Tuning Feature: Nissan TB42E Modified

"Comprehensive guide to performance tuning the Nissan TB42E engine!"

We are frequently seeing threads about the best TB42E upgrades. So let us look into Nissan TB42E mods and outline the best modifications on this great engine and point out some frequent tuning mistakes along the way.

Our aim here is to provide a guide to TB42E tuning and provide tips on the best modifications for your car. Nissan TB42E provide a fun base for your project and with the optimum enhancements like ECU maps, turbo improvements and camshafts you will certainly maximise the drivers enjoyment of your car.

Just because particular tuning parts are are common on TB42E it doesn't mean it is good, so we'll focus on the ultimate tuning parts to provide your TB42E with the best power gain for you spend.

Significant power gains can be made on engines, and the TB42E is no exception, from camshaft upgrades. Altering the camshaft profile alters the intake and exhaust durations on the engine and can dramatically change the engines power and power output.

NB: Fast road camshafts tend to increase the bhp and torque throughout the rev band, you could drop a little bottom end bhp but the higher rpm power will be higher.

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

A Motorsport and race camshaft will just annoy you whilst driving in heavy traffic.

You should ideally match your bhp range to your typical driving style so for a typical daily driver stick with a fast road TB42E camshaft

Some TB42E engines respond better to mild camshaft durations so view each engine as unique.

The engine timing and fuel pump and injectors also have a large bearing on the power gains you'll make.

A longer valve duration can alter the power 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.

TB42E Tuning Stages

Stage 1 TB42E modifications: Panel air filters, Intake headers, Fast road camshaft, Drilled & smoothed airbox, Sports exhaust manifold, Remaps/piggy back ECU.

Stage 2 TB42E modifications: Ported and polished head, high flow fuel injectors, induction kit, fuel pump upgrades, Fast road cam, Sports catalyst & performance exhaust.

Stage 3 TB42E modifications: Twin charging conversions, Adding or Upgrading forced induction (turbo/supercharger), Crank and Piston upgrades to alter compression, Internal engine upgrades (head flowing porting/bigger valves), Engine balancing & blueprinting, Competition cam.

Remaps will help release the full potential of all the upgrades you've done to your TB42E.

It will usually give around 30% more power on turbocharged vehicles and you can expect to see around 15% on NASP engines, but your mileage often rely on the upgrades you've applied and the condition of your engine.

It is the whole point to any engine modification project to feed fuel and air into your TB42E

Intake headers transmit the air from the air filter and allow it to be pulled into the engine cylinders.

Structure and flow characteristics of the Intake headers can make a substantial change to fuel atomisation on the TB42E.

On popular production engines plenum chambers are crying out for motorsport parts, although a few car makers provide well optimised plenum chambers.

Big valve conversions on the TB42E, getting port matching and head flowing will also increase torque, and significantly will make space for a greater torque increase on other parts.

Turbo upgrades for the TB42E

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 TB42E

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

When the engine has a turbo already fitted upgrades are going to make more power and you will discover turbo charged engines are built using better components.

There are weak spots for every engine, with some being incredibly solid and some only able to handle stock power

Research these restrictions and upgrade to forged components to handle the power.

We see many mechanics spending a fortune on turbo charger upgrades on the TB42E only to experience the TB42E throw a rod on it's first outing after it's used on the roads.

Larger upgraded turbos commonly experience low end lag, and small turbos spool up more quickly but don't have the peak rpm bhp gains.

In the last 10 years the market of turbo chargers is always increasing and we now see variable vane turbo chargers, permitting the vane angle is altered according to speed to lower lag and increase top end power.

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

You'll commonly see there is a limitation in the air flow sensor (AFM/MAF/MAP) on the TB42E when loads more air is being drawn into the engine.

Going up you'll find 4 bar air sensors coping with quite large power gains, whereas the OEM air sensor limited bhp at a much lower level.

Adding a supercharger or additional turbo will make large bhp and torque gains, although more challenging to configure. We have this feature on twinchargers if you want to read more.

Uprating TB42E fuel injectors

Don't overlook the need to uprate the fuel delivery when you are increasing the bhp and torque - it makes the car more thirsty. Don't forget to be generous with your injector capacity.

The rule of thumb is to add 20% to the flow rate when buying an injector, which takes into account injector deterioration and affords a little spare capacity should the engine require 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 TB42E performance exhausts

You may need to boost your exhaust if the current exhaust is creating a flow problem.

On most factory exhausts you'll see the flow rate is ok 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 equal out the flow of gases through the engine.

But if your exhaust pipe is too large, ie: it's over 2.5 inches bore, you will lose a lot of the exhaust flow rate and end up losing power and torque.

Usual exhaust restrictions can be located in the filters installed, so adding a higher flowing performance alternative will help avoid this restriction.

Problems and issues to look out for on the TB42E

The TB42E 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 TB42E, particularly when the engine has been modified and is putting down more power than the manufacturer intended.

For more information on Tuning your TB42E engine please join us in our friendly forum where you can discuss tuning options in more detail with our TB42E 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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We really like hearing from our readers, and hearing about which tuning mods were the most effective for them, it helps us improve our recommendations and articles to reflect current trends in modifications and ensures that our TB42E guides and tips are kept up to date.

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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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