I'm guessing you'll already know this, but I'm pretty sure this was originally straight. Suspension linkage is fun/s
I wonder what engine swaps I could do with a '13 Nissan Sentra SL... (I'm likely to get the Sentra first, while I save money for the MDX, then make that my daily and make the Sentra some sort of a project car.)
Then again, it's a typical compact. The thing is that it has a slower engine (a 1.8 L, a downgrade from the previous gen), which is not that great. Would a SR engine be a good choice for a engine swap with that particular Sentra?
You've got money to buy two brand new (or nearly brand new) cars at your age? Also, a new car still worth quite a lot isn't the car to try your first swap on.
This is what I'm planning to do, though I won't buy it as soon as I'm 16 (I'd do it somewhere around my college years or at the age of 18, and the MDX can wait around the age of 22-24). With a 1.8 L slower than the previous Sentra, wouldn't it make more sense to upgrade it to a more faster engine?
If I were to do my first engine swap, I'd choose an old banger under $1000, not a 5 year old car that costs 10+ times more.
The best upgrade for a 2013 Sentra is buying a different car. Also, your dad drives a 2007 Civic, so I'd say the Sentra is a pipe dream.
You could put more or less anything in there that will physically fit (or is close to fitting) providing you have the time. I imagine you could probably make a fairly cool stealth performance car out of one of them, since the chassis is probably decent enough, if given the right alignment and springs. The car would lose everything that makes it what it is though, all the reliability and comfort will be more or less gone, and the car will need more maintenance. It would be far far cheaper to buy a fast new car, than take a new slow one and swap the engine and tune it up. The fast new car would also be comfier and more practical than a tuned one. You would be much better off buying a new daily if you really want a new car with warranty etc, then buy an older model for super cheap, and engine swap that.
This is BS. First, what makes a car that certain car does not always make it a good car. Second, if buying new is faster at a price point, then why do all the tuners do swaps all the time? Thirs, the reliability and comfort changes depend on the swap - a lot of swaps, like SBC Jaguars or RX-7s/8s, make the car more reliable, and swapping a newer engine in would probably make it quieter.
In 3 years time, a second hand one would probably fall within budget. Equally, not everyone who drives a cheap car does so because they couldn't afford anything better. I specifically remember one of my maths teachers at school stating that they have had multiple sports and luxury cars (as in BMW level luxury, not Bently), but they now own a beat up Saxo because they prefer it. Since it is more reliable than any of their previous cars and when it breaks they can scrap it and buy another one for £200. In her words she didn't think it was worth buying anything more expensive because she didn't like them as much.
That isn't what I said. Aka This: Would be cheaper than: + Hundreds (Thousands?) of hours of labour and tens of thousands of dollars worth of parts. As for your second point, why buy a certain car, if that is not the car you want. If they were planning on buying the Sentra because of any of its features, such as reliability, you wave goodbye to them when you engine swap it. I also very much doubt an engine swap would make a Japanese economy car any more reliable. Its already about as reliable as it gets out of the box.
Nah, I very much doubt it. Chevy will have spent huge amounts of money developing that car, not just to perform as well as it does, but also make the car cost effective and cheap to produce. If it was cheaper to take another car and modify it into a more compelling vehicle, then Chevy must have done an incredibly bad job of producing the car. Sure, you might be able to get a Sentra handling as well as Corvette and possibly going as quick (for that budget). But you will be left with a car that is much louder, far less refined and probably horrific for touring (long journeys) in or city driving. And to achieve the above there is not a hope in hell that it will be anywhere close to as reliable as a stock Sentra. Modern cars cost a certain amount of money for a reason, its because a car of their calibre costs a certain amount of money to build. When economies of scale are added into these costs an individual stands very little chance of building something that is overall better. They absolutely could make it better in one specific area, but they would have to compromise in so many other ways to achieve that.
The Corvette also makes compromises - it's faster than a Sentra, but more expensive, less reliable, less fuel-efficient, less practical, etc. Tuning is a cheaper way of doing these compromises, especially with the ability to use second-hand parts.
...and my mother and aunt drive Nissans, one a Maxima, another a Altima. (Though they're from the 2000s, and they aren't as good as the Civic) Atleast I'm not buying the MDX first instead (it's way more expensive than a used Nissan Altima/Maxima/Sentra). Well, checking around prices around my area for the same car, they vary a bit (cheapest yet is $8,612). But atleast it's better than swapping the engine of a very-recent Acura. (I really like how this conversation is still going on)
There's one massive downside - if your Saxo meets a heavy modern car built for maximum safety, there won't be much left of you.
That was basically my exact response, except replace "modern car" with "literally anything" in the case of a Saxo. Her response was that she is over 60, smokes, and has already had a great life. If she dies in a car crash it saves her the pain of getting old and her kids get more inheritance.
