SR20DET Strength of Studs

[Danger_Dorn]

Hey guys, I know some of you saw my other post about my sr not starting...i give up and im handing it over a shop. Its a reputable shop and they want 600 ish for labor to redo main bearings, rod bearings, valve seals, headgasket and all that jazz. Im trying to stay cheap as possible with all this. I have ARP head studs but my question is how strong are the rod and main studs? Do I HAVE to replace them? I dont drift or run it really hard...just occasional spirited country road driving. The motor is stock on 11 psi so about 220 hp? So Im trying to stay under 1k for labor and parts considering the fact that the wife is already pissed off as it is. :whip: Thanks for the tips guys.

[jr_ss]

Stock is 7psi btw.

If you leave it alone, it'll be fine, but the studs are stretch to yield and should be replaced with new ones. ARPs are known to make the mains distort because they have a high trq load.

I would leave everything stock.

[Mikester]

^^His knowledge/experience towers over mine, so take this with a grain of salt:

My thought process is that they have to split the block & head to redo everything anyway, so why not put the ARP's in? If they have the potential to warp the OEM mains, use ARP mains too. Since you already have the head studs, it's only an extra $100.00. They won't charge you any more in labor- they have to torque everything back down regardless=)

You've already gone thru this much ass-pain trying to get this together.

Just my $.02

[Kingtal0n]

^^His knowledge/experience towers over mine, so take this with a grain of salt:

My thought process is that they have to split the block & head to redo everything anyway, so why not put the ARP's in? If they have the potential to warp the OEM mains, use ARP mains too. Since you already have the head studs, it's only an extra $100.00. They won't charge you any more in labor- they have to torque everything back down regardless=)

You've already gone thru this much ass-pain trying to get this together.

Just my $.02

theres no way any reputable shop (MACHINE shop. which I believe he is not getting service from an actual machine shop...) is going to align bore the mains with the arp studs torqued down and then, using a dial bore gauge with the bearings installed check the clearance (the right way) for that price, including everything else. You cant (should not) just slap in ARP studs in any head, or the mains, without proper machine work.

fwiw you can certainly use oem grade hardware anywhere in your engine when the total horsepower is below 300. some would argue 400+ even.

[Danger_Dorn]

Thanks guys so I guess my question is, should I reuse the old studs main studs and rod bolts or should I buy new oem

[Danger_Dorn]

Stock is 7psi btw.

If you leave it alone, it'll be fine, but the studs are stretch to yield and should be replaced with new ones. ARPs are known to make the mains distort because they have a high trq load.

I would leave everything stock.


I meant everything is stock and I have it set at 11 psi with an hks wastegate. :) Thanks though

[Milspec180]

Stock oem is your best bet! That's why Nissan spent all that money on research and development to make parts that last IMO.

[ShadowMan]

I've taken into account something from all these guys above on one thing or another when building my car wether it was direct advice or browsing their build threads. Jr_ss and Mikester's builds are far superior to mine and they definitely have a lot of good info for you. But my experience is this: when I rebuilt my motor, I used arp everything on the re-assembly, headstuds, mainstuds and rod bolts. The only machine work I had done was on the block, rehoned the cylinders and decked the block. The head never left my garage, cleaned the mating surface myself. I had never built a motor before and didn't have any direct hands on help, just from the forums, so I consider it an amatuer rebuild, but the car has been running strong for over a year with one drift weekend under its belt, so you can take all that for what is worth, I probably got lucky and accidentally did things right, lol. Nothing wrong with going new oem hardware if your keeping it relatively tame, but arp is a nice insurance policy in my book, if you do it right.

[jr_ss]

If you want to spend the extra money then go ahead and get ARP rod bolts/studs, that's where most of the SR's down fall is anyway. They tend to spin rod bearings more so than mains, but that's a whole nother can of worms. OEM mains are fine and they'll take quite a bit of abuse. You could slap ARP mains in, but the correct way to have it done is to line bore with them torque, bore gauge and order bearings accordingly. Most people past those steps and never have an issue, thats your decision though. Make sure everything thing is clean. Be sure to have them check the tolerances on your oil pump, or save the headache and install a new one, but remember to deck the cover when the block is decked too, especially if you're going to use a metal headgasket. I ran ARP head studs and a stock factory headgasket with out problems and I would bet its safe to say that combination will go deep into the 300's or even hit 400hp without a hiccup, pending your cooling capabilities are up to snuff.

Don't cheap out on anything motor related, infact get into a habit to buying only the best stuff for your car. She'll appreciate it and so will you when you're out beating on it and not on here crying about why your cheap parts broke. Good luck.

Shadowman- it doesn't take rocket science to clean and smooth a head flat. I did the same on my motor assembly and I never had an issue with it. Taking your time and doing it right is what counts. A block of flat aluminum/steal/etc and some sandpaper going different directions does wonders. That and being thorough and cleaning everything with solvents before assembly.