New Member = New Project

[bblack23]

Hey Guys!

First time on the forum so I thought I would introduce myself. My name is Billy and I'm from Charlotte NC. I just picked up a 1989 240 hatch and plan to build it with my pops. We aren't really sure where to go with it (hence why I am here). All we know is we want something quick and something we can drift with. he always built classic cars and I was a Honda kid growing up, so we are both new to the nissan world.

The car I bought has a good motor but a blown transmisson. First things first, we are pulling the motor to tear down and see what the internals look like. I plan to turbo the car, so I want to see what I'm working with.

I've heard good and things about turboing the original motor, thoughts? Recommendations?

Thanks in advance and I hope I didn't break any rules!

[2_Liter_Turbo]

Welcome to the forums! I'm currently just a bit south from you in Greenville SC, lol, but leaving next week to go back home. Nothing wrong with throwing a turbo on the original motor, but it's a good idea to freshen it up beforehand. If you're after large power, then new rods and pistons are a must! What kind of power are you looking for? Any idea what turbo you thinking of? Go ahead and ask questions and definitely look around on the forum to see what others are doing. Might give you some good ideas or answer questions you might have.

[bblack23]

Home looks to be Oregon? That's a slight bit further haha. As for power, I don't really have anything set... maybe that's a bad thing? We are really just after building something fast and fun. We fixed up a few civics when I lived at home but nothing more than bolt ons. The point being, we're just trying to have some fun with it so I couldn't tell you what exactly I'm after for power.

I've been scoping out a few kits but I'm new to the turbo game. I had a 93 supercharged civic, but never anything turbo. The kits range from 1-6k it seems like. We don't mind spending the money on something nice, but i want to make sure it's necessary. What are some respectable kits? Easy to piece it together?

[2_Liter_Turbo]

I just now realized you said 89 240, ha ha. They have a single over head cam motor (KA24E) which isn't super awesome for turbo builds. You can turbo them, but the DOHC (KA24DE) is much better. I would either look for a used KA24DE from a 91+ 240SX or if your emissions laws permit it, you can swap in a factory turbo motor or even an LS1 V8 if you want! I'm sure your Dad would like that one if he is into muscle cars

As for turbo "kits", you are better of piecing the components together yourself to get exactly what you want out of the engine. The advantage of a factory turbo motor swap (Like an SR20DET or RB series straight six's) is that you get a lower mileage motor with factory reliability turbo performance. It all comes down to how much power you want, how difficult or easy you want the project to be, what you'll use it for, what kind of sound you want (important to some), and most importantly, how much cash you want to spend, ha ha.

Oh, and yeah Oregon is home for now, but I wouldn't mind moving back to this area next summer; I really like it here!

[bblack23]

or even an LS1 V8 if you want! I'm sure your Dad would like that one if he is into muscle cars

Its funny you say that... He owns his own business ( diesel mechanic shops ) and we have a guy at the Greensboro location that put a chevy 350 motor in his 240. Im not sure what year he has. I believe that is why he wanted to get a 240 though My girlfriends dad is the one who had the car, his son blew the transmission out and it has just sat in the shop. So we were going to just get a high performance transmission, build the stock motor and slap a turbo on it. But that's where my comment came in about not turboing the original motor. I haven't ready many good things about putting a turbo on it.

It looks like R32's run around 1-1.5k and the SR20DET for about 2-2.5k. I like the sound of the R32

[bblack23]

OH yeah and I forgot to mention... I picked the car up for scrap value. ($250)

[2_Liter_Turbo]

or even an LS1 V8 if you want! I'm sure your Dad would like that one if he is into muscle cars

Its funny you say that... He owns his own business ( diesel mechanic shops ) and we have a guy at the Greensboro location that put a chevy 350 motor in his 240. Im not sure what year he has. I believe that is why he wanted to get a 240 though My girlfriends dad is the one who had the car, his son blew the transmission out and it has just sat in the shop. So we were going to just get a high performance transmission, build the stock motor and slap a turbo on it. But that's where my comment came in about not turboing the original motor. I haven't ready many good things about putting a turbo on it.

It looks like R32's run around 1-1.5k and the SR20DET for about 2-2.5k. I like the sound of the R32

Throwing an old small block adds a ton of weight to the front end and really ruins the handling, ha ha. The LS1 is nice and light (not much heavier than stock), so the handling doesn't change too much. My buddy in Southern Oregon has an older chevy small block in his 240SX and while it's a great drag car, it handles horrible! I'm assuming when you talk about R32 you are referring to the RB20DET motor? It's a 2.0 straight six single turbo. It does sound good, but the SR20DET is a better motor overall, which is why the price difference exist. Also, the SR is basically a direct swap where the RB20 takes some work (and extra money) to get it in, and will end up costing you as much as an SR to swap it in. If you want the sound but better performance, an RB25DET would be a better bet. But it's a bit more than the SR20.

[bblack23]

Yeah down south here they love there drag racing, so I don't doubt that is why he went with a 350

I just read this post http://www.240sxforums.com/forums/begin ... ation.html which was very helpful, and yes I was referring to the RB20DET

Based off the article the SR20DET seems to be the most versatile motor, best to build for what I need. I would prefer something I can direct swap especially for my first one! A lot of the RB look like the need some modifying.

[2_Liter_Turbo]

I would get a blacktop SR20 if you can, as it is going to be a little newer. If you get an S14 blacktop, you'll get a little more power potential in stock form (it has a larger turbo mainly, but some other small things that are nicer), but it's a little more expensive. The S13 Blacktop will be super easy to swap in Definitely check out our forum vendor wiring specialties for a nice slick and new conversion harness to save you trouble and from having to use a 20+ year old wiring harness!

[bblack23]

We were just talking about black / red tops over lunch. $2500-3000 for the works plus a turbo, you can't really beat that. Where is the most respectable place to get them from? I found a few places but i dont want to get shafted.

[2_Liter_Turbo]

To be honest, I don't know the east coast places, I've only bought motors from the West Coast. I could give you a name there, but the shipping would not be worth it. Hopefully someone here locally can chime in in regard to a good engine importer. You want to be able to check out the motor in person & check the compression if possible.

[bblack23]

Okay ill see what I can dig up. We do a lot of work with some auto vendors at the shop so I have the word out. To bad we cant throw a diesel in there. We have a few of those laying around the shop.

What about the s15's?

[2_Liter_Turbo]

Okay ill see what I can dig up. We do a lot of work with some auto vendors at the shop so I have the word out. To bad we cant throw a diesel in there. We have a few of those laying around the shop.

What about the s15's?

The diesel swap has been done, lol. As for the S15, it comes with a weak 6spd transmission that doesn't have a spot for speed sensor (nissan put it in the rear end in that model) It does have a better turbo and injectors though, but not really worth the extra cost.

[bblack23]

I seen a few videos of the diesel swaps... insane!

Fair enough, man thanks for all the help. You really helped spell it all out. Ill be starting the tear down this weekend so Ill be sure to get some pictures up here ASAP. I should have a motor at least ordered within the next week or two. www.jdmtigerjapanese.com has them at a fair price from what I can tell. Looks like around $2800 for a complete swap with ECU, harness, and shipping.

[2_Liter_Turbo]

Here is another importer I have been told by someone local that was good:

http://jdmengineinc.com/

I personally don't have experience with them though, so I can't vouch for it. It is another option though.

[bblack23]

Just called... dude that place is 3 minutes from my work. Their warehouse is in charlotte. That is wild. $2400 for complete swap.

[2_Liter_Turbo]

Nice!

[bblack23]

Ready to get the ball rolling! Im putting together a little parts list and this is where I am at right now. Any brand ideas, parts you would recommend, chime on in.

SR20DET S14
Good brakes, rotors, stainless brake lines.
Coilover system - Adjustable from the shock body.
Camber kit.
Suspension bushings.
Rear sway bar.
Tension rods.
Tie rods.
Toe links.
Light weight wheels / racing tires.

[2_Liter_Turbo]

Ready to get the ball rolling! Im putting together a little parts list and this is where I am at right now. Any brand ideas, parts you would recommend, chime on in.

SR20DET S14
Good brakes, rotors, stainless brake lines.
Coilover system - Adjustable from the shock body.
Camber kit.
Suspension bushings.
Rear sway bar.
Tension rods.
Tie rods.
Toe links.
Light weight wheels / racing tires.

SR20DET S14
Wiring Specialties Harness

Good brakes, rotors, stainless brake lines.
Ton of good options here. I would recommend upgrading the calipers to the typical 300ZX front and rear. Along with this is a 5-lug conversion which opens up your wheel options.

Coilover system - Adjustable from the shock body.
This really depends on what you want and how much you want to spend. If you want to go the cheap route. I would go with Feal or Fortune Auto (if it were me, I'd do Feal if going the cheap route). If you want to spend more to get a better product, either a custom Koni/GC setup or a set of KW clubsports would work awesome, but this is the $2000-$2500 option, ha ha. The previous options are half that.

Camber kit.
Typically, when you get a set of coilovers it comes with the camber plates up front. For the rear; a set of SPL or GKTech rear upper control arms are good options. SPL is american made, which is nice. GKTech is Australian. Most of the cheaper and numerous stuff is either out of Taiwan or China (same with coilovers and most other cheaper 240 parts).

Suspension bushings.
This depends on if you want solid mount, spherical or just the polyurethane stuff. SPL will have a ton of suspension options, anything they make is fantastic. Check them out. For the poly stuff, the typical Energy Suspension is fine.

Rear sway bar.
Whiteline or Progress or both good options here. There are others too.

Tension rods.
SPL or GKTech

Tie rods.
SPL or GKTech (or OEM / Tein for the inners)

Toe links.
SPL or GKTech

Light weight wheels / racing tires.
Way too many good options to list here, but try to stick to credible wheel MFGs and definitely check wheel weights and manufacturing before ordering. Best bet is to post up a few designs you like and ask. I could sit here all night on this, ha ha. I just bought a set of SSR GTV-02s myself, there will be an article on the NICO homepage in a couple weeks about them if you like those As for tires, I usually like the 200 treadwear stuff for fun street driving. Dunlop Star Specs, Nitto NT05, BFG Rivals, etc etc. Not the most fantastic for rain, but they do ok there too. I just got Nitto NT01s myself, but those are not great tires for any kind of daily use, haha.

I'll add for the radiator, I'd recommend getting a Koyo. It's the best budget radiator that doesn't suck. I've had Mishimoto and friends have had Godspeed, those are less than ideal to say the least, ha ha.

[bblack23]

Finally got it picked up. Here are some pictures when I got it to the shop, and then some after cleaning and gutting it. I'm not really sure where I want to go with it. It's in pretty good shape, all the interior is there. The carpet will need to be replaced but that's about it.














After gutting and cleaning it up.

[laxands13]

Please please please keep your dash protected! It's so pretty, don't let it crack like all the others!
Other than that, I like it and it looks like you're trying to take the right direction with it!

[bblack23]

Ha Ha definitely! I thought it would be wrecked after sitting, but luckily it was covered. Thanks!


Friday night I hauled the car from my gf's parents house to mine which was about an hour and 45 minute ride. The next morning im up at 6 checking my straps on the dolly and heading to work. As soon as I hit the entrance ramp for the highway I hear a pop... Look back at the car and it looks like it further then usual so I tapped the gas to see if the car was still hooked... the car stayed still. The donut on the passenger side was flat and the car shot off the ramp and into the woods! It was a good 20-30 feet off the road, and I had to call a tow truck to recover it. I knew the car was destroyed, It had to be. We finally get the car out and the only thing that happened was it cracked the front bumper a little more! Me and this car are off to a great start

Finally got it to the shop and while tearing apart the interior I found a few...gems... There were mice / rats nest burrowed in the door panels, rear quarters, and trunk. When I lifted up the actual carpet / back seat there was a colony of ants. hundreds of thousands!

Surprisingly the car started! It would only stay running with ether, but with 7 year old gas, I was shocked. Next on the agenda is to get it in the air, take all the wheels off, check all the suspension, and start to tear down the motor.

Before I do any "mods" im going to get the motor done first and drive it like that for awhile. I will upgrade where I see I need too for what ill be using it for. Coilovers and a set of wheels / tires will be done along with the motor.

[laxands13]

Way to set a good order of events. This is the kind of project that it's way too easy to spend a bunch of money and end up with 18 separate little projects that each need a little more to be done, and all need to be done for the car to be drivable comfortably (lol).

Keep updating here with whatever progress you make!

Doug

[bblack23]

Thanks Doug!

Picked up a cherry picker and plan to pull the ole ka this weekend. Will likely get that pulled and hopefully have time to clean up the engine bay to get ready for the SR.

[bblack23]

Still pounding away at this terd. Finally got the motor out, wheels and coils coming, I found a full built sr20det motor swap on craigs list. I'll link the ad. The guY even offered to help with the swap to make sure everything is set up right. the swap will be done in two weeks. In the mean time I'm going get the coils, wheels and brakes done, as well as clean the engine bay up.


https://charlotte.craigslist.org/pts/4696864886.html

[bblack23]

Havent updated in quite a while. The project has kind of been put off with the holidays and what not but I have made some good progress. Coilovers installed, all braking system upgraded, wheels bought (needs tires), Motor and trans are in, fans wired up, intercooler mounted, gauges hooked up (minus oil pressure - waiting to come in), exhaust installed (need new hangers), battery relocated.

Still need to finish tucking hiding some wires inside, make switch panel for a gauge and boost controller, buy a new key tumbler, FIND CARPET, and im contemplating getting a new wiring harness for the AEM. The current one is strictly for the necessities. None of the gauges work which kind of bothers me since I want to use it for more than drifting. I really don't want to cough up 500$$$

Here are a few pictures