Reliable / Daily KA-T Setup

SON240sx Automotive
1

So after plently of searching and reading up on posts, articles, forums, and doing what I could to learn about the KA-T, it’s about time to start collecting parts. You can only drive stock for so long before you need some boost. I have some things done to the car already but plan for some more power. As of now the car has, JIC Coilovers, Apexi Rear Bar, Unknown Front Bar, HKS 3 inch exhaust, Aftermarket Aluminum Radiator, Aftermarket Clutch, Short Shifter, Lightweight Underdrive Pulley, and Injen Air Intake. Seems like boost is the next thing on the list.

I’m looking to run stock boost since this will be my daily driver and I’m looking for a reliable set up. Looking to acheive between 220-250rwhp. I know these builds require some money and thats why I’m looking to start collecting parts soon. I will not be purchasing everything at once, this will be a winter project. I’m going to start collecting parts around the end of august/start of september and plan on installing the set up over the winter so that I’m ready to go in the spring. Money I plan on putting towards this set up is around the $2500 range, give or take a couple hundred depending on what I purchase the parts for.

As stated, I have already gathered information on this topic, but I would like some feedback from people that have done KAT set ups, how they ran, cost, etc. It would be greatly appreciated if you could take some time and post as this may help out others on the forum as well. Guidelines you’ve followed and things to avoid, or watch out for.

DOHC KAT PARTS LIST

T28 Turbo
KA24DE Turbo Manifold ( T28 Bottom Mount )
SR Turbo Elbow or Megan Turbo Elbow
SR Downpipe or Megan Downpipe
Large FMIC w/ Piping
Upgraded Throttle Body
Blow Off Valve
SR 370cc Injectors
Z32 MAF
Walbro Fuel Pump
300ZX Fuel Filter
Apexi SAFC II
Greddy Emanage
Boost Controller
AEM Wideband O2
Oil Lines / Gaskets / Clamps / Etc.

Am I missing any parts here? Any I should remove? Any different ways to go then what I have listed? What about a Jimwolf ECU? (should eliminate safc and emanage or no?). Is it possible with around $2500?

I would love to hear from those that have done kat set ups previously or are currently running them and have experience on this topic. Others running turbos on different engines as daily/reliable set ups, I would like to hear from you as well. I tried to make this thread as clean as possible so it would be a good guideline for myself and others. Please try and keep this thread organized. Thanks ahead of time.

2

you could use aturbo timer you dont need one but there good to have if you like to feel the power i have a
GReddy turbo timer new $80
blitz boost controller used came off of a s13 ka-T $60
both digital both good and great condition you can havwe both for 125 or 140 shipped in ontarior if your in the gta

3

Do you know what a turbo timer does? They definatly do not make you “feel the power” it just keeps your car running for a set number of seconds after you turn it off. To let the turbo cool down after hard driving.

4

remove

z32 maf
safc2
greddy emanage

get a tuned ecu instead either Efi specialist /enthalpy or jimwolf
or if u like tuning yourself grab a calumsult RT ecu or if u have the funds then aem ems.

upgraded throttle body ? KA throttle body > SR = not needed

stock sr downpipe= crap
3" megan downpipe with flex = not needed . it hangs too low and over time the flex develops holes from scrapes etc…

get a 3" ebay downpipe … i got it from ebay for $115 shipped to my door including the $15 customs tax.

3" elbow is not needed but improves flow.

5

Haven’t you heard? KA-Ts aren’t reliable. Buy an SR.

6

They can be made reliable just like any SR or CA, etc…

how many people have issues/had issues with their turbo’d motors before?! eh?
it’s all about the setup bro, even still anything can arise. Come on!

Respect for the KA - T’s :slight_smile:

7

KA-T isn’t JDM enough to be reliable…

8

I can vouch for the reliability of KA-T’s

I agree and disagree with some here.

R33 is right with your tuning, pick one: piggyback, standalone, tuned ECU, or SAFC - you shouldn’t need more than one if you intend to run daily boost. A tuned ECU like Jim Wolf or Enthalpy won’t allow much adjustment after the first tune, it’ll be annoying having to order/send/swap ECU’s everytime you want to make a little change to your tuning. Of course, that’s assuming you intend to do so…most people have a “set it and forget it” mentality once they are happy with a tune. The Emanage allows you to tune the car more frequently without having to send your ECU out, but the downside is that you have to find a competent tuner, locally. There are a few I’m sure.

A safe conservative tune will get you boosting in no time…but be disciplined and don’t blow up the motor by cranking up the boost without upgrading your injectors.

You don’t need an upgraded throttle body.

I think the stock SR downpipe is okay for your application. Judging by the list you created, I wasn’t sure if you were going for the “bare minimums” or upgrade anything and everything. You’d probably want to upgrade your downpipe if you were trying to squeeze every little bit out of it. But you could save yourself a few bucks here by skimping and going with an SR downpip.

9

A stock motor KA-T will never be as reliable as an SR. Those demanding originality need to get over themselves, for 200-250whp daily driven power, you cannot beat an SR. The only time I would be considering KA-T is if I were building the motor.

10

dont do it on the cheap… you can definately make the set up run well and be somewhat reliable, but i still dont know many people on their first motor.

imho the key is tuning. forget mafs, tuned ecu or SAFC… get an AEM and have it tuned properly by Dan or Sasha.

no need for an upgraded throttle body and a stock SR T25 will be fine, cheaper and easier to get…

i think bobby ran 270 lb ft tq on an SR T25 or something like that…

i’ve driven a half a dozen bottom mount KA-T2 set ups, they feel great, but they never last too too long. Mind you these are motors in cars that get teh shit kicked out of them too.

darkforcejackal had one that never blew up and so did originaldriftmaster or something… i think they both had better tuning than an SAFC or DFJ ran low boost the whole time…

11

Silvia_Drift - those comments do not help me with my build. ka-t can be reliable depending on the build up and tuning process. easy to say buy an sr.

R33 - thanks for your input. i’ll be sticking with the ka throttle body. however, i am still debating on tuning.

GTS - i do intend to run daily boost, would i be able to get away with an safc II ? i may want to change the boost the odd time (-3psi,+3psi) would an emanage help me out with that? going with an sr elbow and megan downpipe would work together, correct? thanks.

Solarian - i was not trying to compare reliability between a KA-T and SR. both can be reliable and both can be unreliable. depends what the motors have gone through in the past, the build process, and of course, tuning.

bing - AEM is expensive for the set up im planning to run. boost will stay at stock 90% of the time. i’m thinking of going the safc and emanage route. should i still forget the maf? and im also undecided with the t25 or t28. i’ll probably go with what comes up at the time and the condition of the turbo. i know these set ups can be risky on the engine, but getting into 240’s in the first place is risky itself.

12

I greatly disagree with what you’re saying, but for the sake of not ruining the thread, will simply not post in it any longer.

13

Okay, I’ll try and say something helpful.

Try to get your hands on a tuned ECU (JWT, enthalapy, efi specialist etc.), or a tunable one (Calumsult, Nistune, AEM etc).

SAFCs and Emanage piggybacks are garbage because they don’t control timing. Sure you can adjust base timing on your motor but your ECU will advance the timing in boost because you’ll have the SAFC leaning out the bigger injectors.

Get colder spark plugs.

Change your oil early and often.

Try and check if you’re getting any blowby each week or so. If you start getting some, start looking for another KA cause its a ticking time bomb at that point.

Stay on low boost. You will get tempted to increase the boost after you feel the power but stay at 7psi!

A large FMIC is not necessary. You could probably even get away with a SMIC. If you have a good FMIC, it is very possible that you will get boost creap because it flows so well.

Good luck with the build.

14

if you want a reliable daily then stop trying to save money on parts… it wont help you. SAFC nad Emanage is going to cost you like $500 plus you still have to get it tuned properly.

AEM is an extra $1,000. but it will make your motor last longer and it holds its value so that you can still sell it for $1000 when you are dont with it…

e-manage is worth nothing… SAFC’s are a dime a dozen.

you would be better off with just an SAFC… maybe a ECU tuned for your application and the SAFC, but then you are up at like $500 - $700 again… less than $1000 away from an AEM and less than half of the functionality.

15

Since Bing made some good points, I’m gonna chip in and defend what I said earlier. KA-T can only be reliable if you really put in the work and money, and then you could’ve gotten an SR for less money. That and generally speaking they’re lower mileage to begin with. This is why Ramesh and myself are saying what we are.
Both motors have their advantages, and preferences vary depending on what power level you’re shooting for. Up to like… 350-400whp, SR is the clear winner. 400+ KA-T, since you’ll have to build both anyway.

16

Dont forget to check the compression on your cylinders before you start spending all this money on parts. its worth it to spend the money on a 30 dollar guage

17

i dont necessarily agree.

i would rather have a 240whp KA than a 240whp SR…

the torque of a KA makes it retardedly fun for a low power set up. you can have more fun with a T25 on a KA than an SR.

when you bust your KA you can get a new block for $300, SR is 3-5 times that if you can find one. parts are more readily available and cheaper.

i would say that north of 300hp the SR starts to be the clear choice because at that dollar level the SR is all bolt on… the KA is not.

for general reliability the SR is also the clear winner at any power level but that has more to do with people slapping cheapo KA-T’s together than it has to do with the motor’s actual ability.

but who cares what’s better… all that matters is what you want to do.

a 250whp KA-T is wicked… but if you do it for $1,000 you’re throwing your money away.

if you do it for $2,000 it will last you a bit

if you do it for $3,000 you are getting somewhere.

18

Right now on KA-t there is a AEM for sale for $1000.00 ship!!!

DO IT RIGHT ONCE!!! you will save more money.

19

i use to have a big hp ka-t that was some what reliable

now i have a stock ish sr

and all tho i miss the hp and tourqe

i dont miss opening my hood every day

20

like bing said, how many ka-t guys do you know who are on their first motor? maybe 1 in 5. how many sr owners do you know who have blown it up? maybe 1 in 20?

if my numbers were correct, 5x20 = 100. an SR is 100 times as reliable as a KA. rofl i’m so funny. :smiley: :smiley:

face is on KA #6 over a span of ~2 years and he’s always got a spare waiting for him at home for when the current one blows up.

personally i know more people with sr’s than with ka’s and I know of only one sr that’s blown up and it hardly counts when it was because a cloth got sucked in to the turbo when the cone filter was off… picard.

i agree with bing when he says a 250whp ka is more fun than a 250whp sr… in general more displacement always works out that way. a 50whp ka would be more fun than a 50whp sr, and a 400whp ka would be more fun than a 400whp ka would be more fun than a 400whp SR. But dollar for dollar I’d love to see you try to build a 400whp KA for anywhere near the cost of a 400whp SR. To add to the challenge… even if you do manage to make your 400whp with a KA now try beating on it for a few thousand klm. If it holds up, congrats you more than likely just spent 10-15 grand.

OR you could have spent 5-6 grand on an SR and done the same.

Either way, I love KAT’s and I probably always will.

To contribute to your initial question, the easiest way to get yourself a reliable KA-T for super cheap is to buy this car: http://www.son240sx.org/forums/showthread.php?t=33284

awesome car, awesome motor, awesome guy.