Turbo or 3.0 Stroker?

[chameleonleather]

I talked with my shop today and an option would be to build a 9.5
:1 3.0 stroker which in the future could be brought down to 8.5:1 with a comatic head gasket if I really wanted to boost.

[mikeedler]

Make it interesting. Im always for N/A. Takes more skill to make power without forced induction. Thats my opinion so dont get upset if you have FI.



Mariano

hahahhahahahaaa YA right!!!

what you meant to say was it takes more cash, and you still arent going to have as much power in the end.

I am not upset Mariano, I would never do anything to my s14 other than NA work.-- but i know I could get a ton more pwer with a little snail in there too.

[808BMW]

I'd do both, but if it could only be 1, then turbo.
Snails pwn high strung NA motors.
Also building a whole motor with a certain plan (9.5:1) and then slapping a massive headgasket on it is retarded. If you wanted to build a turbo motor, then do it.

Either one is most likely going to do worse on an autox. Who needs power, drag racers?
I know if my car had any more power I would just be scrubbing off more speed in every turn, and afraid to get on it coming out.

[BimmerScreamer]

I am a huge fan of NA motors, so my vote went for the stroker. I like the power delivery, and I am an autocross guy. Either way, though, it would he hella fun.

what this guy said:up:

[chameleonleather]

All votes are appreciated.

[CleanAzzE30z]

but i know I could get a ton more pwer with a little snail in there too.

Dude, thats what I said. I know you can make way more power than NA. But its easier to make power with FI. Which means it requires more engineering and skill and creativity to make similar power without FI. You can slap a turbo on any piece of shit and itll be quick, ya know?



Mariano

[dashboardmonkey]

Stroke it

[chameleonleather]

I would like some helpful info on port and polishing. I have been researching it and it looks pretty straight forward with some skill involved.

[der affe]

P & P isn't really that hard if you just gasket match the ports and clean up the chambers. it is boring as fuck! and takes for ever. i would suggest that you get a junk head first and screw around with it. if after you get finished with the junk head you thing you can handle one that counts, go for it. hogging the holes out won't do you any good though, polishing the chambers and intakes (Ala Jordon) won't help you either. remember that you need to match port the intake manifold too as well as match the exhaust ports to the header that you are going to use.

build the motor like you were going to turbo it (good bolts, ETC) put total seal second rings and oil rings. with a Dykes top. weld in the bung for the oil drain a head of time and cap it off.

then when the time comes, supercharge it instead. you can still use your existing exhaust and headers, you just need to sort out the mounting of the charger and inter cooler piping. the power delivery is more like an N/A motor too

[chameleonleather]

bump

[uofom3]

s5x+ms3+ITB's+CF airbox = win.

if this is something you can't afford - just do the s5x and cam/chip it. plenty of go for most people.

[chameleonleather]

Ok, lets put it this way. How much should it cost for an s50 swap?

[uofom3]

5k i would say is reasonable for everything.

[chameleonleather]

A shop would source the s50 and install it for 5k? That's a great price, Im looking at that much for the 3.0 stroker.

[e28forlife]

I reckon you have three options:

1). Bore and build the engine you have now. Ireland Engineering makes 3, 3.1 and 3.2 litre kits, None of these are cheap, and there would be necessary intake, exhaust and tuning work to take full advantage. I imagine a well worked 3 liter m20 would cost $6k plus, with all the required labor etc. It could cost considerably more if you go just a little bit more in depth

2). Engine swap. Depending upon what engine you use, this can be the cheapest option. You could do an m30b35 out of an e34 for pretty cheap (-$1000). A chip, MAF conversion, and exhaust would all give pretty reasonable gains. The mark D ship shows an increase of more than 30/30 hp/ftlbs tq.
An m50/m52 swap would cost a little bit more, but there is a ton of info available on the swap, and a large aftermarket devoted to these engines. The cost for the engine itself would be somewhere between the m30 and s50.
The most highly regarded of swaps would be the s50/s52 which is the most expensive options. The engine/tranny itself is upwards of $4K, and then you have to add in labor and the swap related parts. This can all be pretty costly.
3). Turbo. If your engine is in good shape, you could just buy the TCD (turbo charging dynamics) m20 kit, in either intercooled or non intercooled form. With the intercooler, its near $5000. If you add in a clutch, thats another $600 or so, and the same for an exhaust. This will by far give you the most horsepower.


I don't see a 3liter m20 producing any more horsepower than a 3 liter DOHC s50 engine. The only upside to that route would be cost (although the parts and engine work are not cheap, so I'm not sure how much you'd save) and the fact that you do not have to deal with any of the swap headaches. The TCD kit is the route I'd go, as even a fully modified s50 with cams, intake manifold, exhaust etc only puts out ~280whp. The stage 2 TCD kit is rated at ~300whp/300 ft lbs torque, and would have the least headache of the bunch. There would indeed be extra weight when compared to a built m20, but I think it would be a reasonable sacrifice, even in a car that will be tracked. As for auto-x, I would just concentrate on suspension.