Ka-T vs sr20DET Which is better?

[FreytheViking]

Just wondering since I'm thinking of getting a Silvia this summer. What are the characteristics of these two engines and is the Ka-T jsut as good as the sr20DET?

[Arrow]

Welcome to the boards! and before someone else gets on your case about it I'll let you in on some very useful information. Use the SEARCH button in the top right of the website. This topic has been beaten to death and there is a lot of information about it if you search. This is also a very heated topic and you will get many very heartfelt responses from people on their opinions. So please search, and if you can't find something that way then ask. Good luck and glad to hear that you'll soon be joining the ranks!

[GEO]

you have got to be kidding me

[Craving4Boost]

is the KA-T "as good" its better dammit!

[Red-KAT]

Both are good engines... Both have great power outputs if done right. It has taken a while but the support for the KA is starting to show up. and the SR has had parts forever... thats why a lot of people went that way. and its jdm tyte yo.

[WDRacing]

The "Search" function on NICO is broken. It is extremely limited. If you would like the search function fixed, please email AZHitman. As I've brought this up more then once to no avail.

[TheOne]

and its called 240sx, not silvia.(i know i know its silvia in japan but am just bein a smarta**)

[ILikeMy240sx]

Asking KA-T or SR20DET in this KA-T forum is a rhetorical question....

[ckamc]

The "Search" function on NICO is broken. It is extremely limited. If you would like the search function fixed, please email AZHitman. As I've brought this up more then once to no avail.

It is? wow I need to talk to him this weekend then and see if he has got it fixed...

[madbouncy]

S and R are both later in the alphabet than K and A which makes them superior. That just shows that the SR20DET is better than the KA. Plus SR20DET is more letters than KA-T, which again, makes it superior.

[Jookmasta]

whichever engine has the higher horsepower is the better setup. lol.

welcome to the boards and i guess go and get a pen and pad as you will have alot to look into. id say search but if the button is broken, you may want to first check your wallet as this is usually the determining factor for whether u choose the ka-t route or sr route.

[DriftFasterThanGrip]

This is a KA-T forum as many have said it is a silly question. We're going to tell you things contrary to what the SR20DET guys will tell you. If you want tourque, affordability, an iron block and if you want to build boost fast, KA-T is for you. If you want to be "t3h m4d tyte jDmorz" get the SR lol!

[azncorruptedo17]

This is a KA-T forum as many have said it is a silly question. We're going to tell you things contrary to what the SR20DET guys will tell you. If you want tourque, affordability, an iron block and if you want to build boost fast, KA-T is for you. If you want to be "t3h m4d tyte jDmorz" get the SR lol!

but you've only posted 13 times

anyway... depends on what you wanna do. i think both motors suck =] most go SR since less mileage and has good aftermarket support. KA-T is somewhat frowned upon since, on an s13, they usually have over 100k miles. So KA-Ts are usually best fit on newer model 240sx with less mileage. I mean s13 KAs are good also, but a rebuild on the motor would help its life expentancy Would you wanna spend your money to turbo a car with 120k+ miles?

[EXIST tm]

my approach, price out all the turbo and rebuild parts for a ka24det, then price out the cost of having a sr20 dropped in (don't trust low mileage japanese motors though just because they only have 30-40k plus miles on them, they could have been beaten to crap)

[azncorruptedo17]

they COULD have been beaten to crap, but most of the time, they aren't. Regardless, the motor would/should have been sitting somewhere for years now, so you would still have to do some work on it to make sure that it will run fine, like change OEM parts/upgrades.

But definately, draw out and price both motors, turbo and all, install etc etc.

If it makes it easier, IRON(ka) vs Aluminum(sr) You decide =]

[azncorruptedo17]

theres always an RB25/20 and a 3rd 180sx motor =] just gotta research and find out what it is buddy =D (i'm not trying to be an ***, just giving him practice to use the search button, no flames necessary thanks )

[cheapspeed]

all have advantages you have to look at all the motors and decide which fits your driving style and what you want in an engine sr higher revs ka more torque rb both but expensive to maintain ca really high revs but small displacement the choice is up to the individual person i like all of them so im building a fleet of 240s woo hoo

[Nismo_Freak]

If it makes it easier, IRON(ka) vs Aluminum(sr) You decide =]

SR = 700+ HP

KA-T = hasn't even hit 600whp yet.

Your statement is the typical idiotic biased crap you get with any of these threads. 99.9% of the people building these cars will never make enough power to crack an SR block. The aluminum block mantra came from the Honda camp, which uses a radical hollow block design to cut down weight in their economy cars. Other engines such as the LS1 don't... and have been more than proven to make tons of power.

Get educated before you make another post.

[Red-KAT]

Anyone looking at BIG power will need to rebuild the KA or SR anyways. so its pointless for someone like me to go SR when I would have to rebuild it anyways.

The rb26 does look like a fun engine but that's the next project. And they cost way more then they are worth.

EDIT: Its pointless to claim who has had the most power out of the engine... For one you have the entire nation of japan modding SR's to get power... and we have the nation of Ivan for the KA...

Anyways by the time you change so many things and spend that much cash the winner WILL be the one with more displacement. just copy what they did to make the 700hp SR and add .4 more displacement... then the KA wins hands down. It like trying to argue the 302 will make more power then my 454... no because all things done I'm still a larger engine.
Modified by Red-KAT at 5:35 PM 2/15/2005

[fiznat]

OK here we go again...

there are two kinds of KA-T engines, built engines and stock engines. You cant just flat-out compare "any KA-T" to a SR because the results you get from those two types of KAs are incredibly different.

Why I chose KA-T

1. I wanted more torque down low from the bigger engine (2.5 versus 2.0)

2. I wanted to know the history of my engine (SR is a motor out of a junkyard, you have no idea)

3. I wanted all parts to be available locally (true some SR stuff you can get with cross-platform etc etc, but there are other things you have to pay top dollar for because they are specially imported)

4. I wanted to put it all together myself. I enjoy doing the work and simply pulling one motor and throwing in another is not what I wanted.

5. Ive ridden in both KA-T and SR cars and I have to say, I like the "feel" of the KA-T better.

SR guys will tell you other stuff... they'll say:

1. the KA-T is unreliable. It only got that reputation from people sloppily throwing together turbo kits and not paying attention to the details like quality tuning. I expect my built, custom KA-T to be 10 times as reliable as any random junkyard SR.

2. "the KA wasnt built to be turboed/its a truck motor." BS. The KA has many features that turbo engines have: under piston oil squirters, a very good flowing head (can even be made better), strong, forged internals (except ring lands), etc etc. My machine shop would not stop complementing the design of this motor- they thought the rods were chevy v8 rods at first one of the guys told me..

There is lots and lots and lots to talk about this, but really its been gone over a ZIIIIIIIIIIIIILION times. If you cant find discussions on this forum cause of the crappy search (COMEON GREG FIX THAT!!), there are also extrememly involved discussions on just about every 240sx board.

Good luck with your decision

[KATwo40]

SR = 700+ HP

KA-T = hasn't even hit 600whp yet.

Your statement is the typical idiotic biased crap you get with any of these threads. 99.9% of the people building these cars will never make enough power to crack an SR block. The aluminum block mantra came from the Honda camp, which uses a radical hollow block design to cut down weight in their economy cars. Other engines such as the LS1 don't... and have been more than proven to make tons of power.

Get educated before you make another post.

Horsepower is overrated. The magic is in the torque. An engine with the torque spread further over the rpm band will always outperform one with a narrow torque band. Anyone who rides an offroad motorcycle would know this.

*QUOTE* ...Would you wanna spend your money to turbo a car with 120k+ miles?

I did. Also, check with FA forum. Can't remember who, but one guy made around 370whp on a 160k KA. Drove it for a long time without drama.

Mileage is also overrated. Either an engine is good or it's bad. An engine with 120k miles that doesn't smoke, knock, rattle (well, all KA's rattle a little ) and has been well maintained is just as reliable as a JDM 60k junkyard engine. Besides, the things that blow up 120k engines from turbocharging are the same things that blow up brand new forged engines from turbocharging...POOR TUNING.

[DriftFasterThanGrip]

This is my 16th time *****

I've been lurking this forum and KA-T.org for a while now plus I've researched the SR20DET to a "T".. I've also considered an RB26, ironically I know as much about it as I know about the KA but I have a KA waiting to be rebuilt and boosted.

Given the vast amount of support the SR20's have, their capability has be realized. Hehe Ivan or Duy have not yet showed us the limits of a fully built and well-tuned KA-T.

[atomicfire]

This is a topic beaten to death, but here are my personal opinions on the engines:

KA24DE/DE-TThis was developed as a long-stroke truck engine. As a result it has gobs of torque but is limited in its high end. This is an excellent engine for the street.

SR20DET:This is the JDM engine, 2 litre. Being short-stroke it has incredible potential for high-rpm fun. Also being turboed from the factory it is easiar to get started.

its all up to you - if you like a nice torquey engine that takes boost fairly well, and you're ok with installing a turbo and the relitively low RPM limit go for it - i like this engine!

If you like a peaky honda-type high rpm engine that makes power at high rpms go for the SR20DET - simple mods can make the car a 13 second car

[ckamc]

IMO its about which will cost you less is better... like if you have more SR part discount prices then Sr may be the choice... or the other way around with KA... for me i have more KA hookups so im sticking KA-T

Its always about money right guys?

[FreytheViking]

K sorry for starting a topic that has been "beaten to death." The search button is kinda messed up so I couldn't find too many relevant topics. But still, there was a lot of useful information here so I thank you all =).

[Projex240]

"get educated beofe you make another post...."

I hate condescending posts like that.

For some reason there been alot of posts made lately basically insulting people for their comments. Its stupid. Mods shouldnt talk that way to the people that make this forum what it is--popular.

In no way am i bashing an sr. Id liek to have one myself one day just for fun...but A 700 hp sr20det makes a very peaky power band, and is just about worthless before 5k. PLus it made about only 400 lbs of torque. Which is very respectable, but its 300 pounds less in tq than HP, but saying its a 700hp motor is pretty bland. It was also put together by a race shop if i remember correctly. with access to engine dyno motor tuning, and it was also made at the flywheel which is about a 600hp car. Even moreso. Its been around for about 5 years longer in popularity than the ka-t. Which, in about a few weeks, will be over 600 hp without a problem. Ivan will see to that. Id like to line up two cars. Ans sr next to a KA-t and see the result. I think i already know. But hey--never can tell.

-Josh

[TrunkMonkey]

a KA vs. SR thread? what the?!

-demetrius

[Nismo_Freak]

"get educated beofe you make another post...."

I hate condescending posts like that.

For some reason there been alot of posts made lately basically insulting people for their comments. Its stupid. Mods shouldnt talk that way to the people that make this forum what it is--popular.

And I hate ignorant biased posts with absolutely no substantial factual backing.

Which seems to plague the entire 240 community.