4413 Engine swap delima...

Message

   Well, I've been working on the dime. I don't have to hot wire it anymore. I've been doing some research, and searching for a 2 door still... I found one, and I'm probably going to buy it, but it's got a lost title, and the guy says he won't be able to get one untill it gets a light and brake inspection, and he won't have time to get it done for about a month. No problem, I can wait.... 
I've also discovered that 4 doors are pretty much the body of choice for racing because they are stiffer, and flex less than 2 doors because of the 4 door post in the middle. How much better, I can't say for sure because I've never driven both. I had a wagon in high school, but that's not the same because of the solid rear axle... Maybe it's a myth?
So, if I decide to build a race car I'll probably do it with the 4 door... 
Here's my next delima, I came across a great deal on a JDM CA18DET complete swap (Complete engine, trans, ecu, ignitor, uncut harness, etc etc)... I'm probably going to end up getting it, but I don't know which car I should put it in the 4 door I have now, or hold out for the 2 door? 
The 4 door "race car" would be the logical choice becase it's... well... going to be a race car, so it needs the power. But then again what's the 2 door gonna get? Shouldn't the 2 door be cooler than the 4 door... And a DET engine swap is cool, right? So the way I see he here are the options I see... 
A) Put the CA18DET in the 4 door so it can be a super race car because no one cares about keeping 4 doors original, build either an L18 or an L20b for the 2 door, so it can retain some originality by retaining the L series engine... 
B) Put the super L4 in the 4 door, because it will be cool to make people will be mad that they are getting beat by an engine with 30+ year old technology (which would be cool to piss them off), put the CA18DET in the 2 door so it will be fast and cool 
What do you guys think? I can't decide... Odds are I'm always going to want to drive the car with the CA engine, more than the other, so it should be the 2 door, right? I don't know, this is hard.

Author	Message
RacnJsn95 Enthusiast Joined: 28 July 2004 Posts: 240	Topic: Engine swap delima... Posted: 27 August 2006 at 3:04pm
	Well, I've been working on the dime. I don't have to hot wire it anymore. I've been doing some research, and searching for a 2 door still... I found one, and I'm probably going to buy it, but it's got a lost title, and the guy says he won't be able to get one untill it gets a light and brake inspection, and he won't have time to get it done for about a month. No problem, I can wait.... I've also discovered that 4 doors are pretty much the body of choice for racing because they are stiffer, and flex less than 2 doors because of the 4 door post in the middle. How much better, I can't say for sure because I've never driven both. I had a wagon in high school, but that's not the same because of the solid rear axle... Maybe it's a myth? So, if I decide to build a race car I'll probably do it with the 4 door... Here's my next delima, I came across a great deal on a JDM CA18DET complete swap (Complete engine, trans, ecu, ignitor, uncut harness, etc etc)... I'm probably going to end up getting it, but I don't know which car I should put it in the 4 door I have now, or hold out for the 2 door? The 4 door "race car" would be the logical choice becase it's... well... going to be a race car, so it needs the power. But then again what's the 2 door gonna get? Shouldn't the 2 door be cooler than the 4 door... And a DET engine swap is cool, right? So the way I see he here are the options I see... A) Put the CA18DET in the 4 door so it can be a super race car because no one cares about keeping 4 doors original, build either an L18 or an L20b for the 2 door, so it can retain some originality by retaining the L series engine... B) Put the super L4 in the 4 door, because it will be cool to make people will be mad that they are getting beat by an engine with 30+ year old technology (which would be cool to piss them off), put the CA18DET in the 2 door so it will be fast and cool What do you guys think? I can't decide... Odds are I'm always going to want to drive the car with the CA engine, more than the other, so it should be the 2 door, right? I don't know, this is hard.
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icehouse Expert Joined: 05 April 2005 Location: United States Posts: 2115	Posted: 27 August 2006 at 3:38pm
	I'd put it in the cleaner of the 2 car's. The 4 door being stiffer is a mith, the 2 door still has a B-piller, if you pull the quarter off a 2 door, it looks the same as a 4 door, with a smaller door opening. Baz (owner of datsport) is where I heard this. I also think the 2 door would be stiffer due to the welded rear quarter, it would tie the rear section togather.. Also what is a good deal for a ca? In my opinion a good deal for a ca18det is around 900, what did you pay? Depending on the racing your doing they might not allow the ca.
	check out http://forum.ratsun.net
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RacnJsn95 Enthusiast Joined: 28 July 2004 Posts: 240	Posted: 27 August 2006 at 6:11pm
	Well right now the 4 door, is a lot cleaner than the 2 door in question. But that can be fixed with some work. thanks for clearing up that myth, that just makes the decision even harder. Point me in the direction of a 900 dollar complete CA swap! I haven't paid for the one I'm looking at yet, we're still trying to figure out the shipping. I can pick it up for $1200 though, complete swap... Is that too much? I thought it was a good deal considering that a good SR20 swap is around $2000 or more. EDIT I just found a complete CA18DET setup for $1100, and free shipping... I may go that route... Unless you know where I get a better deal.
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icehouse Expert Joined: 05 April 2005 Location: United States Posts: 2115	Posted: 31 August 2006 at 4:39pm
	1100 is a good deal, its nice when they are local so you can pull the valve cover at least..
	check out http://forum.ratsun.net
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