It’s happening! On this episode of Ignition
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MotorTranscript
00:00 When we've done it, we've installed an LS3 into our 240SX, and it's pretty much just
00:06 as ridiculous and as fun as you can imagine.
00:12 Before we can get into the tire smoke and the craziness, we'll start with the swap itself
00:16 to show what went into creating the 240SS.
00:21 Joining us again is Mark "Stop Calling Me a 240SX" expert, Lenardon.
00:25 He's an expert on 240SXs.
00:29 Also we have a local guy, Alex, from a company called LSPEC to give us a hand.
00:42 Essentially what we have here is the drivetrain from a Camaro SS.
00:45 This is a 430 horse E-Rod LS3 6.2 liter V8.
00:50 Now we went with this engine in particular because it's emissions legal, it'll be reliable
00:55 because it's basically using all OEM components, and we don't have to worry about repairing
00:59 parts on it.
01:00 It's reliable, it's all new.
01:02 That's basically why we didn't go with the SR20, which is the common swap, turbocharge
01:07 the existing KA, or do an RB26 or something crazy.
01:11 This is also lighter than any of those options in the engine itself.
01:16 The main reason why this swap works so well is because of the LS3's compactness.
01:21 Being a pushrod motor, it doesn't have a lot of valve train going on, which means smaller
01:26 heads.
01:27 The block and heads are also aluminum, making them lightweight too.
01:31 We have a T56 Super Magnum, which is essentially a T56 size transmission with TR6060 inners
01:39 inside of it, which is great because that means it's compact, which is important in
01:43 this platform, and it will withstand about 700 pound feet of torque according to GM,
01:48 and that's great should we decide to go really crazy with this engine.
01:51 Putting this engine in trans into the 240 chassis is surprisingly easy.
01:55 The tunnel needs to be hammered out to clear the bell housing, and we had to notch the
01:59 tunnel to adapt the T56 Super Magnum's forward shift position.
02:03 Overall, the chassis is remarkably accommodating.
02:08 Now if you want to put a Chevy V8 in your 240SX, you're going to need a swap kit to
02:12 do it, and for that we turned to Fueled Racing, and they sent us this really comprehensive
02:16 kit, which is all the hardware you need to get this done, essentially.
02:20 We have a new Clutch Master cylinder, we have motor mounts, we have transmission mount,
02:24 we have a new oil pan from Moroso, we have a drive shaft, we have all these lines, we
02:27 have oil filter relocation kit, and if we wanted to go further, we could have.
02:31 They also do headers, powder coated, any color you like, intakes, and all this and that.
02:36 This is a really comprehensive kit, and it should help a lot during our swap process.
02:41 While getting the driveline in place took a day, routing and relocating everything else
02:45 around it took much longer.
02:47 Check for a more detailed story at MotorTrend.com.
02:53 We were continuously impressed by Fueled Racing's swap kit.
02:57 The mounts bolt right up, as does the trans crossmember and drive shaft.
03:03 The included Moroso oil pan fits snugly between the 240SX front crossmember and anti-roll
03:08 bar, and the oil filter relocation kit comes with all the hardware and lines you need to
03:13 mount it to the passenger frame rail.
03:15 Last night we got really excited because the engine and transmission fit into the car on
03:20 the first try, which felt really cool, and I think we can officially label this car the
03:24 240SS, because you know, Camaro SS drivetrain and so on, you get it.
03:28 What do we have now?
03:29 Well, we have to bolt in all the accessories around the engine, take care of power steering,
03:34 take care of oil filter, take care of the charcoal canister, this, that, and the other.
03:37 We have to wire it all up with the GM supplied ECU, and that's kind of it.
03:45 Because this is an emissions compliance swap, we had to use the Chevy provided exhaust manifolds
03:49 and catalytic converters.
03:52 The space is tight, but Mark was able to fab up a system that met the cats to a 4" HKS
03:57 muffler that came off the car when we got it.
04:01 The system hangs a little low though, so we're looking forward to redoing it again in the
04:05 future.
04:07 Hooking up the Chevy wiring harness is almost completely plug and play, as each plug is
04:11 labeled and cut to fit.
04:14 We were happy to have Alex's help.
04:16 On top of other things, he made and hid a chassis harness that ensured we'd still have
04:20 wipers, lights, hazards, and turn signals and so on.
04:23 He also relocated the battery to the rear.
04:29 Right here we have a radiator from Mishimoto.
04:31 It's an S13 drop in replacement basically.
04:34 Big core, great build quality, which is why we went with Mishimoto.
04:37 Doesn't take much work to get it to work with the LS3, we just have to build an adapter
04:41 for the steam port that keeps the engine nice and cool.
04:45 On this we're going to go to two electric fans that look like this.
04:50 These attach right up, wire them up to the GMECU, and it turns it on when the car gets
04:54 too hot.
04:56 Pretty simple stuff.
04:57 One of the cool things about the engine that we're using is that it has an OBD2 port, and
05:03 that means we can use this display from Race Pack.
05:06 What this does is it plugs into the OBD, takes all the sensors that the engine's reading,
05:10 and displays them in a really customizable, configurable way right on this screen.
05:14 We also have an additional oil pressure gauge because oil pressure can be an issue when
05:18 it comes to over 1G in handling on these cars.
05:22 Other cool things, this has data logging, this has GPS, so it'll have accurate speed,
05:26 and on and on and on and on.
05:27 This is a really, really cool system.
05:29 And also we got this neat bezel that we can trim to fit in the original dash location.
05:39 Once the engine was running properly, we carefully monitored it while performing the break-in
05:43 procedure.
05:44 After that, we finally got the suspension aligned and corner balanced the car.
05:52 And it was time to drive it.
06:11 Let me start out by saying, as someone who's tested the 918 LaFerrari McLaren P1, that
06:17 this 93 240SX is the best car in the world.
06:24 I might be a little biased because of the time I've spent working on it.
06:29 Maybe this is kind of what it feels like to be a father of a newborn.
06:33 But this thing is the best thing I've driven.
06:37 Now, why is this car so great?
06:40 Well, there's the obvious things.
06:42 It's a 430 horsepower car that weighs 2,800 pounds.
06:46 I mean, you could just hear that and know that this car is going to be fun.
06:51 But what I'm surprised about is that we have managed to take the fundamental strengths
06:57 of the S13 240SX chassis.
07:00 We haven't screwed them up a lot.
07:03 The 240SX traits are still here.
07:06 Great visibility, really nice and easy to put the car in a line.
07:10 It's nice and low.
07:11 It feels like it has a low center of gravity.
07:13 And adding this V8 didn't add any significant amount of weight, which is probably the best
07:19 part.
07:20 It adds so much in terms of fun, but nothing in terms of downside.
07:27 Our scales show the 240SS weighs in at 2,808 pounds, meaning it's picked up just 68 pounds
07:33 from the swap.
07:34 Add in the big wheels and brakes and suspension and other parts we've included, and the 240
07:39 has gained 100 pounds since we started working on it.
07:42 But crucially, the weight balance hasn't changed.
07:45 The speed of the thing has changed dramatically.
07:49 What's really satisfying about this 6.2 liter V8 is the response.
08:01 Now, you don't get that with forced induction engines, or at least with turbocharged engines.
08:07 You don't have that just linear behavior.
08:09 As soon as you pick up the throttle, you know exactly how much torque you're going to get.
08:14 And by the way, it's a lot of torque.
08:16 You also have a really, really nice soundtrack.
08:20 It's just bizarre to hear the V8 sound through that four-inch HKS exhaust.
08:25 But when you hear it, it just makes you smile because it's so silly.
08:34 The steering is light, just like a Ferrari F12, just like the LaFerrari.
08:39 The clutch is light, and so the car still has this quality of being light overall.
08:45 But it also has this big, burly V8 in it.
08:48 It's the best of all the worlds.
08:53 The front end still feels nimble.
08:55 The steering helps that sensation, and so does the light pedals and the light controls.
09:00 And you still have a terrific amount of grip in the car overall.
09:05 The 240 SS didn't turn out the way I expected.
09:11 It turned out better.
09:13 It still has some bugs.
09:16 It still has some issues.
09:17 You've got to still fix some small things, but--
09:27 While I babied the launch for fear of breaking an axle, the 240 SS hits 60 miles an hour
09:32 in 4.1 seconds.
09:38 It passed the quarter at 12.3 seconds at 120.7 miles an hour.
09:44 That's the track speed of an 11-second car, and it's not too shabby for a completely stock
09:48 engine on its first day at the track.
09:53 The 240 SS's figure-eight performance got even better.
09:57 At 23.9 seconds, it's faster than a long list of great cars, including the BMW M3, Porsche
10:03 Cayman S, and yes, even the Ferrari 458.
10:08 The car's low weight and high lateral capabilities means you can just toss it in without using
10:12 too much brake.
10:13 While there is some mid-corner understeer that will have to tune out, you can fix it
10:17 for the time being really quickly with the throttle.
10:21 On power, the 240 is a bit loose, but in a really fun way.
10:25 And it still has good forward acceleration even when you're putting in countersteer.
10:29 You could laugh at the thing all day.
10:31 Even better, we know with that some suspension tweaks and better brake balance, the car could
10:35 go even faster.
10:36 While we weren't looking to set the fastest lap times, we were curious to see what the
10:43 car would do on its first day at the track.
10:46 Yeah!
10:47 Okay.
10:48 That is amazing.
10:51 Wow.
10:53 Did you do the work?
10:55 It was myself and Mark Linardin right there.
10:58 Wow, Carlos.
10:59 Well, Mark too.
11:00 Welcome to the real world, man.
11:01 Yeah, Mark too.
11:02 Yeah, warming the tires.
11:03 It's light.
11:04 Light and quick.
11:05 A little too much understeer through the long sweepers.
11:06 Great transmission.
11:07 Don't like the brakes.
11:08 No ABS.
11:29 I've been spoiled here coming into one.
11:31 240 wants to lock that inside tire.
11:36 I'm wondering if we have enough suspension travel in the front of the car.
11:40 I think it might be bottoming.
11:41 Broad power band.
11:42 It's a wonderful engine.
11:43 I got to be a little careful with the brakes.
11:54 In the bumpy, curving kink, that brake zone is a great place to have ABS.
12:02 We don't.
12:03 I'm still trying to decide whether it's underdamped or overdamped.
12:08 I think it might be a little underdamped.
12:09 I'm going to try to get it to work.
12:37 I'm going to try to get it to work.
13:06 I'm going to try to get it to work.
13:33 I'm going to try to get it to work.
13:56 The 240 SS's performance is a hugely impressive result for its first day at the track.
14:01 We did find some glitches.
14:03 The braking balance is off, so the performance potential of those Brembos isn't being translated
14:08 properly through the tires.
14:09 There's also a bit of mid-corner understeer that we need to dial out.
14:14 We also need to improve air flow under the hood.
14:16 Once we address those things, we're pretty confident this car will lap streets in the
14:20 high 123s.
14:24 The goal from day one was to improve the 240SX without compromising the inherent strengths
14:29 of its chassis.
14:30 In short, make it fast, but keep it fun.
14:33 And I think we can say mission accomplished to that goal.
14:37 Of course, the question now is, what's next?
14:41 On top of the brake and suspension tuning, we're planning on getting new axles and a
14:44 better limited slip differential.
14:46 What else?
14:47 Let us know what you'd like to see.
15:00 Thanks for watching.
15:26 - I'm just rolling with it. - Cool.