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sr20det miata swap wiring

Old 04-10-2012, 01:23 AM
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Default sr20det miata swap wiring

hey guys ive been looking for anyone that has done the sr20det miata wiring job. need help with doing it for my future project. if anyone knows a link please post it. thx you
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Old 04-10-2012, 02:09 AM
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If you can't figure out something simple as how to put an SR20 wiring harness into a miata - maybe you shouldn't be swapping an SR20?
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Old 04-10-2012, 03:07 AM
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what parts do you need? I just removed all the wires in my miata and will be wiring in a ms3 soon. all of the connectors on a sr20det are available in the junk yards if you want to wire up your ms3 from scratch. if you want to use stock ecu then its quite simple i think.

the other pieces depend on what you are using as your dash gauges. i'm in union city so relatively local...
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Old 04-10-2012, 07:52 PM
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Originally Posted by soviet
If you can't figure out something simple as how to put an SR20 wiring harness into a miata - maybe you shouldn't be swapping an SR20?
this is my frist build/swap im gonna do. and i dont wanna ---- up.
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Old 04-10-2012, 07:53 PM
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Originally Posted by jasonb
what parts do you need? I just removed all the wires in my miata and will be wiring in a ms3 soon. all of the connectors on a sr20det are available in the junk yards if you want to wire up your ms3 from scratch. if you want to use stock ecu then its quite simple i think.

the other pieces depend on what you are using as your dash gauges. i'm in union city so relatively local...
ight bro thx for the info bout getting the wiring from the junkyard.
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Old 04-10-2012, 08:12 PM
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Im pretty sure you'll have to retain the sr20 ecu and the miata ecu as well .If it's your first swap ,well good luck cause its not that easy.It's not like a simple sr into 240sx swap..

Are you buying the mounts or is somebody fabricating them?
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Old 04-10-2012, 11:01 PM
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Originally Posted by shaqsj
this is my frist build/swap im gonna do. and i dont wanna ---- up.
If that's the case, then what he said is especially true.

If you can't come up with a basic schematic/plan of how you would accomplish this task, you aren't ready. Go research some more.

Personally I'd megasquirt it, and build my own engine harness with the DIYautotune wiring bundles and keeps pieces of the miata harness for interior switches/etc.
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Old 04-10-2012, 11:03 PM
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Originally Posted by shaqsj
this is my frist build/swap im gonna do. and i dont wanna ---- up.
Yeah, first build? You're gonna get frustrated and part it all out.

You will want to start with something more realistic.
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Old 04-11-2012, 01:16 AM
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Originally Posted by tasty danish
If that's the case, then what he said is especially true.

If you can't come up with a basic schematic/plan of how you would accomplish this task, you aren't ready. Go research some more.

Personally I'd megasquirt it, and build my own engine harness with the DIYautotune wiring bundles and keeps pieces of the miata harness for interior switches/etc.
i have a project z32 that i work on..if u work on that engine u can work on a
sr20det for the 1st time. im not 100% clueless on the swap. i juz want to get anything rite the 1st time or close to it. ive been reseach over and over and over. i know everything to do juz the wiring thats the problem
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Old 04-11-2012, 01:19 AM
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Originally Posted by blaen99
Yeah, first build? You're gonna get frustrated and part it all out.

You will want to start with something more realistic.
a sr20det miata is a realistic project. i was thinking bout doing a vh45det swap for my z32. and thats a much harder swap
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Old 04-11-2012, 03:17 AM
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Originally Posted by shaqsj
i have a project z32 that i work on..if u work on that engine u can work on a
sr20det for the 1st time. im not 100% clueless on the swap. i juz want to get anything rite the 1st time or close to it. ive been reseach over and over and over. i know everything to do juz the wiring thats the problem
Working on a car and doings one off shiz are two different leagues.

Ok then, so how are you running/controlling the engine? How are you interfacing the engine harness to the car's harness?

Answer those two questions, get some wiring diagrams and go to town.

I'm 95% sure you won't find anybody that's done this before that can give you any real good advice.
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Old 04-11-2012, 04:00 AM
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Originally Posted by tasty danish
Working on a car and doings one off shiz are two different leagues.

Ok then, so how are you running/controlling the engine? How are you interfacing the engine harness to the car's harness?

Answer those two questions, get some wiring diagrams and go to town.

I'm 95% sure you won't find anybody that's done this before that can give you any real good advice.
if i know that i wouldnt be on this forum asking around for ppl that wired the swap. now if i wanted a dick reply i would have asked u
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Old 04-11-2012, 12:56 PM
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shaqsj, these people are trying to help you. look at it this way, there are a number of obstacles to put a sr20 into a miata chassis:
  1. first up, there is oil pan/subframe interference. you will need to modify one or the other.
  2. motor mounts are non trivial shape
  3. stock manifold positions turbo where it hits chassis
  4. miata stock diff mount requires ppf so you either need to modify it or fit a ppf to a nissan gearbox

if you think about it, those items are much more complex than wiring in a stock nissan ecu. if you want to retain the stock miata dash but have all the gauges working then that is an interesting conversation, but comes much later IMO.
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Old 04-11-2012, 01:41 PM
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Contact this guy.

http://baltimore.craigslist.org/cto/2919093861.html
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Old 04-11-2012, 02:09 PM
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I've done five SR20 swaps into 240sx, and one SR20 bluebird FWD swap into a Sentra. Even into a car the motor fits/bolt in to, the swap is a big pain in the ***. The CPS and igniter's fail constantly, and we had so many defect ECU's come with the motors. The stock turbo manifold and downpipe is garbage, and most of the motors are rat bagged anyways. If I was going to do a swap the last thing I'd do is put a SR20 into it.

If you are dead set on doing the swap (which is pointless btw because a turbo charged BP motor done right is so much better), your best bet for the wiring is to get a full standalone haltech unit. Plenty of people with SR20 swaps are using the haltech and you can find base maps quite easily. You'll want to get lots of custom sensors though and ditch all the stock crap. This will also require lots of custom wiring. Scrap the stock gauge cluster and get the Haltech IQ3 Display Dash.


BTW, get the SR20 black top if you want baller status. Because the only reason you would do this swap is to try and impress people. A black top will maximize your potential for trying to impress people.
Attached Thumbnails sr20det miata swap wiring-mxl_front.jpg  
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Old 04-11-2012, 05:24 PM
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Originally Posted by shaqsj
if i know that i wouldnt be on this forum asking around for ppl that wired the swap. now if i wanted a dick reply i would have asked u
Bam and proof you're not ready. That wasn't a dick reply. IF you don't know the answers to my questions, you aren't ready to tackle this and doing so will only result in wasted time and money, ask me how I know.

If you can't figure out a question as simple as this, what are you going to do when the 15th part in a row doesn't fit? Or you turn the key on and nothing happens? If you can't answer a question as simple as what ECU you're using or if you want to run piggy-back, use the miata harness, nissan one, hybrid, etc etc, you clearly haven't done YOUR part for us to effectively help you.

Yesterday, I went to revamp the cooling system in my engine swapped VW. I got a bunch of parts that were supposedly "bolt on." Well the radiator didn't fit the core support, the whole assembly didn't clear the engine/frame, the condenser didn't mount to the radiator right, and none of the lines were correct, and the wiring plugs were the wrong style.

No big deal, even though I was expecting "bolt on" I knew what I was getting into and made it work. If you aren't confident in your ability to do exactly what I did, you aren't ready.

But hey, if you wanna be an e-thug *****, go on ahead, it's your money. Ever wonder why the folks that have "been there done that" have a certain attitude about things, and the folks that never did think "how hard could it be!?" Ask yourself...
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Old 04-11-2012, 08:41 PM
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A wiring harness for a full car takes a lot of time and preparation. DO NOT hack the crap out of the stock miata harness or SR20 harness. Some people do it, and it can work, but you need to be even more careful and do that much more work, plus it can end badly.

Truthfully, I would take this opportunity to go full standalone ECU-wise (megasquirt, MoTeC if you got the cash, AEM, etc...), and make your own harness. I know where I work (MoTeC USA), we sell nice mil-spec wire for like a dollar, dollar-fidy a foot. Other places sell wire too. Just spend the $200 and get good wiring and quality crimp splices. All the connectors and pins for the sensors/coils/injectors/ect can be found online. Use some decent heatshrink, glueline shrink on the ends, a couple nice connectors to seperate engine/chassis/rear/etc, and take a couple weeks to make a really nice harness/sub harnesses.

Trust me, half assing it and having to track down wiring problems later is one of the worst things.

Design will take a few weeks. Draft up your harness a couple times, you will miss wires in the first few. Make sure to size your wires properly! Then make a final drawing with all the pinouts, wire gauges, colors, and lengths. Then check each wire off when you build. This way you don't forget wires (I have done that way too much in the past) and you have a super awesome wiring diagram for the future. Remember, CUT LONG. Having a wire just a little too short after you heatshrinked everything makes you want to murder babies.

That's how I would do it, and hopfully you now know a little more about what is involved (and that is just the wiring harness part of your swap) =).
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Old 04-11-2012, 09:57 PM
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Originally Posted by cardriverx
A wiring harness for a full car takes a lot of time and preparation. DO NOT hack the crap out of the stock miata harness or SR20 harness. Some people do it, and it can work, but you need to be even more careful and do that much more work, plus it can end badly.

Truthfully, I would take this opportunity to go full standalone ECU-wise (megasquirt, MoTeC if you got the cash, AEM, etc...), and make your own harness. I know where I work (MoTeC USA), we sell nice mil-spec wire for like a dollar, dollar-fidy a foot. Other places sell wire too. Just spend the $200 and get good wiring and quality crimp splices. All the connectors and pins for the sensors/coils/injectors/ect can be found online. Use some decent heatshrink, glueline shrink on the ends, a couple nice connectors to seperate engine/chassis/rear/etc, and take a couple weeks to make a really nice harness/sub harnesses.

Trust me, half assing it and having to track down wiring problems later is one of the worst things.

Design will take a few weeks. Draft up your harness a couple times, you will miss wires in the first few. Make sure to size your wires properly! Then make a final drawing with all the pinouts, wire gauges, colors, and lengths. Then check each wire off when you build. This way you don't forget wires (I have done that way too much in the past) and you have a super awesome wiring diagram for the future. Remember, CUT LONG. Having a wire just a little too short after you heatshrinked everything makes you want to murder babies.

That's how I would do it, and hopfully you now know a little more about what is involved (and that is just the wiring harness part of your swap) =).
Holy ----. +1000000000000000000

This is all stuff I NOW follow that I wish someone would have told me in the beginning. Golden advice.
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Old 04-11-2012, 11:31 PM
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Originally Posted by cardriverx
A wiring harness for a full car takes a lot of time and preparation. DO NOT hack the crap out of the stock miata harness or SR20 harness. Some people do it, and it can work, but you need to be even more careful and do that much more work, plus it can end badly.

Truthfully, I would take this opportunity to go full standalone ECU-wise (megasquirt, MoTeC if you got the cash, AEM, etc...), and make your own harness. I know where I work (MoTeC USA), we sell nice mil-spec wire for like a dollar, dollar-fidy a foot. Other places sell wire too. Just spend the $200 and get good wiring and quality crimp splices. All the connectors and pins for the sensors/coils/injectors/ect can be found online. Use some decent heatshrink, glueline shrink on the ends, a couple nice connectors to seperate engine/chassis/rear/etc, and take a couple weeks to make a really nice harness/sub harnesses.

Trust me, half assing it and having to track down wiring problems later is one of the worst things.
+1

i'm in the process you describe right now. if you have any advice on where to find pins for sumitomo connectors i would be very grateful.

to OP: here is a nice resource including videos of how to disassemble the conectors (credit: Umai Kakudo@NRR) http://tools.nissantechmate.com/Display.aspx?id=17

dustinb: sad news that sr20 supply is drying up. i heard some horror stories from last 12 months - lots of submerged motors (and maybe a little bit hot). as motors go they had a long run, so i'm still hopeful...

I think this thread hits a new mt.n record for the most informative thoughtful and above-and-beyond reponses to snarky poorly worded questions, on a subject which the community has little patience with (very few OP's follow through). mad tyte jdm props.

Last edited by jasonb; 04-11-2012 at 11:45 PM.
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Old 04-11-2012, 11:36 PM
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Can you get me a picture of the specific connector? The guy that does all the inventory/purchasing at work knows where to get pins for almost every connector out there, ill see what he says.


Originally Posted by jasonb
+1

i'm in the process now. if you have any advice on where to find pins for sumitomo connectors i would be very grateful.

to OP: here is a nice resource including videos of how to disassemble the conectors http://tools.nissantechmate.com/Display.aspx?id=17

dustinb: sad news that sr20 supply is drying up. i heard some horror stories from last 12 months - lots of submerged motors (and maybe a little bit hot). as motors go they had a long run, so i'm still hopeful...
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