Nissan SR20DET Engine

The Nissan SR20DET is a popular 4-cylinder JDM engine known for being the heart of the Nissan 180SX and Silvia. SR20DET engine swaps are popular in North America for 240SX owners.

Nissan SR20DET engine code:

SR- Engine Family
20 - 2.0 Liters Displacement
D - Dual Overhead Cam
E - Electronic Fuel Injection
T - Turbocharged

Nissan also produced a cheaper naturally aspirated (non-turbo) version of the SR engine called the SR20DE. The SR20DET engine replaced the CA18DET that originally powered the Silvia and 180SX. Different variants of the SR20DET engine have different color valve covers.

• Red Top SR20DET (1989-1994) S13 Silvia, 180SX, Pulsar, Bluebird
• Black Top SR20DET (1994-1998) S13 Silvia, 180SX
• Black Top SR20DET (1994-2002) S14 Silvia, S15 Silvia
• Silver Top SR20DET (1995-2001) Avenir

The SR20DET engine was first used in 1989 in the U12 Nissan Bluebird 2000SSS Attesa. From 1990 to 1994 the SR20DET was used in the Nissan Pulsar GTi-R (N14) but with a larger Garret T28 turbocharger. In both cars the engine is mounted in an East/West fashion but in the Silvia and 180SX the SR engine is mounted North/South.

Then the SR20DET engine was used in the Nissan Avenir in 1995, the Nissan R’nessa in 1997, and the Nissan Liberty in 1999. The S14 and S15 Silvia use a larger Garrett T28 turbocharger. The S15 Nissan Silvia Spec R trim level SR20DET uses a T28 Garret turbocharger with a dual ball-bearing center cartridge compared to the ceramic center cartridge present in the S14 Silvia. The Nissan Silvia was the longest running model to use the SR20DET engine.