V8 this, V8 that, LS swap the world, all hail the mighty Hemi. Yep, we love eight cylinders doing the right thing, making the right noises, and creating the right kinds of power, but they aren’t the only layout in town. Ask the first Turbo Buick fan you can find about the fascination with V8s and prepare to get an earful. Double that for any fans of EcoBoost Fords, the import crowds, or the diesel freaks. V8s are fun, no doubt, but good power can come from any mill if you work it properly. There are two-cylinder Harley’s out there that most men won’t dare mess with. Modern four-bangers of the last fifteen years back up the thinking: the current Camaro’s 275 horse/295 torque rating, which is close to the 1993 Z28’s ratings for the LT-1 V8. The turbo four in the EcoBoost Mustang packs 310 horses and 350 ft/lbs, which was about the same power level as the 1999 SVT Cobra’s original claim. And there have been older mills that work well when built, the 2.3L Ford and the Chrysler 2.2L both being great examples.
So what would you build a four-banger for and why? While I’d love to see a 4G63-swapped late 1970s Dodge Challenger personally, I have to admit that swapping the engine from a Cobalt SS into an S-10 for a shop truck would make for a bitchin’ little shop truck. Turbo or supercharged, either way you get rid of the Cobalt part and turn an S-10 into a sweet little screamer that isn’t stuffed to the gills with LS or SBC power. What would you build?
I have a MGB with a SBC (500hp) in it, great fun ,but I’ve seen a couple MGBs recently that have modern 4s in them (250hp-350hp) that are better all around cars. If I was to do it again I’d go with a Turbo EcoTec, 6-speed for a better driver. Amazingly they are harder to keep under the hood.
Forgot to mention what an awesome Falcon that is, big time sleeper too.
Built an insane 3.0 liter mercrusier for my model a.
High compression
Stroker crank,custom pistons and rods
Custom made for intake and headers balanced,msd ignition
8 port head with tonsnof flow bench time and lots of grinding.
My dream four banger is a 270 offy with efi and stuffed in a track roadster…
As a matter of fact, I just purchased a 1986 IROC and plan on making it my auto-crosser. I was thinking about a new 2.0 ltr turbo from the current gen Camaro. The 3rd Gen was designed with 4 cylinders, turbos & multi-value V6s. Because gas remained cheep, V8 continued the norm.
4 cylinder plans? Of course. High 8’s someplace.
But then, that’s not all that uncommon for a bike. 🙂
Will someone PLEASE cast a 1/2 , 426 Hemi or a 1/2 sbc , or a 1/2 LS , or a 1/2 sbm . At one time someone made a portable air compressor and one bank of a Gen I Hemi was the compressor and one bank was the 4 cyl power . The Mopar 4 cyl Sprint car motors are no longer available
air cooled vw cal look 80’s style fast, and the ladies LooooOOOOOve em’
As I sit here literally taking a break from ordering a load of parts for my turbo LS s10 build, the mention of a Cobalt turned s10 sounds pretty damn cool. Would I put the time and money into it? Not personally, but would I love to see it? Hell yeah!
I ‘d loke to build a Vega or Monza with the Ecotec/6M set up. Good power and gas mileage!
I thought about a Vega Cosworth with a Duratech I4 in it because that was the platform that Cosworth was currently supporting. The car was a rust bucket though and I’m glad I didn’t have the money.
Spotted something on Craigslist today that would be a good package for something like that despite being an original V8 car.
Awesome car! Super sanitary and not LS or Coyote powered, but 10.79 and no cage? That would get you thrown out of any NHRA approved track I know of.
why bother putting a 4 banger into a high state of tune to run 10s? They are ticking time bombs. The reason turbo LS motors are so popular is the possibility of 9 second power in a very streetable package. I admire builds of all types, but some just make more sense than others.
151 cid Iron duke block – Forged crank – Billet cross flow cylinder head – 302 chevy rods and pistons – 4-71 GMC Blower – Alky fuel. Before you say it can’t be done – it can with a bit of fabrication on the intake side.
I’ve got a Porsche 944 with a 2.2l ecotec in it. It’s got a Borg Warner efr 7670 turbo, makes 415 hp at the wheels at 18psi. Heck of a fun car