wanted: low end torque

[SwirlyE30]

I do agree with you mate, the power delivery does seem a bit flat incomparison. I drove my brother 2.7 the otherday, and although thats a quick motor.Due to the power comming in a lot earlier it slowly builds up, rather than a burst at 3.5k


Ive got some great roads near me, and ive scared the sh*t out of myself on several occasions (Pretty safe areas before anyone starts) , and if you really keep the IS on its toes, going into corners at 5k+ then there is deffinatly power there, and its a nice handling car, hell ive got one, so im not bashing it completly!

But i often think about putting a 2.5 engine in my car.Cheaper engines, cheaper parts, more tolerable, and cheaper for power gains.



Ive got a 1.8 16v engine, and then a 5.7V8 torque monster inthe garage, im feeling left out and need somthing inbetween!

[Lordschleife]

Well I'm holding out for an e30 m3 when I can afford it, gotta keep the chuckable revvy 4pot vibe going

Adam - good to see someone else recognise the mighty honda 4pots.
Those cars handled great too - setup developed on the suzuka racetrack

[SwirlyE30]

Wouldnt mind a ncie M3 for sure mate. But i think once i let my IS go its yank all the way for a bit.

An easy 400bhp/lb torque out of a chevy BB, for the price of a good sport.....= Awesome lol.

[Lordschleife]

Nah white 1970 Dodge Challenger, a la Vanishing Point!




I like corners too much though to go yank

[tim_s]

lol, good chat, but they'll be no conclusions though, we all know that, everyone has they're fav engines! and don't get me wrong i like the m20, have worked on them quite a bit and driven a few.

out of the box the m42 doesn't perform as well as it can, its definitely configured for economy and responds well to chipping etc.
i dont agree about the m20 being more hardy though, both engines are pretty solid and have potential weaknesses etc. I've seen M40s with well over 200k without having had any work, my bro's old e30 318is had 170k odd on it, orig engine, head, timing chain, even clutch (was pretty dead though by then!)! the m42 is a tough old unit.

porting the hell out of the head is not a good way to get more torque

as for the reviness of m42, with a viper chip it revs freely to 7k, can go further than this but the hydraulic lifters aren't great. omi's ran his with his custom chip even higher than 7k.

for torque, i think you'd be surprised if you try something like a 1.9 m44, they seem much better that way than the m42 - actually think the MAF throttle response helps too.

something like my 2.1 with standard valve size and inl port size should have loads of torque.

as far as not being able to get m20 power out of the m42, even a 2.7 m20 etc, what do you think mine will put out with 2.1l, ITBs, megasquirt etc?

that south african m42 with a high CR 2l and 168rwhp is a good example of what a simple bottom end swap, remap and a few other goodies can achieve. ok so i think his rolling road figure might be a bit optimistic, but he takes time out of 328is on the track so it can't be far out.

ant told me he got over 170bhp out of a standard 318is just by chipping (he did tell me it ran like a sack of shit though!)

for SC's costing thousands, if you keep your eye out on US forums you can get a DASC for prolly about Ԛ£1k. that's 200bhp, sure it needs knock sensors and new pulleys, but that's hardly rocket science to sort out.

i think the m42 has plenty of potential, just the path isn't as well travelled as the m20. basically its got great internals, but needs some reworking to get the best out of it. it needn't be necessarily very expensive, and remember any 6 pot engine rebuilds etc are obviously more expensive than rebuilding a 4 pot!

for its power potential you only need look to some of the crazy 400+bhp 12s 1/4 mile US turbo M42s with factory cranks, rods etc.

[tonyppe]

I can't believe no-one mentioned a HIGHER-GEARED DIFF yet! Engine stays intact, and the torque piles up sooner!

You'll loose highway cruise-ability though.

Just a thought.

good point!
too busy thinking about engine and forgot gearing!
nice one

[dark_sounds]

hmm just caught up on this thread, thanks for the responses guys....

i obviously dont know enough....

i dont want conversion, as i dont want to ruin the fact its an IS...

i cant insure a 325 at all... hence why i didnt go for one

some of tim_s's words have interested me. though tbh i guess ill have to live with it... i dont like thrashing it,,, as then it becomes just another thrashed example.... its been well looked after before me,, and i intend on keeping it well looked after i switch by 3000/3500 rpm always... hence why i wanted low end so i wouldnt have to rev so hard... i treat my engine like a baby,,, feed it and give it only the best

anyway,,,, think a bbtb is in order,,, and also awaiting hammoj's experience of the bmc carbon filter but think ill leave out the heavy modding.... no cash lol

[Adammcf]

Adam - good to see someone else recognise the mighty honda 4pots.
Those cars handled great too - setup developed on the suzuka racetrack

I loved my CRX and would love another one. I really want an M3 next but I also really want an Integra Type R just to get driving another one of those fantastic Honda engines. The new ones are boring though as they dont have the same kick when the vtec cam crossover begins.

[Lordschleife]

some of tim_s's words have interested me. though tbh i guess ill have to live with it... i dont like thrashing it,,, as then it becomes just another thrashed example.... its been well looked after before me,, and i intend on keeping it well looked after i switch by 3000/3500 rpm always... hence why i wanted low end so i wouldnt have to rev so hard... i treat my engine like a baby,,, feed it and give it only the best

If you don't want to take it above 3500rpm then you've got the wrong car!
It'll be fine as long as you use a good oil, and let the engine warm up first, these engines are designed to be revved!

[mk1chopper]

Its not worth doing an engine conversion when you can buy the car with the engine all ready in it. Theres thrashing a car and then theres driving a car as its ment to be driven but still taking care of it. The IS is designed to perform at 3.5/4k plus, taking the engine over 3.5k wont damage it unless the engine is cold and not well serviced, and you dont have to drive a car on its limit all the time, so when you do decide to open it up a bit i wouldnt be to worried about whats its going to be doing to the engine, theres a limiter on the engine to stop you from doing stupid things. Im still getting use to 16v, i was missing the low down pull of my mk1 golf gti, but i was coming back to plymouth today over the moors and opened it up on the national limit roads and it was great.

[m-dtech]

do the 2.7 conversion thats all about torque