another KA question....figment options

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

Post by loungin112 »

Sorry if this is redundant, but I did search for an answer beforehand and couldn't find relevant information. So I'm planning a swap and want a KA. Cheaper parts, displacement, torque. But, being in Colorado, there aren't a lot of clean s14 or s15 options for ka donors. Believe it or not the most readily available ka donor in Colorado is the altima. There in lies the question: can a fwd ka be swapped into a 510 without added complications? I actually have located three manual transmissions from an s14 (one that needs rebuilt). So can I mate a s14 manual trans to a fwd ka? Thanks realm!
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okayfine
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Re: another KA question....figment options

Post by okayfine »

loungin112 wrote:can a fwd ka be swapped into a 510 without added complications?
No.
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Uber Deaf One
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Re: another KA question....figment options

Post by Uber Deaf One »

Road trip to pick up a $400 KA = totally worth it.
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finn
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Re: another KA question....figment options

Post by finn »

A road trip to L.A. would be well worth it. Plenty of rwd KA sitting in shops after sr swaps.
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okayfine
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Re: another KA question....figment options

Post by okayfine »

Not quite as common as they used to be, and much more expensive than they used to be. KAs are getting on for 23+ years old for the earliest '91s, and Nissan made fewer and fewer 240SXs in S14 and S15 guise.

http://ventura.craigslist.org/search/ss ... srchType=T
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okayfine
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Re: another KA question....figment options

Post by okayfine »

loungin112 wrote:there aren't a lot of clean s14 or s15 options for ka donors.
Also came in trucks:
Applications:
1998-2008 Navara/Frontier
2000-2004 Xterra

Going to be way easier to find, especially in CO.
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loungin112
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Re: another KA question....figment options

Post by loungin112 »

You would think there are more truck-based ka s available, but not many to be found as there are more v-6 models here due to the altitude and changes in elevation (more buyers want the extra power). I've read the main difference between the 240sx and truck ka is the crack girdle. I wonder how much of a difference this truely makes when planning for, say, 300hp (I would like to go turbo one day to keep up with the Joneses).
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okayfine
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Re: another KA question....figment options

Post by okayfine »

No idea about the girdle. Could be argued that Nissan finally figured out they didn't need the girdle by the time they put the /DE in the truck. They didn't build the S-chassis KA to be turbocharged and the extra 10hp it made versus the truck didn't require the girdle.

If you're going to go -T eventually, why not start with an SR motorset. I read your OP and agree with the reasoning behind the KA, but if you have no KA selection AND you're going to turbo it anyway...

If you don't like the selection on eBay, there's always car-parts.com. Local stuff (to me) showing up from $800+ for a '96 KA. Would probably need to talk to the yard to get them to include everything you need.
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loungin112
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Re: another KA question....figment options

Post by loungin112 »

okayfine wrote: If you're going to go -T eventually, why not start with an SR motorset. I read your OP and agree with the reasoning behind the KA, but if you have no KA selection AND you're going to turbo it anyway...
Coincidentally, there is a rebuilt SR block for sale near me... But his starting asking price is $2k.. Kind of an indicator in my eyes of the cost to build a decent SR. I may hang on to my l20b and tinker with the madness of a turbo setup al la whitebird gen2 style (yeah... I read your build thread a few months ago.) But that's a few years away so I have time to convince myself it is a bad idea.

As for the KA, I'll keep my eyes open here, but it's good to definitively know that a KA donor must come from a RWD vehicle. Another question for the transmission gurus... Can any Nissan RWD trans from a KA/SR setup be mated to a RWD KA? Like I said, I found a 5-speed from a s-14, but would it work with any KA (RWDtruck out car version) .

Comparability issues... Not just for people.
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okayfine
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Re: another KA question....figment options

Post by okayfine »

loungin112 wrote:Can any Nissan RWD trans from a KA/SR setup be mated to a RWD KA?
Yes. Moreover, any RWD Nissan FS5W71C trans from the KA/SR/VG/CA/RB can be interchanged as long as you have the appropriate bellhousing for your block.
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okayfine
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Re: another KA question....figment options

Post by okayfine »

loungin112 wrote:I may hang on to my l20b and tinker with the madness of a turbo setup al la whitebird gen2 style
Keith's effort might be a more useful exercise to examine, if I'm honest...
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Re: another KA question....figment options

Post by ajen68510 »

It took me a Couple of months to find a 93' KA DOHC , but i found a complete with ECU for $150.00 . I joined the 240SX Forums in my area . Once i figured out thats where all the KA's were, i had one in days
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Re: another KA question....figment options

Post by amwalker »

I have pieces of 240 based KAs in the garage, including 2 short blocks and a decent head. I live up in Wellington if you want to use a short block for fitment while you look for a complete engine.

Adam
71 510: 4-Door, KA swap, Work in progress (Race)
loungin112
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Re: another KA question....figment options

Post by loungin112 »

ajen68510 wrote:It took me a Couple of months to find a 93' KA DOHC , but i found a complete with ECU for $150.00 . I joined the 240SX Forums in my area . Once i figured out thats where all the KA's were, i had one in days
Thanks for the idea... I'm going to give that a shot
loungin112
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Re: another KA question....figment options

Post by loungin112 »

amwalker wrote:I have pieces of 240 based KAs in the garage, including 2 short blocks and a decent head. I live up in Wellington if you want to use a short block for fitment while you look for a complete engine.

Adam
Thanks for the offer Adam. This will become my daily once the swap is done.. Maybe before the swap is done so I did have much time for a proper mockup. Oh, and I didn't realize there was another Datsun guy up near fort Collins... We just moved down south to Parker.
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