20b swap - worth it?
 

Hey guys, I'm considering a 20b swap. Right now I have the 13b rebuilt with only 4k miles on it. Would it be worth it to switch to a 20b with under 15k miles on it? How would it affect the value of my car?

I'm interested so please let me know.
Thanks,

This should be in the 20b forum.

A 20b swap will run you upwards of 15-30 thousand dollars and it will not effect the resale value of your car much.

Got 20k laying around? If so go for it. You will never get the money back though when you sell it.

Actually I can get it for 2k, mad hookup with someone. So if I converted to 20b, what would my car sell for?

The $10k+ is for installing and modifying the engine bay, not the motor.

It's not how much you can get it for, it's the amount of custom built parts and labor to install it. It's not going to effect the sale of your car by much.

That's for the engine it self I bet, it will cost you at least another 18K to fabricate and mount it in your car.

Do a search in the 20b forum for more information on what exactly is involved with a 20b swap.

Where is a mod when you need one?

It's for the whole front clip, engine, tranny, drivetrain, etc. Anyway, if it is 10k for installation, forget about it.

As we said, at least 10k. There's a whole ton of custom work that takes a long time when doing that swap. It's not a one week job.

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Like it has ben said before...
If you have to ask, then you are probably can't afford it :p:


Off the top of my head:

20b=$2k-$4k
Rebuild=$3k+ (Who would be stupid enough to install a used rotary.....)
Programmable 20b capable ECU=$2k-$3k
Custom subframe=$1k-$2k
Custom AC hoses=$500+
Custom IC and piping=$1500+
Custom powersteering hoses=$200+
Custom downpipe and midpipe=$500+

and so far, this is doing it YOURSELF.
Let's pretend your shop charges $50 an hour. Working on it 8 hours a day for 5 days will run you $2000, and you know this job would NEVER be done in a week...

If you just want to get the engine in, all you need is a subframe, upgraded flywheel & clutch, and spindles. Then from there everything else would be mostly normal upgrades for a built 13b(fuel, intercooler,ecu,exhaust,ect) You can actually get the engine in and run it NA untill you have enough money to upgrade everything else. I disgree about having to rebuild the used engine. If there are no scratches inside the housing then all you would have to do is clean out all the carbon. This can be done on an unopened engine. If the engine really only has about 10k miles a rebuild isn't neccessary. If you could do some of these steps yourself, it will save you a shit load of money right of the bat. Remember, a 20b project doesn't have to built all at once. It can be installed and upgraded slowly just like a 13b. Also check nopistons.com. They have some info as well.


Here's info on the carbon cleaning, see the last post:

https://www.rx7club.com/showthread.p...&highlight=mva

Mine had like 25PSI on all three when I got it. I dumped some MMO in and cranked by hand several times. I repeated the process two more times and now the engine seems a lot healthier inside. I don't know how high the compression is now, but it is a significant improvement.

Great job! It's nice to see someone else do something like this and work. It makes so much more since. Alot cheaper too. :D

I used a popsicle stick to push on the apex seals before and after the MMO. It' so much better now. :D

dude you guys are sooo full of it..i dont have a 20b..but i will soon..and i guarantee it wont cost more than 10k.

heres why: 500 bucks for 1/4 of an exhaust system? where the fuck are you going for that one? try 100
intercooler and piping if you diy- 500 not 1500. ac and powersteering..ok lemme see..you are putting a grossly oversized motor in your car..what the hell do you need those for? is your priority really on comfort here? and on and on. all these super high prices that are quoted are rediculous compared to reality. these are prices if you have someone else do it.. not diy prices.

basically it comes down to this: if you want to, you can spend a lot of money on a swap and get it done quick. however, if you have the time, skills, tools and patience you can do it for much, much cheaper than that.

flame away, im ready.

~Pat

I think that pretty much says it all. :devil:

Oh, and you maybe could get it done for a hair under $10,000, but that's a lot of money and time to spend on a used 220hp engine.

No flames neccessary! I actually agree with most of what you said, especially the last paragraph. However, you have to understand that not everyone will have the time, skills, tools, and patience as you do. You and I may have something in common because I've researched this project for my 20b swap for over a year. The funny thing is, I'm now only 95% sure I can do it. But the good thing is, I will save a crap load of money doing it myself especially because I know now exactly what I want to do. However, not everyone can do a project like this themselves. Also a 20b swap into a 2nd gen is cheaper than an Fd. We don't have custom made engine mounts for our cars like you would. Remember that Mazda actually considered putting the 20b into the 2nd gen. Therefore, you will have less clearence issues in the engine bay than we will. I'm sure you have noticed the shear amount of 20b swaps into the 2nd gens as compared to the Fd? Hell everyone one this forum knows its cheaper to put it into a 2nd gen(which is where you will find most of your DIY'fers). So odviously, I can understand you being able to install yours cheaper than mine. Lastly our Fd's(being the superior handlers of the rx7's)we try our best to make sure our swaps don't effect our cars handling. With that comes more expense in engine placement. Thats more time, more effort, and more money.

Now about that $100 exhaust? I personally wouldn't expect everyone on this forum to go around buying "used" exhaust systems for a project like this(I would only assume this is the case with you unless you got MAD hook-up). Is it one of those ricer Ebay specials? If so, you might as well through it away after 300 miles. Even the expensive Borla XR-1's in midpipes aren't holding up every long because of the heat rotarys produce.

nope...my local exhaust shop will custom bend steel or aluminum for about $2 a foot. so all u gotta do is plan it and they will bend it to your specs. i havent done this much yet, as i have full custom aluminum exhaust, but i am about to design my own header and i think i will have them make it for me..im expecting it to cost about 20 bucks.. this is the kind of thing im talking about.

yes i realize you want your swap to be perfect..hell me too...and theres nothing stopping it..theres no reason you cant do as good as, or, as ive usually found, significantly better than someone you hire to do it. remember, you love this car, they are just making a buck. whos gonna be more careful? anyway..heres what i would do and am in fact gonna do... when you are ready to do the swap, go out and buy a 500 dolla beater car..or maybe a motorcylce if its summer..and then you have all the time u need to do it right. I may be biased here because i am an engineering student and do this shit all the time, but that doesnt mean anydoby else cant do it too.

~Pat

Wow thats all that muffler shop is going to charge you per foot? What muffler shop is it? Recently I've been researching the best place to buy my own 3" stainless steel for my custom intake and exhaust piping. Now I know I could have a muffler shop bend it for me for cheap. :D Originally I was going to cut and reweld. Now about that 500 beater. I already have a 91 vert that does a great job as a daily driver. :D

So how much would a 20B swap into an FD cost if you did the swap, and had a good rotary specialist shop do all the wiring and tuning?

About $10,000 for a very basic swap.

Pettit is a little over $35,000
City Performance is about $90,000

Pat,

One this about this project is that the more people research it, the more they are unsure if they can do it. KD did my FD conversion. Dave figured no problem and I would have the car in two months....they had the car for almost a year.

If you can 'guarantee' the total project will cost no more than 10k I have an old FD collected dust....when can I drop if off at your shop! Total $$$ in my car is around 100k (things like a carbon driveshaft are not cheap). I am not saying it has to cost that much, it is what I spent. Pettit allocates 150 hours for the install...they might have it down to 120 or so now after all these years now....

The fact you have never tried it says it all.

thats why i put it in there...because im not claiming to be an expert. but, i do know that if you do things yourself, and do them cheaply,you can always beat the estiamtes of everyone else. like i said up there, it just comes down to how much time and effort u have to put into it. because personally, i have lots of that and not much money, so there it goes. but hey, every time someone gets on here and has some project in mind, people try to scare them away with huge numbers. im just letting him know that although that is how much some people may spend, he can do it for much cheaper if he so desires. i think im gonna leave this thread alone now, since as you said i havent done it. but when i do, i will be sure to report back to you on how much it cost me with everything done myself.

~Pat

it took me 300+ hours and 10k to do mine.