My brother has a 1997 Nissan Hardbody pickup 2.4L (KA24E), 5-Speed, 4x4.

For some reason it is hard to find detailed information on this this thing.

It has the HG46 axle with a 4.625:1 axle ratio. Has the H233B / R180 combination.

Now, does anyone know if 4x4 locks the back or if it is an LSD? The front are manual locking hubs which is cool. It has 4Lo but I have also been unable to find the crawl ratio for it.
Also is there anyway to get more and cheap power on this thing? It is an absolute dog. You have to rev to 3k rpm to really get power and ideal shift point is 4~4.5k rpm.
Stock is 235/75 tires, but it currently has 31x10.5s on there which was actually an stock option. Are 31s that much larger where going back to 235's would see a decent improvement in power? The axle ratio is already pretty tall and the highest he can go iirc is something like 4.8xx:1.

Its a pretty sweet little bada$$ truck though, besides the power problem. If I owned it I'd get a few PSI running through it. Those KA motors are monsters.

 

Heavy truck and a small engine = a pig. I'm sure the tuner world has something for that engine to up the horsepower a little. They are tough trucks that tend to last for ever. I would do a solid axle swap in the front using a Toyota axle out of an 85 4x4 truck.

 

Yeah, its nuts the thing is rated for 3500lbs. My S10 with the 125hp 2.8L V6 can barely tow 2000lbs.
Maybe they mean the Nissan can tow 3500lbs on flat surface. :P

The 4WD seems to have it weigh 500lbs more. Though, still shouldn't be the dog that it is.
Even though it is a dog, I'd love to own one myself. Mostly cause their are not many small 4x4 manual pickup trucks.

 

ahem...... you consider that tall?

 

31's are about 2" taller. Believe me, I have an 01 nissan 2wd, and it's a dog. It's just what you get for having a 4 banger in a truck. Pretty bad that I still only get around 26 mpg.

 

Im thinking if my brother sells it I might buy it off of him.
I've been trying to find out what the 4Lo ratio is but I cant find it anywhere. Doesn't seem as low as the Cherokee's though.

Its a nice truck. All it needs is a grill and a winch. Already has skidplates and what not.
Might end up strapping a turbocharger on it pushing a few PSI if I do get it. The KAs have forged internals and handle a ton of boost.

The truck is a fairly rare combination of a 4x4 and manual, and is something that I have always wanted.

 

its a single cam KA... not much you can expect from it. Outside turbo charging it, it's really not worth the money. I will say though, enough companies make T2 flanged bottom mount manifolds for the KA around 100 bucks. After that a lot of the stock components from the SR20DET will give you a cheap system (T25 charger, 370cc injectors, sidemount intercooler/piping). the stock MAFS will handle 8-9psi easy before maxing out. I spent about $800 back in '05 doing the same thing to the twin cam KA in my 240. I got 209hp & 242ft/lbs of torque with a simple SAFC piggy back. THAT would make that little truck awesome! Do it

 

Found a turbo kit on Amazon for $710. Looks like a good company too. All it needs is intake piping and an intercooler.
7psi and 230hp at the wheels.