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Author Topic: Arro's S12: Rising From The Ashes W/ KA24DE Inside  (Read 54746 times)

Offline Arro

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Arro's S12: Rising From The Ashes W/ KA24DE Inside
« on: 02:58:48 AM / 15-May-08 »
So as some of you might have seen, Sterling has talked me into taking back my original S12. The so-called "Christmas Car", because of it's green over red paint.

A bit about the history of this car...

In '02, Club-S12 was created and went online, but for Arro, there was no S12  It took almost a year before a car was located. In December 2002 (fitting, eh?), and $300 later, a 1985 200SX Turbo was nabbed, with half the engine in the trunk, a funky 1G Integra seat sloppilly mounted inside, and some mismatched wheels. It was also painted forest green, but the doorjambs, engine bay, and hatch were left glaringly red. Total eyesore when you opened a door or the hood.

Over the course of 2003, I put together the engine, obtained a rebuilt turbo from Ebay, and basically got the car running again. Some minor electrical issues were resolved at an auto electric shop, and a 2.5" turbo-back exhaust w/ Magnaflow race-series muffler were added to the mix, as well as a set of new 16x7" wheels.



And so it sat at Sterling's aunt & uncle's place. And I got disenchanted with S12 from the bad luck. I got away from cars entirely for a couple years, and then picked up the 2G Neon. That car brought my auto enthusiasm back, and I dumped a small sum of cash (hah understatement) to get it up to shape, and then looking good and handling well.

Sterling had been planning to move out to California ever since he'd seen it. He'd been out here a few times at this point... met some of my friends, including Greg.

Then last year, he sent me an email telling me I should check out this guy "Asparagus" and all the cool shit he'd been doing to his S12... Sterling also said that a lot of the people on the forum had been doing more with the cars. So I got curious. And I came back.  And I liked what I saw, despite the typical but occasional drama. That was back in January.

It was around that time that Sterling suggested I take back the car. He'd mentioned it half-joking over the past year, but this time I was receptive to the idea.

And so him and I decided it should be a swap. The choice was easy: KA24DE, for all the reasons that have ever been said before.

I sourced an engine from sr20store.com, which some of you oldtimers might remember as the shop that produced that cool as hell burgundy Mark 1 S12 w/ the SR swap (Cesar's car). I sourced the transmission from a craigslist ad. After waiting almost 2 months for the engine to finally be ready to pick up, the swap was green lighted.

But before I got the engine... the windshield had been destroyed while the car was at Premo's, so Sterling used some plexiglass and a tarp for the time being. The old engine was tossed out, and the bay was cleaned up:









The car was basically gutted in the bay, but the rest was left alone. You cans see the Magnaflow dual-wall 4" tip is still shiny like the day I bought it:



In case anyone is wondering, this is the tire size I have on the wheels:



Time to go to sleep for the night...



Zzzzzzz.....




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-Jason Arro


'85 Nissan 200SX (KA24DE)
formerly,
'85 Nissan Silvia RS-X - FJ20 w/ dual Weber carbs
'84 Nissan 200SX Turbo
'85 Nissan 200SX Turbo
Drive it like you stole it, and work on it like you married it - self quote
Quote from: ka-t.org
Hella flush and all associates should be gunned down for brainwashing people into thinking a 225 and lots of camber is proper wheel fitment. THAT IS EASY, anyone can camber a skinny as tire till it dosnt rub. Now fitting an 11 with a 315 on stock fender with reasonable camber, that is fitment. And looks, and performs better than both.
i dont own a s12 at the moment but trying to acquire one to get rid of my s13 hatch
Quote from: SHOUTBOX
[27:54] zastaba: I had a friend touch the contacts on his distributer once
[28:04] zastaba: He did the super jumping up and down pain dance

Offline Arro

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Arro's S12: Rising From The Ashes W/ KA24DE Inside
« Reply #1 on: 03:20:57 AM / 15-May-08 »
Before the engine was picked up, we were talking about the coolant bottle issue. As in the stock ones were disintegrating.

We were in Autozone, and they had some universal coolant overflow tanks. One of them had a cool cage that it came with. It was around $7. So we bought it.

He modified the bracket a bit...



And after removing the battery tray (we plan to relocate the battery to the rear), Sterling mounted it behind the inner fender:



...and widened a pre-existing hole to accommodate the fill neck...



...and it looks great with the cap on!



Almost a month later, the engine was pulled from the customer car at sr20store.com's shop. I went and picked it up, and Sterling took it from my place back to his aunt & uncle's place in the morning.

The operating theater:



In preparation for the transplant, Sterling finished detailing the engine bay some more, including the trans tunnel, and painted the spot where the paint had flaked off (it was bare steel):



He modified where needed...



The transmission I got didn't have a shift lever, so I ordered a part from Ebay that is a complete replacement for the shift assembly.



It's a copy of the B&M design, although the B&M piece is built better...



Pay attention to the offset middle holes on the B&M piece. I'll come back to that in a bit.

Anyways, the B&M is over $200, and this one was around $60. So I bought the cheaper one.

But there was an issue with the one of the two middle holes:





The middle holes on the aftermarket shifter are both centered, but on the S14 trans, the middle holes are *offset* from each other. Also, the mating surfaces on the stock shift plate are inward more, whereas the aftermarket places them out a bit farther. With luck, it will stay sealed as is (four bolts and sealer), but if not, I'll go with the more expensive B&M unit if they can confirm via email the correct bolt pattern and mating surface.

But for now, this one is on and will hopefully work for the time being.

« Last Edit: 03:22:27 AM / 15-May-08 by Arro »
-Jason Arro


'85 Nissan 200SX (KA24DE)
formerly,
'85 Nissan Silvia RS-X - FJ20 w/ dual Weber carbs
'84 Nissan 200SX Turbo
'85 Nissan 200SX Turbo
Drive it like you stole it, and work on it like you married it - self quote
Quote from: ka-t.org
Hella flush and all associates should be gunned down for brainwashing people into thinking a 225 and lots of camber is proper wheel fitment. THAT IS EASY, anyone can camber a skinny as tire till it dosnt rub. Now fitting an 11 with a 315 on stock fender with reasonable camber, that is fitment. And looks, and performs better than both.
i dont own a s12 at the moment but trying to acquire one to get rid of my s13 hatch
Quote from: SHOUTBOX
[27:54] zastaba: I had a friend touch the contacts on his distributer once
[28:04] zastaba: He did the super jumping up and down pain dance

Offline Arro

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Arro's S12: Rising From The Ashes W/ KA24DE Inside
« Reply #2 on: 03:40:38 AM / 15-May-08 »
The S13 and S14 transmissions are longer. This is an issue in two ways... the driveshaft and the trans tunnel.

 This car's been all over socal!



So Sterling needed to modify the trans bracket. First he grinded down part of it...







Then he started cutting down the other half:



...and test fit them together:







Then the washers were added, and the trans mount was slotted:



Completed, assembled piece:



Once this was done, the transmission was mounted easilly.



And the repositioned shifter fit without a hitch, since the trans tunnel was already pre-cut:



-Jason Arro


'85 Nissan 200SX (KA24DE)
formerly,
'85 Nissan Silvia RS-X - FJ20 w/ dual Weber carbs
'84 Nissan 200SX Turbo
'85 Nissan 200SX Turbo
Drive it like you stole it, and work on it like you married it - self quote
Quote from: ka-t.org
Hella flush and all associates should be gunned down for brainwashing people into thinking a 225 and lots of camber is proper wheel fitment. THAT IS EASY, anyone can camber a skinny as tire till it dosnt rub. Now fitting an 11 with a 315 on stock fender with reasonable camber, that is fitment. And looks, and performs better than both.
i dont own a s12 at the moment but trying to acquire one to get rid of my s13 hatch
Quote from: SHOUTBOX
[27:54] zastaba: I had a friend touch the contacts on his distributer once
[28:04] zastaba: He did the super jumping up and down pain dance

Offline asparagus

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Arro's S12: Rising From The Ashes W/ KA24DE Inside
« Reply #3 on: 03:54:25 AM / 15-May-08 »
I am getting so juiced looking at this thread.

[01:52] modmastaz: damn sterling does a good fucking job
[01:52] modmastaz: like we do LOL
[01:52] henryisarobot: lol
[01:52] henryisarobot: he fucking gets down to biz
[01:52] modmastaz: lol yeah
[01:52] henryisarobot: like that trans mount
[01:52] henryisarobot: MAN
[01:52] modmastaz: i know
[01:52] modmastaz: that was smart as fuck
[01:52] henryisarobot: seriously
[01:53] henryisarobot: my face blew up
*BANNED*

Offline Redneck

Arro's S12: Rising From The Ashes W/ KA24DE Inside
« Reply #4 on: 03:57:38 AM / 15-May-08 »
With how fast you are working on this project it will be done in a couple weeks.
FIrst my rims are horrible, than there ok when painted black , now my cars horrible, now my fenders are to much after i was told i couldnt do it.... Lol club s12 ftw.....  Only here have Ive been told they look like shit..... SOrry its not bone stock with crown vic rims running the stock vg making 130whp and looks generic like every other one. My car looks dope ive been told this a billion times on local forums....


Offline mod_mastaz

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Arro's S12: Rising From The Ashes W/ KA24DE Inside
« Reply #5 on: 04:01:22 AM / 15-May-08 »
LOL It's going to be done in a few days.

Offline Arro

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Arro's S12: Rising From The Ashes W/ KA24DE Inside
« Reply #6 on: 04:21:01 AM / 15-May-08 »
Look at how much room is on the sides of the KA24DE in the S12!



Oh, and here's a pug in a polo shirt for your random enjoyment:

« Last Edit: 03:36:08 PM / 28-Jun-09 by Arro »
-Jason Arro


'85 Nissan 200SX (KA24DE)
formerly,
'85 Nissan Silvia RS-X - FJ20 w/ dual Weber carbs
'84 Nissan 200SX Turbo
'85 Nissan 200SX Turbo
Drive it like you stole it, and work on it like you married it - self quote
Quote from: ka-t.org
Hella flush and all associates should be gunned down for brainwashing people into thinking a 225 and lots of camber is proper wheel fitment. THAT IS EASY, anyone can camber a skinny as tire till it dosnt rub. Now fitting an 11 with a 315 on stock fender with reasonable camber, that is fitment. And looks, and performs better than both.
i dont own a s12 at the moment but trying to acquire one to get rid of my s13 hatch
Quote from: SHOUTBOX
[27:54] zastaba: I had a friend touch the contacts on his distributer once
[28:04] zastaba: He did the super jumping up and down pain dance

Offline Arro

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Arro's S12: Rising From The Ashes W/ KA24DE Inside
« Reply #7 on: 04:45:07 AM / 15-May-08 »
Quote from: asparagus
[01:53] henryisarobot: my face blew up


facesplosion for the WIN

Seriously tho, I knew you guys would dig him, you're both hardcore DIY'ers. So is Bart, incidentally, and they both hit it off well, too.


So when Sterling is done with his part, I'm still going to have a lot of work on my hands. The garage is prepped and plenty of room for it. I'm gonna be replacing all the little shit that there was no time or funds for initially... I also have to replace the very temporary driveshaft setup with a solid shaft. I'll be getting that from the same shop that Waylon got his at (up in Vegas). I also have a complete black interior to swap in, and the rear-mounted Odyssey battery. From another post...

Quote from: Arro
...dry cell... This is what I'm going with... it's what Sterling suggested originally, but I wanted to get a few more opinions first.



http://store.summitracing.com/partdetail.a...mp;autoview=sku

...and mounting it with this:



http://store.summitracing.com/partdetail.a...mp;autoview=sku

Should work well... Sterling and I saw it used in an S13 hatchback w/ an RB26DETT swap, so it should work fine for what we're doing.

So I have my work cut out for me. That's not counting repainting the car red, and re-powdercoating one of the wheels that got fucked up somehow while the car was at Premo's (grrrr!)... Premo didn't do it, but he lived with a bunch of roomies at the time, so it could have been anyone.

Oh, and I'll probably be replacing that shifter unit with an actual B&M piece. The assembly can be taken out through the trans tunnel now that it's been cut open.
« Last Edit: 04:46:14 AM / 15-May-08 by Arro »
-Jason Arro


'85 Nissan 200SX (KA24DE)
formerly,
'85 Nissan Silvia RS-X - FJ20 w/ dual Weber carbs
'84 Nissan 200SX Turbo
'85 Nissan 200SX Turbo
Drive it like you stole it, and work on it like you married it - self quote
Quote from: ka-t.org
Hella flush and all associates should be gunned down for brainwashing people into thinking a 225 and lots of camber is proper wheel fitment. THAT IS EASY, anyone can camber a skinny as tire till it dosnt rub. Now fitting an 11 with a 315 on stock fender with reasonable camber, that is fitment. And looks, and performs better than both.
i dont own a s12 at the moment but trying to acquire one to get rid of my s13 hatch
Quote from: SHOUTBOX
[27:54] zastaba: I had a friend touch the contacts on his distributer once
[28:04] zastaba: He did the super jumping up and down pain dance

Offline sideways_s12

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Arro's S12: Rising From The Ashes W/ KA24DE Inside
« Reply #8 on: 04:53:45 AM / 15-May-08 »
good shit when's this beast supposed to be done so you can bring it to vegas and we can have some fun

Offline rduranS12

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Arro's S12: Rising From The Ashes W/ KA24DE Inside
« Reply #9 on: 04:59:51 AM / 15-May-08 »
pug in a polo shirt...game over. p.s. you guys are dominating that s12 good job!

Offline TalkingGoats

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Arro's S12: Rising From The Ashes W/ KA24DE Inside
« Reply #10 on: 07:05:54 AM / 15-May-08 »
Sweet!
I'd rather be a matchstick than a lighter.

Offline IggyEGuana

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Arro's S12: Rising From The Ashes W/ KA24DE Inside
« Reply #11 on: 12:21:23 PM / 15-May-08 »
right-fuckin-on bro!!!

Waylon Deno - Silhouette Autosports (check it out on facebook)
Drift Build Thread
Quote from: Arro
you sir are emblazoned with win.

Offline Julie

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Arro's S12: Rising From The Ashes W/ KA24DE Inside
« Reply #12 on: 12:43:30 PM / 15-May-08 »
ewww pug


"like people, every car possesses a unique character, with its own DNA, talents, and idiosyncrasies. push it too hard and it'll turn on you, as a person would. if its worth anything, it gets more interesting the more you get to know it"

luck is earned through hard work and determination, not to mention the willingness to take risks and to see bad luck and setbacks as opportunities for growth and a new direction.

Offline silvia love

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Arro's S12: Rising From The Ashes W/ KA24DE Inside
« Reply #13 on: 01:16:41 PM / 15-May-08 »
that trans mount looks great! very helpful, i love the pics.

Offline sinestro

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Arro's S12: Rising From The Ashes W/ KA24DE Inside
« Reply #14 on: 01:39:23 PM / 15-May-08 »
hmm, the ka swaped s12's are taking over. whats up with that trans mount? no bellhouse swap for you then, your useing the whole s13 trans, right. and that hole in the firewall is that where the wire harnes is going to go or something else, if it is for the wires where do you plan on mounting the ecu, in the stock location or under the glove box somewhere?
"You see, wire telegraph is a kind of a very, very long cat. You pull his tail in New York and his head is meowing in Los Angeles. Do you understand this? And radio operates exactly the same way: you send signals here, they receive them there. The only difference is that there is no cat."



userbar by someone?

i know old navy sucks, but i can't help myself i like the music...
http://www.iamlights.com/

nunquam dormio




Offline Arro

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Arro's S12: Rising From The Ashes W/ KA24DE Inside
« Reply #15 on: 02:04:58 PM / 15-May-08 »
Not sure yet where the ECU is going to be mounted, but that should be sorted out soon... yeah, the KA24DE is the logical choice for those of us who want to keep a NISSAN engine in the chassis, but are willing to go outside of S12 purist engine options. More hp and torque than the SR20DE, and the compression ratio is perfect for forced induction.

I'm glad that I used the S13/14 transmission... I always felt that the S12's shifter was set too far forward, and I never liked having to lean a bit to get it into 5th. This moves it about 5"... PERFECT! I'll be relocating the stock center console, and paneling in the front to close it up.

The engine itself is ROOMY in this engine bay. I was astounded at how much room on all three sides it has. The slimline Stansa fans fit well on the stock S12 radiator. I like this engine the more I see it. The camshaft setup is a bit whacky... looks something like an L-series that has been modified for two cams. I don't see how those tiny cam sprockets can be adjusted. I know that you can get adjustable sprockets for the FJ, but the FJ sprockets are larger, so...

But there's camshaft options, and really I wouldn't want to mess with the timing anyways. I'll run with the NA setup for awhile and get the rest of the car cleaned up before I think about boosting.

We were comparing Sterling's KA24DE to mine... his must be out of an earlier car. '95 and up have black valvecovers, and his has a silver one (like Henry's)... also some '95 cars were OBD2, and others were OBD1 w/ some OBD2 innovations. Mine falls into the latter category, and my hoses and such are much simpler than Sterling's engine. He had a bunch of vac lines in the rear that I don't, and he has the intake butterflies, and I don't, so there are indeed differences throughout the KA24DE's.

« Last Edit: 02:09:37 PM / 15-May-08 by Arro »
-Jason Arro


'85 Nissan 200SX (KA24DE)
formerly,
'85 Nissan Silvia RS-X - FJ20 w/ dual Weber carbs
'84 Nissan 200SX Turbo
'85 Nissan 200SX Turbo
Drive it like you stole it, and work on it like you married it - self quote
Quote from: ka-t.org
Hella flush and all associates should be gunned down for brainwashing people into thinking a 225 and lots of camber is proper wheel fitment. THAT IS EASY, anyone can camber a skinny as tire till it dosnt rub. Now fitting an 11 with a 315 on stock fender with reasonable camber, that is fitment. And looks, and performs better than both.
i dont own a s12 at the moment but trying to acquire one to get rid of my s13 hatch
Quote from: SHOUTBOX
[27:54] zastaba: I had a friend touch the contacts on his distributer once
[28:04] zastaba: He did the super jumping up and down pain dance

Offline David B

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Arro's S12: Rising From The Ashes W/ KA24DE Inside
« Reply #16 on: 02:17:49 PM / 15-May-08 »
ahh this is so perfect

KA24DE seems like the perfect choice, and here you are doing it.
just too bad, because once i end up buying a clean KA24DE im not gonna have a serious mechanic or anyone familar with S12

which blows


caged ca20e/ka24e/sr20det/ka24de/1jzgte SRA hatch. super sick

Quote from: Arro
Goddamn David you seriously are hard core man.
Quote from: tjs91tsi
Ohh, and unless you havn't figured it out yet, Stop driving with coolant leaks and Stop dropping nails in your fucking trannys!!!

Offline Arro

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Arro's S12: Rising From The Ashes W/ KA24DE Inside
« Reply #17 on: 02:23:49 PM / 15-May-08 »
Hmm well where are you located? (tsk tsk you're supposed to put that in your profile info, dude  go fix it  ) Maybe someone nearby can help you sort out the wiring... Sterling is documenting most of this, and as long as you aren't afraid of getting your hands dirty, it can be done with help from the forum. That's what we're here for, after all.
-Jason Arro


'85 Nissan 200SX (KA24DE)
formerly,
'85 Nissan Silvia RS-X - FJ20 w/ dual Weber carbs
'84 Nissan 200SX Turbo
'85 Nissan 200SX Turbo
Drive it like you stole it, and work on it like you married it - self quote
Quote from: ka-t.org
Hella flush and all associates should be gunned down for brainwashing people into thinking a 225 and lots of camber is proper wheel fitment. THAT IS EASY, anyone can camber a skinny as tire till it dosnt rub. Now fitting an 11 with a 315 on stock fender with reasonable camber, that is fitment. And looks, and performs better than both.
i dont own a s12 at the moment but trying to acquire one to get rid of my s13 hatch
Quote from: SHOUTBOX
[27:54] zastaba: I had a friend touch the contacts on his distributer once
[28:04] zastaba: He did the super jumping up and down pain dance

Offline David B

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Arro's S12: Rising From The Ashes W/ KA24DE Inside
« Reply #18 on: 02:28:30 PM / 15-May-08 »
haha LOCATION UPDATED

sorry, but hell yea im willing to get my hands dirty.
i like your interest of explainging things in detail, like showing the difference between the trans, really good. keep it up,

and same thing with your friend, a walkthrough would  be awesome.
but my project is gonna have to wait a year, till graduation, or till a decent job.


caged ca20e/ka24e/sr20det/ka24de/1jzgte SRA hatch. super sick

Quote from: Arro
Goddamn David you seriously are hard core man.
Quote from: tjs91tsi
Ohh, and unless you havn't figured it out yet, Stop driving with coolant leaks and Stop dropping nails in your fucking trannys!!!

Offline Draconis

Arro's S12: Rising From The Ashes W/ KA24DE Inside
« Reply #19 on: 02:38:36 PM / 15-May-08 »
Arro, you should know better.  *stamps out ashes* It's SoCal.. things like this create fires man.  Shame on you.