What would you guys think about this?

the_new_kid said:

i knew it would be a lot of wiring but a bunch of my friends one night thought it would be awsome to put that little engine (to cut down on weight) and put it on the rear of a tub frame. If and if i start it though i will have pictures lots and lots of pictures.

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When I think of a dune buggy, the last thing I think of is how impressive it would be if I could shave off a whole 200 lbs by using Nissan motor VS a 350 Chevy motor. Cost difference when you trash your tranny (cause you know the nissan tranny isn't going to last with baha tires), you're not going to have much fun replacing it or constantly repairing it. So, back to when I think of a dune buggy- I think of simple: Tube frame, basic independant suspension, a bucket seat, and a powerhouse and drive train. This is going to look way messed up having a fuel injected dune buggy that has to have all these extra panels to hide an ecu, wiring, and a ton of vaccume lines.

Hate to sound like a drag here, but, you'll be much happier building a dune buggy with (don't flame me for saying this) either an American (if you can still call them that) made motor and tranny. I'd say, hit a junk yard up for an old Chevy that has rusted to hell, pull the motor and tranny and steering components, and retro fit them to your dune buggy.

One more thing to consider here when you're talking about cutting weight by using a Nissan motor for your buggy. What is a dune buggy used for. Does it need decent torque in the low and high ends? And what is the replacement for dispacement? Weight to power ratios. When you think about how much wheel HP you'll be getting by the time it's done, to the wieght of the vehicle, you must then consider the size of those tires, what get's it going? Torque. A 1.6 stock will put out a whopping 75 Ft/lbs from a dead stop. If you are using huge tires on big rims and add the resistance of in general off road sands and dirt, you're probably going to end up wishing for about 185 Ft/lb torque as a minimum when it's said and done. Sounds like a lot, but this isn't a street car with 13" rims pushing 4 21" TD wheels on a low/no resistance paved street. Physics will dictate this situation to say, don't waste your time. You'll blow more money retrofitting the Nissan, then repairing snapped trannies every 5 miles it's played with. Now, on the other hand, if you used a DOHC V6, you'll be much closer to finding what you're looking for(Manual Pathfinder in junkyard?). If you want it to be fast, and fun, you'll still end up wishing for an easy to tune and repair small block V8.

Would the project be fun, YES, it would be a blast. However, it will not prove practical, or financially functional in the long run. If you do persue the project, I wish you luck.