S13 RB Conversion

[Ragin]

G'day all.

Well After my Silvia 90' S13 has been sittin in the garage for about 2 years stripped and back to bare metal Im almost ready to start working on it. Just have a few questions and after looking around you guys seem to know what your talking about .

I have decided to go for the RB20DET for my engine and have bought all the bits from a half cut that was stripped ( pitty it wasent left in 1 piece) It has only done 60,000 clicks and seems in decent condition.

Will the engine bolt straight on or will i need another cross member? My Silvia was an Auto, will it be very difficult to get a manual in with the clutch and all?Will i need to use the whole wiring loom from the R32 or just the computer cable?I have the 4 spot calipers,coil over shocks,discs,rods and sway bar from the 32 as well will all these fit on ok?I want to buy an aftermarket computer which one runs the best with an RB20?

Cheers to anyone that replys, I will start taking some pics soon and make a site as i think this project is going to take a while. I was planning on converting the front to a S14 Series 2 but the picture below with a R33 Aftermarket bumper on it changed my mind. I will buy this bumber soon, I know i will need to cut my front guards but will the bumber need modifying?

[skillzilla]

oh my goodness, youre in Oz and you are asking here? Thats awesome!!!

Anyways, the RB20 will either go in with the R32 crossmember in place of the S13 unit, or with motor mounts like this: or many other mounts.

As far as the auto-manual thing goes, Ive never done it or seen it done, but others on this site have, so Id ask them or let them answer that.

The harness you will need for wiring is the EFI harness, coming from the ECU and going to the engine. This includes the MAF and O2 section especially. Depending on how you want to run your instrument cluster, the dash harness might be useful, Im not really sure. I thing the R32 cluster can be wired in without too much hassle, and the S13 dash harness can be used that way (ie, no taking out the dash, which sux).

As far as I know, the R32 Calipers will bolt on, but unless your S13 is a 5-lug pattern, the discs wont, and the suspension wont either. The sway bar most likely wont fit, as Im pretty sure the R32 has a wider stance than the S13. Id say try it all out and see what fits and what doesnt. If it doesnt fit, you can always sell it

Engine management solutions are personal preference, and although most will do just about the same thing, they vary on cost and tuneability. I went with the GReddy E-Manage and E-01 combo, but its not in yet so I cant give any opinions on it. I know some EMS's are only tuneable by authorized dealers or the company themselves, so watch out for that.

Well, congrats on your engine choice dude, and good luck with the swap. If you run into any troubles, someone here will help you out Im sure.

[Ragin]

Thanks skillzilla, some good info. Oh and im not to worried about the dash coz I already took it out . Also I have HUD on it as well, I hope the wiring is not going to be to much of a *****.

[gprodigy85]

dont worry about the wiring... once you get into it its not as hard as it seems.

[Ragin]

Also I do not think the engine has been started in about 5 years, what are we talking in terms of maintenance on the engine to ensure it runs smoothly?

[S13ChucKAT]

Start it, and do an oil change after you run it for a while.... replace Front main seal, and rear main seal.. Dont know how those seals hold after a few years.