Turbocharged KA24DE vs SR20DET Swap

[Tyrant_X]

I will be purchasing a 1995 240SX very soon, and was wondering which is the better alternative; in terms of performance, price, installation, parts, etc...

[MainEvent212]

SEARCH!!!!!! you stupid *******, get the **** off our boards before i hunt you down and kill you!?!??!!

heh, it's my first time guys...howd i do?

no but in all seriousness, this topic has been covered THOROUGHLY, so if you search for KA-T, SR20, KA vs. SR...etc...you will find a ton of info on it...i believe i started my own thread on this once lol

[Tyrant_X]

:pface

haha sorry, I will search....

[Guffed]

well if you are a jdm junkie like me, youd go sr, rb, or ca.

[MECPInstaller]

sr swaps suck!! kidding just wanted to start some sh*t i like the sound of both setups but i myself would put in a turbo on the ka i'm just more partial to larger displacement for alittle more lower end power if i had the cash i'd go with a rb26 swap

[lessthanjakejohn]

KA-t perfect for a street turbo app

[Onizuka]

not another one....

listen, get what YOU want. They all have their strong and weak points, and arguing which is better is utterly pointless.

Also, they are all excellent motors so there is no need to bash any of them.

[theronin]

kat has no weak points, but the sr is totally weak

*puts on flame suit and sits back for the fun*

[JDM]

:withstup

[lessthanjakejohn]

KAT

High DisplacementStrong Blocklong stroke

Those 3 attirbutes make it great for a turbo street car. In a street car you will generally want the most displacement possible without offsetting other attributes (such as handling or ease of repair)

A lot of exhaust gas to spin a turbine.

You will also want to run pump gas. Having a high displacement allows you to run lower boost than a CA, but still have the same HP. Meaning that lower boost will run detonation free if tuned conservative.

The rev range of the engine DOES not need to expanded on this engine for turbo. If you want more power, then just add more boost.

[Thecollector]

I know I shouldnt compare a mitsu to the nissan, but.....an aquaintence took a non turbo motor and rebuilt the whole thing and added a turbo kit. Looks sweet, sounds sweet, but too many bugs. He is about to scrap the whole thing.I firmly believe (others always disagree) that if the engine was not designed with a turbo you will always have problems after adding a turbo. More so than the normal engine problems.

[theronin]

^wrong

[Thecollector]

^wrong

Nothing wrong about it, I see it constantly. Funny even when I was looking to turbo my Ka, I was steered away by a major performance company in central Ohio.You can say wrong till your blue in the face, instead of disagreeing, say why you feel its wrong. Every car I have seen with a turbo kit had problems after a year or more and ones designed with one didnt.You can thrash a supra, mitsu, sr20, 300z...the list goes on for turbo model cars all with thousands of miles on them and still ticking, cant say that about a bolt on.

Just my opinion

[prigo]

It depends on who built the bolt-on.

If done right, it will last.

The motors you see exploding are generally being pushed beyond what they should be, by fools that are ignorant.

"Just my opinion."

[Thecollector]

Legit opinion, thanks!!

[nissanrcer240]

sr is the way to go(just b/c i already bought mine and theres no lookin back now;) )

[Altiman94]

IMHO, the sr/ca swap is the best bang for the buck. You pay about 1500-2500 for the swap(s) and start out with a turbo ready motor that can handle more boost than a stock ka with just a turbo kit. If I wanted boost, I would opt for the ca personally.

[theronin]

^

where are you guys getting your info from?

[Supafly]

Nothing wrong about it, I see it constantly. Funny even when I was looking to turbo my Ka, I was steered away by a major performance company in central Ohio.You can say wrong till your blue in the face, instead of disagreeing, say why you feel its wrong. Every car I have seen with a turbo kit had problems after a year or more and ones designed with one didnt.You can thrash a supra, mitsu, sr20, 300z...the list goes on for turbo model cars all with thousands of miles on them and still ticking, cant say that about a bolt on.

Just my opinion

i turboed my miata, more than doubled the WHP on the engine, drove it like hell every day for 2 years and never ever once had to tear it apart or really work on it. this was on a 150k mile motor/transmission and a greddy turbo kit with plenty of upgrades. so i believe with the right setup you're good to go, you just have to know when to stop.

[s86d]

stuff a rocket up your @rse to gain a second (ha the power is THRUST )

[s86d]

j/k do whatever makes you happy

[spec-v5150]

Having had a swap...i venture to say they are overrated. Not worth the hassle in my book. Work with what you have. Just my .02 cents. But what do I know??

[prigo]

^ you have an RB20, you are my hero

[MECPInstaller]

I love these debates people always get pissed about something lol . i forgot who said the thing about an engine that comes with a turbo already will have less problems than a bolt on kit. i do agree in a way but who really wants a itty bitty a 20 series turbo and well if you upgrade your sr rb ca ka to a larger turbo you will have problems unless the complete car is rebuilt. there will always be a weakest link somewhere in the line sr's and such have turbos that are built to work well with the engine. anyway this might raise some hell but if you completly build up a ka against an sr i mean all the way you will have more ponies and torque but hey i could be wrong and well if you blow a sr your paying alot more for the parts and engine itself compared to a ka so i'd rather take the ka

[Onizuka]

both with stock bottom ends, the SR can take way more turbo boost abuse than a KA-T, with upgraded internals anything is posible with either motor. You can argue price all you want and it doesnt make one bit of difference, they both end up being expensive.

[MECPInstaller]

both with stock bottom ends, the SR can take way more turbo boost abuse than a KA-T, with upgraded internals anything is posible with either motor. You can argue price all you want and it doesnt make one bit of difference, they both end up being expensive.

I definatly agree with you about the price but where do you get your info about the sr block taking more power than a ka i may be wrong i'm semi new to the concepts but isn't a ka block iron and a sr is alminum i'm not sure but i know metals my dad owns a tool and die company and iron and steels are stronger under pressure and heat than aluminum throw a TIN can into a fire and a aluminum can in with it and watch which melts first

[lessthanjakejohn]

Yes the KA block is capable, but the pistons are the weakness.

[theronin]

bah

[Hellion240sx]

i thought turboing the ka would give you about 300 whp compared to the sr which gives you 205 whp with any mod ex. up the boost?

i plan on going the sr route and just upgrading thigs here and there

[k6kicker]

ka-t can be really fun, just replace the rods (and pistons while you are in there if ya want to) and watch out for crankwalk