# sr20de swap



## Liquider (Nov 8, 2003)

i have a 94 nissan sentra xe limited edition, i went to a shop today to check out a sr20de, the guy said it would cost me 1450.68. It would be a engine alone no transmition( does it bolt on to my original transmition??). The engine is imported from japan and has 45-50,00 miles on it. Is this a good deal or am i getting ripped ?


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## se_nismo (Sep 17, 2002)

Liquider said:


> i have a 94 nissan sentra xe limited edition, i went to a shop today to check out a sr20de, the guy said it would cost me 1450.68. It would be a engine alone no transmition( does it bolt on to my original transmition??). The engine is imported from japan and has 45-50,00 miles on it. Is this a good deal or am i getting ripped ?




no, your original transmission will not bolt up to the sr20 and i dont think your getting ripped............

your getting raped!!!!

i think thats expensive, you should look around your bound to find a much better price for the motor and trans.


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## blueboost (Jul 25, 2002)

se_nismo said:


> no, your original transmission will not bolt up to the sr20 and i dont think your getting ripped............
> 
> your getting raped!!!!
> 
> i think thats expensive, you should look around your bound to find a much better price for the motor and trans.



:thumbup: I agree!


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## dreadsword (Dec 2, 2002)

Ok, you need to do a lot of searching and reading. Do some reading up and searching on SR20forum.com too. This question has been asked and answered a zillion times.

Some hints:

1. Getting a DET for a good price is not the hard part.
2. Order your DET, transmission, axles, harness, ECU, clutch, flywheel, throttle and clutch cables from one source like http://www.jgycustoms.com or Andreas Miko on SR20Forums.
3. Then you'll still need to get a custom exhaust done. 
4. Many people suggest getting a front clip as it will come with all of the little connectors, brackets, hoses, etc that you will need, but this is expensive, and you'll still need to get a tranny etc as most clips are AWD.

Well. I guess I just answered your question. But search anyway, its a good habit to get into.

Bottom line - the swap is a complete replacement of your car's electrical and drivetrain systems. Expect it to be complicated, super expensive, and have tonnes of bugs at the beginning.

If you want an SR20, go get an SE-R or NX2000. If you've got a GA16, the money will be better spent turbocharging the 1.6 IMHO.


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## blueboost (Jul 25, 2002)

dreadsword said:


> Ok, you need to do a lot of searching and reading. Do some reading up and searching on SR20forum.com too. This question has been asked and answered a zillion times.
> 
> Some hints:
> 
> ...




LOL, that was very nice of you to tell him all that, but he was only lookin for a SR20, not a DET. a newbie, probably just needs a new engine and wants to go for the SR instead of another GA. understandable.


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## Liquider (Nov 8, 2003)

wait so i am getting a bad deal, the guy said it would bolt onto my original transmittion, and i was lookig for a de not a det, im confused now, is it really gonna be that expensive and have that many bugs with the swap?


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## dreadsword (Dec 2, 2002)

Well, even a straight DE swap requires essentially all the same work. The guy that's selling you the engine either doesn't know shit, or is lying to you-- it will not bolt up to your GA transmission. So, don't buy the motor - the seller isn't trustworthy.


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## se_nismo (Sep 17, 2002)

if you are not in a hurry your best bet to save money is just to look around and piece together your parts until you are ready, if you don't search and wait for cheap opportunities it will come out very expensive. if you search ga to sr swap, there are several good descriptive write ups you can look at. as for that motor and trans that is very expensive, i have a friend that did the ga to sr swap for under $1,300 and i have heard of some people doing the swap that have spent $5,000 i think it depends how well you shop for your parts and if you do your own work like my friend.


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## Liquider (Nov 8, 2003)

im not in a hurry, but i do want it kind of soon, at least i hsould have it in a month or two. Do you guys know any shops that will have the sr20de with the transmition and will put it in for me in southern california


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## se_nismo (Sep 17, 2002)

try import lab in el cajon i have heard good things about them.
search the forum for their info.


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## 2SR20DE (May 17, 2003)

Liquider said:


> im not in a hurry, but i do want it kind of soon, at least i hsould have it in a month or two. Do you guys know any shops that will have the sr20de with the transmition and will put it in for me in southern california


K. Watanabe importers (N. Hollywood, city of industry??? ).

sr20de 350$
tranny I think is around the same.

You need to search, seriously.


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## Liquider (Nov 8, 2003)

thats funny cause i think thats where i went i was talking to someone at work and they said go to watanabi its on laurel canyon and sherman way....SO im driving along and i see this place called "Japanese Engines and Transmitions" so it takes me 10 minutes just to figure out how to get in(you have to get in through the back) then when i get in the guy tells me that its like 750 for engine and like all together its 1450, without transmition....where is this watanabi? are they good ?


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## 2SR20DE (May 17, 2003)

Liquider said:


> thats funny cause i think thats where i went i was talking to someone at work and they said go to watanabi its on laurel canyon and sherman way....SO im driving along and i see this place called "Japanese Engines and Transmitions" so it takes me 10 minutes just to figure out how to get in(you have to get in through the back) then when i get in the guy tells me that its like 750 for engine and like all together its 1450, without transmition....where is this watanabi? are they good ?



I think that's the one... sorta a brown brick building. I think you need to make sure what your asking them. An SR20DE is 350. I know they charge just under 1000 to remove and replace the *same* engine. You have a GA thought. I don't even know if they import the GA. If they are going to swap you GA for an SR for 1400 (engine and trans & R&R) that's a good deal... but I don't think they are going to.


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## trinixtc (Aug 5, 2002)

*hey*

hey did u do ur swap yet?? if u need help or anything i am in san diego and did a few ga swaps to sr20 and won't mind helping u out.. just email me at [email protected] if u want.. later clint..


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## Liquider (Nov 8, 2003)

lol ya its a brick building, looks like a prison(or chop shop) butload of engines all over the place, the lady is also very unprofessional....she told me some shit like ya the engine is 400 then she looked some shit up and said 750...im gonna have to go back to her and talk to her fo real....that is watanabi right ??


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## 2SR20DE (May 17, 2003)

Liquider said:


> lol ya its a brick building, looks like a prison(or chop shop) butload of engines all over the place, the lady is also very unprofessional....she told me some shit like ya the engine is 400 then she looked some shit up and said 750...im gonna have to go back to her and talk to her fo real....that is watanabi right ??



Yup that's Watanabe. I wouldn't recomend buying it there though... go to the other office in lynwood, you save $50 on a handling charge, also there is a much greater selection... like 2 in HW and 30 in LW.

K Watanabe Importers It's a $50 core charge.

So from lynwood it's 350 after core, and hw it's 400 after core. I bought my motor about 2 months ago.


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## Liquider (Nov 8, 2003)

2SR20DE said:


> Yup that's Watanabe. I wouldn't recomend buying it there though... go to the other office in lynwood, you save $50 on a handling charge, also there is a much greater selection... like 2 in HW and 30 in LW.
> 
> K Watanabe Importers It's a $50 core charge.
> 
> So from lynwood it's 350 after core, and hw it's 400 after core. I bought my motor about 2 months ago.


How much would it cost me motor and transmition?? altogether if i drive to lynewood? any ideas? thanks


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## 2SR20DE (May 17, 2003)

Liquider said:


> How much would it cost me motor and transmition?? altogether if i drive to lynewood? any ideas? thanks


Call them...


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## Liquider (Nov 8, 2003)

i want to know how much he paid....err


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## LexKyB13 (May 1, 2002)

if you want my .02, its not worth it. find a nice used ser and mod it. i did the swap, its not that hard. but getting the bugs figured out has taken a lot of time and a lot of money. if you don't have at least 2g's, don't even try. just letting you know. if you've got questions, i'd be glad to answer them.


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## 2SR20DE (May 17, 2003)

LexKyB13 said:


> if you want my .02, its not worth it. find a nice used ser and mod it. i did the swap, its not that hard. but getting the bugs figured out has taken a lot of time and a lot of money. if you don't have at least 2g's, don't even try. just letting you know. if you've got questions, i'd be glad to answer them.



:cheers: Yup. That's the best advice. Why swap when you can probably save money by just buying an SE-R and selling your car. Then you have all the SE-R stuff... interior, rsb, *rear disk*.
Take his advice... don't swap... just buy se-r, and help make the value of my car go up.


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## Liquider (Nov 8, 2003)

if i wanted a new car id buy a new car, i want this one to go fast i dont want no stinkin se-r....err maybe i should just buy a corvette and not worry about engine swap?


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## 2SR20DE (May 17, 2003)

Liquider said:


> if i wanted a new car id buy a new car, i want this one to go fast i dont want no stinkin se-r....err maybe i should just buy a corvette and not worry about engine swap?


Ok... don't save money and have a better car...


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## Liquider (Nov 8, 2003)

hows it better ?


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## 2SR20DE (May 17, 2003)

Liquider said:


> hows it better ?


Do you actually read what I write? I already gave you a few items that are better. You won't call K. Watanabe to find out prices. And if you did you'd also find that they probably don't do conversions... just strait swaps. And it doesn't sound like your going to be doing this swap your self. If you were you'd know much more than you currently do. Your also not taking to much time to search and learn. So an SR20 conversion would cost you a bunch of $$. I'm giving you good advice... buy an SE-R... save money and have a better car. SE-R's can be had for not much more money than the GA models. So sell your car.


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## NiN_00 (Apr 30, 2002)

i love my swap 

wouldnt trade it for a SE-R 

nothing better then pulling on a real SE-R hehehe or any car that i shouldnt be faster then 

didnt cost me entirely to much think i did everything with about 1300 bucks thats tranny...motor..axles..oil.. everything
just gotta make sure you get EVERYTHING before you do a swap ...*RESEARCH RESEARCH RESEARCH* cant stress that enough gotta make sure you know what your getting into but youll find the swap easy i couldnt ever pay anyone else todo my swap ...it was a peice of cake should take 3-4 days tops


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## Liquider (Nov 8, 2003)

not to offend but i did not grow up with cars, i do not know as much as you guys and to learn all the technical stuff i'll have to go to school for 4 years...i do not have the tools also to do the swap...engine is kind of heavy...ya i called watanabi, they are useless all they do is straight conversion...also i do not want to buy a se-r for 2 reasons

1. god knows how the previoius driver drove it..its a se-r
2. god knows i aint gonna be able to sell my car
3. im gonna get a lower se-r if i do find one...
4. my car has power windows/power doors/power locks/power seat belt and everything works...a old se-r is going to have some issues..


btw anyone know how to take the shift knob off. there is no screw or nothing
and i used a wrench and ruined my original shift knob and now i cvant take it off...im f'king stupid!


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## zmegone (Jun 1, 2003)

Liquider said:


> not to offend but i did not grow up with cars, i do not know as much as you guys and to learn all the technical stuff i'll have to go to school for 4 years...i do not have the tools also to do the swap...engine is kind of heavy...ya i called watanabi, they are useless all they do is straight conversion...also i do not want to buy a se-r for 2 reasons
> 
> 1. god knows how the previoius driver drove it..its a se-r
> 2. god knows i aint gonna be able to sell my car
> ...


i dont know crap either but i took the challenge of buying an ser i know its going to have some issues but it has a grip of miles like 215000 but it pulls hella hard and of the motor blows ill buy a jdm motor hell i got the tranny already.


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## Liquider (Nov 8, 2003)

wont the jdm motor still be slower than the original se-r motor until you get a turbo? so for awhile actually you will have a slower car...no?


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## LexKyB13 (May 1, 2002)

no, jdm motors don't have emissions. therefore, less restriction, therefore more power. also, they are lower mileage than just about any you can get here in the states, and they were mostly autos, which means they haven't been ragged out much, if any. you really need to search here and on sr20forum.com as this has been covered more times than any other issue. i have to agree with nin00, i do like pulling on se-r's and 1.6s, and blowing the tails off honduhs that think its a 1.6. it is fun, but for all the money and all the downtime i've had with my car, i could have had a turbo ser running 11s by now. take some advice, dont do the swap UNLESS you can do it yourself because it will cost you an arm and a leg to have done at a shop. the cheapest quote i got for the swap was 1200 labor, with me supplying all the parts. don't know why cause it only took a day or two, just me and one buddy. anyway, i'll stop ranting. its not worth it, bottom line.


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## toolapcfan (Jul 10, 2002)

Speaking from personal experience here, I researched an SR20DE swap for my '93 XE for at least a year before I decided to sell the car, and buy a '93 SE-R. Cost me $1600 in the end, because the SE-R cost me $3500 and my XE sold for $1900. Same mileage on both, but the XE had a brand new clutch, driveshafts, tires, plugs, wires, rotor, cap, fuel filter was clean inside and out and had working A/C. SE-R had shot exhaust, tires on their last year, smelled like an ashtray, split CV boots and the A/C didn't work. I probably paid $500 too much for the SE-R but you live and learn, and $500 is a cheap mistake compared to what some lesson's cost. Not to mention, I know how few B13 SE-R's are out there, and driving 7 hours both ways to get mine was a short trip compared to the one I almost bought that was in Miami. The XE was a cleaner car in overall better condition but it was an old car too and was going to need new suspension. So I figured, why put new suspension on this car when I can put new suspension on an SE-R? The SE-R had the engine I wanted, 4 wheel disc brakes, bigger front brakes, sportier interior, 14" wheels, sprotier front bumper, for lamps, trunk mounted taillights, a rear spoiler and a sunroof. I don't consider that it had better suspension since it was just as shot as the one in the XE was. Even if I had done the swap myself, which I would have, it would have cost me more than $1600, because my time is worth something to me. And I was going to do a DET swap, not an SR swap, so the price to swap a DET into either car myself would have been more than $1600, plus I would have needed a tranny, ECU, driveshaft and engine harness. Not to mention at the time, I didn't know enough about the swap to comfortably do one on my own. In the end I still wouldn't have had the stuff that the SE-R had over the XE. Like my bud LexKyB13 says, unless you can do the swap yourself, it's going to cost you at least $2200 dollars to have an SR swap done, and if you talked to JGY, who's done more of these swaps than anyone, he'd probably tell you that estimate is rather low and that it could easily cost another $500. I don't give advice, I can only say what I did or I would do. If I already had a lot of money into a GA car, or it was a mint car and I knew the thing upside down and inside out, then I'd save up my money and turbocharge it. Now if I wasn't mechanically inclined and had to hire most of the work done on my car, then I probably wouldn't be into modding cars quite frankly, because I couldn't afford to be. But doing it myself or having it done, I think turboing a GA car would be the best bang for the buck thing I could do/have done if I wasn't going to sell it and get an SR powered car. It'd be damn near on the same playing field as a DET powered SE-R as far as acceleration and speed. Stock for stock, the SE-R would out handle the GA car, but if you're need to replace barkes and suspension, then that point is mute. It's funny because I argued this point with Mike Young and in the end I realized he was right, that turboing a GA is a better bang for the buck route than an DE/DET swap.


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## LexKyB13 (May 1, 2002)

well said.


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## Liquider (Nov 8, 2003)

the part that scares me is i know how people drive the se-r's and since my dad owned this LE hes been driving like a grandpa...for 10 years....also the condition im going to get out of the se-r?? ouch...by the way what does the se-r run stock>? 1/4? ...im considering it now that you told me but im still cautious...


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## toolapcfan (Jul 10, 2002)

From www.SE-R.net:

0-60mph: approx. 7.6 to 8.3 seconds (R&T,MT,C&D)
1/4mile: approx. 15.8 seconds (R&T,MT,C&D) 

That's on a brand new stock car. I'd go to www.edmunds.com and see what your LE is worth, then start looking on www.autotrader.com and the classifieds at www.se-r.net and www.sr20deforum.com. Also keep an eye on eBay. When you find a good one you'd better have money in the bank because they go fast. So you've got to check everyday and call on every one that you think you might buy. Check edmunds to see what they're worth.


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## Liquider (Nov 8, 2003)

ok checking now....lol they have a hatchback sentra nice lol  my car is trade in 1000, and 1200 for private seller  lol....now the se-r...2100 trade in and 2500 private seller....hmm not too bad...but really man what do you suggest i do..i really love my car but it has dents and the paint is coming off on the bumpers and shit...arrr heres a pic of my car at www.members.tripod.com/star0018/

colick on sentra 1 % 2


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## zmegone (Jun 1, 2003)

Liquider said:


> ok checking now....lol they have a hatchback sentra nice lol  my car is trade in 1000, and 1200 for private seller  lol....now the se-r...2100 trade in and 2500 private seller....hmm not too bad...but really man what do you suggest i do..i really love my car but it has dents and the paint is coming off on the bumpers and shit...arrr heres a pic of my car at www.members.tripod.com/star0018/
> 
> colick on sentra 1 % 2


well if you were going to put a sr20de in your car it wont beat a ser cause its a four door little bit heavier only if you put the turbo sr20det than it will be fast or you have some mods on the sr20de id sell it and get an ser i can feel the pull when i punch it take it from me i owned a tt 300zx w/400whp and i love my 92ser.


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## toolapcfan (Jul 10, 2002)

Ask $1400 for the LE, and take no less than $1K for it. I'd try to find the SE-R first if you can afford to be out the $$$$ for awhile, while you try to sell the LE. That way you'll not be out of a car at any point, you can take your time on looking for and buying the SE-R and you can take your time selling the LE. Took me about 2 months to sell my XE and other than a few dent's it was in great shape. I wish I would have kept it, but I didn't have room for it. Plus it sucked to drive the SE-R and then drive the XE. If it was an automatic, I would have had my wife sell her car and drive the XE. I'm hoping her next car will be a P11 but I don't know if she'll want to spend that much and unless her car breaks down, she's not going to want to sell it plus have to take out a loan an in the end have a smaller car. She's probably better off driving the Grand Am into the ground.


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