My V36 Rb26/30 Swap.. Going All In!

[G37Sam]

Hey guys,

So to keep it short, got bored of the VQ and its slush box, the engine's compression is too high to boost reliably without selling a kidney, and on top of all, the VVEL will forever be a bottle neck on this engine. Solution: RB30 swap

Picked up an RB30E bottom end, cast iron block, long stroke, with enough torque to move the G around, mated to an RB26 and an RB25 pull type gearbox since I will be keeping her a RWD.

To this point, we got the following:

RB26 head & RB30 block, waiting on head bolts, gaskets and cam belts

RB25 Pull Type gearbox

A snail crawling around in my living room... (GT35 Compressor mated to a T04 turbine 090 trim)

RB26 Intake Manifold

RB26 Exhaust Manifold

VH45DE 90mm throttle body, mechanical throttle FTW!

Update: 26-11-2012

Gasket kit, head bolts and tensioner kit have arrived and have been dropped off at the shop. Aiming to start stripping down the G on Saturday!

The manifolds were just held against the head to measure clearances from wheel well, we may have to re-route the wastegate pipe.

Intake side should not be a problem

Update 28-11-2012:

The head has been sent for porting, polishing and final prep work before getting fitted back in. The block is getting painted and drilled for the tensioner.

In the meantime, this showed up at work today:

3.5" intercooler and an Oil Catch Can.

Update 03-12-2012:

Engine and head are finally ready! Car has been dropped off today to begin surgery. Here's what all the head covers and pulleys look like so far

Update 06-12-2012

Engine test fitting began and it is looking great so far!

The intake manifold inlet will he have to be slightly modified to fit the throttle body due to limited space

The turbo side however is a tight fit

The wastegate pipe is a little too close for comfort too, may have to be modified as well. No so sure yet. It is looking great so far!

Update 08-12-2012:

The following pictures will not be easy for the weak-hearted

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Doesn't that shifter look like it just belongs there?

Well it wasn't work of magic though, the transmission will have to be pushed around 26mm away from the engine to get the shifter position where it belongs. A spacer will be made to sit between the engine and transmission housing. The flywheel will also have to be pushed by that same amount. You can see the tiny spacers currently being tested.

Since the transmission's cross member will be slightly relocated, some new holes had to be made

The crank case also wanted a share of the action, it wouldn't fit properly around the engine's cross member so it had to be modified. The mechanic suggested he will be test fitting an RB25 crank case as it may be easier to work with, let's see how that goes.

Transmission alignment in progress

The wastegate pipe continues to pester around, this time around the steering column. The mechanic says the engine is not 100% aligned yet, once done it will move further away from the steering column.

Stay tuned for updates!!

[sonicii]

Looks good, but I'd this really cheaper than rebuilding the VQ and auto box to handle decent boost?

[ka86]

What tuning options will you choose?

Looks good man.

Also once finished.. have fun on Jebel Hafeet Mountain Road...

[PN-Mad]

I hope you have someone good with electrics to wire all that stuff in.

So its just a std 26 head bolted on a Std 30 block?

[G37Sam]

Looks good, but I'd this really cheaper than rebuilding the VQ and auto box to handle decent boost?

Much cheaper, a VQ twin turbo kit from GTM is $8000 alone, and that's without shipping to the UAE or labor or supporting mods. An MT transmission swap will upset the OEM ECU. And after all that, I'm still stuck with a high compression engine (11:1) that would be like a ticking time bomb.

And besides, the RB engine is a lot more fun!

What tuning options will you choose?

Looks good man.

Also once finished.. have fun on Jebel Hafeet Mountain Road...

I'll be going with a Standalone ECU by Adaptronic.. Jebal Hafeet will get a share of my tires that's for sure!

I hope you have someone good with electrics to wire all that stuff in.

So its just a std 26 head bolted on a Std 30 block?

Yup someone real good and an Aussie too! Yup, OEM 26 head that's been machined and brought back to OEM condition

[t5iv]

Now this is different. Keen to see what she makes!

[G37Sam]

She still doesn't sound 100% right. I discovered there was no IAT sensor hooked up which is probably why the ignition timing is all over the place. Will secure that and see how the engine responds. Until then.. enjoy

[Shoota_77]

Gee she's a bit rattly! Did you prime the oil pump (get oil pressure) prior to start up?

Should a good fun once it's all sorted!

[szymonsta]

cool build! ive seen a 350Z with RB swap, but never V36..look forward to seeing this progress!

[G37Sam]

Just a quick update, Engine was rebuilt with CP Pistons & Manley Rods, Nitto Oil Pump and ACL Bearings. Figured I'd do it right while the engine was opened up anyways.

Here's what she was like on 12 psi

Edited April 21, 2013 by G37Sam

[PN-Mad]

Needs more boost. So I'm guessing the stock motor was stuffed, hence that terrible sound in the first vid?

You running in the motor? How much power you expecting once you turn it up? Hope youll be getting a decent turbo on it, cause current one looks china special.

[G37Sam]

Yeah the engine took a dump on the dyno, when we took it apart we found out the bearings were shot. So I figured it was time to rebuild it. The car is now running at 17psi WG pressure and 21 psi with boost controller. Still room for more but it's getting too bloody hot here so I'm keeping it safe

The Turbo came off a 2JZ that made more than 500whp btw. It's not the best turbo in town I agree but I got it for dirt cheap just to use as a starting point. It will be replaced with a nice 6266 along with some poncams as soon as the weather starts cooling down again

[PN-Mad]

6266!

Heck yes, now your talking. THAT is going to be good.

Good on ya buddy for doing something different.

[G37Sam]

Thanks mate

Also in that video, my OEM diff is too tall for the RB25, I'm redlining 3rd gear at 225 kph to give you an idea. So I have a swap planned and coming soon.

[scotty nm35]

Is this the car Guilt toy is tuning?

Looks good, but I would have kept the VQ personally. Much more potential.

[G37Sam]

Is this the car Guilt toy is tuning?

Yup!

Looks good, but I would have kept the VQ personally. Much more potential.

The VQ VHR with the 5AT has no where close to the potential of an RB26/30.

[daisu]

I don't see why you would convert to RB30?

Rebuilding the bottom end in the RB30 would be similar cost to the VQ37, also change the compression ratio while you rebuild.

$8000 for the turbo kit is not pocket money, agreed. But remember that is all brand new parts and a full kit, probably including wastegates etc

You say that a MT swap would upset the OEM ECU, but you are replacing with aftermarket ECU anyway?

No doubt that the 26/30 engine is capable, powerful with great aftermarket support, but I feel like the VQ37 would have done just as well, if not better.
Have you noticed any change in the vehicle handling? With the new engine I imagine being a lot heavier (iron block) and more weight further foward (I6 versus V6)

[G37Sam]

You say that a MT swap would upset the OEM ECU, but you are replacing with aftermarket ECU anyway?

An aftermarket ECU is near impossible to run with the VHR head (VVEL controller). People are only tuning and are limited to an UpRev flash. Converting to an HR head is a whole different project.

No doubt that the 26/30 engine is capable, powerful with great aftermarket support, but I feel like the VQ37 would have done just as well, if not better.
Have you noticed any change in the vehicle handling? With the new engine I imagine being a lot heavier (iron block) and more weight further foward (I6 versus V6)

It actually handles better now because I fit in some coilovers

[scotty nm35]

The RE5 auto is a little weak for the task, but mine is going ok now it's built. A box is quite easy to transplant as you found though.

The VQ's are very misunderstood, your engine was more advanced than the VR38. You missed a golden opportunity, uprev or not. The Link G4 extreme would have run it with some Guilt toy input...

[G37Sam]

The RE5 auto is a little weak for the task, but mine is going ok now it's built. A box is quite easy to transplant as you found though.

The VQ's are very misunderstood, your engine was more advanced than the VR38. You missed a golden opportunity, uprev or not. The Link G4 extreme would have run it with some Guilt toy input...

Trust me, I've driven the VQ37VHR for five years and spent a lot of time on myG37 forums. It's a great engine to run naturally aspirated. I just wanted raw power & torque with an M/T gearbox and non restricted tuning capabilities.