Gollum Posted June 18, 2009 Share Posted June 18, 2009 So I've been kicking around the idea of dropping a craigslist special KA engine into my daily driver 280ZX eventually, and pretty much just driving it 99% stock. Why? Because my current engine has almost 220k on the OD now, and should really get a rebuild before 275,000 which I could hit in a couple years easily with how much I drive. I can get probably slightly better MPG than I would with the L engine, and the KA is a thousand times easier to work on, with more available parts, and lots of go fast parts being sold for next to nothing. But here's my question for you people in this 4 cylinder corner of the swap world. How cheap do you think it can be done? I'm a master penny pincher here. I'll probably fab the mount cross members myself. You can practically get the engine for free around here due to all the SR swaps. I'm hoping I might even find a KA24DE for under $500 with tranny. I think it should be a totally doable swap for less than $600 for a SOHC, and $800 for a DOHC. Anyone disagree? Why so? What exact problems do you see coming up? The big challenge will be finding a shop willing to fab a driveshaft for a price I like. Last time I needed a driveshaft most shops wanted $300 minimum so I just walked away. I might have to drive out to the sticks to find a cheap shop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AK-Z Posted June 18, 2009 Share Posted June 18, 2009 On mine, I didn't have to get a new drive shaft. You can just mount the engine according to the where the tranny fits with the shaft, Well thats how I did mine. You are going to have to swap the tach, and get 2 custom radiator hoses, and the universal hose kit can be pretty pricey for a hose. I think its doable for $600 minus the driveshaft. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gollum Posted June 18, 2009 Author Share Posted June 18, 2009 How far forward will that put the engine though? The transmission is about the same length as the Z transmission yea? They're nearly identical I thought, or at least extremely similar. I was hoping to put the engine as far back as I could get it, but I guess that WILL depend on driveshaft costs. I was also thinking that mounting it as far back as I can get it I'll avoid any crossmember clearance issues I could run into. Thanks for your input, I highly respect it since you're in the middle of the swap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators RTz Posted June 18, 2009 Administrators Share Posted June 18, 2009 Last time I needed a driveshaft most shops wanted $300 minimum so I just walked away. I might have to drive out to the sticks to find a cheap shop. In Oregon, I normally pay in the $150 range for a shorten & freshen at respected shops. This does not include Nissan branded U-joints, though. You are going to have to swap the tach Maybe not. I believe the MSD tach adapter 8920 will work in that application. They run about $50. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subtle_driver Posted June 18, 2009 Share Posted June 18, 2009 in san diego, shaft masters, you can shorten for $85. thats what i did with my buget swap. i also shortened one myself. it worked but i didn't want to try it on the freeway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phlebmaster Posted June 18, 2009 Share Posted June 18, 2009 Why not just drop an A15 in there?? JK! The KA would be an interesting project, if you do it I expect pictures!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DiscoPotatoe Posted June 24, 2009 Share Posted June 24, 2009 Their awesome engines great gas mileage and plenty of torque stock add a turbo and i prefer them any day over SR's only problem is their not very durable lol I used to go threw id say a KA every 6 months getting a used engine then again i did take it to the track and constantly pound it till it threw a rod. Very cheap engines to come by especially in Orlando. with everyone going with the SR swap Heres a little vid of an old 240 i had i actually miss the car shortly after this video im talking 2 hours after i got rear ended in a walmart http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&VideoID=54854098 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subtle_driver Posted June 24, 2009 Share Posted June 24, 2009 Their awesome engines great gas mileage and plenty of torque stock add a turbo and i prefer them any day over SR's only problem is their not very durable lol I used to go threw id say a KA every 6 months getting a used engine then again i did take it to the track and constantly pound it till it threw a rod. Very cheap engines to come by especially in Orlando. with everyone going with the SR swap Heres a little vid of an old 240 i had i actually miss the car shortly after this video im talking 2 hours after i got rear ended in a walmart http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&VideoID=54854098 I have been running several 300-350hp ka-t setups on high mileage engines with stock internals for 3 years without a single engine related failure! get it tuned, properly set up, keep it cool and lubed, and it will thank you! i also have seen several dozen stock SR's blow due to making stupid mistakes. just depends on what you're asking of the engine i suppose. my s13 got rear ended 2 times at a stop sign. i saw the video, reminds me of the good ole days when the industrial parks were not inhabited and i would go through 3-4 sets of cheap tires every year.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gollum Posted June 25, 2009 Author Share Posted June 25, 2009 Thanks for all the input guys. I'm pretty sure I'll be doing this swap down the road now. Surprisingly though it looks like I have a line on a V8 for my other car, so it'll get it's swap done first, then the 280ZX after that if I haven't bought a different daily yet. If I don't go KA the only other engine I've really considered is the VG30E. Basically I'm wanting to stay nissan so I can keep the stock driveshaft and have it shorted if need be. Just makes the swap go a bit smoother I think. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DiscoPotatoe Posted June 25, 2009 Share Posted June 25, 2009 I have been running several 300-350hp ka-t setups on high mileage engines with stock internals for 3 years without a single engine related failure! get it tuned, properly set up, keep it cool and lubed, and it will thank you! i also have seen several dozen stock SR's blow due to making stupid mistakes. just depends on what you're asking of the engine i suppose. my s13 got rear ended 2 times at a stop sign. i saw the video, reminds me of the good ole days when the industrial parks were not inhabited and i would go through 3-4 sets of cheap tires every year.... I always swap my AMS high flow oil pump into every engine it gets a few more months out of them even have it shimmed to increase the pressure. I run it till it cant run anymore at all hence i wait till it explodes. I tend to go threw tires every other week. Sometimes they last 3 weeks if I'm lucky. I've learned to be a dealership scavenger i go to their trash pile surprizingly i get sometimes some tires that look brand new take them to a used tire place and swap that good one for 2-3 sets of half thread tires. It helps when you have a tire changer at your crib. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luckygerman Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 Hey Gollum, as you know I am planing on a 4cyl swap myself, as I have done more research on all of this, I'am now considering the KA swap too. It will be less money than an SR20 and 400cc more. My plan is to buy a 240sx from craigslist for around 500-800, that way I will have a complete car to take parts of. Since I plan on building this engine for turbo and will have to upgrade to forged pistons, i really don't care about the KA's milage since i will rebuild it. If I was going to do the SR20 I still have to change the turbo and injectors intake and so on if I want to make any decent power, might as well do it with a Iron block 2.4 that can handle more power. I'm guessing if you where going to do no performance upgrades like I'm planing, you probably get it done for a $1k or less. It will all depend on how cheap you can get all your components. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luckygerman Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 BTW http://www.Car-part.com is a great way to get your hands on some parts. You will have access to Salvage yards Inventories across the US. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yhlz Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 you won't need forged pistons if you think that your budget it less than $1000. check out ka-t.org for KA info. by the way, unless you're fabricating alot of the things, you're $1000 budget isn't going to work. a good turbo is gonna run you atleast 5-600. you're gonna need a fuel management system 200+. fuel pump 100+. engine and tranny craddle. IC piping. and a bunch of other misc. things. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luckygerman Posted July 28, 2009 Share Posted July 28, 2009 you won't need forged pistons if you think that your budget it less than $1000. check out ka-t.org for KA info. by the way, unless you're fabricating alot of the things, you're $1000 budget isn't going to work. a good turbo is gonna run you atleast 5-600. you're gonna need a fuel management system 200+. fuel pump 100+. engine and tranny craddle. IC piping. and a bunch of other misc. things. Oh I know i will need several thousands to do what I want to do but I was referring to Gollum. What I meant to say was that if you're going to do a KA swap without any mods that you be able to get it done under a grand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yhlz Posted July 28, 2009 Share Posted July 28, 2009 yes, a stock KA without a turbo setup can be achieved under $1K. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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