Rb20det ==> Fc3s
 

Sold my 13BT swap today, ordering my RB20 swap in a few days. Should be interesting. I've seen the SR20 done a few times, so wanted to try something I have yet to see.

As far as getting it in, I know the oil pan is going to have to be modified, as the RB20 has a forward-facing sump. I'm hoping just to be able to cut and flip the pan so the sump is in the back, and fab up a pickup tube for it.

After that, I'm going to drop it all in and see where it sits when the shifter is lined up. I'm *REALLY* hoping that I can retain the stock radiator position in the FC, but if not, oh well, I've had to do worse.

The motor itself is almost 3' long, so it will be a little tight, might have to do away with the heatercore for starters. I'm going to build it and try to get into drifting a little, so no heat/A/C isn't going to kill me.

Anyway, look forward to some picture when I get the swap in, might be a while before I actually start doing anything however - still looking for a garage to put the car in and work on it. If I find nothing, heck, I'll do it in my driveway (Many a swap has been done here as it is), but we'll see how that works out.

Anyone else love the sound of an RB? I know I do. Straight 3 or 4" pipe sounds like a nice exhaust I'm thinking. Hehe.

:icon_tup: :icon_tup:

i love the sound of an RB, my buddy had a stateside legal Skyline

but still, i prefer my RX-7's rotary xD

i love the sound of the rb series as well. and they run smooth as butter.
the only drawback of the rb20 over the sr20, is that the rb doesnt have as much torque. same displacement over 4 cylinders is better. if you were talking rb26, that would be a significant advantage.
either way, the rb swap is unique. everyone and their dog has an sr20 swap these days. go for it!

RB20 is fkn' trash. If you put in that POS you are insulting the FC.

At the very least, put in a damn RB25. You can make 400rwhp reliability, just by having ARP head-bolts, a steel head-gasket, and of course the right size turbo & tuning. Power FC works great with the RB25. My brother made 443rwhp/391tq on his RB25 in his Datsun 280Z. But that much power is really pushing it. He ended up going through a few motors, until he decided to give up on RB's in general.

So yeah...

RB20 = NO

RB25 = Sure, will make a safe and reliable ~350+ hp.

RB26 = If you're rich

SR20 = Good luck trying to make anything beyond 350rwhp reliably. Lame.

you forgot RB30... thats baller status from australia.

RB25 swap is $2500 up front. No thanks.

You can make 400 hp out of a '20 with ease as well. The RB series bottom ends are built to take it. Over 350 reliable out of an SR20? Try 500. I know someone who daily drives an SR20 S13 that lays down low 500's. It's not that hard.

LOL so says you.

I've seen more than enough SR's blow up on the stock motor trying to break 400rwhp. I guarantee this person you "know" isn't running a bone-stock block. That was my point.

RB20 is trash, man. I'm sorry.

And if you're paying $2,500 for a 25, then it's your own damn fault. You need better sources.

I'm not trying to be an ass, but at the same time I am, because I've seen enough bullsh*t SR's and RB's in 240's and the like, then I'd care to see for as long as I live.

Your money though. Have fun. You'll wish you had spent the extra coin on a 25 once you realize the limitations of a 2.0 I6.

nice yea a RB30E+RB25DET head+T04Z = uber ballin

Not really worried about it, I just want to get it in and get it running. I'm looking for 350-400 at most out of this. My 08 Si is my daily driver - this car will be seeing sidewayz dayz at the track and minimal street time.

If I want to throw a 25 in later down the road, I can. I am trying not to go overboard at first here, I'm paying for the RB20 with what I got for my 13BT swap.

:dunno: :dunno:

Just ordered the swap...... hopefully everything goes well with that. Motor will be getting a little refresh before going in the car as funds allow. First things first will be the oil pan situation though.

http://www.skylinegts.co.uk/images/R32-Info/RB20DET.jpg

Everything showed up today. DANG this is a long motor, hope the sumbitch fits! As soon as I get my hands on a hoist, we will be hitting the road on this deal.

Man trust me your better off with a rb20 than the rb25...sr20 would be less work and would fit nice....all those swap have been done...also my uncle did his swap with a rb20 in his FC...worked real nice. wish i could have post up some pic's but only pic's is from a film camera. good luck though. Im also gonna be doing the same thing once finish skool.

Where have you guys been?

I mocked up an RB20 block into an old FC shell I had a long time ago, it fits and the hood will close. Just barely though

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d8...er/pics021.jpg

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d8...er/pics018.jpg

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d8...er/pics017.jpg

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d8...er/pics016.jpg

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d8...er/pics015.jpg

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d8...er/pics002.jpg

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d8...er/pics005.jpg

Oh yeah, btw the RB20 RWD tranny will line up with the stock shift hole in the floor too.

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d8...er/pics020.jpg

That's good to know. I measured today, and it looks like the crank pulley will be sticking about 2" into the radiator in it's stock location. Guess it's got to be moved, which I was trying to avoid doing.

Do you just have the chassis lowered around the motor, or is it actually bolted in? If it's the latter, do you have any pics of how you mounted it?

You're an idiot.

There was no oil pan on the engine when I tried to fit it in, I had the block sitting on a piece of 2x4" wood ontop of the stock subframe, so you'll have 2" of room between the bottem of the block and the steering rack/subframe. I didn't take time to make mounts for it either, but it looked like it could be done fairly easily.

Your rad will definatly need to be mounted differently.

Word. I was fortunate enough for the company who pulled the swap to leave the RB mounts still on the motor, so I'm hoping that part will be fairly easy (As easy as a Nissan motor into a Mazda car can be, anyway).

The oil pan, like I said, it a front-sump, and will have to be dealt with. That's what I was most curious about on yours, but you said you took it off. I will have to play around with that for sure.

As for the radiator, I might just move it forward, or play with a V-mount. That's a ways down the road though, I just want to get the motor in for now.



And no, the RB25 is far superior to the RB20. Even I know this, and only chose the '20 due to $$$$. And RB25/26 would be going in if I had the change to do it with.

EDIT - Is that the stock downpipe I see? How tight was it? I see that car is RHD, I'm wondering if the stocker is going to have to be revised to not bang up on the steering column like in a 240.

rb20's are way better than sr's. I used to be a big nissan guy. make easier HP for less money and take the abuse way better than sr's

The stock turbo was on the head and it had the stock O2 housing I guess you would call it? Its just a short piece of exhaust that comes off the turbo and goes to a 3 bolt flange.

The FC shell I had was a RHD one, so everything cleared. For a LHD FC, the brake master would be pretty close, but it should clear the turbo/downpipe. If you build the downpipe close to the block you should also clear the steering too.

If you at least replace the stock POS ceramic turbo of the RB20, it's not so bad.

T3 flange.

You can upgrade the T25 of the SR to the S14 or S15 T28 to make yourself 300rwhp, with just some intercooler piping modifications. Obviously, with either motor, as soon as you replace the turbo, make sure you've got the fuel to match, and at least have an S-AFC II for A/F tuning, if you're low on the funds.

good luck man! i used to have an RB powered s13. i like them. replace the stock turbo with an r34 or s15 turbo. and your cool.

i love straight six motors. i really want to swap a 1j into my FC. i think i'm done playing with my wankel.

Yep, turbo will be the first upgrade. I'm not a big fan of exploding compressor wheels. 300-350 would be good for me with this project. I'm using my neighbor's garage, got my car in there today and threw 'er up on jackstands. Getting a hoist tomorrow, so I'll be playing around with trying to get it to fit in there this coming week.

It's in!!!!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...3/fc3srb20.jpg


I forgot to tell you guys that I was making it FWD.....

This thing is ridiculously tight, everything clears though.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...rx7rb20001.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...rx7rb20003.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...rx7rb20004.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...rx7rb20005.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...rx7rb20008.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...rx7rb20010.jpg

I had my engine set back further than that, it was pretty much touching the firewall :)

You also didn't have a heatercore..... something I'm trying to keep (and keep functional) if at all possible. If these buggers fit in a 240, and can keep heat, then I should be able to run it in an FC without problems, as we have a much bigger engine bay. My bud has a '25 in his S13 and it sits right on the firewall with 1" between the crank pulley and radiator, and still has the heatercore and all that jazz.

I'm going to make some power steering lines to retain it as well.

whatever you do don't go with the rb26...I work at a Nissan performance garage here in Calgary and the motors don't have a very good track record. What I would recommend would be like you originally said would be the rb20 or the rb25. We do alot of swaps for people going from the rb26 to the rb25...just alittle food for thought..

First post in a while, not really any progress made between vacation/work/life.... but got some things workin'.

First thing I'm doing is sinking the steering rack into the subframe. I'm going to notch the top part of the subframe, then weld it back up with some angle iron and sheet metal. This will allow me to move the steering rack down 2" or maybe more, giving me another 2" to come down with the motor. I'm going to build a "bow" around the power steering connections on the rack, and do one mount there, and just take the mount down to the subframe on the passenger side.

I have also decided to sell the ECU and harness from the RB20 and run Megasquirt. That will resolve all wiring issues, and give me the ability to tune the car.

nice man . its my personal beleif all swap's sould be acommpanyed by some kind of standalone engine managment

Sorry for lack of updates - I've been slackin'. Going to borrow a friend's welder tomorrow so I can start hacking up the crossmember and sit that steering rack down in there. Hopnig to get the motor/trans bolted into the car by th end of the year. I just started going to class 3 nights a week last night, so working time will be limited from here on out. I really don't have any deadlines for getting this done, but I would like to have it driveable by next summer. Other than that, I haven't even gone and looked at the car, I hope it's still on the jackstands! Haha.

Steering rack was moved today. Netted me about 3 more inches of clearance to drop the motor. Used an old, broken breaker bar to extend my steering column, LMAO.


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...ingcolumn2.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...ringcolumn.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...ingcolumn3.jpg


Tomorrow will be dropping the motor back in to start looking at ideas for mounts.

Moving the rack down gave me A LOT of room to bring the motor down. Fits like a glove, and the hood now closes. Pardon the blurry cell phone pics, but you get the idea.

Next step - start fabbing mounts.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...hey3/rb201.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...hey3/rb202.jpg

looks good man keep updated, Im thinking of doing the same in an FD

Unfortunately, progress will be slowing down due to a new, full time job, and starting school 3 nights a week. On the other hand, that will give me more money to waste on this thing. That is, if I don't completely give up on it after I get my Terminator in the very near future.....

Since I'm not trying to spend too much on it, I have decided on an SSAC (I know, I know...) big turbo kit for the motor. 900 bucks for everything, and it comes with an intercooler - I figure it'll last long enough to get some fun out of it. Anyway, with that and some injectors, with the motor being on Megasquirt I should be in the 400hp range. Then I'm counting on the bottom end going out so I can slap a '25 under there and get serious.

But of course, mounting the engine is an important roadblock between here and there..... I'm going to try to get the head off the motor this week so I can start getting busy on mounts.

Me either. I had 2 gt25 nissan spec turbos. I blew the cartrige to shit on one and the other was pushed to 19 psi on a honda before we heard, PSTTT-PSTTT-PING-PING-PING! 17 psi is the max limit on those ceramic wheels. Good concept for a stock boost but inconel i so much sweeter.

60-1 stg3 .63 a/r or fail. You have six cylinders to spool it. Should be responsive, make your power and have more on tap.

Good luck with the swap. I'm keeping an eye on it. If i ever boost my seven, the rotor is comming out and a turbo straight six is going in. 1jz probably.

Are you planning on runing a custom driveshaft with the tII rear end?

Also, nobody is going to bash you for running ssac shit. The intercoolers and piping are solid. The turbos have been known to be of better quality these days (not glued together with self-loseing turbine/comp wheels). The only thing i would do is if the couplers aren't fiber reinforced is buy some radiator hose of the appropriate size and use it.

Yeah, I will have a local shop put a driveshaft together for me. I just need a Nissan yoke (I think the 300ZX TT yoke is the same as the RB trannies). The TII rearend is plenty strong enough to hold whatever the RB20 will put out.

Process is being made, albeit quite slow.... can't wait for it to be running and driving though!

Hey, how much room do you have from the front of the engine to the front bumper?

i have an rb25det ready to go in my 94 fd, im just waiting for my lift to get put in, ill make a build thread soon.

I'll measure for you tomorrow. There is enough room to run the stock radiator, it just needs to be tilted more vertical. The FD radiator sits entirely vertical IIRC, so you wouldn't have an issue with it. With the radiator in the factory position on the FC, there is still a big gap in between the radiator and the bumper support, where the FMIC will be mounted. There is no issue with space up front, just the positioning of things is a tad tricky.

Awesome progress, I had an RB20 S13 and I loved it (had two, actually :) ). I am in the midst of an SR>FC swap right now.

For the driveshaft, any yoke that fits a 71c Nissan tranny will work for you. All SR, CA, KA, or RB20.

Nice info!! Thanks.

Haven't had time to sneak over and snap any pics, between work, school, and helping my dad get his new '95 Pete 379 ready for the road. I'll try tomorrow, don't have too much going on all morning.


In other news, *hopefully* ditching this:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...3/si/si017.jpg

For this:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...ey3/cobra2.jpg

This week.


Decided I was paying too little in gas, and the lack of 420 supercharged-V8 rwhp under my right foot just wasn't cutting it anymore.:lol: :lol: :icon_tup: :icon_tup:

Finally got the head off yesterday - the motor continues to look GREAT inside. The valvetrain was very clean, and the cylinderwalls look like new. There is hardly any carbon at all on top of the pistons.

The welder that I am borrowing has to go back to it's owner for the weekend, so no progress until at least next week. =\

Where the car is at the moment.

https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v...3/IMG_1046.jpg
https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v...3/IMG_1044.jpg

I hopre that relocating the steering rack doesnt give you bad bump steer issues.
its a common concern for LS1 FD swappers.

cool project but I woulda voted for a nice and cheap 1998 LS1T56, mine was $2500 for an entire dropout and it was so easy to fab up and get on the road quickly.

the RBs sure do sound amazing though.
best of luck to ya!

bump steer isnt the worst if your used to it... haha
where my roadster sits right now, my tierods are sticking way up and i still rock the track in that thing.

that just dosnt seem right, better floowing head? stronger bottom end? all around better engine, why would you swap that out?

This car is for sale now, if anyone is interested. The motor will be mounted as soon as I can get the welder back, and I would prefer to sell it like that, but I will let it go with the motor on a pallet as well. I'm taking offers right now, but just thought I'd throw that out there.

LOL!!! That was extremely funny. I feel the same way...I keep telling my wife to get one of those too...so I can race her in my ls1 FD...

Didn't see that one comming.


I dont even want to hear the excuse why that bad ass machine wont be completed by you. I'm so dissapointed.

Somebody pick it up and put it together!!!!!!

RBFC!

I just decided, especially now, that a little extra cash is more important than a project. I will still be working on it, but trying to sell at the same time.

i will continue the rb powered rx7 legacy since you want to be a party pooper lol