Tuning Feature: Nissan RB20E Modified

"Comprehensive guide to tuning the Nissan RB20E engine!"

We are regularly getting posts inquiring about getting more power from the RB20E and wanting to know what are the things we recommend when it comes to RB20E mods that work. So let us look into Nissan RB20E modifications and outline the best mods that work on this great engine and point out some frequent tuning mistakes along the way.

TorqueCars will review RB20E tuning and point out the ultimate modifications. Nissan RB20E are popular engines and with carefully chosen sports tuning mods like ECU maps, turbo upgrades and camshafts you will dramatically enhance the drivers enjoyment of your car.

Just because particular upgrades are are common on RB20E it doesn't mean you should fit it, instead we'll focus on the optimum upgrades to provide your RB20E with the best power gain for you spend.

The camshaft profile plays a big part in the engines power output so camshaft upgrades make quite a large difference. The intake and exhaust durations will alter depending on the chosen camshaft profile, so large bhp gains are on offer for camshaft upgrades.

NB: Fast road camshafts commonly boost the bhp and torque over the rev range, you may lose a little bottom end bhp but high end rpm power will improve.

Race camshafts, boost the high end rpm power band but as a result the car will not idle smoothly and low end power nearly always suffers.

A Motorsport and race cam will just annoy you whilst on the daily commute.

You should ideally match your torque band to your preferences so for a car used daily stick with a mild fast road RB20E cam

Each engine responds better to different cam durations so set your engine up on a rolling road.

The engine timing and fuel pump and injectors also have an effect on the bhp gains you'll make.

A longer valve duration can alter the bhp band and on most engines the exhaust and intake durations do not need to match, although most cams and tuners use matched pairs there are some advantages to extending the intake or exhaust durations.

RB20E Tuning Stages

Stage 1 RB20E modifications: Remaps/piggy back ECU, Fast road camshaft, Intake headers, Drilled & smoothed airbox, Sports exhaust manifold, Panel air filters.

Stage 2 RB20E modifications: Fast road cam, induction kit, Ported and polished head, fuel pump upgrades, Sports catalyst & performance exhaust, high flow fuel injectors.

Stage 3 RB20E modifications: Internal engine upgrades (head flowing porting/bigger valves), Engine balancing & blueprinting, Competition cam, Adding or Upgrading forced induction (turbo/supercharger), Twin charging conversions, Crank and Piston upgrades to alter compression.

Mapping allows a tuner to unlock the full potential of all the parts you've done to your RB20E.

It will usually give around 30% more power on turbocharged vehicles and you can expect to see around 15% on NASP engines, but your results usually differs on the parts you've done and the condition of your engine.

Pushing fuel and air into each cylinder is the whole point to any engine modification job.

Intake manifold take the air from the filter and allow it to be sucked into the engine cylinders.

Structure and flow characteristics of the Intake manifold can make a large change to fuel atomisation and engine efficiency on the RB20E.

I usually find intake are improved through motorsport parts, although some OEM provide decently flowing intake.

Larger RB20E valves, carrying out port work and head flowing will also increase bhp and torque, and significantly will make space for raising the bhp and torque increase on other parts.

Turbo upgrades for the RB20E

NASP engines need quite a lot of work when you add a turbo, so we have a separate guide to help you take into account the pros and cons of going this route on your RB20E

The more air you can get into an engine, the more fuel it can burn and uprating the induction with a turbocharger upgrade makes significant power gains.

When the engine is fitted with a turbo parts are going to net you a larger power gain and we find turbo engines are built with many forged and stronger components.

However engines have weakspots

Research these limits and install more solid crank and pistons to utilize the power.

We've seen people spending a lots of money on turbo charger upgrades on the RB20E only to watch the RB20E throw a rod just after it's been finished.

Big capacity turbos will usually suffer low end lag, and smaller turbos spool up more quickly but won't have the high rpm torque gains.

We are pleased that the selection of turbo chargers is always increasing and we are seeing variable vane turbo chargers, permitting the vane angle is altered according to speed to lower lag and increase top end bhp.

Twin scroll turbo chargers divert the exhaust flow into a couple of channels and feed these at differently profiled vanes in the turbo charger. They also help the scavenging effect of the engine.

You'll commonly see there is a restriction in the air flow sensor MAP/MAF/AFM on the RB20E when considerably more air is being fed into the engine.

We note 4 bar air sensors coping with quite large power gains, whereas the OEM air sensor sapped bhp at a much lower level.

Adding a supercharger or additional turbo will make large bhp gains, although more complex to install. We have this article on twincharging if you want to read more.

Uprating RB20E fuel injectors

Don't omit to raise the fuelling when you are increasing the bhp - it makes the car more thirsty. It makes sense to over specify your flow rate on the injectors.

As a rule of thumb add 20% when buying an injector, which takes into account injector deterioration and provides a little spare capacity should the engine need more fuel.

We think this one is common sense, but you'll need to match your fuel injector to the type of fuel your car uses as well.

Best RB20E performance exhausts

You should look to boost your exhaust if the existing exhaust is actually causing a restriction in flow.

On most factory exhausts you'll find your flow rate is fine even on modest power gains, but when you start pushing up the power levels you will need to get a better flowing exhaust.

Sports exhausts will certainly help air flow from the engine but avoid an exhaust that is too wide or you could reduce the flow rate. Stick to 1.5 to 2.5 inches for best results.

Usual exhaust restrictions can be traced to the catalyst installed, so adding a faster flowing race alternative will help avoid this restriction.

Problems and issues to look out for on the RB20E

The RB20E engines, if regularly serviced and maintained, are generally very reliable and have few issues. {But if neglected they can cost a small fortune|When neglected they get very expensive to run|They can however be quite expensive if neglected| }

Regular oil changes are vital on the RB20E, particularly when the engine has been modified and is putting down more power than the manufacturer intended.

For more information on Tuning your RB20E engine please join us in our friendly forum where you can discuss tuning options in more detail with our RB20E owners. It would also be worth reading our unbiased tuning articles to get a full grasp of the benefits and drawbacks of each modification.

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This article is flagged for an update, so please pass on specific tips below that I can include. All articles, and content was written by me, Waynne Smith TorqueCars founder. Some outlines are just too general so I appreciate your feedback and suggestions. This entry was filed under Nissan. You can leave a response below or join our forum to discuss this article and car modification in detail with our members.

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