Front Clip VS. Motor Set - SR20DET

[.db.]

I was about to order a front clip from Phase2 and pick it up when we go down for FD in April - and got to thinking about how much of a waste it'd be. I really want to upgrade a lot of stuff which with leave me with A LOT of OEM parts unused. I was wondering/thinking it'd be nice I have a list of pros as cons to both - if anyone wants to pitch in there 2 cents. I'm trying to gather a parts list of what all would be required still if I go motor set only.

Radiator, fans, hoses
Fuel lines
Heater core hoses
Intercooler, piping, hot pipe and intake
Vac lines

I'm going to be replacing vac lines an belts either way, and heater core lines need to be switched for lhd anyways. Turbo lines and water outlet switched to s14 and braided. Is there anything else that's required from the clip? I feel like I'd spend less money to buy the motor and upgrades VS buy clip and upgrades over time.

[fliprayzin240sx]

Honestly, there is no advantage of getting a clip. Used to be a good idea since sometimes, you'd have extra parts thats already in the clip (brakes, boost controllers, intercoolers, etc). But nowadays, those are taken out before you get your clip.

[K_style]

Honestly, there is no advantage of getting a clip. Used to be a good idea since sometimes, you'd have extra parts thats already in the clip (brakes, boost controllers, intercoolers, etc). But nowadays, those are taken out before you get your clip.

Unless of course if he wants the coolest RHD firewall swap...

[sleepyS14se]

i would get the clip if you intend on doing a rhd conversion, if not just pick up a clean motor/trans set

[brndck]

We got a clip last year to put an SR in my brothers truck, everything was stock on it but we still made $4-500 back off it by parting out all the little bits and pieces off it like the dash, cluster (it was kouki s13), radiator, clean coolant reservoir, etc etc etc.

Personally I like getting a clip just because you know the engine wasn't thrown around and piled under a ton of stuff.

[delado]

We got a clip last year to put an SR in my brothers truck, everything was stock on it but we still made $4-500 back off it by parting out all the little bits and pieces off it like the dash, cluster (it was kouki s13), radiator, clean coolant reservoir, etc etc etc.

Personally I like getting a clip just because you know the engine wasn't thrown around and piled under a ton of stuff.

Plus one.

front clips are for piece of mind. You know these were running cars that were cut in half and shipped over vs. motor sets that tend to be pulled out of junkyards. Not saying that motor sets aren't reliable, but as mentioned above, motors inside front clips have lived their entire life inside that clip (enclosed by body panels and hood to protect from weathering). Whereas a motor set gets piled up amongst 759384739 other swaps and parts in a container and shipped overseas. Front clips also give you a better idea of what you're getting since you have the cluster to display miles and you can also catch a glimpse of the bay. These clips always have a story to tell.

[sleepyS14se]

i agree with the 2 posts above me...

Aren't the clips available with or w/o the headlights/hood/fenders etc?

You may be able to save money by getting a whole clip minus the aforementioned parts removed if you really are stuck on not being "stuck" with stuff you do not need.

[FRpilot]

I bought a clip for peace of mind and knowing everything will be there. Some importers will tell you that it includes everything needed to swap, but might be missing things still. Also, you can see exactly how everything on the jdm clip is wired up and where all the vacuum hoses go first hand.

The clip will cost more, but like others have said it also protects everything when they are being stacked on top of each other. However, because of that most of the body panels will most likely be too mangled to used unless you get asks an importer for a clip with a front end that is complete and in good condition. Then again, they will probably be charging a premium for that too.

[fliprayzin240sx]

I've always used engine sets and never had an issue with them. But I guess I've had it better since I had a local importer that I went to all the time and was local enough to me. If I ever had any issue, I was taken care of and they always let me get first dibs on his container if I need an engine set. That and I almost always picked out automatic SR20s since they are less likelier to be drifted/abused to shit.

Back to the OP, since you're in Sacramento...did you check to see if Venus Auto is still open?

[brndck]

Our clip had no body panels attached but it did have 180sx brakes, and we were able to start the engine before we paid for it, so we absolutely knew it was good. Peace of mind like that is excellent to have.

[Kingtal0n]

[QUOTE=delado;5556475]Front clips also give you a better idea of what you're getting since you have the cluster to display miles and you can also catch a glimpse of the bay.[QUOTE]

This, is, priceless. Back in the day- it wouldn't matter so much because the majority of engines were coming "with actually 44,000-66,000km". But THESE days, god only knows what sort of past those motorsets have had. Sometimes you even get engines that have been installed already into cars here in the USA, run for 30,000 miles, then taken out again and re-sold as "motor swaps". You just can't tell these days.

I like to get a clean front clip, with the original cluster, power that thing on and see that it has 90,000km (thats the average these days). Check for the original side mount and plumbing, original hose clamp deal, original vacuum lines, boost solenoid... good stuff. Make sure there is general dirt and grime under those original couplers, you should be able to see if it was ever removed, because they will always have a worn-in line separating the filthy exposed half from the clean clamped half. If you see two lines where hose clamps have been removed, and re-tightened, on every single clamp- well somebody may have re-installed the entire side mount for "some odd reason" for example. Arouse suspicious :cry: the good ol' days are gone...

[.db.]

So I totally didn't realize you all responded. I ended up picking up a clip from phase2motortrend a couple weeks ago. It was nice having everything, came with the original cluster still installed and a driveline. Since I picked it up I was able to hear it run before I bought it. The car appeared completely stock, looked like a hack job may of owned it, but the motor or harness hadn't been tampered with. Also to our surprise the car ended up being a 98 s13 type x with a black top and j4 ecu, but the valve cover was red so he sold it to me for that price. In the end I'd buy a clip from phase2 again if I was going to do another swap. Wayne and Vincent were super chill.

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