Someone metioned turbo being cheaper to convert to then installing a supercharger...but when i did a search for one i couldn't find anything can anyone help me with this....thanks ahead of time J
:wink-big:

You didn't find anything becuase (as far as I know) no one has ever put a turbo on an xterra. One person did successfully supercharge a N/A xterra however.

i believe they used the vg30(same engine, different displacement)
in the older Z cars, maybe that would be the place to look

Performance Potential...
http://members.tripod.com/%7Egrannys/VG30bottomendsm.jpg (http://members.tripod.com/%7Egrannys/VG30bottomend.jpg)...the VG series engines are highly upgradable. A very stout cast iron block coupled with an equally strong girdle type iron main cap assembly, along with hi-alloy forged steel crankshafts, rolled fillet radius throughout, and long 6.071" rods have potential for around 600hp and 25+psi on the stock bottom end. Modified versions have made it to 1000hp. Maximum RPM is around 9000. Aftermarket parts for these engines include...
...low compression forged pistons for extreme boost applications
...4340 H-beam connecting rods (not required until you reach 700+hp)
...intake manifold for 2bbl holley if you want to run a carb

taken from here
http://members.tripod.com/~grannys/2N6VG30.html

It's not the block that is the problem, its the engine management, trans module, and all the other electronic hoo-hoo's and ya-ya's that make it difficult. (sorry for the technical terminology)

I dont understand why you want to turbo an SUV anyway. Turbo's take time to spool and you really only see the value in them around 3500 RPM and above. I dont know about how you guys drive your X's but I dont think I have EVER gone above 4000 RPM therefore completely negating the need for one. Blowers provide instant power steady through the HP curve thus making it better for our trucks and their uses. Just my .02

I dont understand why you want to turbo an SUV anyway. Turbo's take time to spool and you really only see the value in them around 3500 RPM and above. I dont know about how you guys drive your X's but I dont think I have EVER gone above 4000 RPM therefore completely negating the need for one. Blowers provide instant power steady through the HP curve thus making it better for our trucks and their uses. Just my .02

small turbos spool fast, but dont provide as much boost, big turbos take a while to spool but provide massive boost, theres alot of things that come into play, some turbo setups are at full boost by 1300rpm, ita all in the setup.

that still dosent mean id turbo my X, turbo cars(especial ones that started off N/A) are too expensive and too high maintenance imo

ok good to know all of that info....My main prob is i went from a 93 2dr honda civic base model upgraded to the ex engine with cold air intake exaust etc short shift kit so i'm happy with the X but it feels like it really lacks...I'm sure the 4.0 is alot better but the 3.3 is so so...i have had it over 5k but thats just cause i drive that way sometimes...To up the power I'm planing to do a gibson exaust and an intake either k@n or AEM..not sure what i can do besides that. You guys are very helpful when i get over nemoniya..I have no idea how it's spelled forgive me i know it sucks though...

i know the DSM turbos are freakin tiny compared to my supras ct-26 (which is still a relativley small turbo) and the DSM's still take just under 3000rpm to spool. Any smaller a turbo put on a 6 cyl. engine wouldnt be anywhere near the power to money output. Not to mention yo uwould have a snail smaller than a freakin eclipse...

the whole size of the turbo is not important. It is the size of the intake and exhaust spools. If you had to run high rpms to spool all of them, diesels wouldn't have them since they red line at a little over 3000. If you compund them, you can start with a low rpm turbo that spools from 1000 rpms to 2500 rpms and then have the other turbo spool at the higher rpms. Turbos also don't use horse power to make it like a super charger. You can build a set up for inexpensive at turbocity.com. Compression is the killer when it comes to turbos and super chargers. Make sure the engine components can handle it.

You didn't find anything becuase (as far as I know) no one has ever put a turbo on an xterra. One person did successfully supercharge a N/A xterra however.

hi, i'm new to the forums,looking at buying a 2002 5 speed xterra,non-supercharged though,was wondering who succesfully did the swap cus i can't find an xterra exactly like i want it

Are you meaning you are wanting to add on a supercharger to a 1st gen (2002)? Why not get the supercharged model?

they guy that added a SC has a 2nd gen..... S E X_terra
but like previously stated why dont you just get a SC model???????

can't seem to find anyone with that username unless he hasn't posted on here recently,not sure,as i said,can't seem to find a supercharged one optioned as i want it,but found one with a standard naturally aspirated,optioned like i want it,except for the supercharger

it'd be cheaper and easier to buy a supercharged model and put the options on it yourself,dosent make sense to me why you would want to have to do the most expensive and complicated option after you get the X,

here is a link to his profile....
http://www.clubxterra.org/forums/member.php?u=1404
but like dustin said why would you want to do this when you can buy the SC 1st gen????? i would cost way to much money to convert.....

a turbo would actually do really well when you are in 4 low, you would gain alot of low end power

True but a supercharger gives consistent power and torque rather than having to keep the rpm's revved to keep the turbo spinning. When in 4-low a lot of times you are barely doing much more than idling and letting the gear ratio do the work. Plus when a turbo "kicks in" it could cause the tires to break traction which is why you need consistent torque on the wheels and not a sudden boost.

That's my theory anyways... lol

your looking for a manual SC X? I think I read somehwere the only year they were available was 2002. Not exactly sure though. Anyone know if thats right?

I believe you are correct sir. 2002 was the only year for the S/C 5-speed manual tranny.

I'm sure the 4.0 is alot better but the 3.3 is so so...
Forgive me for my ignorance but y is it that i have never heard of a 4.0 for an xterra?

It is the powerplant for the 2nd gens.

I wonder if anyone has tried to put one in a 1st. gen.

It is the powerplant for the 2nd gens.

I wonder if anyone has tried to put one in a 1st. gen.

That'd be awesome if it was attempted.....

but that guy was talking about a 1st gen wasn't he?

anything can be done with $$$

Im not talking about a swap that guy made it sound like a 4.0 came in certain 1st gens and i was wondering if that was true or not

I've never seen a 1st gen in 4.0L and I logged onto some website a while back and it asked for engine specification for mine (had a dropdown menu) and it didnt show 4.0L so I doubt the 1st gen has it.

The only options for the 1st gen were the 2.4 I4 and 3.3 V6. Of course where they sell them overseas (and in the Frontiers) a 2.7 TD I4 (I think) was an option.

i think eshan has a i4

yeah, Ehsan's got a I4 2wd X

I have heard of a guy that has put the 4.0 in a first gen. I would think it would be alot less expensive to do that than try to reconfigure everyting for a turbo. I was actually thinking about doing that too by going to a jy and fond a totaled 2nd gen and grabbing the motor trans and ecu. But like cbzdel said, anything is possible w/ $$$$$$!

That's interesting. Are you sure it was from a second gen because I would have thought with the amount of electrical and interconnected systems that would be a serious challenge.
I have heard of a V8 conversion but that was from an older Armada or something where the electrics would be similar.

For the first gen. SC swap, there used to be a company called Aurora Motorsports or something of the like.

I have a friend who did the swap and he was very happy with it. It looks good too.

For the first gen. SC swap, there used to be a company called Aurora Motorsports or something of the like.

I have a friend who did the swap and he was very happy with it. It looks good too.


What exactly is this swap you're talking of James? Is it adding a SC to a non SC vehicle or swapping a non SC motor for a SC motor?

The complete motor swap should be quite straight forward I would think. Just bolt it in and swap ECUs. Oh and maybe a change to the hood.

What exactly is this swap you're talking of James? Is it adding a SC to a non SC vehicle or swapping a non SC motor for a SC motor?

The complete motor swap should be quite straight forward I would think. Just bolt it in and swap ECUs. Oh and maybe a change to the hood.

He put an SC on an NA VG33E

Cool. I wonder what was involved and how bolt on it was?

Here is the thread

http://www.roninwheelers.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=143

Thanks. That was a great read. It seems right now that the factory type conversion is the only way to go unless you can convince a shop to take it on.

They kept that under their hats...everyone that's asked these kind of questions has been flamed on that other board.

no flaming here.. LOL thats why we are active....

I know it

Time for a quick run down of the turbo versus the supercharger.
Turbo: No aftermarket kit is produced for the xterra, however, universal kits are made by greddy and sts. If you know what you are doing or have the money, i suggest the sts kits. These kits help greatly on heat exchange and power. I recently had my 2000 beetle converted from a 1.8 turbo to a sts rear mounted turbo. But my car was stolen from me in the wal-mart parking lot while I was buying groceries.
Supercharger:The OEM N/A engine is the same as a supercharged engine. You will have to get a new pulley and intake plenium with the roots supercharger, then reformat your ecu with that of the supercharged edition. I am in the process of installing mine on my 2001 xterra se. So far, I spent 150 dollars and a yellow top optima battery for the supercharger. The other parts are hard to find at a junkyard. It maybe better off trying to buy a kit from an online store.
I still need pictures of the bracket for the pulley next to the underdrive pulley that runs in-line with the supercharger pulley.

I still think that the best solution would be someone like eshan to swap in the sr20det that is already turbo'd... but the 4X4, ability...... i dont know how good it would work....and to put on a turbo to our trucks isnt as hard as some would think, the hardest part infact would be the ecu controling the fuel in the corect way

Time for a quick run down of the turbo versus the supercharger.
Turbo: No aftermarket kit is produced for the xterra, however, universal kits are made by greddy and sts. If you know what you are doing or have the money, i suggest the sts kits. These kits help greatly on heat exchange and power. I recently had my 2000 beetle converted from a 1.8 turbo to a sts rear mounted turbo. But my car was stolen from me in the wal-mart parking lot while I was buying groceries.
Supercharger:The OEM N/A engine is the same as a supercharged engine. You will have to get a new pulley and intake plenium with the roots supercharger, then reformat your ecu with that of the supercharged edition. I am in the process of installing mine on my 2001 xterra se. So far, I spent 150 dollars and a yellow top optima battery for the supercharger. The other parts are hard to find at a junkyard. It maybe better off trying to buy a kit from an online store.
I still need pictures of the bracket for the pulley next to the underdrive pulley that runs in-line with the supercharger pulley.

are you doing a how to on this???? and i hope you are taking plenty of pics of the install....

I would love to add a SC to my X.. But finding the parts (@ affordable prices) and time would be the hard part :(

Ok, I just got the bill from two places on the parts and equipment. Looking at the pics from other members supercharged engines and the details from the nissan dealership, this is what I have come up with so far:
Dealership: 400 Dollars for the intake and plenium with all the gaskets.
Supercharger Bought on-line: 150 and a yellow to optima
The junkyard: 125 for all the parts and 150 for the supercharger.
Assuming everything works the way it should. I hope to start install on the parts on 15th of August. Will show pics of EVERYTHING. Although, I am still looking for a ECU for a 2000 to 20003 supercharged xterra if anybody knows where I can get one for cheap.

an easy solution to engine management (which would be the big problem with a turbo vg33e) would be a greddy emanage... or... send your ecu to Jim Wolf with your list of mods.... that's what I did for my turbo Nissan pulsars .. which never existed from factory :)

There is so much wrong and absolutely horrible information regarding turbos in this thread it makes my head hurt...


I hope anyone reading this, takes those posts in the beginning with a grain of salt, since no one so far seems to have a firm grasp of turbochargers in this thread.

which posts do you not agree with????

i agree there is some bad information here, but you cant just say "oh you dont know what your talking about" then not back it up.... especially on the net man........ do enlighten us.

we are waiting...lol

2 members on clubfrontier are installing s/c's on their n/a frontiers, one member is even taking it farther with long tube headers and greddy emanage. good luck and hope all goes well for you.

I just don't understand why would you want to turbo or s/c a 1st gen X. if you use the right gears and tires, Tcase gears and a rear locker you can take on just about anything.
unless your not into the off roading thing and just want to be different....

No problem..


It's not the block that is the problem, its the engine management, trans module, and all the other electronic hoo-hoo's and ya-ya's that make it difficult. (sorry for the technical terminology)

Engine management is actually much better these days. Look into a little thing called Megasquirt. Great DIY stand alone, that is capable of quite an extensive amount of control.

I dont understand why you want to turbo an SUV anyway. Turbo's take time to spool and you really only see the value in them around 3500 RPM and above. I dont know about how you guys drive your X's but I dont think I have EVER gone above 4000 RPM therefore completely negating the need for one. Blowers provide instant power steady through the HP curve thus making it better for our trucks and their uses. Just my .02

Absolutely 100% false. Spool depends on size, blade type, etc with displacement. A larger displacement engine can produce enough air to spool a decent turbo VERY quickly. Just as a quick example, my car in my signature came stock with 300hp and 315lb's of torque at 2500rpm. I'd call that a heck of a value way before 3500. You can absolutely size the turbo for the application to see gains below 3,500. Also, just because you haven't gone above 4k, doesn't mean others don't. If he wants a SUV to go play with the ricers on the weekend and plans to take it to redline, they he'll be seeing the upper RPM's quite a bit on WOT runs.

small turbos spool fast, but dont provide as much boost, big turbos take a while to spool but provide massive boost, theres alot of things that come into play, some turbo setups are at full boost by 1300rpm, ita all in the setup.

that still dosent mean id turbo my X, turbo cars(especial ones that started off N/A) are too expensive and too high maintenance imo

Wrong. It isn't about boost, it's about airflow. A smaller turbo at 10PSI is not the same as a bigger turbo at 10PSI. The small turbo will hit 10PSI probably a great deal sooner than the bigger turbo depending on the application, but it won't flow as much air. More air + more fuel = hp. Technology with turbos today has greatly increased from the old days, and there are many turbos capable of a large powerband while providing massive hp gains.


i know the DSM turbos are freakin tiny compared to my supras ct-26 (which is still a relativley small turbo) and the DSM's still take just under 3000rpm to spool. Any smaller a turbo put on a 6 cyl. engine wouldnt be anywhere near the power to money output. Not to mention yo uwould have a snail smaller than a freakin eclipse...

He could put a turbo that is larger than a DSM or Supra easily as he has more displacement. One GT35R would be a nicely matched turbo that would spool fast and provide support of 500-600hp. Another great turbo is the Borg Warner S258 with Extended Tip Technology. My best friend just trapped 127mph in the 1/4 with it on his 2.4 stroker Eclipse. His car spools very fast, and it would spool even faster with almost a whole liter more.

the whole size of the turbo is not important. It is the size of the intake and exhaust spools. If you had to run high rpms to spool all of them, diesels wouldn't have them since they red line at a little over 3000. If you compund them, you can start with a low rpm turbo that spools from 1000 rpms to 2500 rpms and then have the other turbo spool at the higher rpms. Turbos also don't use horse power to make it like a super charger. You can build a set up for inexpensive at turbocity.com. Compression is the killer when it comes to turbos and super chargers. Make sure the engine components can handle it.

Again, some skewed ideas in here. The size of the turbo is dependent on physical design, compressor wheel size, and exhaust wheel size. ( not called spools ) A turbo doesn't care about RPM, it cares about airflow. A diesel is always LARGE displacement on a relatively small turbo for the size. Take the Ford 7.3 Powerstroke for example. That turbo that comes stock, is comparable in size to some people who run them on DSM's or other 4 bangers for a cheap street turbo. ( typically the dodge HX35 from the cummings turbo diesel )

The compound setups are a very interesting design. They are set so that the first turbo compressor outlet is feeding into the inlet of the second turbo. ( Hence the compounded term ) Setups such as that are capable of creating a great deal of power, but need a lot of displacement. ( well.. don't NEED, but there are much better options on smaller displacement engines. Turbo's typically do it, because they operate different than a gasoline engine. No other engine gets cooler when you lean it out. Diesels like to be fed lots of boost and lots of fuel to make hp )


The idea of turbos can be very simple, and very complicated depending on how far you want to look into it.


If you have any questions, feel free to ask. I've been working with turbo cars for a long time, and have probably installed more turbos on vehicles than anyone else here. My X is just a DD, I've been racing turbo mitsu's for years.

i agree there is some bad information here, but you cant just say "oh you dont know what your talking about" then not back it up.... especially on the net man........ do enlighten us.

Happy?

And for reference, the car in my signature is mine, hand built from the ground up by me, and makes over 500hp reliably. Also, if I wasn't clear or rushed on something, I'm sure I can explain it better later. I'm currently in a lab for school and wrote this real quick between working with my group.

thanks for clearing somethings up...