Well hello there out there in UER land... Need some advice on a car I am looking at. Yes, try not to gasp all at once, fuckers... I need some advice on a 1985 Nissan 200SX. The car has well over 200,000 miles on it, but he body is VERY solid, only some surface bubbling on the rear wheel lips. The interior is a bit cracked, but not too bad, the clutch is new... Here's where there is trouble in paradise, it has a CA20E 4-cylinder in it. I have never heard of a CA20E and know next to nothing about it. This car is going to be primarily a drift/autocross car, but as I said, I know nothing about this car.

Anyone help me out?
the car looks like this only it is this sandy beige color:

click to view

As with most other Nissan 4 cylinder engines, the C series is pretty solid. I've seen a good few of these cars drifted. If it's cheap, go for it. I've never had to work on the C series engines, but I've never heard of any of my friends that had them a few years back have any reliability problems that weren't caused by being stupid.

Sam, its an iron block with aluminum head. Those engines are really strong, as in strength. You wont be drifting anything with the 2.0 n/a motor though. If you have some cash, look for a CA18DET 16 valve engine for swap. Its .2 liter smaller, but its turbocharged. You could always do a direct bolt in of a non turbo VG30E, which is the same motor that came in the 300zx, and the 200sx SE model. Im not sure if the turbo VG30ET will fit, but its worth researching.

Whatever you do, dont rebadge it as a Silvia. Thats for fanboys.

a couple of guys in town run those, turbo of course.

Posted by big dave Sam, its an iron block with aluminum head. Those engines are really strong, as in strength. You wont be drifting anything with the 2.0 n/a motor though. If you have some cash, look for a CA18DET 16 valve engine for swap. Its .2 liter smaller, but its turbocharged. You could always do a direct bolt in of a non turbo VG30E, which is the same motor that came in the 300zx, and the 200sx SE model. Im not sure if the turbo VG30ET will fit, but its worth researching. Whatever you do, dont rebadge it as a Silvia. Thats for fanboys.

If I get it ($300 is a a sum to part with lately), I was thinking of looking for a KA24 out of a 240SX to stuff in it. Hell, I was even flirting with stuffing a 350 Chevy in it, but I'd like to stay four cylinder... I think what appeals to me most about the car is that it's an oddball. There are none here... This car is a California car (or so the owner claims), but to be honest, the body is in too good a shape to be from here (New York/Vermont).

A friend of mine suggested forking over the money for an SR20 swap, but when I got researching that, I was absolutely blown away at how much an SR20 is going for? (Couple of SR20's would be a premium a week before race wars...)

As the car sits now, it doesn't run. I don't know if he blew it up, or what. He said he was driving up the Interstate and the engine got hot and shut down. I checked the oil and it's not foamy, nor does it smell burnt. The coolant was not visible in the radiator, nor in the expansion/overflow tank... At best, it just lunched a headgasket. At worst, it took the bottom end out. I don't know... I have two weeks to think this over. Is $300 too much for this car, even with a solid body? By the by, it has an electronic cluster, as well.

No, $300 isn't too much. You should be able to find either a dead 240SX or a dead Hardbody truck to pull the KA swap from. A turbo swap shouldn't be too bad, either.