Just Another Rb24

[jdmser]

I've had my S14 for the last six year. About four years ago I swapped in a RB20 to replace the tired old KA24. Last August, almost a year ago now, I leaned the motor out due to a combination of things and lost compression in 4 cylinders. I ended up scoring the cylinders, melting the plugs, and ruining the rings. At this point I had a good amount of bolt on including a T3/TO4E, Sard 720cc injectors, chipped ecu, emanage, 3" custom down pipe, 3" 5zigen Border Max catback, fmic w/ custom piping, Zex kit for turbos, Q45 maf w/ JWT pop charger, N1 oil pump, JUN crank collar, Tomie procams, Tomie springs, and some other stuff I'm sure I'm forgetting. I knew the standard RB20 wasn't going to be enough for what I want to do with it so before the engine went I have begone collecting parts. In September after talking to a lot of people about machine work I finally picked an engine builder in the area that has expierence with small displacement turbo motors. He holds the record for the fast 4cyl at our local track. Here's his car

, it's a actually runs a Pinto motor.

First thing we did is have the second hand R33 RB26 crank sent to be ground and repaired. It had a spun rod bearing so it had to be welded. To keep things simple we had all the journals ground to .25mm under so we wouldn't need to mix and match the bearings. Then the crank was nitrided again. While the crank was being repair we found that the spare head and block I had picked up for the build were cracked to I had to tear down my original motor and use the head and block from it. I ordered a set of JE custom pistons and got a good deal on a set of Eagle rods. The short block will be finished off with ACL race bearing and Total Seal stainless rings. The block was then decked and bored with a torque plate. We then filled the block with Hard Blok to the bottom of the freeze plugs and did the final hone.

Thinking about all the potenial this new build would have made me a little concerned about the driveline. So, I started looking into transmission options. I ended up getting a bell housing off of a GTR and mating it to the gear box out of a 2WD V6 Pathfinder. Alot cheaper than a RB25 transmission here in the states and very stout. For a clutch I went with a unit from South Bend clutch that used a modified 350Z pressure plate and a sintered iron sprung hub. It should be good for anything I can throw at it. I will also be getting rid of the oem two piece driveshaft and going with a steel one piece. I currently have a R33 vlsd for a rear end but, will be switching that out for a Q45 unit when I step up to a bigger turbo.

So far trying to do things the right way and buget the build have meant doing a lot of research and taking time. However, it's seems as though the end is in sight and the short block should be done by the end of next week. I am hoping to go after the current track record for 6 cylinders at the local track. It's only in the high nines right now so I think with the help of a T76 it could be doable.

[jdmser]

[zebra]

Very tidy s14, nice work mate

[Johnny]

Very cool video, nice wheelstands!!!!

[jdmser]

Been waiting on an exhaust valve for about three months now so I thought I'd clean up the engine bay a little. Keep in mind I'm neither a painter nor a welder.

My custom Cometic head gasket also came in.

[dazzvass]

So an RB24 aye? I heard they put out a fair bit of torque!

[Crans]

How well are you expecting that gate setup to work? Wouldnt mind doing the same for my car.

[jdmser]

How well are you expecting that gate setup to work? Wouldnt mind doing the same for my car.

Doubt there will be any issue with it. It's right where it should be to get the best flow. A lot of guys do it over here after swapping RB engines into S chassis. It saves space which we don't have since the steering shaft in on the left side.

[Crans]

My brother is a boilermaker so i might have a chat to him when hes back in town regarding the welding of different metals together and issues of cracking.

[jdmser]

Just got my intake back. I like to do as much of my own work as possible but, had to send this out to be weld after I got it mocked up.

[bigmikespec]

Make sure you tidy up some of that bird shit on the inside! Good build mate.

[jdmser]

I got this back yesterday. The builder has a special rig to bore out intakes. Only thing is I'm going to have to get a phenolic spacer milled in a wedge for the tb to clear the valve covers.

[XRATED]

So far trying to do things the right way and buget the build have meant doing a lot of research and taking time. However, it's seems as though the end is in sight and the short block should be done by the end of next week. I am hoping to go after the current track record for 6 cylinders at the local track. It's only in the high nines right now so I think with the help of a T76 it could be doable.

I hope the track is 1/8th mile bro... your pushin shiat up hill to run a 9 on the 1/4 with that set up bud.

Hope the build turns out well for you.

Edited March 27, 2010 by XRATED

[jdmser]

X, can you elaborate on what isn't going to work?

[XRATED]

Well I said it's not going to be easy.... obviously you can prove me wrong (if that's not encouragment I don't know what is ha ha ha)

There is alot more to running low numbers than a peak hp figure. Small capacity- large turbo engines have a narrow power band, couple that with IRS and a manual gear box... it all stacks up against you at the strip.

Even with a giagantic throttle body, the stock intake maifold will not be efficient at the kind of power levels you'll need... nor will the stock exhaust manifold. It's all about bottle necks. If your still using the stock head porting and valves then that's going to hold you up too... Unfortunatly an rb20 isn't an awsome base to sart with for a big hp engine. Personally I love them, they're an awsome little thrasher motor!

You might get lucky with the gearbox, but expect to break a couple while chasing 9's.

Also get rid of the zex nitrous kit... it's more troube than it's worth. They're nozzles are a poor design and the solinoids are well known for failure. The stock exhaust manifold will become even more of a restriction when you shove nitrous down it's throat... You may well find the wastegate (due to it's installation as well as size) wont be able to bypass enough exhaust gas to maitain correct shaft speed ( regulate boost pressure) with the nitrous on, thus resulting in boost spiking.

My suggestions to squeeze out a one time 9, are: strap a big whizzer to the side of the poor little 24, put a large head gasket on and run 8.2:1 CR... Turn up the boost to compensate for the bottlenecks and so the wastegate dosn't have to work as hard. Then throw a set of slicks under under it and replace what breaks.

Hope that helps...

Car looks great and I love the stich welding around the seams.

Good luck

Justin

[jdmser]

Justin,

Thanks for the input. I'm the first to admit I do things the hard way. I'm also horrible at the internet because I forget people can't see my thoughts. The trans will be temporary. Once I get the car running right and everything broken in I'll start looking at TH400 options. I also will be ditching the stock exhaust manifold for a HKS cast unit I've been sitting on. The head has already been ported and polished but, I'm waiting on valves. My builder wants to see what the heads got in it first and then we'll have a custom set made. As for compression I'll be sending the head off to have the combustion chamber cnc'd. If I enlarge it enough to match the bore while adding 10cc to each chamber it will drop the compression right in line. The Zex kit is set up to come on at 3k rpm and shuts off at 15 psi. If the solenoid ever gives me problems it will be replaced with a NOS unit, the nozzle as well. If I run across a deal maybe sooner. I'm also going to a external oil pump. After looking at the pump on the old Ford 4 cylinder my builder runs next to my N1 pump there's not doubt in my mind why RB pumps fail. Once all that is done and the intake is the only restriction left we will start looking at custom sheet metal options. As for the IRS, I've been thinking of buying a few sub frames and playing with the angle of the control arm mounts in an attempt to resemble the JUN drag member on their 8 sec S14. None of it is going to be easy but, I'm not sure I know how to do easy. Again, thanks for the input.

Tom

Edited March 29, 2010 by jdmser

[NZM.031]

good work mate, i have plans to build an rb24... but they are in a galaxy far far away at the moment.

same turbo as me too brah...

[XRATED]

Justin,

Thanks for the input. I'm the first to admit I do things the hard way. I'm also horrible at the internet because I forget people can't see my thoughts. The trans will be temporary. Once I get the car running right and everything broken in I'll start looking at TH400 options. I also will be ditching the stock exhaust manifold for a HKS cast unit I've been sitting on. The head has already been ported and polished but, I'm waiting on valves. My builder wants to see what the heads got in it first and then we'll have a custom set made. As for compression I'll be sending the head off to have the combustion chamber cnc'd. If I enlarge it enough to match the bore while adding 10cc to each chamber it will drop the compression right in line. The Zex kit is set up to come on at 3k rpm and shuts off at 15 psi. If the solenoid ever gives me problems it will be replaced with a NOS unit, the nozzle as well. If I run across a deal maybe sooner. I'm also going to a external oil pump. After looking at the pump on the old Ford 4 cylinder my builder runs next to my N1 pump there's not doubt in my mind why RB pumps fail. Once all that is done and the intake is the only restriction left we will start looking at custom sheet metal options. As for the IRS, I've been thinking of buying a few sub frames and playing with the angle of the control arm mounts in an attempt to resemble the JUN drag member on their 8 sec S14. None of it is going to be easy but, I'm not sure I know how to do easy. Again, thanks for the input.

Tom

There you go... that's more like it.

I'm exited to see the results... I havn't seen anyone running a rb24 hard.

Just watch the combustion pressures... rb24's get a little thin around the bores.

Where in the US are you? I'm in south Florida at the moment. Unfortunatly I meet alot of rb enthusiasts in the US that "hero" the nissan rb engines a little too much.... too far ricer than racer. If you get where I'm comming from.

A solid auto is a win win for the 1/4.

Dont get too far into the ass end changes too soon. It gets to be a slippery slope. Just stick with GTR swap and 0 camber.

Oh and if you change the nitrous set up, DONT USE NOS it's not much better than zex, have a look at wizard of nos- nitrous gear.... or at absolute minimum nitrous express. With the right wizard or nos controller, you can easily run gas all the way to redline safely.

Also, have a look at Precision Turbo's, they have some awsome billet comp wheel turbo's comming out with bb garret CHRA's... very well priced.

Good luck

Justin

[jdmser]

There you go... that's more like it.

I'm exited to see the results... I havn't seen anyone running a rb24 hard.

Just watch the combustion pressures... rb24's get a little thin around the bores.

Where in the US are you? I'm in south Florida at the moment. Unfortunatly I meet alot of rb enthusiasts in the US that "hero" the nissan rb engines a little too much.... too far ricer than racer. If you get where I'm comming from.

A solid auto is a win win for the 1/4.

Dont get too far into the ass end changes too soon. It gets to be a slippery slope. Just stick with GTR swap and 0 camber.

Oh and if you change the nitrous set up, DONT USE NOS it's not much better than zex, have a look at wizard of nos- nitrous gear.... or at absolute minimum nitrous express. With the right wizard or nos controller, you can easily run gas all the way to redline safely.

Also, have a look at Precision Turbo's, they have some awsome billet comp wheel turbo's comming out with bb garret CHRA's... very well priced.

Good luck

Justin

I'm near St. Louis MO. Completely surround by 4 digit horse power making Mustangs and Camaros, it is the Midwest after all. I'm hoping that the Hardblok will give the cylinders a little more strength than a regular RB24. I had a chance to look at the block the other day and there's about 2" of water jacket left. I'll definitely be running a Precision Turbo. My builder was backed by them for a while so he has a few sitting around. He wants me to run his old 76mm Q trim. I think I need a better computer, oil pump, damper, and cam gears before I do.

[XRATED]

For the money the Precision Turbo's are super hard to go past... They have some new, oil only duel ceramic BB cores with the billet comp wheel turbo's on the market... They're wastegates look quiet good too (picked on up the other day) again, at a very good price.

Wow... you really are a fish out of water, at least in Fl there are skylines running around on the streets.

Have a look at "nitto" oil pumps... they're being produced buy an Aussie tuning shop, apparently really good gear and cheaper than the jap brands.

For managment, you could probably get away with a stock ecu and mother board change like a nistune... just don't go any bigger in the injector.

Dont bother with cam gears... untill you've done everything else.

If your going to be dragging alot, go bigger in the turbo than you normally would. Same hp @ lower boost help the little bugger to survive longer....

Cheers

Justin