Originally posted by Chin180sx
KA's suck at boost, SR20DE sucks at boost, no oil piston coolers, or other shit. SR20DET goot past 400+ HP on stock internals = A+
CA18DET good for 8 grand RPM redline sucks at rest.
Wow. Just... wow. KA + Boost = Good. KA has "oil piston coolers" and does have "other [good for turbo] shit." SR20DET is a great motor.. but I don't think that's the question. CA and 8k rpm... can be done with SR easily and also with a rebuilt KA. The SR-DET simply needs a couple parts to keep the valve train in check.
The sr20de is a candidate for low boost. If you are going to up it (and you will.. trust me) then the DET is where you should start. NA the KA will outrun the SR-DE in the same car. KA is 155hp/160tq, and the sr-de is 160hp/less tq. I really don't know about how the sr will respond to mods.
The SR-DE is simply weaker than the DET version. All the parts in the DET are fully overbuilt. The DE will blow at moderate boost levels.
-Jeff