KA24E and KA24DE

[ALTRNTV]

if the KA engine is supposedly a truck engine, is there a Nissan truck in the USDM that has it? I'm curious.

[SilviaDriver]

i think the "truck engine" thingy is juss a saying due to its size and torque.

i dont think a truck really had the KA24DE

[Chernobyl]

Lower model (non v6) Nissan Hardbodies in the late 80's and through the 90's had the KA engine. Even 2 summers ago when I worked at a Nissan dealer, they had a very base model 2wd Frontier with the KA24DE under the hood. Yes, KA has its origins in trucks, but that doesn't mean jack.

[sykikchimp]

The Altima was the first vehicle to sport the KADE.. It has its roots in Sedans.

[RanciD]

Yeah, early model trucks had them. I actually own a '91 base model Pickup hardbody that has the KA24E in it. It tops out at about 60mph and shakes like crazy on the highway.. has 160k miles and still running strong though.

[Chokets]

it's not a truck engine, it's been in trucks and cars, it's an automobile engine. people just use that "truck engine" saying because they read it in superstreet and because it gives them a reason to put down a perfectly good engine, to make them feel good about their SR swap, they don't want to feel like they waisted money... it's a good engine, and i enjoy mine on a daily basis!

[Jsquared]

i have a friend with a Frontier with the KA. it was used in a whole bunch of stuff over here, sedans and trucks. the reason i went with an SR is because i just don't like the idea of turboing something that was NA from the factory... yeah people have KA-Ts that are making crazy power and doing it reliably, but for a nit-picky enginerd like myself i just couldn't do that. it's not a bad engine though...

[mrmephistopheles]

I like to think of the KA as a minivan engine, because it was used in the Nissan Axxess before it was ever in a 240sx or truck. Of course, it was FWD, and in the Stanza also.. Neither iteration of the KA had it's origins in trucks. Calling a KA a truck motor is like calling a Dodge Viper motor a truck motor. Same block, different application.
This argument is old and boring.
The KA is a widely used engine.. it's in the Xterra, Frontier, Hardbody, Altima, Stanza, Axxess, 240sx, and maybe one or two others. The reason it's widely used is the fact that it's a good, dependable design.
The question of the original poster has been answered. Anybody else feel a need to whack the rotting horse again?

[Jsquared]

Calling a KA a truck motor is like calling a Dodge Viper motor a truck motor.
actually the V10 was designed for a truck application before they put it in the Viper Concept :D

[mrmephistopheles]

I think you missed my point. Regardless of the initial or final application, simply having had a particular kind of motor in a truck, does NOT define it as a truck motor, as long as it's used in something other than a truck.
There's a particular model of Acura Legend, iirc that uses the same block as the NSX.. would you say that the NSX has a Legend motor?
It's a moot point!

[misnomer]

To credit this thread, it's been at least six months since somebody discussed the truck motor topic.

I'll say the same as always, all a motor is built to do is spin the driveshaft. It's the other stuff that determinines how the car performs. Application is determined by the chassis, not the engine block. Otherwise you'd have a lot more than the 240sx being powered by a "truck motor."

Now that y'all have been schooled, don't discuss it anymore :P

<EDIT> I failled to address the main question. . .

The d21 hardbody 4cyls were all KA24E motors. The Frontier is the same case, as is the XTerra. I am unsure if they switched to the DOHC motor with the newer models (my dad's '95 d21 is SOHC). You could find out on Nissan's website.

[s13rookie]

some older pathfinders also use the ka right?

[mrmephistopheles]

Originally posted by misnomer
The d21 hardbody 4cyls were all KA24E motors. The Frontier is the same case, as is the XTerra. I am unsure if they switched to the DOHC motor with the newer models (my dad's '95 d21 is SOHC). You could find out on Nissan's website.

In '96 they began using DEs.. Xterra has DE, as does Frontier.

[s13rookie]

so does that mean the supercharger on the frontier( i think) will work on our cars?

[mrmephistopheles]

Supercharger is only on the VG33E(R), and it won't bolt to the KA. I would, however, like to see a VG33ER stuffed into a 240! :eek:

[s13rookie]

oh ok, i thought they may still be using the ka, didnt know the switched to the vg

so no ka's come supercharged as of now?
or ever i guess

[deviousKA]

i know this post is way old but just to clear some things up. ka24e came in trucks (d21) hardbody 91-97, i have yet to see a 91+ pathfinder with sohc although pre 91 2wd had z24i. dohc ka came in frontiers 97 up and i think they could also come with sohc. this applys to xterras as well. all ka24e truck blocks and heads were manufactured in mexico and had seperate main caps, not sure about ka24de trucks

[s13rookie]

indeed, this post is way old, almost 7 hours

[mrmephistopheles]

Old TOPIC, new thread.
Basically, same old ****, different day. :D :D :D :D :D

[AceInHole]

Originally posted by sykikchimp
The Altima was the first vehicle to sport the KADE.. It has its roots in Sedans.

IIRC, KAe was in the Stanza (86) before anything else. KAde was in the 240sx (91) before the Altima (93).

[Phlip]

Originally posted by mrmephistopheles
Supercharger is only on the VG33E(R), and it won't bolt to the KA. I would, however, like to see a VG33ER stuffed into a 240! :eek:
Somewhere, somehow there is a newbie thinking of how to ask someone where they would begin this swap... I am waiting patiently to FLAME their ass for it too.

[misnomer]

So, what would you need to do to slap a VG33ER into a 240sx? :P

The '90s v6 Nissan pickups (including any and all supercharged models) use the VG series motors. Superchargers were only on the V6, no point supercharging the i4 for a pickup.

Regardless, as reliable as Nissan's four cylinder pickups may be, they are still slow as hell :P


Anybody notice how many of these threads get started with a simple question, discussed and debated for days, and the original poster adds no replies-- likely stopped reading the thread alltogether?

[DarkRaptor42]

Ive seen an old nissan truck with what looked like a KA24E in it but it was carburated. Anyone know if I am right on this or was it a different engine?

Ive noticed that nissan, like honda, likes to take the same engine and stick it in all kinds of cars just with different looks. Kinda like how the 350 engine is in almost every new nissan or infiniti. Its a good idea though, makes parts easier to get and the such.

[mrmephistopheles]

Originally posted by DarkRaptor42
Ive seen an old nissan truck with what looked like a KA24E in it but it was carburated. Anyone know if I am right on this or was it a different engine?


You're probably thinking of the NAPS-Z motor (aka Z24). This was a precursor to the KA24, and while this one was carb'd, the KA24E which came in trucks just afterward only had an intake which resembled a carb..

The NAPS-Z motor was kinda neat because instead of 4 sparkplugs, it had 8.. It was designed to be a cleaner burning motor than Nissan had, as emissions laws were getting more and more strict.

The Z24, like the KA, was quite the bulletproof motor...