datsun40146 Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 I have done some, well a lot of searching into swapping an RB25x motor into an S30. I want to go N/A mainly because I want daily reliability and it keeps the cost down. I'm not saying that the rb25det isn't reliable, but when you put down more power things will break faster and the n/a swap is much less of a head ache. Anyway back to the point of this post. While searching though the archives for information I found countless threads like "how much does it cost to swap in a RB motor?" I got tired of wading through all that and decided to put together an answer to that question. This guide assumes your car body itself has no critical rust or stress cracks and your "new" RB motor and transmission don't need work or a rebuild. This guide should cover everything you need to make you RB N/A swap plug and play-ish. -Mounts both transmission and motor from http://www.shouri-motorsports.com/ will run you 600.00 USD but that includes the rb20 oil pan and pickup for the motor to work in a Z. Drive shaft- If you buy the mounts and oil pan from Shouri motor sports they will sell you a custom drive shaft for the RBX swap for 400 USD in place of the 500 USD they usually charge. Wiring- Send your harness to http://www.mckinneymotorsports.com/projects and for 450 USD they will modify the harness you sent them to work with your RB x motor. It looks to be a very nice set-up. The RB motor it self- Check eBay, Shouri, neo tech imports, Vildini motor sport, Venus, JGY customs, or sr20store.com depending on what motor you want and from where will cost you anywhere from 1200 to 6000. i.e. the rb25de can be had for 1200 USD while the rb26dett will run 6000 plus. Gauges Your stock gauges wont work so you might as well buy a full set of auto meter gauges and adapters. This could run you anywhere from 100 to several hundred if you decide to replace all your gauges. Fuel pump Your stock datsun pump just isn't up to the task of supplying a RB x motor so that will cost you 65 USD for a used Walbro 255 LPH fuel pump anywhere to 165 for a new one. Belts, hoses, fluids, plug wires, spark plugs, ect will run you lets say 200 USD just to keep it even. Installation by a shop (This is not necessary but if you have the money and want the job done now) will run you 1200 USD. That is what I was quoted by a shop in Va. to install an RB25det into a 280z. So the rb25de should be a little cheaper. Exhaust- For any motor swap you will more than likely need a custom exhaust system. This can be made of anything from galvanized, crunch bent, 2 inch pipes to mandrel bent, stainless steel, 3 inch pipes, it's your choice. Let's assume you want the middle of the road exhaust system. Galvanized steel, mandrel bent and a 2.5 inch diameter. Depending on your location this can run 300 USD to 500 USD when done properly. Total cost including installation and assuming you buy an RB25de and that you bought everything new is 4715. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EMWHYR0HEN Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 You basically posted my emails, lol. woo hoo, I paid 1500 for my swap! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
datsun40146 Posted January 24, 2007 Author Share Posted January 24, 2007 I didn't complety post your emails lol however it was a great starting point and I did use some of what you told me as information. I have called every import from venus to mckinny (sp) and they all agree that you need after market mounts. Now I don't know it they just want to sell me more stuff or what. But from what I've read both z cars rule and emwhyrohen had no trouble bolting in their RBs. However the Rb25de and Rb20det are exceptions to the rule of needing aftermarket mounts. Now that I KNOW the Rb25de will bolt right in thats one more reason to go N/A over turbo. Hey EMWHYROHEN would you mind reposting the pictures you posted on this thread or emailing them to me? Here in the link http://forums.hybridz.org/showthread.php?t=106436&page=2&highlight=rb20det Your post is on the second page about half way down. Thanks again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cpt jack Posted January 25, 2007 Share Posted January 25, 2007 Im thinking of goin RB25DET in my zx.... i did some number crunching and i things like that now im not 100% if ms will work for the RB which i hope it does but if it does and worse case it would cost me right around 5500 with all gadges and new water pump and oilpump and headgasket.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete84 Posted January 27, 2007 Share Posted January 27, 2007 [. . .]But from what I've read both z cars rule and emwhyrohen had no trouble bolting in their RBs. However the Rb25de and Rb20det are exceptions to the rule of needing aftermarket mounts. Now that I KNOW the Rb25de will bolt right in thats one more reason to go N/A over turbo. Hey EMWHYROHEN would you mind reposting the pictures you posted on this thread or emailing them to me? Here in the link http://forums.hybridz.org/showthread.php?t=106436&page=2&highlight=rb20det Your post is on the second page about half way down. Thanks again. Bolt in as . . . stock mounts, stock driveshaft? Sounds very interesting! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZXRockie Posted February 4, 2007 Share Posted February 4, 2007 Bolt in as . . . stock mounts, stock driveshaft? Sounds very interesting! It does not bolt in and you need a custom drive shaft. but the parts are out there and they are very cheap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fast-datsun Posted February 10, 2007 Share Posted February 10, 2007 Our new mount kits for all years Z are done,, we also have custom driveshafts, radiators, intercooler and Kits, down pipes, wiring services and coming soon full 3" exhaust. also modified intake for the rb25 (greddy style to fit the Z cars. Our basic kit is engine mounts that allow the use of the stock Z crossmember and new trans crossmember both with poly issolators.. Mack Mckinney Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
getoffmyinternet Posted November 28, 2007 Share Posted November 28, 2007 No offense, but those parts seem to be priced for the kind of person that can truly say, "Money is no object." If I could afford to do my entire swap with Mckinney Autoparts, I wouldn't have bought a Z in the first place, let alone be doing my own shopping and installing. Of course that seems to be the trend with machine shops, not just you. And I thought package deals were supposed to be just that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Careless Posted November 30, 2007 Share Posted November 30, 2007 No offense, but those parts seem to be priced for the kind of person that can truly say, "Money is no object." If I could afford to do my entire swap with Mckinney Autoparts, I wouldn't have bought a Z in the first place, let alone be doing my own shopping and installing. Of course that seems to be the trend with machine shops, not just you. And I thought package deals were supposed to be just that. true, but we have a couple of options. some options are just better than others. the best option for mounts would be to test and fab your own if you're upto it. for those who choose not to do so, that's why the RB swaps end up going 15k + range. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
datsun40146 Posted November 30, 2007 Author Share Posted November 30, 2007 What do you mean by "those parts seem to be priced for the kind of person that can truly say, "Money is no object." Heck with the costs that I found you can get most of the components to do the swap for under 5K which I though for a motor swap wasn't half bad. I mean really I don't think you can do a "proper" motor swap for les than that. To have the ability NOT to have to deal with wiring, driveshaft angles, fabricating up motor mounts 3 times, ect, to me that’s worth 5k. Yes I could do ALL that myself, but why? If I can avoid the headache you can bet I will. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
datsun40146 Posted November 30, 2007 Author Share Posted November 30, 2007 Also you don't have to get the parts through Mckinney Auto parts, there are many other vendors with cheaper prices. Its just I feel you should be prepared to pay more for a company who has done the research on the parts you are using. Versus some company whose may be cheaper but just threw the part designs together. That’s it I'm off my soap box now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CArFAn Posted November 30, 2007 Share Posted November 30, 2007 If you make the mounts and do the wiring yourself you can take at least 1k off the total cost. And where you get the parts from ie. water pump,belts,..etc. Some people can have a "hook up" at stores or what ever, and that can bring the cost down even more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrism Posted November 30, 2007 Share Posted November 30, 2007 I used Mckinney mounts on my motor and for 90 bucks, I had the drive shaft shortened by a guy that rebuilds driveshafts. There should be someone in your area that can do that. Save $300. Most swaps come with the injector harnace and the wires for all the sensors. It should also have the alternator and starter harness. If not, that is easy to adapt. Once you rewire a harnass, you will find that it isn't that hard and you can learn a lot in the process. Look at the number of wires Chris Rummel used to get his car running. Not many . Make sure you consider lead times for any item that you have custom made. That makes a big difference. Just like others have found, nothing drops into an S30 other than the original engine. There are always modifications needed (like motor mounts and a tran mount). I do like the McKinney mounts. They are heavy duty and the bushings are far better than the rubber bushings that came with the RB. They look good to. Some of the guys on this site found local shops to weld them a set and that should cut the cost in half if you don't care what they look like. If you or a friend can make you own then they won't cost much at all. Just my 2 cents. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
getoffmyinternet Posted December 1, 2007 Share Posted December 1, 2007 I emailed the folks at Mckinney for pricing, and their package deals seemed to be twice as much as I could buy parts individually from anywhere else. I still can't get a hold of the guy that makes infinity machining mounts, but it's probably even more for those. Perhaps I could by a used CNC for 15k and make 50 sets of mounts and flush the market to pay it off. Mckinney: oil pan and pickup $300, radiator $500, intercooler $950, downpipe $550, exhaust $650. I think the "package" for just the motor and trans mounts is $700 I'm determined to show that most of this can be done at a fraction of the price. You can argue that they make it easier than doing it yourself, but if you aren't going to want to do anything yourself, why are you even doing the project in the first place? Besides, for things like exhaust you can get a shop to build the entire system for a third of just the parts from Mckinney unshipped. Hmmmmmm... I guess now I know why people estimate the total cost at over 10k, thanks Careless, because when I first heard that number I almost laughed and threw up at the same time. But now that I pissed everyone off, I'll go back to my little cubby in the corner of the rb thread. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Careless Posted December 2, 2007 Share Posted December 2, 2007 I'm determined to show that most of this can be done at a fraction of the price. You can argue that they make it easier than doing it yourself, but if you aren't going to want to do anything yourself, why are you even doing the project in the first place? I guess now I know why people estimate the total cost at over 10k, thanks Careless. =) You and I, both. There's many ways to save money... That's why I'm sure it would not cost 15k for a bone stock swap. especially since if I were limited with cash (or actually gave myself a budget. LOLOLOL), I would go with an RB25, and add some healthy turbos and downpipes and make more power. but who needs turbozo's Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
getoffmyinternet Posted December 2, 2007 Share Posted December 2, 2007 True. I figured that if I know myself well enough, over the course of the years I will dump as much money into it as I possibly can and it wouldn't be too long before I hit a wall with the rb25. If I were on a tight budget, I'm sure the rb26 isn't worth the pricetag, but I'm thinking long term here, to the point of pushing everything to the limit for no good reason. Let's just hope there isn't some catastrophe where we can't get gasoline anymore or it's phased out and only available at union stations for $20 a gallon, because then I might rethink. One of these days we'll be like characters in Road Warrior or something but with cars a little nicer than say a shady falcon. Some of you are already on the right track what with being on the right continent and all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Careless Posted December 3, 2007 Share Posted December 3, 2007 True. I figured that if I know myself well enough, over the course of the years I will dump as much money into it as I possibly can and it wouldn't be too long before I hit a wall with the rb25. If I were on a tight budget, I'm sure the rb26 isn't worth the pricetag, but I'm thinking long term here, to the point of pushing everything to the limit for no good reason. Let's just hope there isn't some catastrophe where we can't get gasoline anymore or it's phased out and only available at union stations for $20 a gallon, because then I might rethink. One of these days we'll be like characters in Road Warrior or something but with cars a little nicer than say a shady falcon. Some of you are already on the right track what with being on the right continent and all. hahahahaha. right on don't spend all your money on it though... IT WILL find a place for your money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
getoffmyinternet Posted December 3, 2007 Share Posted December 3, 2007 I'm gonna leave it stock for a while probably. Save up a little, and get a rear disc brake kit, all new weatherstripping, new shocks, hatch window, door panels...That list can also be endless. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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