[Whitedawn]

I have a 1986.5 Nissan D21 4X4 pu. First hardbody. In great condition body wise. I have owned this pu since it was born. I have not had any success in replacing the old Z24 engine with rebuilds, three in all. They all broke down in about a year. I decided to put a used engine in it and now it's starting to break down. I love this pu. I'm sure you cannot get a new engine. Any ideas?

[vinniekq2]

Its a very common engine,what problems are you having?

[bigdog7373]

Ka swap is pretty straightforward and very common for these trucks. You can pick them up super cheap with the wiring harness on ebay or craigslist. It will bolt up to the tranny too which is nice. This is your best/perfect option if you are on a budget. These motors go 200k easily and a rebuild kit can be had for 300 bucks.
If you're not on a budget and are looking for an awesome engine upgrade then look into buying a sr20det front clip. Comes with everything you need too. Best prices around: Nissan S13 SR20DET Redtop - Front Clip

[Custom10]

Had the exact truck in 2 wheel drive version, bought it from brother, It ended up with 650 thousand klm on it, the only issue was the head gasket which I changed 3 times in the last 50 thousand K or so.

The block and or head decks become warped, common with these Z24's great little motor though and the truck was decent, tranny never even missed a beat at 650K klm, no other issue with this truck.

On the fourth blow out I traded it on a horse and then shot the horse

Seriously why bother with a different motor swap on such a rig? your call, look for another Z24 engine maybe.

[LATECH]

why not drop a SBC or SBF in it. You dont have to go wild. Just a nice runner.
Or pull the engine thats in it, or take one of the others, and rebuild it.
Have the block decked/squared, head planed flat ,valves ground etc.
NEW timing chain and tensioner, oil pump and drive, gaskets- etc.
The you will know what you have
Never was a big fan of those motors, they just didnt seem to reliable to me. JMO

[deadbodyman]

I had an 87 NissonP/U with that Z 24 motor and a 5spd ,Bought naw and drove that truck for 20yrs without a problem...I absolutely LOVED that lil truck and I'd still be driving it if I hadent gotten rearended at a stop light...I've had my eye out for another one for a few years ...Its a verry well built ,tough little truck and that motor is hands down one of the best ,EZ to work on too,the gas milage is amazing...the 87 Nisson with the Z-24 motor is the best dang little truck ever made and the only one I'd ever own ...at 200,000 mi I needed a timing chain tensioner so I bought the chain and everything ,even took off the head to have it rebuilt and when I went to pick it up they never charged me because it didnt need anything...there isnt even any cam bearings in it ,I couldnt believe it...I want another one but nobody wants to sell one once they've owned one...A good looking truck too that you can make even better by bolting the later modle sheetmetal onthe front end....#1 best truck small truck ever made IMHO and this is coming from a hard core chevy man....Wanna sell it ???