1986 d21 hardbody Swap opinions

[justinhunsaker]

hi im new here and ive been doing research on swaps for my truck, every thing i read about is about the early/mid 90s hardbody and cant find any info on a mid/late 80s hardbody. i wanna know if a vg30dett twin turbo would fit or would the single turbo vg a better option also wondering about the sr20 turbo which of these swaps would be the easiest to direct swap in my truck? I would really appreciate any info thanks in advance

[Psychomoongoose]

direct swap?

Whatever that means, the SR20DET will be the easiest out of the choices, being and I4 engine and all.

[codyille]

Pretty sure with the VG30DETT you have to notch out the frame on both sides so the turbos will fit.

[DreamN]

Doubt the mounting points are the same between the Z and the D21, but I'm sure it'll fit considering the vg30e was a standard motor from 88-95 I believe. Besides has there been significant changes to the front subframe that leads you to believe that the swap info for later models wouldn't help you out?

[ShakotanGazelle]

The stock ka in these are rear sump, so you would have to convert the SR to rear sump. If you want a simple-ish swap, go for the VG30ET from a turbo Z31 and use a rear sump oil pan and crossmember from the V6 hardbody.

[rcdad123]

The stock ka in these are rear sump, so you would have to convert the SR to rear sump. If you want a simple-ish swap, go for the VG30ET from a turbo Z31 and use a rear sump oil pan and crossmember from the V6 hardbody.

that`s what i would do.

[justinhunsaker]

thanks for all the replies. Whats the difference between the wiring from the vg30e and the vg30et?

[anthonygrud]

If you like to work on pain in the ass cars then i suggest you DON'T swap in a turbo v6. Z32's and Z31's are made for turbo v6's and they suck balls to work on. Your truck is made for a I4, so I would imagine it would suck more balls. I suggest you consider and research building and turboing your KA motor. That means you dont need to have special mounts , wiring , driveshaft , etc.

[GhostlyCoupe]

All D21's will have the same fitment. The underlying chassis didn't change from 1986.5 to 1997.

[hulkster_s13]

You don't have to make a sr oil pan to rear sump. I've done this swap twice. We made our own mounts off the frame. You got to make a custom shifter also.

[Walperstyle]

Hey man, the best way to approach a swap like this is to find someone that has done a similar swap, and hound them with questions. Remember, you are asking a forum primarly of members that had a shop swap an engine for them, or primarly SR owners.

(not saying you guys suck)

Your quality of tech advice consists of people that have never done it, thats all I'm saying.

When you swap, try to use a full harness from the doner car, but try to obtain a stand alone plug and play ecu that will work with that harness. Then, make sure you get accurate measurements for your driveshaft, as it will need to be custom.

Not to mention you may have some transmission clearance issues with the body.

cheers.