Pistolio

hey all
was concidering doing an engine swap while putting my car together, these are my options:

k i have $4,000 to play with (at the very most)

RB25DET - engines from bout $2800 half cuts from bout $3800
SR20DET - engines from bout $2000 halfcuts from bout $2500
RB20DET - engines from bout $1000 halfcuts from bout $2000
VQ30DET - engines from bout $1500 halfcuts from bout $2000
1JZGTE - single turbo - engines from $2500 halfcuts ????
1JZGTE - twin turbo - engines from $1500 halfcuts from $2500

i want the car to compete with lines, silvias and supras without the petrol bill of a V8

I eed some advice on which motor every1 thinks i should look into?
K my first choice is diffinatly the RB25, however this is easily the most expensive option.......

and im not stupid enough to think its going to go smoothly so ill probably need a bit of extra money on the side for little things
also should i get a halfcut? or just the motor?

all thoughts anf comments welcome
thanks p

Bleach

Yes, the install will take some money and fabrication. Plus, if you want to run more than stock horsepower you'll need to invest more money into the engine.
I'm not sure how the 4-cyl turbo will compete with a V6 twin turbo in a Supra, so you better go with at least a 6-cyl turbo.

rifleman502

personally, i would go with an L28ET with a modified forced induction system, if it aint L28 it aint Z

assimilated420

i agree, besides, a straight six can whoop a v6's *** any day.....

theramz

Hey down there! Only in Aus was sold the RB30det, not even in Japan.
I talked to a guy near Sydney, he said you can get one for $1000 aus. With $3k left over you could have a car done right with enough horsepower to make you forget all about the price of gas!

Captain caveman

how about an rb26 for $4000. This guy is selling one for that
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...PcY_BIN_Stores

O, also I'm wondering. After I fix up my car. I'm wondering how easy it'll be to swap out the engine with a 90-96 300zx twin turbo engine. Is there a lot of modifications needed to be done to do this or is it pretty easy? I'm thinking it'll be interchangable and wont be a difficult swap

DoTheDrew888

It is a very difficult and costly swap from what i've heard. Definetly not a direct bolt in, it will require a lot of custom fabrication.

Captain caveman

hmm, well what about the engines pistolio suggested. Will those swap out fairly easily or will some of them require a lot of modifications and fabrication to do

lww

Pistolio is not in the US and none of those engines were used in the US unless the VQ30DET is the same as our VG30 from the Z31 Turbo or one of the other US Nissans.

That would require you find someone to import the motor for you from a source country. Sometimes, you can get them through Canadian importers.

I do know a guy that's putting an RB26DETT in his 240Z. It's pretty damn cool and VERY expensive. Like $5000 just for the motor. He's doing a lot of the Fab work on his own and saving a lot of money, but the current estimate for the entire build is around $15000!

Redbeauty84ZX

Personally I would go with the L28ET , it probably be your cheapest,most reliable, and easiest route.

and what is a VQ30DET?(do you mean VG30DET)

Also I definetly would not go with the SR20.

e_racer1999

the L28ET and the RB30DET(!) sound like the best bets for you. the L28ET is an awesome motor and responds well to modification

Skully

yes id keep it all Z...
with a good preped bottom end and good head work....man the engine would scream witha hybrid turbo or even you can go sequential twin turbo...it will be easier to complete the transplant as the engine drops in to the mounts and everything, you will have to go with Fuel managment so get your wiring brain switched on....and if you are familiar with Z engines already well thats a +++ because it would be easier to work on...altough theyr pretty easy to work on as it is....
anyways GOOD LUCK! make it work and have fun.!

L28 Turbo .

assimilated420

i agree...i dont think ill put anything else in my 280zxt, just wouldnt be a z....if i had maybe a couple more to mess around with i maybe would do some engine swapping such as the sbc350, but not to mine an only.. and if you had a TT mod on it, you will own most of those bastards on the road with their *hot rods*

Captain caveman

how much should one expect to pay for a l28et depending on the condition of the engine? I would think they're fairly cheap. I'll need to start checking my local junkyards and see if they have any

Bleach

Not really cheap. Some people find them in yards and get lucky. I've heard them go for as little as $200. But really, most complete L28 turbos go for $500-800 just for the engine. If you can find it for less, then go for it.

DoTheDrew888

Sometimes its actually cheaper to just buy the whole car and pull the engine yourself. I bought a running ZX that was about to break in half because the frame was so rusty, only payed $500 for it. Then just pulled the engine and did the swap. I also got a good transmission and rear-end out of it plus a bunch of other random parts.

Bleach

Yes, but I have yet to find that $500 turbo car near me...

Pistolio

thanks heeps guys

iv concidered all the options as far as i know, and first of all i want it to stay all nissan so no toyota motors, and i really want a turbo.
of course an RB26 would be my first choice if i have 6 grand for the front cut.......
RB25 are nice cept bout 4 grand for the front cut which means no more money for custom work which is basically unavoidable during these kinda swaps.
i think my first choice and best option is the RB20DET, 40kw less than the RB25 but over $2000 cheeper.
i hadnt concidered the RB30DET (bout 6 months ago i was looking at buying a skyline and a very common swap is the RB30DET which as much as i can remember is simply the larger capacity block from the older skylines with custom fuel injection and so forth from the newer RB engines) very handy.

I know that the RB20DET does not bolt in, however it is not a very hard swap to do, i think the sump needs the most custom work and the engine mounts also need work.

i like the L28 motors but an RB would be FAR more common than a L28ET...well here anyway, also the Rb's seem better in every way as far as i can tell.

The RB20DET is alloy while the L28E/T is cast iron, so the RB is a bit lighter it also makes more power stock while it has far more modification parts available, and is easier to tune.
So im thikning that RB20DET is the best option, however the RB30DET is also definatly worth thinking bout, once i get some more info on the parts needed.

lets not forget that a TT supra weighs like 1,500+ kg's (most here where sold in auto anyway) while a stock L28E powered z tips the scales at only 1,200 same as like a 180sx (240sx) and with the lighter motor and a few good mods on a RB20det, my money would be on the z.

Iv also heard that rear wheel grip is a problen with these conversions

thanks heeps every1 for the info
any and all comments welcome

thanks P

Pistolio

PS. sorry i did mean the VG30DET not VQ

another thing: are u serious u guys never got any of those engines cept the VG???????
not even the SR20DET????

So what jap cars do u guys get? i know Supra, Evo's and WRX's haha also those 240sx with that shocking truck motor

sorry just curious

assimilated420

understandably that alloy is a lot lighter than cast iron, but consider this...if you are running serious mods on your car and if, lets just say you run it too high and it overheats, that alloy engine is gonna be much more warped and messed up in many ways... now if your blowing rods and pistons and valves your screwed either way, but i just think that for few extra on the engine, it would be worth it to me.. but the skyline parts are much more abundant than z parts simply for the fact the Zs are just older and not as common.. but you can still find parts for Zs, just a matter of looking.
try going to www.victoriabritish.com for a free catalog of z parts and accesories.

81 Black L28E

I found the hole car 81 or 82 t top coupe not sure yet with L28ET motor stilll running in it. The body is shot. Iam buying the hole car for $250 i want to swap the motor out of mine for the turbo one is there any thing i need to know ???? :doh: