KA-T build, just the basics

[RFcool]

Hey guys ive been on this club for awhile, And i see many ways to build KA-T, but now I'm really wanting to build one myself. What are the necessary basics to get one up and running. And is it possible to do for $500. If so I need parts.

[dickie]

theres a great wealth of info in the stickies up there, and if you cant find what you need from that, theres always ka-t.org and searching.

$500 junkyard turbo setup? got a spare ka or something? i guess tis feasible depending on your connections.

[crzycav86]

Not possible unless you get parts for free, or practically free.

You can do it for less than $1000 without much difficulty.

[RFcool]

Yeah I do have a spare KA and also another 240 hatch as well. But just searching all over for things. Thanks for the input

[dickie]

the cost of the motor was not a factor when the $1000 estimate was offered, and i wouldnt expect the engine to last on a thousand dollar budget (assuming everyting will be bought outright).

keep saving or change your plans, hate to see another blown engine sob story.

[RFcool]

Hey thanks for the KA-T.org website. Didnt even know it was there. Great info onthere.

[dickie]

indeed.

i have a spare ka i am looking to build with a turbo, so ive been living on all the info i can get and trying to work out how much of a paycheck to set aside for parts. theres no limit on the ultimate total, it *could* get pricey because i want to be as reliable as you can get and make 250-275 rwp.

[Florida240sx]

Right now I got a turbo kit with fuel pump at just around 1500. Now he jsut needs a clutch and somethign to control fuel. Turbo kit itself is about 1200 then 300 in exhaust piping and little things that you forget

[RFcool]

Yeah I already just upgraded my clutch to an ACT. But I dont know about all the little small parts that are needed. And how much they generally cost. Thanks for posting.

[Florida240sx]

You just got little things.Which you got to take in account if your on a tight budget. Firts you got all your fluids, new fuel and oil filter. Probably going to need to get about $20 in vaccum hoses. Need some gasket sealer, hose clamps etc. Little things add up. Probably around $200 in stuff. When I did my car every where there is a hose I removed the stock stupid clamp and put a new hose clamp.Not needed but made me feel safer......

[RFcool]

Yeah I have recently given the car a tune up and flushed the radiator and also replaced alot of hoses (not all though) but gaskets lookied fine and every thing is tight (belt wise and fluids are good.) Anything besides cold air intake that I should get in order to increase horse. before I start buying parts for the turbo. I'm going off a 500 dollar budget. Thats why I was seeing if it was possible to do this.

[RFcool]

bump

[hannibal]

You better find of helluva a deal on a complete turbo setup.

Dont forget IC piping and a downpipe...

[BryanS13]

I doubt it will happen on $500 without good hookups, but if that is your budget, don't buy a CAI, it will just be a waste of money because you will get rid of it once your turbo the car anyways.

[blckkat]

okay I hate to be the guy to burst the bubble but I don't see how you could do it for $500. bare minimumfuel pump $100safc 1 $100 (for arguments sake)manifold $130 on ebayebay intercooler piping and bov kit $200

you've already busted your budget and you don't even have the turbo yet.sorry man you either need to double your budget or find a new route in my opinion.

[RFcool]

good call on the CAI, didnt think about it. I'm just wanting to get more horsepower and dont have a ton of money to do it on. Thats why I was seeing what all went into a turbo. I driven many a turbos, but never understood all the parts involved with it. Thats why I was going the KAT route. I can afford to do that in the near future as apposed to building an SR or RB.

If someone could just make a simple list of the things I needed to do this it would greatly appreciated. Hell even put prices next to it. It would help tremendously. If you have parts for sale Holla

[hannibal]

ask and ye shall receiveI actually cant believe I still have this file saved on my PC. I posted like 3 years, adn ahve since seen the exact list on a few other forums...

General Parts List

turboturbo exhaust manifoldwastegate (if turbo doesnt have internal wastegate swing valve housing)

downpipe (connects turbo outlet to cat/test pipe)-turbo outlet flange-piping-fittings (O2, wideband O2, EGT)-wastegate return pipe (from wastegate outlet to downpipe)--external wastegate onlytest pipe (takes place of cat, connects downpipe to catback exhaust)catback exhaust (mandrel bent)-piping-muffler

larger injectorshigh flow fuel pumpfuel management (piggyback, tuned ECU [Enthalpy, JWT], hacked MAF)ignition management (timing retard control)--over 8 psi

intercooler (front mount)-IC piping (mandrel bent)-silicon hose couplers and transitions

BOV (with flange of same material as IC piping)

oil supply kit-oil pan bung-braided oil lines-oil line fittings-'T' fittings

water/coolant supply kit--watercooled turbo only

gauges-boost-oil pressure-oil temp-water temp-EGT

intake piping (mandrel bent)cone filter

gaskets-exhaust manifold-turbo flange-wastegate

vacuum hoses (silicone or rubber)-'T' fittings

clutchflywheel

I hope its more apparent you'll need more than $500 to pull this off.

[RFcool]

BEAUTIFUL

THIS WHAT IVE BEEN LOOKING FOR. YEAH 500 anint gonna do squat. But it is much more possible with 1100. And if I can do it with that then I think this is the route I need to go and this is the info I need. Last question: You dont have instructions on how to install all that stuff do you? lol

Thanks

your a huge help.

[Edub1]

Keep in mind that as your project increases, so will the need for upgrades.

A decent turbo kit will realisticaly come in between $1500 & $2000 after you add up everything.

Turbo 300+Manifold 250+Injectors 100+oil lines 100Intercooler 100+IC pipe 100+exhaust 250+Clutch 150+Fuel pump 100Tune - 200+Guages 100+BOV 30+various crap 100+

Then there are suspension & wheels and perhaps an LSD rear end.

If you want to add a little power without spending real money, get a good bolt in cam and a good header & exhaust. Do all the maintainance and have your injectors cleaned & flowed. Also get a K&N drop in, remove the intake "Y" pipe and drill the lower half of the air box. That's $500 and you'll gain about 30HP.

[420sxse]

My opinion is that you should wait and save money. I'm in a similar position, but after researching, I started saving my $s while researching more. I'm too worried about long term reliability to do it cheaply. The KA CAN hold 250bhp or so, but for how long? (especially if it has 100K+ miles on it). You likely aren't the first owner, so how was it taken care of previously? Are there any surprises lurking inside? You simply don't know, and a rebuild is very wise. I have a spare KADE that I've been building up. I refreshed the head ($200 including machinists time and parts). I replaced all the vacuum hoses, secondary air lines, coolant hoses etc. That all ran about $150 in parts (do it while the engine is still out, or you will be sorry). You will want to replace the timing components before putting that engine in (again, you will b sorry if you don't). The timing chain guides are like $50 each (x2) and the tensioners are like $75 each (x2). I got a complete gasket kit from Nissan for a little over $200 (minus the throttle body gasket and a couple others...I forget which). I also replaced the knock sensor, water pump, and thermostat. It has been a while since I got these parts, so I may be off on the prices, but you get the idea. I'm about to finish the bottom end, and am going to order the Advanced Rebuild Kit from AMS that is $2039. It includes Arias pistons, Crower rods, Clevite bearings, ARP head/main studs, Cometic head gasket, copper exhaust gaskets, full gasket kit, and timing parts. It's not a bad deal, he quoted me a bit less than $1600 because I don't need the gasket kit or the timing components. My machinist estimated $275 for basic block work and assembly. And now I'll start saving for the turbo kit/fuel/ems. I'll probably wait until I have about $2K, and start with a basic setup that can be expanded if I want to increase boost. This is obviously much more than you are wanting to do, but it's an idea of the other extreme (well, maybe 1/2 to 2/3 of extreme) but if you have a spare block, and a decent engine in you car, why not do it right and be patient? It sounds like overkill, but you really need to lower the compression ratio especially since the pistons are cast, I don't care what anyone says (some mods will tell you not to, and I think that's irresponsible). Shims between the head and block are a bad idea, so that leaves pistons or cutting material from the combustion chamber. So, heres my logic a: You should rebuild the block (you should), and b: it's going to be expensive to do that (it IS), and c: you are majorly increasing the stress on the internals (50-75 is major, and double is extreme to me), then d: it's wise to upgrade at least the pistons and bearings, and there is a thread a little ways down where someone suggested it's a bad idea to upgrade the pistons but not the rods. You should check on that. The thing is, the engine's ALREADY OUT so do it up good, because it will be very expensive AND time consuming (or just obscenely expensive) to fix problems with the internals later, plus the car will go down for a bit. There's a gearhead mantra "Do it right, and do it once". It will cost quite a bit more initially, but you will be a lot better off in the long run. $500 for a turbo kit is low (you'll probably pay that for the turbo alone. A little less if you get a rebuilt one). Adding a turbo to a N/A engine for that much and having it run reliably is ridiculously optimistic. You need to do more research anyways, so save money during that time and readreadread this forum and books on the subject.

[fiznat]

You dont have instructions on how to install all that stuff do you?

[crzycav86]

if you want a cheap kat, get the

ssautochrome manifold $100sr turbo $100turbo elbow, downpipe $100walbro pump $90rising rate fpr $100sr intercooler, piping, bov $150oil lines $75

And there ya go. kat for ~ $700. I'm not sure on the prices of those specific parts, but that's ballpark +- $100.

Also, you're gonna have to upgrade the clutch soon after. If you want more boost, I highly recommend eventually ditching the rrfpr and getting bigger injectors and a good tune, a boost gauge, and a fmic. sell the smic and rrfpr to someone else whose starting a barebones kat project.

[hannibal]

LOL @ Foster!

RF, thats something you'll have to take some time to research on your own. IAP (forum sponsor) has instructions in .pdf format on their site. That will give a basic idea of whats involved.

First step should be to understand what those parts do and how they fit together. Then the install process should be much clearer.

Hit the library (or amazon) and read Corky Bell's Maximum Boost. That book gave me a good background, and helped all the stuff I read on here to make more sense.

[240sxHitman]

I dont mean to hi jack the thread but would an OEM rebuild but with new forged pistons and rods be good for turbo? or would i need to do the valves etc..

[Edub1]

I hope you're joking. Why would you spend over a grand on pistons & rods and not do head work?

Read up a bit and stop being silly.

[240sxHitman]

no im not jokin, im just askin question. im not being "silly"

[Florida240sx]

Use the power of search...........Current friends setup is at $970 Will have pics possibly this weekend IF parts arrive in time.

[Edub1]

no im not jokin, im just askin question. im not being "silly"

Not trying to flame, but come on, think about it. Forged internals and no head work. That makes about as much sense as a back pocket on a tee shirt.

[ka24boos13t]

Wow, I must be looking in ALL the wrong places for the parts for my turbo setup. Already im around 3700 (more than most freakin' kits) and i still have yet to factor in the average grand for electronics. I guess ill just have to keep looking for better deals.

[babowc]

first off, under a grand budget turbo kits wont make great power.probably 250 at most on a good tune.

second off, if you need instructions on something so basic as taking off the ex. mani and installing the turbo+mani, you should just stop trying to turbo and buy a turboed car.

thirdly, it wont last at that >$1000 budget.

good luck, hope you figure out things before you go tearing into your engine bay and your wallet