SR20DET

At the moment I think a video of water running out of some random pipe at the back of the f ucking engine would be much funnier.

As a grown up I now have some spare cash but I still prefer to do things on the cheap. So far getting the SR20DET to run has cost me nothing. What I don't have, and what I really miss is time. So the free days between Christmas and New Year is water leak fixing time! Woo!

If I get the leak sorted my £1100 Nissan 200sx will finally run. Then after I have enjoyed it for a while the engine will definitely come out and go into the 910. By CARS or Retro Show or whatever it's called in 2007.

Charlie

I'm no expert but 200ish horses is standard for the turbo engines and I paid £1100 for the whole car and engine (almost working). Power up to 700 is possible - it's all about the careful balance between strength, fuel supply and forced induction. The engine is computer controlled but the ECU seems quite simple and as long as the loom is intact and the airflow is tight and there are no leaks it's a straightforward engine. Twin cam, chain driven timing, aluminium block, cheap gearboxes. It's a Nissan engine so it's not exotic, cheaper than a Cosworth I guess. Came RWD in the 200sx (my car):


and tranverse mounted 4WD in the scary mary Pulsar GTIR:


And FWD in the Nissan Primera but without the turbo.

Seems like a very useful and relatively simple and reliable engine.

Charlie

Sr's do have some weaknesses unfortunately. Unlike the CA18DET, they have a slightly over complicated valve train assembly and in stock form they can spit out a rocker arm if revved to hard. You can get a kit to prevent it happening though. The later SR20DETs have variable timing on the inlet cam and the sprocket that powers it is prone to failure. Knackered ones can be identified by an erratic rattle at tickover. Other than those items though they are pretty tough units. Mine did a full year of drifting (clocking up 10k in the process) which means a great deal of time bouncing off the limiter and it's still going stong. It was over heated, countless times last year and even detted hard enough to lunch Denso iridium plugs completely.

Power wise, the turbo SR's vary from around 200bhp to 220bhp in stock form. Minor mods (boost, FMIC, filter, exhaust etc) will get them from 200 to around 260-270bhp and with remapping and a turbo upgrade you can safely go to about 380 without worrying about the internals. Forgies etc will allow for some insane amounts of power but as with most high HP four pots, it'll become less useable on the street if your running insane levels of power.

It's also worth mentioning some variations in SR design. Early engine, characterised by their flat cam cover, feature a high inlet port head design which is theoretically more desirable than the later, low port head. These engines do not have the variable inlet cam timing either. The early SR's were not sold in RWD form in the UK and come from Japanese import 180SX's and Silvias. The later engines as fitted to UK spec S14's have a humped cam cover and the variable cam timing. S14's are the best donor although S14a engines can be used, however the management has built in anti theft system which may add complication. The FWD SR's have a different engine block casting and will not bolt up to RWD boxes. They also have the dizzy sticking out of the back of the head (on NA engines) The Japanese spec S14 Silvia Q's normally aspirated engine is probably pick of the bunch for n/a swaps as it's about 165bhp stock compared to about 135 bhp for one from a UK model (I think the Serena is the only UK source for a RWD n/a SR)

The only thing I would add, contrary to what Charlie said, the gearboxes are not all that cheap. They often go for about £350, primarily because they are in short supply and I'd imagine drifting has killed plenty of them already. It seams to be cheaper to get a used box from a scrappy than off ebay or via SXOC as scrappys just charge what they charge for any box. I got one for £150 this way locally. If you have a knackered box, it's theoretically possible to fit the SR front casing onto a late CA18 box and use that as it's the same series of box but I've never had to try it (yet).

The one big bonus of going with an SR is there is a wealth of tuning parts and even more importantly, a lot of knowledge out there. Even though the initial purchase cost of an SR and box etc is quite high, I'd definately say it's worth it.

I forgot to add... a good source of info...

www.sr20forum.com/

I'm putting a SR20DET engine and gearbox into a Manta at the moment. It sits in the engine bay a treat and with the plannned mods, it should run with a spring in it's step.

SR20DE in a K10 Micra ;D