So something pretty major happened today and here goes the timeline of how it happened.
My SR supposedly had around 60,000 miles when I bought it approx. 2 years ago and has always ran flawless. I was in the mindset of running the turbo at low boost and keep the standard engine happy, but soon realized more boost = more fun, right?!
I had 2 options present to me now;
a) I throw in a metal headgasket, run near my desired boost and pray the SR holds up, as most SR’s are pot luck when you’re running them around ~400hp in regards to whether they blow or last forever.
b) Rebuild the engine!
As you guys may have gathered over the last couple of pages, the setup I had in mind was pretty aggressive, which was chosen once I had chosen to rebuild the engine. Now, I could done the generic “throw pistons, rods and bearings in, crank the boost up and it’ll be fine” mindset, but luckily I knew a guy who wasn’t too far away from me who knew how to use a spanner or two.
This is where I add in a friend, Dave Yandell from DY Engine to be exact. I’ve seen a number of his engines in a couple of friends cars, and they’ve always done exactly what is asked of them including a couple of SR’s and even a dreaded CA18! The amount of time and effort Dave and his apprentice put into each of the engine is incredible, which was one of the contributing factors of choosing him to build my engine out of many so called garages out there.
In fact, I think if you’re reading this and can appreciate the work gone into engines then give the guy a like on his facebook page, he needs the credit he deserves after bending over backwards for me in the build and keeping me constantly updated with what’s happening
DY Engine:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/DY-Engine-Services/194008124026384
Instagram: @dyengines
One of these said SR’s is in a friends 14a, which to be frank made a ton of power! (just shy of 500 during mapping before the boost was turned down). Realistically, this turbo is good for just over 400whp on pump fuel so if he can build an engine that will happily take a power level above what I’m aiming for, then its ideal for my current setup as well as for any future changes.
So, after a few messages agreeing on what level of build we’re settling for it was time to pull the old SR out of the 13 ready to go to DY, looking really sorry and tired;
Cue the picture of the engine sat in the back of a van, where its mysterious fate awaited.
As soon as the engine was off loaded, it began. Within a few days I received a message saying the majority of the parts needed had been ordered! He began as anyone would do and strip the ol’ faithful down. Luckily I chose this route, as upon inspection of the bearings, they were heavily worn, in fact from what Dave showed me, they were on the verge on letting go! Goes to show, no matter how well you maintain your engine, its only as good as the life it had before, which in this instance was uncertain as it was acquired from an imported S14a.
Anyway, no problem as DY can sort out the crank and new bearings were planned ☺ The thing I wanted most throughout the build was pictures! I love pictures to see the process of the build, and the first picture I received was this;
The block needed to be bored out to 86.5mm in order to accommodate the forged pistons. Originally Dave suggested using Wossner pistons as hes used them in other builds and liked using them. However, the problem that arose was Greg @ Protuner wanted me to retain around an 8.5:1 Compression Ratio, but the highest ratio Wossner’s offer are only 8.0:1. Fortunately for me, the SR mentioned above had special thought gone into the compression ratio which ended up becoming 8.7:1 with similar work that was planned as my engine, so we chose to use the same piston/compression ratio setup as it worked wonders on the dyno. We chose to run the highly popular CP 9.0:1 pistons, what a piece of art they are!
What was nice to see when I was shown my old pistons was that there was no signs of det, especially since I was always worried after seeing the boost controller peaking over the boost level it was mapped for occasionally.
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An important step in the build process, which I think** is the cause for the old leaky/dirty SR’s is that the front covers and block are never machined together, causing a slight gap which allows the engine to breathe rubbish out of. So, another step in the build and another picture was received! This time, it was of the machining of the block and front cover. My perception of machining the block was to ensure a 100% seal on the headgasket? Theoretically it should raise the compression ratio also.
Something DY and his apprentice ensure, is that everything is always cleaned, and then cleaned again before painting just to give that nice and fresh image a new build should have. Plus, one of the key factors of building an engine is always to keep everything as clean as possible to ensure everything seals and works spot on, right?
Anyway, here’s the block after machining, looks pretty damn hawtttt I must say so myself!
After visiting the workshop a couple of times prior, you get a sense of everything is in the right order and exactly where it needs to be, with no exception to shiny, clean parts! Ever wondered what the bottom end of an SR20DET looked like once laid out neatly? Nope? Well here’s how it looks;
Pretty spectacular ehhhh? A quick note here, Dave recommends using ZRP rods, they comes with ARP bolts and are rated to around 200hp per cylinder, plenty for what I’m aiming for! In fact, these are the same brand rods James Deane used in his SR20 RXY (albeit I think he’s running the SR22 Stroker Kit) aswell as my friends 14a and they’ve held up superbly, so another tick for me. Usual ACL bearings were used too, everything being nice and fresh
Whilst I was doing what I usually do in lectures, I received an unexpected picture. The bottom end had already been assembled after checking everything beforehand.
You can see the Tomei Sump and Oil Block fitted too whilst everything was getting assembled. Even just the bottom end, what a sight already! Wait, it gets better, trust me!
It was at this point, it was time for me to pop down to DY’s workshop and have a nosey at the progress being made whilst he waited for a few parts I had received as well as the head to return. I looked at the above in the flesh, and having seen numerous builds online I kind of knew what to expect, but after he unwrapped the engine for m to see, I felt 5 again. I’ve never been so excited for something for so long!
So it'll be a short and sweet update, but there will be 2 decent updates in the near future once I get my engine back off a friend and the car gets its cage done on the 12th Jan 
loving the build that Dave did, that is pure workmanship and such a craft (that meticulous attention to detail is so refreshing to see, most builders take super short cuts... But thus is is just off the charts amazing! )