67 RB20DET Roadster

[natin]

picked this 67 spl311 last week. Pulled right off a dairy farm in about 3 feet of snow. after a tracker and two toyota trucks hooked train style we got it pulled out (sorry no pics). i have had my eye on this car for close to 4.5 years and finally the price became affordable at 300 bucks.

here it is after we got it back to the shop and tore down and cleaned up and ready for sand blasting.

and after sandblasting lots of work ahead.

The plans for now is some 15in panasports, still on the fence about a roll cage, also unsure if we will flare it either. and my favorite a freshly rebuild RB20DET. will post more as project continues.

[Hyphy]

Sounds fun. Im interested. Keep the pics comin.

[xonix_digital]

Nice combo! Should be fun to watch come together!

[sparkle]

will haul with an RB!

enough room in there?

[natin]

we figure we can make it fit with little to no cutting. but we will see when we start to put it in there. today we cut out the rockers and started making the new ones. still waiting on motor parts so we can assemble it.

[FoxyRoadster]

Gonna be quite a tight squeeze, I considered this with mine at one point. I was going to relocate the radiator to the trunk to help with space, but ended up deciding on a miata swap.

 

 

They've stuffed a L28 into a roadster, so an RB should be doable for sure. I've got pictures of the L28 swap if you want them for reference, even though that car was cut up and crushed.. You'll have a resto-mod Fairlady S (Nissan made a inline 6 race car, it raced once and didnt finish. Although it took the pole on qualifying.)

 

 

Also if you haven't you might check out www.311s.org its a major roadster forum, they can help out a lot on things.

[natin]

we wanted to do a hard motor swap to show local people what our shop is capable of. just seemed abit fresher idea than a 240z or 260z with an rb swap. has anyone done a rb roadster before?

[72240z]

Not that I know of, for good reason too imho.

[FoxyRoadster]

Not that I know of, for good reason too imho.

 

I wouldnt say a good reason, just more not enough of us crazies who think cutting up a roadster is fun. Mine might see RB power one day, just cant bring myself to spend that much money on a JDM motor.

 

 

edit:

 

Already quite a few V6 swaps and V8.. I'd like to see a toyota V12 installed but finding one stateside isnt easy.

[72240z]

I have no prob with cutting roadsters up. It just doesn't make sense to chop-horn a 2.0 I6 in there completely screwing up the balance of the car at no displacement gain what so ever (u20), and for what I'd consider from the rb20det to be power lacking. It makes no sense on so many levels. The only level it does make sense is for the reason he listed. It's not an easy swap, if it has been done it's sure as hell for good reasonS not popular and it will definitely achieve his goal of showing off what his shop can do. It's not a bad idea at all in that respect, although I think many better suited engines would achieve the same goal. Not the ones that follow though as they make too much sense and therefor have been done already lol.

 

Just dropping a simple and cheaper ka you'd gain .4 liters, gobs of tq and it wouldn't screw with the weight. Drop a sr in there and double the power out of the box with a lighter engine then stock at the same displacement. I think a proper v6 is just the right balance of size weight and power for that car. Shit though even a non boat anchor v8 set back would have better balance then 2.5 cylinders hanging over the cross member. Hell ya cut one up, but the fire wall to move the engine back not the rad support to add weight forward. :poke:

 

I mean with engine swaps that make performance sense anyway. Once you say I'm doing it just to do it then logic I guess goes out the window. :bye: Any affordable v12 fits in there too.

[FoxyRoadster]

I have no prob with cutting roadsters up. It just doesn't make sense to chop-horn a 2.0 I6 in there completely screwing up the balance of the car at no displacement gain what so ever (u20), and for what I'd consider from the rb20det to be power lacking. It makes no sense on so many levels. The only level it does make sense is for the reason he listed. It's not an easy swap, if it has been done it's sure as hell for good reasonS not popular and it will definitely achieve his goal of showing off what his shop can do. It's not a bad idea at all in that respect, although I think many better suited engines would achieve the same goal. Not the ones that follow though as they make too much sense and therefor have been done already lol.

 

Just dropping a simple and cheaper ka you'd gain .4 liters, gobs of tq and it wouldn't screw with the weight. Drop a sr in there and double the power out of the box with a lighter engine then stock at the same displacement. I think a proper v6 is just the right balance of size weight and power for that car. Shit though even a non boat anchor v8 set back would have better balance then 2.5 cylinders hanging over the cross member. Hell ya cut one up, but the fire wall to move the engine back not the rad support to add weight forward. :poke:

 

I mean with engine swaps that make performance sense anyway. Once you say I'm doing it just to do it then logic I guess goes out the window. :bye: Any affordable v12 fits in there too.

 

also depends on what you're doing with the car, like around here the only you're track choices are 1/8 or 1/4th mile.

 

 

 

They said this one handled pretty well and was super fast, and yes thats an L28

 

 

but also getting a KA24 past the 250hp mark is quite a feat even turbocharged compared to the RB which gives you a pretty good starting point for a reliable daily driver that you can hammer on.

[freaky510]

their is a guy who sales a kit to do the rb swap he is in the Portland area I will try to find it again. I thought of doing the swap when i had my roadster,but the car turn out to be wores off than i thought :angry: so i sold it to a body guy. :lol:

[freaky510]

their is a guy who sales a kit to do the rb swap he is in the Portland area I will try to find it again. I thought of doing the swap when i had my roadster,but the car turn out to be wores off than i thought :angry: so i sold it to a body guy. :lol:

 

 

 

http://www.spriso.com/about.html

 

its the sr kit but i swear i heard he had a rb kit to

[FoxyRoadster]

http://www.spriso.com/about.html

 

its the sr kit but i swear i heard he had a rb kit to

 

 

Thats just the engine mounts, you'll still have to notch the crossmember. This is why I am going with a BP swap, I didn't want to cut on the frame any, I'd cut the body up before you start hacking away at the frame.

[72240z]

also depends on what you're doing with the car, like around here the only you're track choices are 1/8 or 1/4th mile.

 

They said this one handled pretty well and was super fast, and yes thats an L28

 

 

but also getting a KA24 past the 250hp mark is quite a feat even turbocharged compared to the RB which gives you a pretty good starting point for a reliable daily driver that you can hammer on.

 

If it was to be a pure drag car what could be better then a huge tqy v8? Sure as hell not a tiny 2 liter I6. :poop:

 

They can say w/e they like, the car never did anything. Nor did any I6 roadster lol for aforementioned reasons. That roadster sure does look perdy though for what it's worth.

 

Getting a ka passed 250hp is not a feat in any way shape or form. You build a proper ka and your making 300-350 easily. You could turbo a fresh stock ka and make 250hp. which would be 50hp over the starting point of that rb20. You also legitimized the swap earlier in the post as a drag car now a DD? DDing a rb20 roadster TO ME is retarded. You kill the weight distribution of the car, you make it front heavy and full of under-steer goodness basically forcing it to e a drag only car then DD it? Idk how or in what world that makes sense.

 

Its a gimmick, and like i said achieves his goals lovely. From a performance or logic stand point though the swap makes no sense at all. No matter how you slice it or try to explain it nothing changes the physics, power, time and money of the situation. :unsure:

 

Not trying to piss in your cornflakes or w/e but it is what it is. lol :console:

[FoxyRoadster]

If it was to be a pure drag car what could be better then a huge tqy v8? Sure as hell not a tiny 2 liter I6. :poop:

 

They can say w/e they like, the car never did anything. Nor did any I6 roadster lol for aforementioned reasons. That roadster sure does look perdy though for what it's worth.

 

Getting a ka passed 250hp is not a feat in any way shape or form. You build a proper ka and your making 300-350 easily. You could turbo a fresh stock ka and make 250hp. which would be 50hp over the starting point of that rb20. You also legitimized the swap earlier in the post as a drag car now a DD? DDing a rb20 roadster TO ME is retarded. You kill the weight distribution of the car, you make it front heavy and full of under-steer goodness basically forcing it to e a drag only car then DD it? Idk how or in what world that makes sense.

 

Its a gimmick, and like i said achieves his goals lovely. From a performance or logic stand point though the swap makes no sense at all. No matter how you slice it or try to explain it nothing changes the physics, power, time and money of the situation. :unsure:

 

Not trying to piss in your cornflakes or w/e but it is what it is. lol :console:

 

Well being a daily driven 1/4th car was my plans and yeah you could use a V8 but thats what everyone does around here.

 

 

"Hey jimbo, we gots us a tiny lil datsun what do we do with it?" "I know billy bob, lets stick this here 350 into it!" and then they proceed to drive said datsun tell the tires fall off or they get up close and personal with a tree.

[bonvo]

i would think an rb26 would be better that way your at least getting a displacment edge

[72240z]

For the cost of a rb26 you could drop a 6 speed lsx in there.

[natin]

the difference in weight between a ka24de motor set (no turbo mind you) it weighs in around 540 +/- a sr20det motorset weighs roughly 475 +/- and the RB20det motorset when arrived on pallet weighed 607 lbs. now put a turbo on the ka24de and we are getting closer. now I agree that an rb series motor is not the BEST canidate for a roadster race car but really lets face it nor is a roadster. putting this motor in and moving the weight towrds and past factory firewall we can EASILY pick what we want our weight distribution to be. there are many reasons we chose to do a rb20det. i.e. timing belt so it is alot quiter and smotter sounding. (yes i know the ca18det is as well) handles revs better than than the long stroked ka24de.

 

im just trying to state that the "full of under-steer goodness" is simply a rubish statement. givin this swap is done right. and LOGIC is some of the last thoughts of roadster owner who wishs to make a fast roadster. and this was the only good motor we had hanging around the shop so just about our only choice at the moment lol.

[72240z]

Ya I mean I tried to make it clear I'm not knocking the swap because of your goals. I'm just saying based on so many variables performance wise it makes no sense lol. I felt the need to hammer that shit home after posts tried to legitimize it in that sense.

 

Ya you can set it back to help the weight balance but its a inline 6 with a modern transmission. Look at how narrow the trans tunnel is or the distance between the face of the dash and the front of the firewall. To set that rb back far enough so that 2 cylinders are not hanging over the cross-member your going to be shifting from the trunk lol.

 

So I say for all that trouble why bother. I see your side too, again don't get me wrong. A rb20det set is just so cheap, figure just do what it takes to get it in and enjoy. It will show off fab skills, gain attention, its got good power for that tiny car etc no doubt about any of that. It's just the wrong engine or I should say engine layout for that car.

 

Fuck this debate too, my points been made. Is it in yet or what? :thumbup:

[ppeters914]

Spriso only does SR conversions.

 

Good luck, but I'll be surprised if it ends up anything more than a "look what we can do." Just because you can doesn't always mean you should. OTOH, it was rotting in a field, so no loss.

[natin]

here is what we did on the roadster today. got the trim holes welded and rear qt panel split welded up.

 

 

then got started on motor fitment. cut out the firewall and lookes like plenty of cutting ahead.

 

and with the template motor mocked in.

 

still alot needs to be cut and modified frame and front cross member. should be able to get a normal radiator and intercooler in there still.

[natin]

"look what we can do" is the very thing we are trying to do with this build.

[72240z]

the difference in weight between a ka24de motor set (no turbo mind you) it weighs in around 540 +/- a sr20det motorset weighs roughly 475 +/- and the RB20det motorset when arrived on pallet weighed 607 lbs. now put a turbo on the ka24de and we are getting closer.

 

Idk where your getting those numbers from but they are wrong. Just fruit for thought and to set the record straight.

The KA tranny is 85lbs I have shipped them. That puts a ka at about 456lbs lets say 500 even with a stock (24lb) flywheel and heavy as shit clutch and p plate.

http://forums.nicoclub.com/zerothread/299879

 

According to hbz sourcing sports compact car a sr20det and 5 speed weigh in at 490lb

http://forums.hybridz.org/showthread.php?t=97320

 

Same source (hbz) says a rb25det and 5 speed weighs in at 700lb.

This guy is stating his shipping weight on a rb20det was 750.

http://forums.nicoclub.com/zerothread/342464

 

Idk how or where a turbo gains 200lbs and 16 inches of length. It's no where near close.

Again just setting numbers straight......

 

 

Progress looks good too. Movin right along....

[natin]

the only motor i have put on a scale myself was my sr20det and transmission. and it tipped the scales at around 475 now mind you it had a chomoly fly act clutch tubular ex manifold and greddy intake mani and no power steering pump. im sure there is easily 15 lbs diff in that sruff somewhere. as for the ka i cant argue with your post but added up i was 40 lbs off base from MY finding on the internet http://www.jdmuniverse.com/forums/nissan-infiniti/19683-extracting-power-out-ka24de-come-nissan-people.html .

 

and as for the rb20 issue yellow (the people who dilivered the damn motor) had it marked at 607 lbs. and that is simply what i used as reference. but... threw other findings i found http://www.drifting.com/forums/tech-discussion-forum/2082-engine-weights.html and THEY say rb25det with transmission is 667 lbs. and its fact that rb25 trans is heaver as well as the motor itself. 60lbs or not i do not know.

 

At the end of the day all of these sources came from the internet (except my sr). and who is to say witch source is correct?