Sr20det or ca18det

[Nebuchernezzer]

gotta love the 1970s technology in the head of the sr20...

Everyone loves to slag the SR head, not sure why, so it has rocker arms, they are there so there is less friction in the valvetrain, not being defensive but i sometimes wonder why people think this is bad and that having a cam lobe on each lifter is good?  less friction in your valvetrain is a good thing.  I'm told F1 cars generally run Y shaped rockers because of the friction advantage, but i can't confirm this .
The CA has a valvetrain design which is much much older then the 70s.
Sure you can break rocker arms but it's not common and you won't do it on stock revs.  Everything has it's breaking point.

SR = high flow, weak internals, but great aftermarket.
CA DOHC = a bit less flow, .2 less displacement, but much stronger internals.

A tradeoff. I tend to prefer the stronger internals, I'm a ghetto tuner, but if you tune it right, the SR is a potent engine.

I'm afraid no one has been able to prove that to me, all the local CA18DETs are less reliable, smaller engine = more highly stressed at a certain power output.
Over 180-200rwkw not many CA18DETs survive for to long while being driven hard, even built ones.
I think the inherant CA/RB flaw with oil flow to the head doesn't help them much but some fail for other reasons to.
Not usually directly related to strength but other things give way and they fall over.
Just my experience with drift and track cars locally.
CA for under 170rwkw and SR for over that figure IMHO.

[gerrybg]

You guys haven't had long experience with the ca18det's right ??? I love the engine they rev nicely and its compact and nicer valve train setup, but strongeer internals than the sr???
Hipoed ca18dets though the ladder reinforced block is way ahead of the ca18et pissweak blocks,can throw a rod(s) through the block, (hence the number of ex ca18det s13's here with rb20dets in them).

[Nebuchernezzer]

Anyone looking for info could go to my local silvia forum, www.silviansw.com there used to be a few CA18DET diehards on there, several of them with big dollar built motors.  These aren't silly kids either, most of them are older blokes (like late 20s not late teens haha) who know what they are doing or get people who know what they are doing to do their work.
All of them run SR20s now though...
If you want to see what a CA can do under 200rwkw there is a bloke called aussiesil80 in SA who has a stock CA with Apexi turbo and remapped ECU (thats it) running 170rwkw and buckets of torque.
It gets drifted often and it seems to go quite nicely.
But as i said don't push it to far.
Here is a promo vid (Dr.Drift tuned rom promo).
16mb CA18DET Remap Promo Video

Anyways when all is said and done, what is your aim and your budget?

[Fantasy]

Most people will have a biased opinion depending on witch engine they have.
I have neither engine and keep a open minded un biased opinion.
So fare I am going to back up what Nebuchernezzer has already said.
My opinions are based on my own experiences from working with both engines in the performance industry.

Both engines have there good and bad points but if I had to choose between the two the SR is the clear winner.



Ps: Australian Dyno Dynamics dynoââ,¬â,,¢s read lower than the popular American brand dynoââ,¬â,,¢s. This is why Australians some times find the horse power figures quoted by Americans unrealistic. We all have to remember it is relative to what dyno the car is on.
This information was given to me by two well known respected tuners that have tuned cars in both countries. I will not say there names but one of them is a rotory specialist with a couple of world records under his belt. The other is the most respected tuner in South East QLD Australia and one of the most respected tuners in Australia.

[Nebuchernezzer]

Most people will have a biased opinion depending on witch engine they have.

To true, and i rather like my SR but i like to think i am unbiased.
To back up what i said about CAs I often work on my mates CA powered Silvia and i have driven it so i'm not just repeating what i've read on forums.  I also used to own a series 3 bluebird with CA18DET power.  If i owned my mates Silvia i would be quite pleased with it's performance, it's quite sufficient for most people, more then enough to go to the track or drift at any speed you will need to on the track.  Only mods are pod filter, catback exhaust and boost.
It has a problem right now though, we'll be doing some more work on it very soon because of that.
In this argument alot of people seem to forget that the SR is a bigger engine.  No replacement for displacement the V8 people say, it holds true for turbo engines to, given that they are roughly equal in technology, weight and size the bigger of the two engines will generally be better.  So it's down to your wallet.
Speaking of choosing engines why don't you US people use KA24s with turbos more often?  It seems they are cheap, tough and the knowledge to turbo them is common enough.
They probably don't rev but who cares when you have torque mmmm torque.

[Candellan]

Be different, throw the new 350Z motor in.

Neb: F1 engines stopped using rockers, cams & normal valves long ago. It's all pnumatic now. Hard to get a valve to stop bouncing off a cam at 20,000rpm.

[Nebuchernezzer]

There you go, i don't know much about F1 since it bores me to tears in general.

[sam31183]

yah man, wrc ftw lol...to bad speed channel dropped wrc coverage...those bastards. They did show some targa newfoundland coverage tho....ahhh, one day i will have my s12 up there...

[Radracer_S]

Jeez not this tread again.

[Nebuchernezzer]

lol
maybe there should be a filter so that the words 'ca18' and 'sr20' can't be used together in a thread title .

[AkiraS12]

When  got my S12, I had all the intentions in the world to get a CA18DET, unfortunately the guys I got it from sold it to me slagged. Tried to dick me, and I got an SR20DET out of them for the same price as my CA18 ($1500). Not happy about it, but there's SO much aftermarket support for the SR20 it's hard to resist. It's a proven engine and a lot of my friends ran them in various versions, FWD and RWD. Problem with both engines is their getting older. It's cheaper to rebuild an SR20 due to the support. Soon though, even these engines will be relics.

[rage]

When  got my S12, I had all the intentions in the world to get a CA18DET, unfortunately the guys I got it from sold it to me slagged. Tried to dick me, and I got an SR20DET out of them for the same price as my CA18 ($1500). Not happy about it, but there's SO much aftermarket support for the SR20 it's hard to resist. It's a proven engine and a lot of my friends ran them in various versions, FWD and RWD. Problem with both engines is their getting older. It's cheaper to rebuild an SR20 due to the support. Soon though, even these engines will be relics.

not s15 ones  

but yes, they've stopped production on the SR's

edit- theres always the QR though. the heads flow better than sr20 heads, not sure on sr20ve heads though. you can destroke them with the qr20 crank

[AkiraS12]

not s15 ones  

but yes, they've stopped production on the SR's

edit- theres always the QR though. the heads flow better than sr20 heads, not sure on sr20ve heads though. you can destroke them with the qr20 crank

Not really feelin' the QR, I hear they don't respond well to forced induction. I dunno, give 'em time I suppose.

[rage]

Not really feelin' the QR, I hear they don't respond well to forced induction. I dunno, give 'em time I suppose.

yeah, i hear that too. although, we had a local spec v with a gt28rs on it, and it was killing evos at like 11psi

edit- i think it made somewhere in the 270ish range on the dyno

[notchisking]

I'm sorry to say this but any one who says the ca18det is better is just to poor to afford a sr20det(like me).ca18 is a good engine but sr is faster hence why is was in a more expencive model of nissan they new witch would out perform.

[Julie]

s12 doesnt need alot of power to go fast.. so why spend a assload of money on a sr20 when for the price, i can drop in a ca18 with a few upgrades and match or exceed the sr20's power. these are LIGHT CARS, they dont need 400hp. next your gonna say the ka24 boys are too poor to afford a sr20. some of us prefer iron blocks to aluminum and wanna do something different then what EVERYONE with a 240sx is doing. maybe you should think before u fucking post too

[notchisking]

s12 doesnt need alot of power to go fast.. so why spend a assload of money on a sr20 when for the price, i can drop in a ca18 with a few upgrades and match or exceed the sr20's power. these are LIGHT CARS, they dont need 400hp. next your gonna say the ka24 boys are too poor to afford a sr20. some of us prefer iron blocks to aluminum and wanna do something different then what EVERYONE with a 240sx is doing. maybe you should think before u fucking post too

Damn your hard core into these mothas arnt you but on the contrary I have put some thought into it, Personally I want a sr20de with a sr16ve head or just sr20ve with a RWD tranny. I wish I could even afford the cheap way of it and just buy a used G-20 sr and find a used sr16ve head to swap but that requiers knowlege beyond mine. Mabey just a sr20de  and a RWD tranny but I work at safeway so mabey when i get ritch HAHAHA. but seriously that my opinion

p.s. If someone offerd me a ca18det for a good price i would jump on it like woody harrolson

[rage]

Damn your hard core into these mothas arnt you but on the contrary I have put some thought into it, Personally I want a sr20de with a sr16ve head or just sr20ve with a RWD tranny. I wish I could even afford the cheap way of it and just buy a used G-20 sr and find a used sr16ve head to swap but that requiers knowlege beyond mine. Mabey just a sr20de  and a RWD tranny but I work at safeway so mabey when i get ritch HAHAHA. but seriously that my opinion

dude, if you cant put on a VE head, you shouldnt be swapping engines

also the transverse sr20ve's and sr16's will not bolt up to a rwd tranny.

[notchisking]

yea i was a bit drunk but any way Another thought of mine was a ca16de from a old pulsar(pick an pull 150$) might have some potential (at least more than the ca20) and since there both CA's The trannys might directly swap onto another but i don't know. It might have trouble with the motor mounts because it's in a front wheel drive car I seen people claim it can't be done with some engines. Now I don't care If someone tells me it's not possible or It' wont work but PLEASE don't bash me for thinking. I guess i hurt your feelings by saying the sr is a "better" motor but thats not what i was impling just simply stating something told ten thousand times before. plus I'm an NA lover so why am i even bothering oh that makes me wonder if they make individual throttle bodys for the CA Does any body know?? I would go find a u.s. ca18de for hella cheap much cheaper than shipping one from japan.let the bashing begin!

[yhave8]

Damn your hard core into these mothas arnt you but on the contrary I have put some thought into it, Personally I want a sr20de with a sr16ve head or just sr20ve with a RWD tranny. I wish I could even afford the cheap way of it and just buy a used G-20 sr and find a used sr16ve head to swap but that requiers knowlege beyond mine. Mabey just a sr20de  and a RWD tranny but I work at safeway so mabey when i get ritch HAHAHA. but seriously that my opinion

p.s. If someone offerd me a ca18det for a good price i would jump on it like woody harrolson

there only about 1300 for the hole swap and thats shipped to your door.