I have a 97 nissan altima that I don't want to sell. It has a lot of personal value to me. But I'm approaching 180,000 miles on it and I still have most of the original parts. As you can imagine it's starting to sound a little rough. I want to do a overhaul on it. I have most of the body kit picked out and the color, but i'm not real good with the mechanical part. What type of engine should I get? I've been told to try and find or import a SR20 but if there is another alternative, please someone let me know. Anyother suggestions would be great.
97 nissan Altima engine
Sep 28, 2004
2 Replies
The SR20 doesn't make any more HP or torque than the 2.4 liter you have in it now can. A swap is expensive and for an even powered motor not worth the trouble. I would stick with the 2.4 you have now and put a turbo on it. If the motor is that bad then for about 4k you can have a dealer put a remanufactured one in the car. This is what I plan to do with my 1995 Altima. I had thought about making it fast and putting a body kit on it but decided its not worth it for a heavy front wheel drive car. If you want to do this to a car Id hunt for a 240SX (RWD) or my personal choice 1988 Fiero (lightweight RWD and mid engine)
You should be able to find a used low-mile "takeout" engine from a japanese engine retailer for around $1500-$2000 plus labor. Most will come with some kind of warranty attached.
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