another KA question....figment options

Problems, ideas and comments specific to engine swaps.
loungin112
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Re: another KA question....figment options

Post by loungin112 »

So I've located what seemed like two good candidates but didn't act fast enough. One ka was from a Nissan frontier and had 90k miles and looked pretty clean. Sold for $700 before I called. Another, the one I really wanted, came from a 97 S14 with 98k miles and was an auto trans car with no aftermarket parts. I went on vacation just after I found it and came back to it some for $900. Search continues. Didn't realize the market was so hot for these motors.
loungin112
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Re: another KA question....figment options

Post by loungin112 »

*sold
loungin112
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Re: another KA question....figment options

Post by loungin112 »

After further thought on matter, and further searches, I've gotta know why a FWD KA won't work as a swap? Is it motor mount issues? Fuel lines? Transmission incompatibility? Flipped manifolds? It's torture because there are so many low mileage KA engines from altimas laying around for the picking.
Thanks in advance for edumacating me.
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okayfine
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Re: another KA question....figment options

Post by okayfine »

CAS occupies the same space as the firewall and most of the upper/center underdash. Intake manifold is pointed at the firewall - some FWD KAs have a different water outlet in the manifold than the RWD stuff. Right/rear radiator hose wants to be where the firewall is. Pretty apparent if you look at even the long block out of the car. Lots of other little issues due to it being transverse in the original application, but the three above require commitment and cutting of your car. Which seems a shame to do just because local RWD KAs are hard to find.

IF you're going to cut your car like that, why not then go SR20VE and make it interesting? Cut 510s that end up running again are vastly outnumbered by those that never do.
Because when you spend a silly amount of money on a silly, trivial thing that will help you not one jot, you are demonstrating that you have a soul and a heart and that you are the sort of person who has no time for Which? magazine. – Jeremy Clarkson
loungin112
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Re: another KA question....figment options

Post by loungin112 »

okayfine wrote:CAS occupies the same space as the firewall and most of the upper/center underdash. Intake manifold is pointed at the firewall - some FWD KAs have a different water outlet in the manifold than the RWD stuff. Right/rear radiator hose wants to be where the firewall is. Pretty apparent if you look at even the long block out of the car. Lots of other little issues due to it being transverse in the original application, but the three above require commitment and cutting of your car. Which seems a shame to do just because local RWD KAs are hard to find.

IF you're going to cut your car like that, why not then go SR20VE and make it interesting? Cut 510s that end up running again are vastly outnumbered by those that never do.
Indeed.. No cutting is preferred. I want to get it back in the road sooner rather than later. An interesting option could be the juke engine.. MR series I think. Meh, I'll stick with the KA. Thanks for the knowledge.
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JordanTr
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Re: another KA question....figment options

Post by JordanTr »

You won't regret the KA... For a while anyways. Hahaha :twisted:

In all honesty though, it's a great torquey powerplant for our cars.
'72 2 door KA project | S14 Silvia RB25DET | S14 RB26DETT (sold) | '90 Audi 90Q20V (sold)
loungin112
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Re: another KA question....figment options

Post by loungin112 »

Strangely enough, I've had more luck finding SRs than KAs. I was planning to stay away from SRs due to the increased cost of parts and such, but I can't find a decent KA in the state. One such SR was intend for a swap that never happened. It's complete, but has issues with overheating. Being less familiar with SRs, I'm not sure what the issue could be so it's difficult to determine if this engine would be worth buying. The seller thought it was a bad head gasket. Thoughts? I could probably get the engine, trans, ecu for $800 or so. Unknown miles.
loungin112
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Re: another KA question....figment options

Post by loungin112 »

Sorry... Just had a thought that this could be a new thread (tips for buying an SR) or something like that. Sorry for off-topic.
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okayfine
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Re: another KA question....figment options

Post by okayfine »

loungin112 wrote:Thoughts?
We have zero information. We could all take guesses, but I don't see how that would help you in any way evaluate that SR.

Also, when talking SRs, it's good to differentiate between the NA SRs and the boosted versions, and also generation differences, just so we know what you're talking about.
Because when you spend a silly amount of money on a silly, trivial thing that will help you not one jot, you are demonstrating that you have a soul and a heart and that you are the sort of person who has no time for Which? magazine. – Jeremy Clarkson
loungin112
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Re: another KA question....figment options

Post by loungin112 »

okayfine wrote:
loungin112 wrote:Thoughts?
We have zero information. We could all take guesses, but I don't see how that would help you in any way evaluate that SR.

Also, when talking SRs, it's good to differentiate between the NA SRs and the boosted versions, and also generation differences, just so we know what you're talking about.
As for the available SR, it is a turbo. The iffy party is the year is not known. Maybe not enough info to safely pursue. I may start a new thread to discuss knowledge gained (the hard way) from purchasing used engines. Thanks for everyone's patience.
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okayfine
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Re: another KA question....figment options

Post by okayfine »

Not a terrible lot of difference in buying used SRs from any other used engine. You get a look at the overall exterior condition, pop off the valve cover to see what the past oil change interval has been like, get a compression test on all cylinders and...that's about all you can really do and about all any seller's going to accommodate.

And you can do all that and still get a duffer, or a setup that will still need $$$ put into it to get it to run. If you have a choice between a documented-low-mile engine missing some accessories and one that is undocumented (as most SRs are) complete, your long-term self interest is in the low-mileage engine. Alternatively, if you have the choice between an engine from a manual-trans car or one from an auto, you buy the auto engine, even if you're going to use a manual trans behind it.
Because when you spend a silly amount of money on a silly, trivial thing that will help you not one jot, you are demonstrating that you have a soul and a heart and that you are the sort of person who has no time for Which? magazine. – Jeremy Clarkson
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