Motor or Suspension

[YoungRookie]

Currently i have a 92 coupe with a KA with a bad clutch(so bad you cant move the car). The motor has some minor issues other than the clutch also. I will be receiving a 98 KA motor with a SPEC stage 2 clutch in it. I also have $1,200 in the bank. My question is do you think that I should sell the motor that is currenlty in the car and swap in the 98 KA and then build the suspension and then later down the road save up for an SR. I am only 15 so I dont have a license so I have some time to work on this car before I have it on the road. What is your opions on what I should do?

P.S. I will be able to swap the KA out and put in the other KA in for free at my uncles shop.

[Destructo]

opt for swap out the older motor. get the 98's KA its proably in alot better condition. Then just start on suspension thats how you can start to get the most out of it. Suspension is the best thing to take care of first and the funniest in my opinion.

[omen2853]

do you have $1200 after getting the KA, or is that before? i think it depends on what shape one is versus the other. if the current motor is so bad its not worth having, then get the 98 KA and fix the suspension first. however, if the current engine is in bad shape but the current suspension is in horrible shape (as was the case when i bought my s13) then spend a little to fix then engine to be good enough, and whatevers left (the majority) to suspension. you still want an engine that works you know? but an engine that works sucks when your suspension is falling apart.

for me, it was just a matter of which needs more immediate attention. but then again...youre 15 and not really driving it (legally) so...you may have time to work out both.

EDIT: if youre already gonna get teh 98 KA and have money left over, id say dont worry about the SR for now, work on the suspension. the newer motor will be well enough to last you awhile.

[Bliss]

If the current engine is fine, I don't think you would need the newer KA. If the current KA is garage, drop in the '98 engine. Otherwise, just leave it in. After that, make sure everything is in running order. Take care of the things that you need to make it run correctly. After that, then add the fun stuff. No fun to have the goodies but not have it run right.

[sykikchimp]

If it's just the clutch thats bad, why not just replace the clutch?

to know how to spend your money, figure out what your goals are.

[wingsnthangs]

Fix what's broken first. Sounds like the 98KA is your best option. Then work on suspension. Maintenance should be first and foremost.

[YoungRookie]

The 98 KA motor i am getting for free pretty much... see, since the KA in my car now needs a clutch i bought a SPEC stage 2 clutch and never got the chane to put it in and my Friend with the 98 KA motrs clutch went oust so he said if i let him use my clutch till he gets his SR swap he will give me the KA motor, tranny, ecu, and harness, and engine mounts. this was too good of a deal to pass. So when his car gets the SR swap in a few days i will have the 98 KA in my car as soon as possible since we can do it at my uncles shop for fwee Continue giving your thoughts and opions.

[datzun]

i'd say that no matter what...the suspension will put more of a smile on your face unless you hate curvy roads and taking 90 degree turns at 60MPH. save up for that engine...speed comes with time sometimes unforunately

[YoungRookie]

Okay...now that i have pretty much decided to go with the suspension first, which coilovers? Im going to be using the car for daily driving and occasional drifting. I dont really want to spend anymore than 1,400 on coilovers. I think the TEIN HE's and HA's are about that price iirc? Well i dont exactly have 1,200 in the bank right this moment. I am selling the talon tsi that i have and as soon as i get that money in like 2 days then i will have 1,200.

[nokeone]

Tein HE's < $1200 or so...

go with them...HA's suck in my opinion...worth the extra little bit for the HE's..

[sykikchimp]

OR, you could get KYB AGX's, and springs, and still have money left over to get some sway bars, and STB's, and maybe even a couple adjustable suspension arms like Pillowball t/c rods, or upper control arms, etc. If you must have height adjustability, then coilover sleeve's like Ground Control's work wonderfully.

Remember TIRES will make the car handle better than ANY other single improvement on a stock car.

If you car is mostly daily driven, then coilovers may not be for you. Do some searching on the forum for the good, bad, and ugly on suspension setups. There have been 1000's of posts on it since that is the cars strong point. Get some info, then come back here, and ask some specific questions.


edit - Is that your car in your sig? Kinda weird that you would have pre 91' SE Fastback wheels on a 92' car.

[JasonNagra]

If you have decided on HE's, spend the little extra for the JIC FLTA2's. Not THAT much more but the extra money you will be spend will be WAY worth it. Just searh cand look into the features, Dousan36 had a great thread comparing the two with pics and what not. But if you want HE's you can buy mine, and then I'll buy KEI office...

[CoasTek240]

hey jason how much would you sell your HE's for?

[aznpoopy]

a little off-topic guys, but won't there be issues with the motor b/c of the obd i and obd ii stuff? i recall reading a thread where some guy couldn't start a 97 ka using a 95 manifold and ecu or something... if your uncle knows this then this is irrelevant, but depending on what the engine came with you may have to put out some more money to get that newer ka running (ecu, intake manifold, etc). i.e. its not a straight swap, you may need extra parts, and i don't know if ur uncle would put out the money for that. zilvia gods, correct me if i'm wrong.

[CoasTek240]

its only a matter of one sensor. since there are two sensors in the obdII one b4 and after the cat. just plug one of them.. right?

i'm sure tis somethign simple like that.

reguardless. youngrookie my advice to you is. find out what you really wanna do with you car.you stated mainly daily driving, and ocasionally takign it to the track for a drift even here and there. if i weere you i'd go ahead and get that 98 KA in your car. get a couple suspension parts(i.e. coilovers, sways, some multi link suspension arms.) then save up and go turbo KA. you'll have a perfect donor trnasplant ready to go. its already got low mileage. i know the sr20 is cool. but you gotta be practical. just a thought and my personal opinion. do what you want with it.

[andrave]

you will have to either switch over to the OBDII system (required to stay legal) or just bolt on the s13's intake and exhaust manifolds and keep the S13 ECU and all.

Anyway 1200 dollars may or may not be a lot of money.

For suspension it would be enough to get coilovers- if thats all you want.
If you suspension is shot, you will need to replace bushings and possibly tie rod ends, ball joints, maybe even control arms.
All that costs dollas...
I had around that and I put in poly urethane bushings, moog tie rod ends, new control arms with moog ball joints, tein S tech, and KYB AGX and it basically changed the entire car.

For the motor, the same stuff applies... 1200 is enough to get you halfway towards a turbo kit... basically enough to get you into trouble but not quite enough to get you out.
If you want to stay NA than 1200 is all you will need, I'd say intake/exhaust/header, cams, and an SAFC or something similar.

[sykikchimp]

I/H/E Cams, and S-afc is a good bit more than 1200 unless you build the exhaust and intake yourself.

Injen CAI - ~$200-300 (it's been a while since I priced it)
Exhaust - N1 - $400-600
Header - $300
Cams - $300-500
Safc - $350

so $1500-2000 is probably a little more accurate. And that's assuming you install it yourself.

[YoungRookie]

No i pretty sure i wanna go turbo but i dont want to turbo the ka motor.But i think im going to go with the TEIN HE coilovers. it seems liek that will be the right set up for what i will be using the car for. Do you agree?

[Raine]

IF you mean what you say about "daily driving and occasional drifting" I think the AGX/spring combo would be a better choice, then you can use the extra $$ for other stuff like sways or bars.

And I totally agree with sykikchimp about the tires. Remember, those are the only thing touching the ground. A $3000 suspension won't do you any good if you got some $50 Pep Boy all-season radials.

[CrazyS13]

Definately get the 98 motor, it is always nice having a fresh motor to deal with. Do your suspension after this. Motor work and suspension are both fun, but for what you like to do (you say drift) then having suspension is much more desirable than power. Also from a safety point of view, suspension is a lifesaver. Later on when you do all your suspension, i would highly recommend going KAT seeing as you have the fresh (assuming fairly low-miled motor), and no i'm not biased toward kat vs. sr, i just like kat more. At that point, you will have a car that will be fast on straights, and handle like a MOFO, and with the suspension and power (GET AN LSD!) you will have a mean drift machine, that will also serve as a sweet track/autox car too! God I love 240's, so well rounded. Anyways, hope this helps you out with your decisions!

Have fun! -John

[Raine]

I agree - If it's a "motor versus suspension" question then I'd go motor first... no use in having some nice suspension if your car can't even be driven

[andrave]

on the contrary, my car has the stock motor and while there are cars that are faster in a straight line I can out corner most everything. You rarely use 100% of your motor but suspension is something that just makes the car more fun to drive. Adding more power to an unprepred chassis is not the best choice for spirited driving.

[Raine]

Originally posted by andrave
on the contrary, my car has the stock motor and while there are cars that are faster in a straight line I can out corner most everything. You rarely use 100% of your motor but suspension is something that just makes the car more fun to drive. Adding more power to an unprepred chassis is not the best choice for spirited driving.

I think you misunderstood me. He was debating on swapping a 98 KA into his car, which by age should be a fresher motor to build on. He said in his post that the motor has some minor issues as well.

I only have an intake, exhaust, and cams, but the most performance gain I've noticeed was from the spring/strut change - I agree with you completely with the "you rarely use 100% of your motor), and I have my share of wins using my suspension mods alone against some other, more powerful cars (kill list on some other post).

Anyhow, what I meant was that if he swapped the 98 KA in first, he wouldn't have to worry about those "issues" with the older engine, and then stock motor or not he can start on suspension, knowing that he won't get stuck looking for a tow truck because of something wrong with the older motor

[YoungRookie]

Also the option of getting an SR is something to look at too. But i dont think i will have enough money for a whole swap. So i am going to go with the suspension and the swap 98 KA motor. I think if i were to get the suspension it would be a very fun car to drive. The car will have an ok amount of power to get the job. Do you agree?

[misnomer]

It's oft quoted, but not said here yet:

A KA has more than enough power to get you in trouble.

I did some mild suspension work (springs and tokico blues), and that has made my car's handling just perfect for me. Few people "need" coilovers, particularly for a daily driver. I even passed up adjustible shocks because I knew I wouldn't bother with them.

Another thing to consider, if you can get past the ineed for instant gratification, is to save your $1200 for the SR if that's what you really want. Or heck, hang on to it for a rainy day. I miss the days when I had $1200 to spend on one thing (aside from rent :P). In all honesty, I say don't spend the money yet. Get your license, get the '98 KA in there, and make sure you have some cushion spending money "in case shit happens"

[Raine]

Originally posted by misnomer
"in case shit happens"

drifting into a curb, the neighbors dog, light poles (seen a bunch of stories about that) LOL

You're only 15 so you have to accumulate a fair amount of "behind the wheel" time before you're comfortable with your car and you know its limits. LEarn your car with the KA. You didn't mention exactly what "minor issues" the original motor has. If they can be fixed without spending too much $$, then fix it, work it to death, and learn to become "one" with your car... that way when you start making major changes (motor swap, full suspension, even tires) you'll be able to adapt to the changes and get more out of driving your car