Hi Folks,

I've recently inherited an '89' Nissan 240SX. I'm not sure at this point if I'm going to make this a project car or just sell it. The body is in outstanding condition but there is extensive rust underneath. Determining if the rust issue can be corrected will be what ultimately influences my decision.

Everything appears to be OEM here. It runs. I had not previously driven one of these so my description might be off however it seems to me that this car is really underpowered, the clutch is slipping a bit and the suspension is crap.

If the underbody issues can be mitigated my general plan will be to start with the suspension and then go to work on the Engine and Trans whether that means a rebuild or replacement I'm not sure. From what I'm reading about this year model the SR20DET engine and manual trans is a popular upgrade.

I will post any progress on this project and appreciate any comments or advice.

Welcome to the forums. A sohc KA-t would be a blast too. I sure enjoyed mine.

Welcome to the forums. A sohc KA-t would be a blast too. I sure enjoyed mine.

Thanks for your input. What is the advantage of a sohc KA-t over a SR20DET? Just browsing eBay the prices look comparable between them.

Near half a liter of displacement. Powerband. Motor is already there. You're pricing the motor with the SR. Not wiring it in and installing it. Depends on what your power goals are. If you only want to push it to low 300whp SR isnt a bad choice. KA isnt either provided you build it smart. KA-Ts dont have reliability issues; they have cheap-o corner cutting owner issues. I am a bit biased though. And don't get your turbo parts off of eBay. In my opinion. The adage do it right or do it twice is definitely applicable here.

If you just want to toss in a drivetrain and wail on it to the tune of high 200 to low 300whp range and learn as you go, the SR will be more forgiving out of the box.

If you only want to push it to low 300whp SR isnt a bad choice. KA isnt either provided you build it smart. KA-Ts dont have reliability issues

Great feedback, especially about reliability. I'm getting 300whp out of my 2.0 L VW GLI with a piggyback JB4 module. That's more than enough for a start. I just like to have a little fun on my way to work or on the weekends. I'm not planning taking it to the track or dominating Mustang GT's. Plus this 240 SX is probably 1/3 the weight of my GLI.

So, in addition to the engine, I will need the trans unless I rebuild the existing KA24E but that gets about 20whp less (naturally aspirated) than the KA24DE. With the turbo I'm assuming will need an intercooler and a new downpipe. What about the clutch. Do you happen to know if the manual trans on the 4e is the same as the 4DE? Can the stock clutch handle the tornque at about 300whp or would it slip?

Ka and sr trannys are identicle save the bellhousing (s13 and s14 variants that is. S15 6mt is a different beast)

The oem clutch will not hold beyond mid 200 ft/lb ish. Im running a competition clutch white bunny kit. Basically an rb20/25 flywheel with a 300zx clutch. Bolt on for the KA. Very civilized street manners and its holding up to over 380 ft/lb torque in my setup atm.

I wonr go into tons of details about what you need to do to the KA to get x hp. There are tons of threads if youre curious. Go down to the engine specific ka-t subforum there are some good stickies.

What i would absolutely do is check the health of the motor. Compression/leakdown test for starters. Not sure what your mechanical background is but I would also look into widening the gaps on the piston rings. The KA has little tolerance for a poor tune when people just slap a turbo on. The achilles heel of the KA is the cast pistons and rings that are not gapped for boost. Widening the ring gaps even on the stock pistons goes a long way toward increasing the motor life under boost. As does a quality tune.

Youve got a leg up.with the sohc. Dished pistons from the factory and a lower compression ratio. The motor is.basically.an.L28ET with 2 cylinders cut off. So much so, your oil pump can.be upgraded by swapping to one from.the l28. No mods.necessary. valvesprings from the l28 are interchangeable too, though just the exhaust? Dont quote me on that it's been.a while. Its one or the other from the l28 fit on both intake and exh of the sohc KA. Phone is killing me ok puncruation so i'll leave it there. Do some research both ka and sr have their merits. Tons of good stickied beginner FYI threads in the engine specific subforums here.

The oem clutch will not hold beyond mid 200 ft/lb ish.

Thanks for taking the time to answer and write this up. This info is gold.

I am finding a lot of great info here and another similar forum about the KA engine and turbo mod. Many are recommending the T04E Turbo 50 trim and also the need to upgrade the oil pump. Sounds tried and true and I certainly will not be buying from ebay. I'm going to have them test the compression Monday when I take it for the state inspection. Just by the feel of the throttle response and the relative age of the engine (OD says 58K miles but I think it's broken) I assume that it should be rebuilt to some extent.

My engine experience is limited to rebuilding a 65 mustang 289 bored to 302 with a 4 barrel Holley carb and (20 years ago) - haha! But I'm an enthusiast about cars and engines at heart so I'm comfortable with how they function and the vernacular and I'm always tinkering on them. I'm fortunate to have collected a lot of tools and have ample space to work indoors. Although my experience is limited I have the luxury of not needing this 240sx as a daily driver so I can take my time and bring in professionals when needed. Also, having been recently furloughed from my job I have a lot of time on my hands.

I will post updates when they are available.

Cheers!

http://www.ka-t.org/forums/viewtopic.php?

I stumbled across this site when I was doing my rebuild on my KA24E. Good info in here for different types of build goals. Low power to high power and what needs to be done. Good Luck. Car looks

I stumbled across this site when I was doing my rebuild on my KA24E.

Excellent! Thank you!

Great looking s13. I'd love to be lucky enough to inherit one myself. Good luck and keep us posted!

Nice S13 coupe. I'd rebuild the KA24e (depending on miles) then turbo. Get some better rings and forged pistons. These engines get really hot so you need a good cooling system. Most people move to the KA24det, better cooling, dual cam, over single cam.

There should be a 302 build on here somewhere. That would be nice. Not too many people put Ford engines in. They move to the LS engines. Good Luck in whichever one you do. You only have a million options.