What needs to be done to an RB20DET

[(Yoshi)]

I may be able to get an rb20 really cheap from a friend and want to know what I should do to it for it to hold up to track use. I don't want to go into extensive modification like pistons rods cams ect. I just want to know what needs to be done to make it reliable and pretty much stock.

[uber95]

Just one wordSTICKIES

[(Yoshi)]

I have one word for youREAD

I looked at those. All they say is what you need to swap in an RB. I have also searched. I am looking for what you need to do to them to make them dependable at the track.

For instance if you have an SR, check the oil pan for dents and it will be good to get a new one, or rocker arm stoppers.

Information like that.

So please read the post before thinking YAY I get to look kool and tell someone who has been here longer than me how to use a forum!

[S13 240SX]

soo.. you want it to be dependable huh a motor you have no idea about yet...

you better search, spend long nights reading online on different forums.

I have an rb20det, spent 2,500 dollars already and it drove for 4 days out of the whole summer of this year i have had it swapped in. and mostly likey it's never really dependable intill you rebuild the whole engine.

Becasue my rb20det is most likey screwed from bad timing but you know what thats the price i pay and now it make take me another 4 years just to get cash, tme and patince to rebuild the whole engine again.

p.s. remember is a 10 year old engine be ready for the pain and get your beers out

[(Yoshi)]

See that is the stuff I want to know about.

No I don't have much of an idea about the RB20 but have been reading as much as I can about it the past week.

I had planned on going w/ an SR cuz I have done the research and know exactly what I want to do with it. The only reason I am considering the RB is because I may be able to get one cheap because my friend is picking up an R32 this weekend and wants to swap the rb20 out for an rb26. So I am going to get to look at the motor and drive it before I make a decision.

There is also a possibility he won't swap and a possibility he will decide not to get the skyline. So all this depends on a whole bunch of factors. I just need to know if I can put it in and go to a drift event every month or so and daily it how it with out having to worry about it blowing.

[S13 240SX]

when drifting stuff will break...

but if its mainly drifting your after.. then i would say go CA18 and do some upgrades, heavy tune work, and manatice work to it. I'd say this becasue ca18 would be the best becasue its not heavy so would be easy for drifting.

rb20 it is heavy but drifting is still do-able for it but harder.

and sr20 is just gay haha sr20 is as gay as an ka24e/ka24de.

[uber95]

Ok Josh, First off, I could give 2 sheits how long either you or I or anyone else has been a member of whatever board, all that says is you spend more time on a computer than with a wrench in your hand than I do Second I have been racing and modding turbo cars both domestic and imports since 2 years PRIOR TO YOUR BIRTH! So yea I need to have guys like you think I'm cool WTF ever. If you can't figure out common sense things to look for in a motor you aren't going to mod, stick with what Nissan gave you in a US model. Common sense maintance items as are outlined in those stickies you said you've read. Dude use the search function, I typed in "RB20" and got 642 results, you mean to tell me that you have read all 642 and found NOTHING that answers your questions as to longevity? Then "RB20 problems" 9 results So I guess heeding your own advice is in order there chum.

[themadscientist]

I have one word for youREAD

I looked at those. All they say is what you need to swap in an RB. I have also searched. I am looking for what you need to do to them to make them dependable at the track.

For instance if you have an SR, check the oil pan for dents and it will be good to get a new one, or rocker arm stoppers.

Information like that.

So please read the post before thinking YAY I get to look kool and tell someone who has been here longer than me how to use a forum!

Wow you have been here longer than him. That matters exactly how? Since it somehow matters to you, count my time, subtract your time and adjust your attitude. Since you have been here so long salty dog you should be very adept at the search function Your question is so stunningly basic it has I am sure been covered ad nauseum in previous threads.I don't want you to be hard on the "new guy" though so I will answer your question. The RB20 has no mechanical weakness to address like the SR20. If the motor is tight, not "tyte", "tight" as in good condition it will give you no trouble at all. It has a timing belt so be sure that is reasonably fresh as you will be spiking the revs up and down and do your maintenance. The only thing worth mentioning about the RB20 is it runs very hot so make sure the radiator is capable and the water jacket is not all scaled up with rust from poor maintenance. That falls under being in "good condition" though. Replace all the water hoses under the manifold and the water neck in the block, they need it without exception.

[l0nestar]

Duder,

I've spent about 7000.00 on my swap and it still has not moved under it's own power. (ordering a DS tonight though )

Things to cover would be (like TMS said) timing belt, water pump, oil pump, and idler / tensioners. (I have replaced about every maintenance item I touched too!) When you have the oil pump off, you should probably check the snout to see if it is collared or not. All of this stuff is in the stickies.

[themadscientist]

Strangely I have never seen a 20 pop an oil pump but I know of several 26s and it definitely is a weak spot. Maybe 20s just don't tax the pump that much or a head gasket goes first or something. Very strange.

[l0nestar]

Strangely I have never seen a 20 pop an oil pump but I know of several 26s and it definitely is a weak spot. Maybe 20s just don't tax the pump that much or a head gasket goes first or something. Very strange.

Interesting.. I thought that the oil pump was the achellis heel of the RB2x. Maybe it is just 25/26??

Or maybe it is because know they have a 20 and can't run it as hard as a 25/26?? (I'm just talking smack, like I do to SR20 guys -- Carl H's 20 is proof of the power of RB20's)

At least for me, I thought about it like this "I just spent about $4000 on this engine and a few maintenance parts, what is an extra $175?"

I pulled my crank, had it collared, all new bearings (rods & mains - King Bearing) N1 oil, Nismo T-stat, OEM water, OEM idler / tensioner, GReddy timing belt.

If I remember reading it right, the stock HG (provided it is in good condition) should be good up to around 500 HP (not sure if CHP or WHP). But again, all of my info was for my 25DET :-\

[themadscientist]

well the 20 is single turbo, maybe the head has more restrictive passages, perhaps it has less of a demand for oil? I know most RB20 guys are pegging them off the tachs needle stop a lot so it must be something. Shorter stroke, smaller bore, that must be less strenuous than the bigger motor at the same RPM. An larger piston swinging up to TDC on a longer stroke and changing direction has to impart more stress on the oil film. Just spitballing, I am not sure that would be the cause.

[Carl H]

if anything the 20 is 'inferior' because of the small rod big ends, well compared to the 25 and 26.the 20 will rev hard but like all rb motors if it sees extensive track use it suffers from the same oil problems as the rest; mad oil pooling in the head.for a _good_ reliable track motor, stock is generaly fine power wise but it would do you good to step up to a 26 pump for increased oil flow (or the n1 for more pressure), external oil drains,collered crank, and twin oil restrictors.most of the time its not the power or the revs that kill 26's but rather the gripping ability of the gtr it causes oil surge.

[AxiOn419]

Wow you have been here longer than him. That matters exactly how? Since it somehow matters to you, count my time, subtract your time and adjust your attitude. Since you have been here so long salty dog you should be very adept at the search function Your question is so stunningly basic it has I am sure been covered ad nauseum in previous threads.I don't want you to be hard on the "new guy" though so I will answer your question. The RB20 has no mechanical weakness to address like the SR20. If the motor is tight, not "tyte", "tight" as in good condition it will give you no trouble at all. It has a timing belt so be sure that is reasonably fresh as you will be spiking the revs up and down and do your maintenance. The only thing worth mentioning about the RB20 is it runs very hot so make sure the radiator is capable and the water jacket is not all scaled up with rust from poor maintenance. That falls under being in "good condition" though. Replace all the water hoses under the manifold and the water neck in the block, they need it without exception.

Where is this water jacket you speak of? I want to check mine since the engine is out of the car. Also, where is the water neck and how do I access it to check it? I think I can handle replacing the hoses. Sorry for the stupid/simple questions, I just dont know the answers

[nizmo zilvia]

I have an rb20det, spent 2,500 dollars already and it drove for 4 days out of the whole summer of this year i have had it swapped in. and mostly likey it's never really dependable intill you rebuild the whole engine.

HUH????!!!!! You don't need to rebuild a whole engine for it to be reliable! Stock will be more then enough if you replace all common problems. And for any RB you'll spend more then 5g including motor. That I can almost guarantee you.

[uber95]

Where is this water jacket you speak of? I want to check mine since the engine is out of the car. Also, where is the water neck and how do I access it to check it? I think I can handle replacing the hoses. Sorry for the stupid/simple questions, I just dont know the answers

The water neck is where the thermostat sits, when you pull the thermostat(you replaced it right?) you can see if it's rusty in there. There are methods of "descaling" water passages, you'll have to research them and and one that you're comfortable with.

[uber95]

well the 20 is single turbo, maybe the head has more restrictive passages, perhaps it has less of a demand for oil? I know most RB20 guys are pegging them off the tachs needle stop a lot so it must be something. Shorter stroke, smaller bore, that must be less strenuous than the bigger motor at the same RPM. An larger piston swinging up to TDC on a longer stroke and changing direction has to impart more stress on the oil film. Just spitballing, I am not sure that would be the cause.

As you know it has a larger bore than stroke and that is the beauty of it's ability to redline so easily, it's an oversquare design. Although that also contributes to a small extent it's tendency to overheat (not greatly though)I'd be willing to bet with a set of good aftermarket rods and bolts, upgraded oil pump you could rev the RB20 to 12K with proper oil restrictions in the head, maybe some head porting to support upper RPM flow and a good tune.

[AxiOn419]

The water neck is where the thermostat sits, when you pull the thermostat(you replaced it right?) you can see if it's rusty in there. There are methods of "descaling" water passages, you'll have to research them and and one that you're comfortable with.

Thanks! I flushed that area with a hose for a good 5 minutes. Now if only I could find that water jacket..

[Carl H]

the water jacket surrounds the piston bores...no real way to access it unless you knock out all the freeze plugs and wash it out that way.

[AxiOn419]

the water jacket surrounds the piston bores...no real way to access it unless you knock out all the freeze plugs and wash it out that way.

Is that practical to do and is it worth doing? The engine is out of the car

Sorry, not trying to thread hijack but since someone mentioned this I figured there was no sense in creating a new thread

[themadscientist]

Oh snap, I thought you were joking! You can't easily see the condition without pulling the head. You could pop off the water pump and see if there are deposits in there. If there are guaranteed it's worse inside the engine.You should replace all thos ecrazy little hoses and flush the motor really well after it's in the car and running. If it was really gross it would be a good idea to have the radiator backflushed in case any rust or other gunk got jammed in it from flushing.

[(Yoshi)]

A lot of good info here. Thanks every one

@uber95, I want to apologize. This is no excuse but it was late when I read that and I was in a bad mood from stressing over a physics exam. I was going on line to calm down and check my post only to find a reply telling me to do things I had done already. I did read the stickies and the 11 posts on rb20 problems before I made this thread. I knew about common maintence things, i just wanted to know what else, if anything else should be done. I know I should have made that clear. Again I apologize for being an @$$ about it.

[themadscientist]

The 20 is a solid motor. If it's in good condition you should have no major problems other than SR guys giving you crap about it.

[(Yoshi)]

Thanks man, I appreciate it. The motor is in the skyline right now and apparently running strong. We are going to pick up the skyline this weekend if all things go well.

If he can find an RB26 for it when he goes back home to japan over Christmas then I think Ill take him up on his offer.

[AxiOn419]

Oh snap, I thought you were joking!

I wish.. At this point I know how to do basic engine maintenance but am in the process of learning more since I am doing this swap with a friend of mine. Got to start somewhere!

Thanks for the info

AxiOn

[DriftX]

Well the same stuff replies for any engine, if you want it reliable do the following.

rb's have rail style rockers like a ca not rocker arms like the sr20, so the valvetrain is more solid at higher rpmKeep good oil in itreplace vac linesall hoses (espiecaily heater hoses)waterpump (another biggy)timing beltmake sure your charging system is up to parmake sure it gets plenty of fuel, even more than enough since your going to be thrashing on it.

Other than that, an rb20 seems like it can take some abuse. There are guys on the forum that have logged some serious mileage in theirs. You don't have to worry about the oil pan and oil pump as much as an sr20, but it still wouldn't be a bad idea to replace it while its out!

To make an rb20 a fun drift car, a front mount, good exhaust and a nice clutch should do the trick!

I hope this answers some of your questions!

[grenade180sx]

im using my Rb20 for my drift car. and i have Zero problems.. i have the following mods

gt2530444cc injectorsfmic radiatorheavy duty clutch of course!ACT 6 puck

to make a car reliable change the basics

plugs belts water pumpcheck the coilpacks tooas i have heard many bad stories about them arking

and a good tune!

sorry for my babbling

-Riley

[(Yoshi)]

Thank you guys! Awesome info. I really appreciate it.