Progress - Low Port to High Port Swap - And A Word of Thanks

voiddweller · 09-27-2005, 03:14 AM

It's been done before, but it's all new to me...

Here is a consolidated list of parts based on my experience, reading various forums and talking
to local individuals that performed successful OEM (clean) looking installs.

Can you do it without some parts just to get it running? Sure you can, but it won't look as purdy

Parts for Swap:

Required High Port:

1 - Engine
1 - Fuel Rail
1 - Throttle Cable
1 - Cruise Control Cable
1 - Throttle/Cruise Control Cable Mounting Bracket (including bolts and grommets) if missing
1 - Metal Intake Manifold hose that goes to Power Brake Booster
1 - Rubber Brake Booster hose that goes from intake manifold to metal line on top of firewall
1 - EGR Tube Plug - goes below 02 sensor on #4 intake runner
1 - Power Steering suction hose that goes from PS Reservoir to PS pump
1 - Rubber Valve cover to Intake hose
1 - Rubber Intake manifold hose

Required Low Port:

2 - Coolant Temp Sensors - threaded bung-type fittings immediately under the intake plenums on the left side of the engine (right above the oil filter.)
1 - Engine Wire Harness
1 - Distributor
1 - ECU

General:

1 - Intake - Stock High Port (preferred), Low Port or Aftermarket
1 - 1000k/OHM resistor
1 - Oil Filter (high port filter is different from low port)
4 - Spark Plugs
4 - Quarts Oil
4 - Quarts Transmission Fluid (I think it was 4, but I can't recall)
10 - Vacuum Caps
1 - Tube Oil Pan Gasket Sealant
1 - Can Degreaser
1 - Can Carb Cleaner
1 - Good set of gloves or a few boxes of Band Aids
1 - Case of Beer (Coors Lite or Yuengling)

Tools:

1 - Torque Wrench
1 - Set Metric Sockets
1 - Set Metric Wrenches
4 - VERY High Jack Stands or Engine Hoist
1 - Engine Hoist Leveller (if using hoist)
1 - Gasket Scraper / Removal Tool
1 - Hammer - repair oil pan dents
1 - Pry Bar - you WILL use it!
1 - Rubber Mallet or Dead Blow Hammer- you WILL use it!

Optional:

New Motor mounts
New Transmission Mount
New Valve Cover Gasket
New Front and Rear Main Seals

New Clutch Installation Instructions

Parts:

New Clutch
New Pilot Bearing
New Pressure Plate
New Throwout Bearing
New or Resurfaced Flywheel
New Transmission / Axle Seals

Power:

If going Turbo in the near future, now is the time to tap the block for the oil return line and plug
it up really good, or just install the turbo now

That reminds me, I really miss the boost from
my GTI, but it's time to move away from the father-land on to the land of the rising sun.

It all started when I had a 2002 GTI 1.8T and decided to replace it with 1997 200SX SE-R...

I purchased my SE-R from a Nissan new/used car lot in the Tampa area (NOB) back in
December 2004. The car had a little over 100k and was very clean, but had
a cut TPS harness and a small problem with hesitation that was never solved.
After keeping it stock for 8 months, I decided to add a G20 ECU, OBX header and
JWT S4 Cams. Even with new oil and a transmission fluid change, the car quickly
developed rod knock.

Over the last few months, I have had the opportunity to speak and work with
James (92_Sentra) and Jay Whitley. After owning an Accord Coupe, GS-R,
and GTI, their knowledge and patience have really kept me interested in my
SE-R. My knowledge of Nissan is very limited and I have had a lot of questions.
James was very influential in my acquision of a JDM motor and has made a little time
after work to come over and provide his experience and elbow grease. Jay is going
to be starting a new job in a week and has been very patent and generous in sharing
his vast knowledge of the SR20DE. Jay would have done the install if so many
other customers weren't ahead of me. This is my daily driver, so I'm on borrowed time
as it is. However, I would have given him the car without any hesitation if
this was not the case.

Current:

After trying for two weeks to get an engine from various sources, I was able to order
a used high port (from a JDM automatic donor car) for $450. It took a little over a week to arrive.

When the JDM engine arrived the USDM engine was pulled (this past Sunday) with the help of a
good friend, Dave. I'm working in a small one car garage and it's a real PITA to work on the car
with two KA24DE engines, two SR20DE engines, an engine hoist, and crap loads of car parts in
the same space. On top of that, my neighbours aren't too happy to see me working on a car. I
just injured my right eye working under the car (don't forget to use safety glasses,) so I can't
see a damn thing at night.

James came over with his good friend, Paul and we worked for a few hours on the car.
Paul was very patient and was able to install the Rear Main Seal in record time.
The hard part to finishing the rest of the swap is finding all the damn bolts that
are playing hide&seek...

Update:

The JDM motor has been cleaned in the essential areas, the CAM caps tightened back down,
the TB, intake manifold and part of the head were cleaned. A new water pump and Front
Main Seal were installed. The pulleys were swapped (not required) in addition to the power steering
and A/C brackets (required.)

The flywheel was resurfaced by Clutch City and looks great. We tried to wire in a 100k OHM resistor,
but the soldering iron was not cooperating.

Tomorrow:

I'll be finishing the resistor, installing the flywheel and bolting as much stuff on the
engine as I can.

Here is a link with a pick of the CAMs

Here are some pics of the progress:

The Beginning:

Out She Comes:

Swapped pulleys and reinstalled TB:

KA24DE Drink Holder:

Josht34237 · 09-27-2005, 08:53 PM

Are you using the lowport harness on that?

nismo001 · 09-27-2005, 10:12 PM

good luck with the project

92_Sentra · 09-27-2005, 10:25 PM

yes his lowport harness is being used on this. There were a few things that had to be changed on this in order for it to work, but thats whats being used on his swap.

voiddweller · 10-09-2005, 04:31 AM

Update:

The high port is on an engine stand right now and I'm the process of collecting a few parts that will help make the swap look stock.

The tensioner is back in and the oil pan was removed, hammered out, and resealed with RTV. The valve cover is ready to go back on the motor. All of the nuts and bolts were put in baggies and sorted by size, so now I have the fun task of figuring out what goes where. Not the smartest way to do it, but that's what I get for being in a rush to pull everything apart

I'll be looking through the shop manual to be sure I have everything correct.

Dave was over to help earlier this evening, but he's a Honda guy and the SR20DE does not even remotely resemble his area of expertise, the B Series. It's been tough coordinating with people that have experience with the motor, so the final stage may need to go to a local shop to be sure I didn't miss anything.

A few more pics will be posted with the next update.

I finally have the use of my right eye, due to some good drops to speed the healing.

Thanks again to everyone that has been able to help!

voiddweller · 10-23-2005, 07:10 PM

With the resurfaced OEM flywheel already installed, it was time to install most of the Mossey Stage 3 Kit from Greg Vogel:

JWT Pressure plate
Nissan 2000 SE disc
Throwout bearing (not installed)
Throwout bearing clips
Axle seals (not installed)
Rear main seal

This should be fine for my application, under 250 hp.

The original bearing and axle seals looked in good shape (and I don't have anything to press them in)
so they stayed as is...

We bolted on the transmission after spending a few minutes locating all the bolts.

***Note to self: when someone says, "don't worry about the bolts, we'll find them later,"
don't listen and tape them to the parts***

The fuel rail appeared to be a little bent, so I had to get another one since there was no chance
of using a lowport donor due to the different design. After installing the rail, it was back to
having some more beer...

Pic of bent rail:

Pics of the stock CAMS:

voiddweller · 10-31-2005, 08:18 AM

The JDM HighPort went in to the B14 two days ago.

There were a few issues that needed to be sorted out.

One was discovering that the wrong plug was cut for the 100k OHM resistor on the harness and figuring out a way to protect it. Since the solder wasn't holding, Dave came up with a very nice solution without having to cut the plug that is similar to jamming the wire into the contacts (found in a previous post) but we cut a notch out of the plastic to make room for the resistor. I'll post a pic when we are finished with the car so you can get a better idea of how it works.

Next we double-checked all the connectors to be sure they were hooked up correctly. Once this was completed, it was time to crawl under the car and remount the subframe.

After that was mounted, we moved the engine into position.

It was MUCH easier to put in than it was to take out...unlike some other things =0)...

Having a leveler for the engine hoist is a requirement in my opinion. The main issues were ensuring the AC Lines and compressor were not in the way. After they cleared, we had to watch out for the power steering pump. The rest was pretty much jockying the engine around to line up the mounts.

Now it looks like the PS bracket is in the way of the PS pump. It's pushed over toward the passenger fender and the bracket may need to come off in order to move the pump (up and to the side) since the pulley keeps getting in the way.

Here is a pic with the engine right after it was attached to the mounts:

1000k Ohm Resistor Solution:

The resistor was sandwiched in the plug and makes perfect contact
with the terminals.

nx2kjl · 10-31-2005, 01:09 PM

Looking good man - keep up the good work.

TUNED200 · 10-31-2005, 03:12 PM

Looking good,

When we swapped my BB Det into my old b14, it wasnt that bad. I will be doing this same swap soon, but adding boost.

JDM DE+T.

Good luck and keep the pics coming,

voiddweller · 11-01-2005, 10:12 PM

The PS bracket had to be removed to mount the pump. It took a little jockying around, but it finally fit.

The distributor and plugs are installed and the additional AC was compressor bolts were installed. The shift linkage and clutch cable were also reinstalled. I was going to mount the alternator be we decided that should be toward the end of the project. The fuel lines will be hooked up when we are ready to start the engine.

Now come the vacuum lines. I'm not sure where they all go since this was an automatic JDM engine and probably didn't have EGR, too. Next, I need to figure out the canister and then be sure the cooling lines in the correct order.

I placed some arrows on the lines that I'm not sure about and would appreciate any guidance on where they go.

The last pic is a mystery plug that may have something to do with the automatic, but I have no idea where it goes.

More updates to follow....

Here are the pics:

JDM Vacuum and Cooling Line Puzzle:

Mystery Plug:

StreetSentra · 11-01-2005, 10:20 PM

i'll have to look at mine tomorrow, i just got a b14 with a highport and there are a few mystery plugs that i've found, i'll look and see if that's one of them

voiddweller · 11-01-2005, 10:42 PM

If this helps, here is breakdown of the area for both of the USDM engines:

Highport

Lowport

voiddweller · 11-02-2005, 07:59 AM

It looks like the plug is for a wheel sensor, but I can't seem to find the receptical for it.

Any assistance with the vacuum lines would be greatly appreciated!

Anyone ???

Thanks!

EDIT:

It looks like none of the EGR lines were needed. The JDM oil catch can was retained since the USDM would not line up with the mounting points. All lines to the charcoal canister were plugged. The fuel tank pressure release lines were plugged with vacuum caps, but it turns out that the caps are not required and prevented equalisation.

On the down side, this will cause a very small amount of gasoline vapor to vent into the atmosphere, but I have been reassured that this will not be a safety issue. Feel free to cap the lines if you are 'ECO' conscious. Just be prepared to expect a very loud noise when you open the gas cap and the tank depressurises.

voiddweller · 11-03-2005, 01:49 AM

Progress:

Even after swapping all the pullies, the PS belt was too small, so I had to use the semi shredded one that came with the JDM motor. After the belts were attached, we bolted down the header, torqued the fuel rail, swapped the plugs, put a half-cap of oil in each cylinder, hooked up the main ECU harness and then the battery.

She cranked but didn't start. We went back to the ECU and hooked up the three little plugs that go to the rest of the harness and primed the fuel pump.

The next thing you know, the she's running! Now it's just a matter of plugging all the vacuum leaks (after figuring out where everything goes) and hooking up the cooling lines. I need to find an intake and exhaust gasket to get her on the road.

Ghetto Test Setup Pics:

voiddweller · 11-03-2005, 08:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by StreetSentra

i'll have to look at mine tomorrow, i just got a b14 with a highport and there are a few mystery plugs that i've found, i'll look and see if that's one of them

Would you mind posting some pics of your engine setup? In particular, the vacuum lines so I be sure I didn't miss anything...

Thanks!

Dave-ROR · 11-03-2005, 11:23 PM

Man.. can't wait to go back to work on my Honda instead of this nissan

James skipped all the bitch work too. little bitch.

voiddweller · 11-04-2005, 08:20 AM

I'm pretty sure the cooling lines are hooked up correctly, but if someone wouldn't mind looking at the picks, I would appreciate it.

After verifying the lines, the final steps should just be hooking up the axles and bolting on the exhaust. Once that's done, a little tuning and she should be all set!

More updates and pics to follow...

voiddweller · 11-05-2005, 09:49 PM

James and Dave discussed the situation a little bit. It was decided that most of the vacuum lines should be plugged, so we bolted on the exhaust and cranked the engine.

Now she won't start! The vacuum plugs were all removed and put back the way it was (with the exception of the charcoal canister) and it still won't start.

We checked for spark with all the wires and they all have it. The plugs are all getting fuel. The header is fairly cool and only the #2 runner was warm.

Dave compression tested the cylinders and they were 155, 180, 160, 160.

Does anyone have any idea what's going on?