KL v6 swap (FC3S)
 

hey,

i was wondering if anyone had ever swapped a mazda KL series v6 into a FC chassis car. it seems like a logical swap. I might be doing one of these this summer with a friend if he decieds to get a FC project.

Pros:
All aluminum
less mantainance then a rotary (to a degree)
cheap
avalible
cheaply avalible
relitivly compact
9.2:1 comp (street turbo happy!)
mates to stock FC gear box and uses aftermarket FC flywheel
sounds SICK
aprox same power as N/A S5 FC (KLDE@ 165 and S5 N/A@ 160)
afordable aftermarket support
forged crank
forged rods
piston squirters
hypereutectic pistons
2pc block (high rpm stability)
block is beefy

cons:
fab motor mounts
fab intake
adapt computor harness
adapt gauges
not a huge power increase
front sump (thats probly going to be the biggest problem)
haters


I'm die hard rotary guy, but lets face the facts. Its not practical for everyone that wants to own an fc for the handeling and looks. So this is the only swap i aprove of.

Which KL? ZE or DE? I'm assuming DE since you mentioned 9.2CR? They don't have piston squirters, only the supercharged Millenia one has it I believe. Rods are not forged IIRC. For the tran, you'll need an adaptor.

DE

what are the rods if they arent forged?

and what adaptor would you need?

i had thought about this swap before i sold my but you're right in that it's not a huge power increase. this site is a guy who put one in a miata and has some good information: majica.net/JNR/here.htm

Attachment 716341

My friend randomly found this pic, it looks like a KL in an rwd bay, that and the guy that bought my shell was buying a rusted out turbo car from a guy with a KL 1gen, i wonder if he's doctumented it online....

Brake booster all up in the fugging way......

I say just buy a damn engine...that way you can't back out. That's what i did. I've been lurking this section talking about this swap that swap and finally said to hell with it and bought something.

Try that.

i'm with NoPistons! just go for it. i'm a fan of unorthodox swaps, or better said, mixing good engines with good cars, and even though the KL doesn't make a whole lot more power now, it's mean when boosted

And they sound good. Welcome to the forum btw.

thanks man, and yeah i met a guy at some like parking lot meet that put a KL-ZE in his MX-6 with some mods but i don't remember what and wow! not even joking, it almost sounded like a 2JZ

i think they liken the sound of a rb series engine

i doubt thats an FC bay, if ford modular engines can fit without booster clearance issues, the KL will. if anyhting we could swap to a N/A booster (asuming we get a GXL) for more clearance.

I'm not actualy funding the project, i'm just trying to get some research done into the subject.

Here's some other KL swaps (including that miata): http://www.offroadvw.net/bajawes/V6_...rs/ZE_cars.htm

Ive been wondering this for ages, the kl is what comes in a 929 right? those cars came rwd right? i'd be looking at that motor and automatic trans to see what you can make of i t

My ford probe GT was bar none, the best sounding car I have ever owned. No cat, greddy exhaust, and the sweetest sound you've ever heard. I say do it.

I know the Millenia S rods are forged, don't think the regular KL rods are but I could be wrong. Look into that Miata thread, I believe he use a custom adaptor to mate the block with a RX-7 bell housing. I have 2 MX-6 myself, a V6 and an I4, the V6 used to be boosted but I blew an oil seal so I decided to pull the engine and do a full rebuild with S rods and 8.5CR forged pistons. That was 2 years ago, the car was parked on my parents driveway for more than a year and the body started to rust, the amount of money I'll need to bring the body back to life and do a full build is way too much, I didn't think it was worth it so I sold all the parts and spend the money on an FD. If you decide to do the swap, few thing you should know. You can probably get ~300whp out of a DE with a very very good tune, running about 15psi. Anything higher than 15psi on a stock block is a gamble, if you want to build it, even a very simple build with S rods and forged pistons, you can easily achieve 400whp. Prepare to learn Megasquirt, or spend a lot of money on an EMS.

Though if done right, a boosted KL is fun and sounds really mean. Mine had a full 2.5" turbo back, no cat no resonator and it sound amazing :)

That picture is a KL in a Probe GT engine bay, that guy just rotated the engine for the hack of it.

929 has the J series 3.0 engine, not KL.

sounds like a good plan its alot of work. i have a '93 ford probe with a turbo kit and stand alone ECU was pushing 275hp 235tq at 6 psi on a klde. but i would'nt call it an affordable engine parts are kinda spendy just my 2 cents

and the rotary is more affordable?

That's a FWD bay. Scope the motor mount in front of the passenger side strut tower and how far inboard the brake booster is - the pedal box is shifted to the center of the firewall so the pedals can clear the wheelwell hump, not shifted to the end so the pedals can clear the trans tunnel.

found it..

http://s363.photobucket.com/albums/o...LZE/?start=100

google is your friend ;)

i figured it wasnt an FC, but looking at how it fit in the Miata bay, and the FC bay being just as big or bigger it should fit no problem

do it!!! i own a 2nd gen PGT as well with the KLZE stuffed into it and turbocharging it now, i agree with all the other probe/mx6 owners here the car sounds amazing. and if you do the research on Probetalk.com or MX6.com this swap has been done before and also check out http://majica.net/JNR/major.htm although it's in a miata just integrate all the design and components into the RX instead.

V6 can sound so tits.

The reason they're so "ugh" is because it's not a legendary 2jz or rb or rotary or ls1 or sr20...blah, blah, blah.

If you can see it, you can do it. Really, the proof is in the pudding. Prior to asking anyone you should do homework on your own and decide if swapping this or fiddling with that is a good idea. I had someone spoon feed me but they were trying to help me and i'm thankful. Very glad i decided to do my v6 swap over a 2j/1j or a na-t 2 rotor. Turbo 6 port WAS a good idea but i thought about fuel and how much this bastard eats doing business and that was the final nail in the swap coffin.