Picked up a used 3.3 to build with my son. Any suggestions on what to do?

K

KBC

Bought an X
Location
BC
Got a good deal on a used engine to build up. It should be a fun project for my almost 3 year old son and myself. We want more power in the '01.
I'm planning on;
Cams
Port/polish/gasket match
Snorkel (already have K&N drop in)
Exhaust (already have DT headers but the rest needs to be done)
ECU reprogram

My questions are;

What cams? I'm not dropping the small fortune on Jim wolf ones, so Euro cams or have the stock ones reground? Other options? From where?

Any tips or links to good advice for the port/polish? It seems that the internet is torn with opinions on smoothing out the intake or leaving it rough. Either way the exhaust ports will be polished so any tips will help.

Hopefully the EBay snorkels will still be around when I finally order one.

Exhaust opinions? I don't mind getting rid of the 2 remaining cats but should I stick with the factory Y pipe and just add a muffler? I need to do a bit of research to see if they will fit but apparently the 2000 Xterras didn't have secondary cats. Maybe those pipes will bolt right in?

ECU reprogram for mods. $300 worth it?

Will boring out to the biggest piston I can get in the master rebuild kits be worth the machining costs in performance? 0.040" over? Or is all the talk about the VQ45 pistons the way to go?

This is still my DD and family camping rig so I am leaning a little towards being a bit conservative with the mods to keep it reliable and keep the budget down.

As far as where I would like to see the most gains it would have to be on the highway and towing our tent trailer. Loaded up with all our gear and the tent trailer this thing is pretty slow. We would love to get a real hard-sided trailer, but I don't think the Xterra can handle anything more than we already give it. If there was a bit more power under the hood it would be a lot easier to part with the POS tent trailer and get something better to camp in. I could sell it and get something else but right now, the Xterra with 3" SL, 2" BL and 33"s is the biggest vehicle that will fit in the garage of our townhouse while still being able to get the doors open on both sides, so no full size trucks allowed. I also like it a lot....

As far as my skill level goes, I'm a noob when it comes to doing things like this. I'm an almost licensed helicopter mechanic so I do have a small amount of formal training on piston engines but actually building one is out of my expertise so far. I'm confident in my abilities to figure stuff out and I have the FSM and the haynes book but I'm still a noob so be gentle.
 
T

TJTJ

Skid Plates
Founding Member
Location
NJ
KBC said:
Got a good deal on a used engine to build up. It should be a fun project for my almost 3 year old son and myself. We want more power in the '01.
I'm planning on;
Cams
Port/polish/gasket match
Snorkel (already have K&N drop in)
Exhaust (already have DT headers but the rest needs to be done)
ECU reprogram

My questions are;

What cams? I'm not dropping the small fortune on Jim wolf ones, so Euro cams or have the stock ones reground? Other options? From where?

Any tips or links to good advice for the port/polish? It seems that the internet is torn with opinions on smoothing out the intake or leaving it rough. Either way the exhaust ports will be polished so any tips will help.

Hopefully the EBay snorkels will still be around when I finally order one.

Exhaust opinions? I don't mind getting rid of the 2 remaining cats but should I stick with the factory Y pipe and just add a muffler? I need to do a bit of research to see if they will fit but apparently the 2000 Xterras didn't have secondary cats. Maybe those pipes will bolt right in?

ECU reprogram for mods. $300 worth it?

Will boring out to the biggest piston I can get in the master rebuild kits be worth the machining costs in performance? 0.040" over? Or is all the talk about the VQ45 pistons the way to go?

This is still my DD and family camping rig so I am leaning a little towards being a bit conservative with the mods to keep it reliable and keep the budget down.

As far as where I would like to see the most gains it would have to be on the highway and towing our tent trailer. Loaded up with all our gear and the tent trailer this thing is pretty slow. We would love to get a real hard-sided trailer, but I don't think the Xterra can handle anything more than we already give it. If there was a bit more power under the hood it would be a lot easier to part with the POS tent trailer and get something better to camp in. I could sell it and get something else but right now, the Xterra with 3" SL, 2" BL and 33"s is the biggest vehicle that will fit in the garage of our townhouse while still being able to get the doors open on both sides, so no full size trucks allowed. I also like it a lot....

As far as my skill level goes, I'm a noob when it comes to doing things like this. I'm an almost licensed helicopter mechanic so I do have a small amount of formal training on piston engines but actually building one is out of my expertise so far. I'm confident in my abilities to figure stuff out and I have the FSM and the haynes book but I'm still a noob so be gentle.
Click to expand...

Throw the Haynes away, its dangerous.

The FSM is fine.

The K&N can go with the Haynes.

The X is not going to be a barn burner or stump puller, so expect incremental rather than earth shattering gains.

The bores are Nikasil coated, so boring them out will probably ruin the seal, etc.

The ECU programming can't really do that much, other than "trick it into running richer", which is of limited real world value.

Headers, intake and exhaust, combined, might net a few more ponies...but, again, probably not worth the money to do it unless you're replacing parts anyway for maintenance, etc.

If not off roading, the snorkel is not really going to do more for you than simply removing the intake baffles from the fender to the airbox would do, etc. (The K&N oils have been fouling the MAF, so, not a great improvement, considering they don't actually filter much either...)

The X comes with "Cold Air Intake" (CAI) from the factory, taking in fresh air from the wheel well. The "CAI" with open element filters and "Heat Shields" actually INCREASE the intake temperature over stock.

As far as bang for the buck, if you want more oomph on the hills when towing, etc, re-gearing the diffs will typically be more noticeable that all of the above engine mods combined. If you had a supercharger, and did a pulley mod to really spin it up, THAT'S noticeable.

Swapping in all synthetics for all the lubes, the diffs, tranny, t-case, engine, wheel hubs, etc...adds some pep/mpg too w/o breaking the bank.

There's this thing that you plug into your cig lighter that has a speaker, and it essentially broadcasts a loud rumbly version of your engine noise...so it sounds like you are driving a open headered monster truck...and your 3 Yr old will LOVE that.

:D

PS - The timing belt and water pump get replaced at 105k miles...so, if due, add that to the list while you're "in there".
 
Prime

Prime

Shut up Baby, I know it!
Admin
Location
Denver Adjacent
I've heard positive things from the cam swap. Combined with porting and port matching everything (intake, heads, etc) you might see some gains. Nothing earth shattering, but still. Gains. I would really like to see a centrifugal or aftermarket roots supercharger for this engine. We need more power!

In the end, with the idea of trail toy in mind. A v8 swap is the way to go.
 
D

drbandkgb

Titan Swapped / SAS'd
Founding Member
I'm planning some fun with a 3.3 I have acquired ;)
It will be a year out but we will see if I can bang more than 200 hps out of it..
 
K

KBC

Bought an X
Location
BC
I'm hoping to do the build over the next 5-6 months with my little guy and get it swapped in before next spring. My goals are to try and get it close to the supercharged versions power-wise but maybe I'm dreaming... It will still be my DD and our camping rig for the next few years so a V8 swap isn't really in the plans...for now.... ;)
 
K

KBC

Bought an X
Location
BC
drbandkgb said:
I'm planning some fun with a 3.3 I have acquired ;)
It will be a year out but we will see if I can bang more than 200 hps out of it..
Click to expand...

What are your plans for cams? Getting the stock ones re-ground sounds like the cheapest option but is it the best option? I wish the Jim wolf ones weren't so expensive.
 
K

KBC

Bought an X
Location
BC
robcarync said:
http://schneidercams.com/naturallyaspirated-4.aspx

Regrind cams from here...you can get the same cam profile as the ones from AC. I haven't done cams, and have no direct experience with schneider, but have done tons of research and have heard good things from them. About half the price as 4x4parts.com too.
Click to expand...

I emailed them last week with a few questions but they haven't replied. Too bad since you can get a grind done almost like the Jim Wolf S2 ones but if they cant answer emails...
The rebuild is on the back burner until after I write my AME exam in a few weeks and then get my lokka, diff drop and new CVs installed. Then I'll put some time into pricing everything out to see if it will be worth it.
 
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