SR swap worth it?

[hbrown]

Ok- I posted this here because I want input from people who actually have done it and have SR20DET's. Is it worth it? I have driven my 240 as a daily driver since 89' in pretty much stock form. Don't flame me for my next statement- I am going somewhere with this- I also have a 95' Z-28 that is somewhat built- cam, porting, intake, injectors, exhaust, lots of bolt ons, six speed, and reprogramming. Forgive me- but I cut my teeth on Chevrolets. It is fun and darned fast but I love my 240- it is a better made, better driving car IMHO. I have recently gotten interested in pumping up my 240- lowering, the usual bolt ons, wheels, etc... I am thinking of going with the SR- now my question is this- is it a quick ride? I have never seen one in action- none around my town- do any of you guys regularly smoke a 4th gen F-body? I have seen a few videos on the net but that is it. Does the SR pull like hell or am I just gonna be like "Crap- I payed how much for all this?" I know HP and TQ wise the baseline SR is not gonna run with the built LT1 (conservatively 340 HP). What I'm after is some feedback on how the SR motivates the lighter car and how finicky is it?Does it lug and suck when it's not on boost? Does the A/C 'drag it down' like the stock KA? My buddies that ride in the 240 kid me that to pass someone I have to Fold the mirrors back and turn off the A/C- and it's about the truth. I love the car I'm not bashing it. I guess ideally I want some feedback from someone who has experience with "muscle cars" as well as high strung "tuners". I think what I really want is the LT1 in the 240- I see where that has been done too. but I think I am in the mood to play with some technology instead of grunt this time.Thanks,H.

[spider_slayer]

dude, you gotta consider the weight ratio. the average z-28 weights about 3500 bls with around 320 rwhp stock(lt1's). obviously you would be pushing a a bit more with your up grades. the sr will give a 2500lb car about 200hp with jsut the engine. the hp jsut goes up from there with exaust and other mods. i have a 95 240 with the sr and i can keep up with the lt1's. if you have the money the sr and the ka can both be sent into the mid 13 range. you will always be smashed off the line but man.....turbo cars pull

[hbrown]

Good response- keep em coming-H.

[Projex240]

I dont have a SR--but man, a boosted 240 usually has no problems mowing down a lt1 car. Shoot--ls1 cars are even easy to take out with around 300-330 whp on a KA-T.

-Josh

[slow s13]

I couldnt have been happier when my swap was completed, I did it all my self and that night when I was tearing *** down the road I was so happy I was laughing and just basicly freaking out calling my friends at 4am it was a blast keep in mind this is my first "fast" car. But with my crappy tires full 3inch zaust and 11lbs of boost on stock turbo its slips the tires like crazy in first and will slip them in second sometimes and im not talkin about dumping the cluch just slamming the throttle and the tires light up I love it.

[nissanrcer240]

You definetly wont think the sr20 is a waste of your money, other than nitrous, I think the sr20 is the biggest bang for the buck you can do to a 240, if you install the motor yourself that is(save alot of $$$). It was like night and day when we put my motor in. If you have any kind of mechanical knowledge and can read(H.T. walkthrough) than you can easily do it. IMO its definetly a finicky motor, it seems like Im always fixing something on it, but if you keep up with it, its a pretty reliable motor. I drive mine everyday to work and Im out on the weekends, no major problems so far

[red_sir]

Does the SR pull like hell or am I just gonna be like "Crap- I payed how much for all this?"

Does it lug and suck when it's not on boost?

If you keep the SR stock, you'll be like "Crap- I payed how much for all this?"

If you go a step further and get the basic bolt-ons and upgrade the turbo, injectors, etc. then the SR will definitely pull like hell! IMO it's silly not to go this extra step. The beauty of the SR is it's stoutness and it'll be a shame not to take advantage of it.

And yes it's gonna suck off boost. What did you expect from a low compression 2.0L motor? =P However, lag really isn't an issue. You can have an SR with the T25 where there's not much lag (but not much top end either). Or you can have an SR with a big turbo and more lag, but once you hit full boost, you'll forget all about the lag. You can't lose. I prefer the latter btw.

[hbrown]

I need to drive a boosted car to get a handle on the feeling. I'm very used to having endless gobs of torque under my right foot- the concept of waiting for a turbo to spool up- even for a split second and get it's sh_t together just isn't what I'm used to. But the idea is very cool.

Keep em comin-

[Nismo_Freak]

I need to drive a boosted car to get a handle on the feeling. I'm very used to having endless gobs of torque under my right foot- the concept of waiting for a turbo to spool up- even for a split second and get it's sh_t together just isn't what I'm used to. But the idea is very cool.

Keep em comin-

You just need to drive a SR to understand.

Very smooth, very nice powerband.

[PalmerWMD]

One of the easist turbo cars to drive.

Even with a stock T25 turbo with basic Perf Upgrades, intercooler, boost controller you can have a quick machine.

Then there is always the next step/

Internals are strong to, I think it important the swap wont be a hck job otherwise you will be frustrated with minor problems that keep popping up/

[D1SR240]

how much money do you plan on spending on the SR?

[Hijacker]

The SR is a very stout motor for being all aluminum. The only worry is in the head. It has a tendency to toss rocker arms once you get at or above redline. A set of rocker arm stoppers are nice insurance for that.

Before I picked up my 240 (already had the SR swap done), I had been driving a ford tempo around. Every now and again, my father would let me take his mustang GT out and of course, like any 20 something male, I would flog it. A lot of people don't consider the 4.6 GTs to be fast, but I think they're very quick for a stock detroit car. My 240 in stock trim (with the addition of a 2.5" exhaust), and a misfiring stumble below 3k rpm, would smoke the GT.

But Alan's right, you just need to drive an SR powered 240 to understand.

[hbrown]

I'd go ahead and upgrade it on install- don't wanna do it all twice. Probably go with the blacktop engine- Who makes the most desireable upgrade kit- turbo, intercooler, BOV, electronics? Thanks,

[The Mic]

the only thing I would have done differently is swap my clip with aan s13 silvia front clip which has the motor in already, instead of just swapping engines.

[nismostate]

i did the swap myself and im highly impressed with how fast it is. 13.78 with open diff, 15psi and sidemount.... yea that's not safe but i have a manual boost controller. i ran 14.0 @ 11psi and missed 3rd. i took my time doing the swap and changed most of the seals and cleaned out the intake manifold. haven't had any major problems yet. i drive it pretty hard but not on a daily bases. i've put 10k on it and still have great oil pressure.

[The Mic]

15psi and sidemount.... yea that's not safe but i have a manual boost controller.

What difference does it make whether it's a manual or electronic?

[LSB_11]

i finally got to drive my car for the first time. it had a small miss at 5500 under hard load, needed to be tuned alittle more. i have drove tsi's/gsx's, turbo integras/civic gsr turbo hatch, VR4. and non of them compare to the RWD smoothness of this car. i couldnt believe how nice of a powerband the turbo has, spools so damn fast compared to all those cars, and feels so linear. by far my favorite turbo car i have driven so far.

[getnrowdy23]

hey man, you live in S. Ga me too, i had a 95 camaro like you that i sold to get this 240 and i just finished the swap. if you live near valdosta we can meet and you can ride in my car or something get me on aim during the day aim: getnrowdyclick here to see my car

[RMiller]

SR20 w/ t28 is a great, great ride. It feels fast, and is very drivable. I have a '00 mustang gt and a ca powered s13 w/ t28 and I like driving the s13 more. I've also driven a cts-v, c6 vette, gto, '67 ferrari 350, new m3, sl55, fd3s, etc. etc. etc. and I'd say the top 3 rides are the fd, sr s13, and m3, in that order (of what I've driven). You will love it, but make more worth your while than a ka-t setup by upgrading the turbo to a better bolt-on.

[NoStickers]

I normally don't race but the most memorable time was pulling on a newer mustang cobra.

[ETTInnov04]

Just swapped mine in june and couldn't be happier. I had the same fear but the car is no slower out of boost than a stock 240(doesn't lug), actually drives better. Plus I'm sure you notice how you have to downshift to make it uphill, not anymore. With the sr no need to downshift, just put your foot in it, she pulls.

I was playing with an last-gen firebird on the highway, was a trans am but not ws6, no exhaust(open headers), and older guy. Anyway he decided to come from behind me and attempted a "fly-by". He was at my door by the time I put it in 3rd. He jumped out to about 2 car lengths and then i started to gain on him. I got up to his even with him to look at his face. He was a little irritated and immediatly let off...wouldn' t play anymore.

Friend had a 95' Z28 with LT1 and said my SR was faster but didn't pull as hard, not as much torque(added plus, it handles).**This was with 3" exhaust from turbo back, no cat, @7psi, side mount, air filter. I'm at 10psi now and the car feels great; big difference between 7 and 10psi. EXTREMELY smooth, no in and out spots above 3k.Wouldn't trade it. Total cost:I'd guess $5,000 for car,initial swap, and whats listed above.