championship and was driven every day.

The car also tested for the lacal gravel spprint championship.

the only mods being a muffler (non a system), air filter, two corbeau race seats and a rollcage.

How many SR's do you see make it to 255K Km's much less miles.

EXACTLY. this man knows what he is talking about. i own two KA-e's one is 245k and the other is 155k, both runs like dreams, that is until i flipped the 245k one into a tree racing a civic SI with only 90k on it. and i was EATING him alive. HighPSI, you the man.