pope_face

I haven't done it myself, but it has been done... but, it's a hard swap, from what I know. It's a big engine, compared to the L-Series. There's a bit of fabrication required to fit a turbo KA or SR into a 510 (not sure about the 610's), so increasing the displacement by 600 cc's (compared to the KA24), adding two cylinders, and shoving another turbo in might be a little work... from what I know, you'll have to really modify the firewall, move around a bunch of steering components, possibly trim the fenders, as well as having to move the battery and radiator... then again, this is based on a 510, and only from what makes sense to me based on other builds, but I'm by no means an expert... just some things to consider.

pl521... I might be interested in them if you start making a set, depending on cost. Are you going to make a decal for the tailgate logo as well, or just the sides? Or... if you're up for it, how about scanning it and posting it up, or just giving the dimensions and font?

Thanks Mike, I gotcha... I called ICBC about the inspection standards, and they told me if I'm planning an engine swap I need a structural inspection to make sure the chassis can handle the power of the engine... Then again, they didn't mention anything about brakes, wheels, suspension, steering, etc... I'm not planning on doing any other major work to the truck, so maybe it'll just be the structural inspection. I'll call a shop and ask them... maybe I can just take the chassis in itself before I even start reassembling the car... Ugh, if I wasn't so keen on having this truck I'd've given up by now... this rebuild process is getting more and more complicated as time goes on, and I haven't even done anything yet!

Dataholic: Thanks for that reply... it makes a lot of sense. I'd still like to do this, but I'm concerned about it's impact on the inspection... does anyone think this could be an issue with that? I have no issues with buying the brackets myself... Maybe I'm making assumptions here, but I don't think Beebani or Fineline would knowingly make something to endanger someone, especially if they're using the brackets themselves... I'm just wondering if the insurance company might have an issue with it just because it's not a "legally approved" modification...

Fineline, in the first post you mentioned that these are for non-emission, offroad use only... any particular reason why that is? Is it something to do with the brake setup itself, or something to do with vehicle inspections? I'm keen on doing this myself, but I need to get an entire inspection done before I can insure it... I'd rather do this prior to reassembling the entire truck, rather than going back to redo the brakes after...

Wow... you're good with Photoshop... those whitewalls look real to me... I appreciate trying to use those wheels on the truck, but I think that you might be better off with the Rally America ones... I'd suggest taking a buffing wheel and some polishing compound to the caps and cleaning them up. You might be able to get a bit more cash out of them that way. Then again, they are only $60... you could always find some way to make them cheap whitewalls and mount them on the walls in your garage... It might be a nice showpiece. Or... lift the front end a bit. Make it a gasser... I think some of the older hotrods did that. You could get the wheels to fit then without swapping out tires or anything.

Mmm, forgot about the brake booster... my truck doesn't have one, so I don't have any issues with it. It that case, I think you either need an L16SSS manifold, or an aftermarket one... I don't think the others will clear. Are you going to use these on another block, or are you still going to try to track down an intake manifold and use them on your current engine? You could just sell or trade them and get a downdraft Weber or something, unless you really want the dual carbs...

If you can't find one at the dismantlers, and no-one has one they'd sell you, then just get the dealer to fix it. Or, get an aftermarket speedometer and mount that somewhere... Try eBay for an original, I'm pretty sure they pop up sometimes.

The L4 is pretty much the designation for any of the four-cylinder L-Series engines... L13, L16, L20B, etc. L6's are the six cylinder L-Series... L24 is one of them, not sure about the other... I haven't really found a concise explaination of the Datsun engines and common Nissan swaps, but this might help with sorting out some of the engines...

Awesome, thanks... I suppose I'll be looking for a later one then.

About that steering wheel... it does look pretty cool, but are you going to keep it or swap it out for a larger one? I know the larger Grant ones are a bit pricier, but it might become a bit of a pain-in-the-ass steering with a small wheel...

Alright, I found out I can't use a KA auto with my engine if I remove the ECU, so I need to figure something else out. I know that some people had bolted an L-Series transmission to a KA block using the Z (Z22E, Z22S, etc) bell housing... I was going to go that route, but like an idiot I didn't connect using a Z bellhousing with using the entire transmission... Now, the KA is electronically controlled by the engine ECU... the L-Series auto transmission is hydraulically controlled. Does anyone know how the Z (NAPS-Z?) automatic transmission is controlled?

Not too sure on pro's and con's, but as far as I know you'll have a bit more (top-end?) power and maybe better throttle response due to increased airflow... I think they're more suited with other modifications though, a bigger cam being one of the main ones. As for the con's, I would say fuel economy, depending on the size and how they're jetted. Then again, I don't know if you can change the jets on SU's... there's a tuning page floating around somewhere. You can get the intake... I think any dual side-draft intake designed for your engine will fit the SU's... I believe only the Webers needed adaptor plates.

Hahaha, awesome... Almost completely off-topic... my Explorer has seven-speed intermittant wipers... plus high and low... who needs 9 wiper speeds?

Awesome... looks like you've got your work cut out for you... :D I noticed the speakers in the door panel... watch out for those. If you don't have the window squeegies on the outside of the doors you'll get water down inside the door... it might rot out the speaker cones or short out the connections. Either get the squeegee, or seal the area behind the door panel and around the back of the speaker well. BTW, what is that to the left of the steering column? Looks like some sort of meter or something...

Fisch: Not sure how much it costs to get something shipped, but a container costs about $1000... Irsa: I'd consider it... Just avoid going out to eat for a couple months, and you ought to be able to afford it... :D

Did you have any clearance issues in order to get it installed straight? And would you happen to have a picture of the core support/rad/front of the engine just to show the clearances? Thanks for the pic though... I've seen a few of the KA's in 510's, but never in a 521. Hopefully there isn't too much of a difference between the two.

Awesome... never seen one of those before... It looks like it's either a coupe that thinks it's a pickup, or vis versa... not sure which though. And, not that it's related to the truck at all, but I like the sound of the person selling it... honesty and a little humour tends to go a long way in my books, especially when it's coming from someone trying to sell something...

Awesome! Just as long as it doesn't look cooler than mine when it's done... :rolleyes: Are you towing it, or are you going to push start it? Or did you get the starter changed? If at all possible, I vote driving it... gotta be one of the coolest feelings in the world... it makes me giddy just thinking about it... :D

Bah... double post... but yeah, open element like one of those. Mine's round, but same thing. I like K&N myself, but that's just a personal preferance... I like the fact that they last for years, although I remember hearing about a new cotton filter that doesn't require oiling once a year... I don't remember the maker though.

K&N... Either take your old filter into the shop and ask them to match the size, or get an open element filter and attach it to the top of the carb... it should clear the hood, it does on mine, and I think our engines are roughly the same overall size. Just take off the stock air cleaner, measure the carb opening, and ask the shop for a filter with a mount that size... if you have to, you could go a little smaller with the opening... that's what mine's like, and it's held in place with a hose clamp. The rubber is stretched a bit, but it holds fine.

Pac Coast: Thanks for the tips... The J13 runs, and I'd keep it save for the fact that I can't get an auto transmission for it... I do want carbs, however, so it's either an L-Series or a KA. The only reason I want the KA is because of the cost, availability (both the engine and parts), and power potential. I expect to have to trim the transmission tunnel anyways in order to mount an automatic, which is a bit of a shame to do, but them's the breaks if I want to keep this truck. You mentioned you needed to trim the firewall... I'm assuming you mean an inch or two around the transmission tunnel, correct? Was there a lot to take out, or was it just a bit? I don't mind cutting the firewall a couple inches around the transmission tunnel and rewelding the tunnel in there, I just don't want to have to extend a large part of the firewall back to clear the engine... As for the rad, I'm assuming the VW Rabbit rad will fit... I know people have used them in the 510's, so I figure the 521 should be similar... only concern would be the transmission cooler. I'd either have to find a rad that had one built in, or get an external one to mount in front or underneath the rad... if I trim the core support too much it might not fit behind the grille. Is it possible to get a long, narrow one to fit under the rad behind the valence? I'll have to look into it... I'll try to find the thinnest fan assembly as well. As far as pics go, I'd love to see them... it would be good to see what I'm getting into. But, this will be a long-term project. Even if I track down an engine sometime soon, it probably won't even get a test fit until after New Year's... Edit: Actually, now that I think about it, I might be moving the battery behind the cab, probably in a custom box built into or under the bed. If I do that, I'll have that space free... would it be possible to mount a transmission cooler more or less horizontal in that position, then louver the hood to allow airflow through the cooler? Or would a horizontal-mount cooler not work?

Thanks Mike... There's still a lot to sort out with the engine... I found out today that ICBC will not let me reset the odometer regardless of whether or not I do a full rebuild... I didn't expect they would, but it was worth a try. But, this brings up the question of whether or not I'll try to track down an old engine to rebuild, or whether I'll just look for one that's in decent condition... Specialty has one they'll modify for me if I want, but the amount they want for the engine seems a bit steep, not including the work I need done to it... FJ, thanks for the tip... I remember reading that the SR and KA mounts are pretty much the same, if not identical... I'll take a look at the project page to see what info I can glean...

They look pretty awesome... I'd love to have spikes on the front of mine, but somehow I think the Law wouldn't be too keen on it... like I said, Jaguar stopped using hood-ornaments on some cars for a reason... I think it would apply even more to bumper spikes... =P

Ok, I've got a couple questions... I'm planning a KA swap, and as far as I know people have done this many times without issues... I've gone through all 43 tech pages on the 510 Realm looking for anything related to a KA, and I don't see much, if anything, about fitment issues due to actual size. However, I was just looking at my truck, and the engine compartment looks tiny... smaller than I remember it, at least. Right now it has the J13 in it, but it looks like that barely fits in there, so I'm curious how well the extra 1,100 cc's will fit... What I'm wondering is the actual physical size of the KA vs the J-Series... there's only a couple inches of clearance between the back of the engine and the firewall, and maybe six to eight inches of clearance between the front of the engine and the rad, not including the fan... I'm probably going to get an electric fan, so that should only take up a couple inches, but I'm hoping I won't have to cut into the firewall or anything... the only other possibility would be moving the rad an inch or two forward by hacking into the support... The 521 engine bays are the same size as the 510's, correct? I mean, they both came with an L16 at some point, so that had to fit...