Power...how much?

[Nissanman]

I know - you're absolutely right - not a great deal of different - like to stir things up though

[Thooms]

That's another thing that appeals to me about a turbo engined car...you can turn it down when you're just cruising or whatever.

What axle are you using? Can you have such a high output engine on a standard axle?

The Duratec is lighter though...gah this is complicated!

Would love to have an Alfa V6 in a Stylus

[Nissanman]

Using a 7 inch Sierra LSD diff - if I find it doesn't like that power I'll stick in a Quaife.

[stylussprinter]

Using a 7 inch Sierra LSD diff - if I find it doesn't like that power I'll stick in a Quaife.

Power will probably not be the cause of disaster because it's happening at high rev's , when the diff / gearbox is already spinning so no great shock What will or may sort it out is the massive torque but then your not sprinting so perhaps using it for the endurance rally with the grunt being fed in rather than slammed in , all will be calm

Rob.

[PeteC]

I vaguely remember seeing a four wheel drive Fury in a mag once! Impreza I think. Surely a great way of getting the power down, has anybody done this in a Stylus?
Pete..

[stylussprinter]

I vaguely remember seeing a four wheel drive Fury in a mag once! Impreza I think. Surely a great way of getting the power down, has anybody done this in a Stylus?
Pete..

Don't think so . For me it would spoil an otherwise light well balanced rear wheel drive car plus 4x4 is only an advantage in the wet. I've beaten 4x4 times in the dry many times . Depends what turns you on --------- biggest staight line grunt or handling/nimble

[Werner Van Loock]

Thought I'd better speak up at this point. I'm currently putting a Nissan 2 ltr turbo engine (the later all ali SR20DET lump from a 200sx S14a - not the heavy iron lump in earlier cars) in a Stylus. At £1k for the engine and all the wiring bits and gearbox (with 50k full service history on the donor) they are a bargain - try getting a Duratec or a Zetec at 220bhp for that money.

Another benefit of turbo cars is the cheaper exhaust, cos you don't need a 4-2-1 or 4-1 system.

[Thooms]

You do lose some of the exhaust howl though, compared with true straight pipes. Good point on the exhaust though, hadn't thought of that

Did have a casual look at the Murtaya (Scooby based), but the Stylus is a much nices looking thing.

Those of you who've tuned your engines, what does it do to the fuel consumption? Does it stay more or less the same when you're driving 'normally'? Would stand to reason that it's more thirsty when it's working at it's full potential, but does it make it thirstier all round? Does the ECU get tuned to run the engine slightly richer in the process?

Fuel economy on a turbocharged engine would be quite good i i'd guess off boost...but in such a light car as this would a huge surge in power + torque make it difficult to drive if you really booted it? Or is that more tyre/suspension related, rather than just purely on output power? I do think it'd be a shame to ruin the driving experience and not be able to work the car/engine hard because you're in constant fear that it's going to turn you round the way you came when the turbo spools up (and of course intake noise is cool )

I'm sorry for all the broad, overly general questions. If anyone has any articles that can give you a guide to selecting an engine etc i'd be very interested to read them

What's the average road weight of a Stylus? Is the RT any lighter?

[stylussprinter]

I do wonder why fuel consumption interests you when talking of bhp --------- huge If you can afford to build a Stylus with huge bhp plus the necessary spec' brakes/suspension etc etc etc , then mpg is surely irrelevant
To semi - answer your question , a Stylus is around 600kgs with a car engine built for road use but this will vary widely according to the builder. Also fuel wise , with a car engine , fuel will be around 30mpg but will vary depending on engine size/type/carbs/throttle bodies/gearbox and diff. Diff's for the live axle can be 3.64 , 3.89 , 4.1 , 4.4 , 4.7 and 5.3
Can you see why the question is really too general to answer untill you have decided on a route to follow . Sorry but it's the best I can do.
Rob.

[Thooms]

I thought that might be the case

The reason i'm asking such general questions is because I'm trying to get to grips with the basics of this stuff first...

Right now I'm in no position to build a Stylus anyway...I have neither the space, nor the money - just as well cos i'm totally clueless about it right now . Just interested because I'm going to start saving when I get back from my trip (which is where most of my money has one )

Deffinetly see your point though...but I appreciate everyones help none-the-less

Sounds like going above about 250hp will cause a lot of problems...while the Audi engine itself + turbo is cheaper than a new Duratec with throttle bodies, the added weight and complexity (as you say, not to mention the brakes and suspension), the added cost of a driveline that won't turn to cheese when faced with twice as much load as it was designed for, clutches, tyres and other junk like that.

Duratec + relatively high final drive sounds like an appealing option for me as a road car at any rate...

[whiterabbit]

We can all dream of wonderful engine and drivetrain permutations, trying innovative things, but one or two phrases in your last post, Thooms, suggest a reality check might be needed. I went through similar pipe dreams until taking the plunge, with very little money, nearly four years ago.

My car has a 2.1 litre pinto with twin 45's and a FR32 cam. It will give me, I hope, a reliable 140 BHP. Modest I hear you say but it should blow the doors off most hot hatches, and with Stylus' legendary handling run rings around them too. Supercar it will never be, but fun? I have no doubt at all.

Anyway, you can always build up something more esoteric after you have got the car on the road, and swop later on when and if you get bored with you initial drivetrain choice.

Steve.

[jefferybond]

We can all dream of wonderful engine and drivetrain permutations, trying innovative things, but one or two phrases in your last post, Thooms, suggest a reality check might be needed. I went through similar pipe dreams until taking the plunge, with very little money, nearly four years ago.

Yes I agree entirely. Took me three years to build mine, and at the start you have all these wonderful intentions and plan for everything to be just perfect (for example, making an absolutely perfect job of the chassis panelling). After three years of hard work, you kinda get to realise what is important and what isn't, and just want the flippin thing on the road! At that point, I'd have been happy with a lawn mower engine just so long as I could drive it!

Don't get me wrong, a stylus is not hard to build, but it does take a lot of hard work and time (and money!). I guess what I'm trying to say is that maybe choosing the exact right engine from the beginning is not *that* important, and can be upgraded later. Trust me, this will probably be a minor job compared to building it in the first place.

I've currently got a rover v8 in mine (~190 bhp) and that's plenty. 150bhp would be plenty too, and be able to see off most things on the road. If I was building another one, I would probably choose a ford duratec like Tim's demo RT car. I'd also stay away from turbos, since I don't like the sound (lack of!) or throttle response they give, but that's just my opinion!

Jeff

[Pete&Matt]

what we have done, is just gone for standard everything! strandard brakes, gearbox, diff, engine etc. That way we can get it on the road without spending thousands and waiting another 2 years for money to come along! Build it, enjoy it, upgrade later if you want to!

[Thooms]

Thanks guys, that sounds very sensible. I like the idea of upgradability...one of the things that attracts me to the Duratec is the availability of 'bits' for it, not to mention the ~£700 price tag for a recon engine.

The 4A-GE looks like a nice little mill as well...and at €1600 it isn't overly pricey either (and is light, as well as being easy on fuel).

The price of the kit does look quite high compared with a Fury or an MK or something, but of course with the Stylus you get pretty much all the bits included. Seems to be a lot cheaper than a similarly complete Westfield kit too.

[stylussprinter]

Thanks guys, that sounds very sensible. I like the idea of upgradability...one of the things that attracts me to the Duratec is the availability of 'bits' for it, not to mention the ~£700 price tag for a recon engine.

The 4A-GE looks like a nice little mill as well...and at €1600 it isn't overly pricey either (and is light, as well as being easy on fuel).

The price of the kit does look quite high compared with a Fury or an MK or something, but of course with the Stylus you get pretty much all the bits included. Seems to be a lot cheaper than a similarly complete Westfield kit too.

That's the very point that most seem to miss. Quoting a low price starter kit is easy but misleading. The kit I bought from SSC in 1997 was £4000 or close figure but I then went on to spend a further £10,000 before it was on the road.
Rob