http://www.sr20forum.com/img/data/6448/medium/DSC00610_Large_.JPG
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http://www.sr20forum.com/img/data/6448/medium/DSC00632_Large_.JPG

There you have it. This is a very clean engine as you can tell which raises a few questions about it. Seeing that there is plenty of red RTV silicone, it makes me wonder what has been done to the engine. I know that Nissan uses RTV but i think that this engine has been worked on prior to its removal from the original car. OR...it could just be a very low mileage engine. I was told that it's a 10:1 bc of the tubular exhaust manifold but the engine code does not match to the codes given in a different thread. It might just be a 9.5: 1 with sodium filled valves.

Any comments and info greatly accepted.
What about the distributor... what is that one short plug with the red cap on it??
The guy at Soko told me that it is a 10:1 bc of the LARGER tubular exhuast manifold. There were 3 other motors with the larger manifolds but only 1 had the silver VC with the black by the plugs... I didnt get that one bc the cams/valvtrain wasnt in the best of shape.

Also..note the flywheel...its from an automatic.

Thanks..

Paul C.

yes very clean. id be very suspicious or very happy. congrats man.

You were told wrong, all the JDM motors have a tubular manifold, and very few were 10:1's. It is probably a 9.5:1 like the vast majority.

Ya, I saw all that rtv and it makes me wonder why they were in there. Congrats anyway though.

well, at least he knows it prolly wont leak for a while!

Looks like it was from an automatic.

Thats weird it looks like the front cover and both pans have been opened and resealed. Maybe they were just fixing oil leaks?

I'm assuming that it was worked on but we'll have to see how it runs when it's swaped in. I dont think that there is anything wrong with it. Hoping for the best.

Congrats. I've had two motors from soko and both were extemely clean and ran great. They seem to be highly recomended on this forum. There are some threads on here that have detatiled information about identifying 10:1 motors, but Aero Deck is right, it is probably a 9.5:1. Also that wire with the red cap is the coil wire. Good luck!

My OEM engine has all black RTV except for the lower oil pan since I had to swap it out for a less bent one. Also considering some of the RTV is smeared on the front leads me to believe that it's been worked on.

my soko motor was just like yours, cept it didnt have a tubular manifold. it was very very clean like yours as well. i believe they pressure wash them. also, mine was from an automatic. i think the majority of their sr20's are automatics.

just remember, the same amount of silicon that is squeezing out of the side is the same amount on the inside and that looks like a lot on it..

my soko motor was just like yours, cept it didnt have a tubular manifold. it was very very clean like yours as well. i believe they pressure wash them. also, mine was from an automatic. i think the majority of their sr20's are automatics.

Soko had some brochures in their office so i just had to browse. It said that they get their engines from japan, ship them to Cali, inspect them for damage and then do compression tests to verify if they had good internals. Ship them to chicago, and lastly stick them into a large cleaning machine. Also...the red sticker on the exhuast manifold states that they use special rustproofing chemicals on the inside of the engines to prevent rust therefore preserving the life of the engine.

I have a 6 month warranty so if anythings happens, just call them up and I'll get a new engine.

I just got a JDM motor JUST like yours and just got done with my swap not too long ago. I was also wondering if it was a higher compression motor as well but I suspected not. Well anyhow, mine looked just like yours without all that RTV sealant. Plus, the JDM pulls pretty well but nothing you wouldn't expect outta a sr20 though.

According to this it may be a 9.5:1 motor.

http://www.sr20forum.com/showthread.php?t=132608

im sorry. i recieved a bunch of motors from soko that were incredibly clean and incredibly broken. good luck.

^^ save your receipts

definitely check the water pump and coolant lines, and install spacers/pulleys before dropping that bad boy in. Hell, you could even drill the block as well if you're going turbo. None of the above procedures are fun or easy with the engine in the car.

and if I'm not mistaken that wire red plug connects the distributor to the ignition coil

You were told wrong, all the JDM motors have a tubular manifold, and very few were 10:1's. It is probably a 9.5:1 like the vast majority.


You were told wrong most JDM SR20DE motors come with a standard cast iron manifold. I would say 70% cast manifolds and 30% tubular manifolds.

Nissan does no use red silicone on their motor.

That motor was 100% opened up to change or fix something.

Please do not look at a motor and say it is clean without looking on the inside, If you presure clean a motor on the outside and it looks spotless it can still look like crud on the inside.

Now for my opinion I hate to buy, see or own motors with red silicone on the outside.

Nissan used black silicone on the valvecovers.

Blue or grey on the water pump. Newer RR and VE motors use a gasket

Grey silicone on the oilpans

That motor was 100% opened up to change or fix something.

That i expected and i'm just hoping that whatever reason it was opened for, it has new parts which will make the motor last longer. Are they OEM... who knows. Was it fixed properly by an experienced mechanic...i hope so. I'm just trying to look at this in a positive way.

Please do not look at a motor and say it is clean without looking on the inside, If you presure clean a motor on the outside and it looks spotless it can still look like crud on the inside.

Now for my opinion I hate to buy, see or own motors with red silicone on the outside.


I'm gonna pop the valve cover on friday and see what lies underneath. The cam intake cam lobes looked to be in great condition...that's one of the reasons i purchased the motor.