ultimate M20

[monsterm20]

for the past years ive used google to piece together info on my m20 turbo build and most of the time ive been refered to this site. so i jioned today. small history about myself. 23, married, 87 e30 m20 turbo, holset hx35, W.A.R. chip (currently in the tuning process) but fixing a blown head gasket, metric blues for head studs, stock intrnals. i have tons of know how and way more ambition than i can deal with. i.e. shifter karts, motorcycles, diesel trucks etc.... im starting uti in AZ in may and working towards the bmw STEP prgram.

ok question: i want to know what the perfect m20 turbo would be, in refrence to the hardware of the engine. such as crank, pistons, dif head, cam, etc..... i have a complete spare m20 in great condition and i think in the near furture im going to be doing a "turbo motor" build. lower comression all the goods i just want to make sure i have all the info i need to do this. plans for the car is raceing. i want this car to be a track majority car so drivability and streetability are not huge for me. hp goals probably in the 450 rwhp range. i have firends that have vipers and vetts and they constantly piss me off and they run track so shutting them up would be great for me. also one of my friends just got an ARP vw golf R that is awd. google it they are impressive.

My thinking:

m20 stroked to a 2.8 ( i want the block to remain as ridged as possible)
custom intake plunum
possibly better engine managment that motronic with war chip (maga s) or is there better?
ceramic coatd pistons
along with all the turbo hardware i have (equal legnth header, hx35, 3in exhaust)

so i want to inprove my plans best i can. so ready go! thanks everyone in advance for th advice and if i as a stupid question thats because im a redneck from idaho haha

[jlevie]

I think you are going about this the wrong way. Forget the M20 as a base. Use an S54 (or S62) engine and a standalone engine management system. Well that is you just want to out-power competition. With the right suspension/tires and properly dialed in an E30 with a stock M20B25 is a whole lot of fun on-track and won't give up anything in the corners (I.E., something along the lines of a Spec E30 pr a Pro 3 car).

[kamotors]

2.8l M20 w/turbo cam
megasquirt ECU
Methanol injection
APR head studs
around 25psi and you should be right around 450whp

[monsterm20]

i really dont want to swap motors. yes, suspension tuning is comming soon and that i why i dont mind making 600hp like the viper and vett but that little damn awd golf R is my real concern. that thing handles way way better and doesnt give up anything in the corners. i think that a properly turbo'd and tuned m20 is a very, brutal animal. N/A the m20 doesnt make high hp. but FI they are impressive. the setup i have now is nasty fast but very troublesome. i still have alot of R&D to do to get er dialed in. and thats another reason i want to stick with the m20 so that i can transfer my turbo setup to the new turbo specific motor and have little to change. those "S" motors are sick for sure and stock would be probaly enough to outrun (on the track) the vett because of power curv, wiehgt and other bennifits fo the motor but all the money and time i have invested in my current setup would be waisted. to tell you the truth its not even a money issue but more a sentimental thing, and im a diesel truck nerd so boost is like crack to me. 25psi no prob! meth already in the plans. but making all that power in a track setting is heat going to be a problem? water meth helps (i use it diesels all the time) but i dunno if that would be enough.

[monsterm20]

*dont mind not making 600 hp

[kamotors]

my intake temps never even get to around 100degrees at 20psi doing WOT runs.
I've auto-x all summer and with a 71c thermostat and water/meth my intake and water temps always stayed nice and safe

[monsterm20]

good to know cuz last summer i overheated test tuning but that was probably due to the horrible air fuel mixture i had going on. so question, sence you have the car im trying to build basicly...... what engine managment do you run? i think i have just about everything else figured out. td crank, ceramic coated pistons, my own intake plenum, and turbo hardware but i dont think the war is going to allow for the fuel timing and rate i need. ive heard of megasquirt and i think one named ostrich and there are alot of others my buddies use (cant recall the names) but is the best in terms of customizability, ease of use, add ons ( drug induction timing) and so forth.

[monsterm20]

also is there any way to get a 24v head on an m20?

[Cletonius]

also is there any way to get a 24v head on an m20?

No.

[Mr. Tasty]

lol wut

[monsterm20]

didnt think so. google lies! ha i read a post about some dousche that "implanted" one using some fancy machine work but i cant find it and i read it about 3 years ago. so bottom end: is the crank of say a td stout enough to last 7000 rpms and are the caps strong enough to handle 20+ psi at 7k? like i said im a diesel guy and in the diesel world bottom end girdles are not uncommon. if you dont know what that intails google it. is there any need for such a thing? it also helps keep the block from flexing under high boost. i think that tuning is the key to longevity but block flex is scary and will either wear things out or crack and byebye motor. is there any such issues here? sorry for the unorganised posts im running on redbull and stress haha

[superboosted]

Well it is my understanding that there was an m20 twin cam head produced(hartge maybe?) Better luck finding a unicorn though I'm sure.

[bastianshaw]

^it was racing dynamics and they are indeed legitimately rare

[monsterm20]

well just curiuos cuz 90% of the crap i read is just that........crap. well due to the responces ive had im either a complete retard or on the right track. thank you for the info and i look forward to picking everyones brains at a later date. thanks. that viper is going down!

[travish325]

You dont need a custom intake plenum stock will flow better then most ones you can build or buy.
S52 crank 1mm oversized je pistons pauter rods arp mains and head studs and a decent turbo set up. No ebay crap. Build the head with nice rockers ie or vac billet ones

That will give you roughly a 2.9 with the ability to handle over 750bhp.

Or save money and swap in an s50