R33 Rb30 Conversion

[Cubes]

Thanx Grey,

I'm adding to the PDF as others and my self slowly complete the build up.

What boost are u running on the r34 turbo to get it to spin the wheels?

oh also...

There's no need for comments like this

P.S Although im trying to behave while im running it in, squeezing the throttle on just past half at 60ks in 2nd had the 235's screaming and me very surprised to say the least

I'm dropping my motor in during the mid semester holidays, comments like this only make me want to forget about study and drop the motor in, haha.

[Cubes]

What did u end up doing for the cam belt cover gap?

[GreySky]

Hahaha yeah I know how it gets, i was like a kid at christmas time the night before i finished mine.

I am running stock boost which ends up being around 10 psi in my car. Ive done 200ks in it now and am starting to get a really itchy foot. Ive scratched it twice now and both times it resulted in howling (both me and the tires) and my ass sliding out from under me like it used to with the rb20 in the wet.

All i can say is "How bloody good is TORQUE!!"

Once we got a few finished we should go for a cruise one day if anyones interested.....

[GreySky]

The angle of the cam belt actually made it foul the cover slightly so I made some simple mods just with pliers and bent it out. The gap can be filled with a strip of sheet metal some pliers to bend it into shape and some rivets, then throw some black paint over it or whatever.

[Cubes]

No probs.. That is what I was going to do with the gap in the cover with mine.

Except I was thinking of spot welds to hold it in place.

[GreySky]

Thatd be the way to go, i used what i had handy. Just have to put the rivets where they dont hit anything on the inside...

[Gradenko]

For those of you running a RB25 turbo, what rpm do you find power peaking at?

[PRIMO]

dont be scared to give the engine a little boot will help drastically with rings bedding in just dont rev it to hard just yet

[Cubes]

Grey,

Second most important thing.. Whats the note like compared to the ol' rb20?

deeper? gruntier? or the same?

[predator]

even RB30E has a nice note to it with a larger exhaust.. i think an RB30DET would be heaven on a stick when it comes on song..

Even though a plain RB30E is old technology now, there is just something about it that still gives it a unique noise even in n/a form. The hankering is so there.. all the best bits of an RB25DET (which is awesome on its own) + then some! and the torque should throw you around like no business, just without that "gap" the RB25DET has which annoys me a little offboost. But I can only imagine what it would be like until i build one myself

I'm picking up a 2nd complete s2 block RB30E this weekend -- will be practically free by the time i sell the "extras" i got with it. It was mainly for spares for my R31, but the more i think about it, the more i want an RB30DET - don't care about which car it goes in, I just want that engine!

thinking things out at the moment.

[Jaws]

Would it be better to go for a 3.5 inch exhaust or bigger over the 3inch if my rb30det is making around 500hp@the fly?

[Cubes]

I'm going a 3.5" with a 3.5" cat, 3.5" resonator & 3.5" muffler, no big tips that my cat can crawl up though.. Just a plain ol' 3.5" tip with the rear of the muffler painted black.

[GreySky]

The note is deffinately deeper. The great thing ive noticed though about the conversion is the reduction in cabin noise. I know it sounds a bit strange but now i can cruise around with much lower revs thanks to the ridiculous amount of torque. At full song though people definately know im coming up behind them, im just not sure whats louder, the induction noise of the hungry 3 litre or the deep note of the exhaust blasting my used Optimax at the car behind me. Either way im still grinning from ear to ear everytime i take it for a drive.

As far as exhausts go Ive got a custom dump and 3' all the way through and I think its plenty.

Motor is pretty safely run in now I'd say so I might start seeing what the top of the rev range is like. Some specs on my motor for anyone interested in reviving a s2 RB30E:

Engine was acid bathed to clean all the crap out

Rebored and honed 20thou

Con rods were tension checked, its a good idea to tell your engine builder what power figure your chasing and he should be able to tell you if the motor your using will stand up to it

New oversize pistons, rings and bearings

Tension checked and honed main tunnels

My motor was balanced to a grade 9. To put it into perspective I had the rods, pistons, crank, flywheel and pressure plate all balanced. A V8 supercar is balanced to 10.

I used a good aftermarket copper head gasket

My head is an r32 non vct rb25 head and it bolted up directly.

For anyone doing this conversion this head is the way to go. Once the engine was in and all the lines hooked up I literally plugged it back in, cranked it until i had oil pressure, plugged the igniter back in, kicked it once and it started as if id just switched it off.

If anyones trying to put one in an r32 and has any questions ill be glad to help as much as i can...

Cheers

Grey

[Bl4cK32]

......... :P

[predator]

GreySky: Thanks for the details of the specs too. Always helps to know what exactly was done when going down this path... and what to discuss with an engine builder. How much roughly for the bottom end work? Think its possible to be done under $2500?? (including forged pistons?)

I wouldn't want to go overboard w/ aftermarket rods and maybe just get the stockies checked and prepped.. but something that would stand up to 350rwkw or so would be nice.

After pulling the head off the RB30E I got this weekend (free practically), the block looked to be in pretty good condition (on visual inspection anyhow). 200,000km.

Didn't realise they were so heavy though!! 200kg or so, just for the block, pistons + sump. And i thought once you had the head, manifolds, etc off you'd be able to pick it up with one person ..nope!!

[Cubes]

Its definately a 2 person lift.

and Darren...

Dropping everything and running outside to complete the car.. hahah

lol...

[GreySky]

Hahaha yeah they do look a lot lighter than they are, my supercheap auto engine stand was busting its ass holding up the complete 2530 and had a nice bow in it.

Unless youve got x ray vision you wont be able to check whether the block has any defects/cracks which may prevent it from holding up to the horsepower you want out of it. Whoever builds it will test it and give you a report before he starts id say, like mine did.

The price will depend on how far you want to go and how thorough you want to be. If your paying retail for the work Id say $2500 for a motor with similar specs to mine is a bit conservative, actually very. Get your rods tension checked and if they are ok they should be able to cop most of what you throw at them, get them shot peened if you like its fairly cheap and makes a fair difference apparently. My engine builder is by far the most thorough and reasonably priced builder ive ever met or heard of, his attention to detail is bordering on obsesive compulsive . If anyone is interested Ill ask if he wants to build another one and his prices.

Ive noticed that some of you guys are throwing some pretty big power figures around eg 350rwkw+. Dont get me wrong I luv big horsepower but I reckon any more power than that and your turning an awesome track car into a pretty average drag car, for a GTST skyline anyway. I have lots of trouble getting my power to the ground on the quarter as it is and im not making anywhere near that. But each to their own I guess, just be prepared for traction problems....yeah yeah i know everyone gets all excited about having a car with traction problems haha

A tip when your getting your motor ready is to get two engine stands and put the motor you pulled out next to your RB30 bottom end. This makes it really easy to see what it has to look like and transfer everything over CORRECTLY so you can easily see what has to go where on the new motor eg pumps, hoses, lines etc.

Hope some of that helps

Cheers

Grey

[Cubes]

There is word that the R32/33 RB25DE valve springs are slightly softer than the RB20/25 springs.

Apparently this causes valve bounce over 15psi which generally occures at 6500rpm.

17psi valve bounce begins to occur around 5500rpm.

The higher the boost the earlier the valve bounce.

This causes the lifters to pump up which then makes the car idle lumpy until the lifters bleed back down.

I am unsure if this is a rare occurance where the valve springs have started to go soft or another issue regarding the valve spring tension when the valve is fully closed.

I have also heard a roumer that some stocker CA18DET's running high boost have this issue. Fitting heavier valve springs fix's the problem for the CA18's. Any 1 care to confirm that for me?

I will find out with my RB25DE head soon as it uses the stock valve springs BUT the head has been rebuilt and all tensions checked etc..

Another bloke Darren also bought the same head as I & had his head rebuilt at the same place/time as I. He had to have his valves shimmed due to the valve spring tension not being great enough when the valves are closed. Mine were fine. I'm not sure 100% the exact terminology so don get picky on me.

As I said i'm not 100% as i've onyl heard of a few people having this problem.

Any one else care to share any problems they have had with the 'possibility' of the NA valve springs being softer than the T springs?

Could it be just that the head that was purchased was a bit of a dud with regards to valve spring tension? (hence shimming required)

[Clint32]

i have some stock rb25det valve springs joel if you wont to get them both tested to compare, a little hard now yours is all together but you should be able to find some na ones around

[Cubes]

The R32 RB25DE head valve springs have been tested before.

They are 39lb.

Would be interesting... I'll get back to u after exams Clint..