Low budget 1600????

Gene-C · Post by **Gene-C** » Wed Sep 21, 2005 7:49 am

What are the musts, say if you only wanted to spend $1000.00 on the engine rebuild, and have something that works. what would you spend the money on? crank kit, head, cam,carb, etc. just want to get the most out of my buck. the motor is a duel port.

newmanx59 · Post by **newmanx59** » Wed Sep 21, 2005 1:22 pm

What are you looking to do with the engine? Do you want to build it for more HP, a stock driver, etc?

Gene-C · Post by **Gene-C** » Wed Sep 21, 2005 4:00 pm

a weekend cruiser with a little snap.

allen pierce · Post by **allen pierce** » Wed Sep 21, 2005 4:16 pm

Well, while this doesn't meet your criteria of keeping it a 1600, here's some parts prices that I'm doing... INCREASE ENGINE SIZE ? 1915cc 2x - 94 mm Heads (So Cal Imports) $ 360 94 mm Piston & Cylinder Set ?A? (Rimco) $ 200 BETTER/FRESH PARTS 69 mm Counter Weighted Crank (DPR Machine) $ 110 1600 Balanced Rods (DPR Machine) $ 45 12V-200 mm 12 lbs Balanced Flywheel (DPR Machine) $ 75 Cam W110 (Kustom1) $ 50 ENGINE CASE MACHINE WORK Align Bore Mains (Rimco) $ 43 Deep Stud #3 (Rimco) $ 15 Case Bore 92 mm (Rimco) $ 45 Trim Cylinder Set Bottoms to 92 mm (Rimco) $ 50 Grand Total so far $ 993 And, of course, I've probably left out all those little things like new bearings, cam gear, etc. Those could easily amount to a couple of hundred dollars, before you know it. Then, if you've not got a Dog House and Full Flow cooling system and some more $$$ IMPROVE OIL COOLING - Dog House Fan Shroud ? no heat (Kustom 1) $ 45 Oil Cooler (Kustom 1) $ 58 Adapter (Kustom 1) $ 19 30mm Oil Pump (Kustom 1) $ 30 Machine work for full flow (Rimco) $ 20 $172 And, of course you'd probably like better carbs, so start saving up for those, too! Now we're getting carried off your criteria a lot! But, I hope it gives you some reference points. Enjoy.

newmanx59 · Post by **newmanx59** » Wed Sep 21, 2005 6:22 pm

Allen, your post looks like the budget from Monster Garage but without the Freebies.

I agree with Allen, a 1914 is a great start. Allen forgot a couple things that will bump the price up a little more...you will need a full set of engine bearings, a set of new lifters, push rods and tubes and a set of gaskets. With the rest of the upgrades the engine will be capable of self destruction so make sure you don't scrimp on the crankshaft. A counterweighted crank and balanced components will help the engine live a long and productive life.

allen pierce · Post by **allen pierce** » Wed Sep 21, 2005 7:11 pm

Yep, I left off all those things. Go moderately BIG, you'll like it and the 1915 has those nice think cylinder walls and if you buy the oil cooling insurance, it should last a good long while. Of course I started with only the case, so, I've got about $2,500 in parts in mine. It's all the needed outside the engine case stuff... new alternator/stand/pully, sidewinder exhaust, dual Kadrons (started cheap, but then I went and asked AJ to make it the right way) and a zillion other things. Oh, and The Maniac got me some freebies, and some very low cost items. AND, we do way better work than those guys on Monster Garage.

Lee · Post by **Lee** » Wed Sep 21, 2005 8:08 pm

Whatever engine you build, be sure to improve the ignition as well. It doesn't make sense to have the best carbs, heads, exhaust, etc. and still have a wimpy spark trying to light it. I went with the CDI module made by Universal Corporation in Colorado: http://universal-co.com/index.aspx It's a lot cheaper than the MSD kits, and you can easily revert back to stock if you experience a failure in the boonies.

Gene-C · Post by **Gene-C** » Thu Sep 22, 2005 6:14 am

[QUOTE="newmanx59"]Allen, your post looks like the budget from Monster Garage but without the Freebies.

I agree with Allen, a 1914 is a great start. Allen forgot a couple things that will bump the price up a little more...you will need a full set of engine bearings, a set of new lifters, push rods and tubes and a set of gaskets. With the rest of the upgrades the engine will be capable of self destruction so make sure you don't scrimp on the crankshaft. A counterweighted crank and balanced components will help the engine live a long and productive life.[/QUOTE] Wheres a good place to start shopping? does somebody offer a complete kit? crank, rods, jugs, heads, All i have right now is a whitney Catalog, and ive never been to sure about ordering from them. What about a stroker crank? or is that too much compression for something thats going to run for a couple of hours at a time, (Too much heat buildup). porting and polishing the intakes? (kinda long and tough to do) maybe a good aftermarket intake?

allen pierce · Post by **allen pierce** » Fri Sep 23, 2005 2:54 am

Well, you can find most of the parts houses in the magazine, Dune Buggies & Hot VW's. Big question is where are you located? If in SoCal, you can visit the places and see who you like dealing with. Gene Berg is the most expensive (some say it's worth it), but you won't be able to stay at $1,000 and get many parts. Most everyone else has identical stuff, so you're shoping for 1) price, 2) if they have it in stock and 3) dependability of shipping the things you ordered vs shipping something you didn't order. My favorites are Kustom1 (good/reasonable discounted prices and they have had most of the things I wanted in stock, I've always picked up at their place). SoCal Imports is #2 on my list. You won't find G. Serrano in the magazine and my experience is that Steve doesn't have much time to talk to you about things, but, if you know exactly what you want, he has the absolute lowest prices. You can find G. Serrano on The Samba (high performance parts, section) or call him at 310 533-8273. He's usually 15%, to as much as 30% lower than anyone else. Case in point, IRS axle assemblies complete, no-core required, other places ~$120, Serrano ~$90. Direct purchase on cranks, rods, and things like that I'd go to DPR Machine, 714 979-7441. If you need machine work then it's Rimco at 714 549-0357. Hope that gets you started. Doing your own research and getting referals (like you asked and I gave) are good things to do before you jump in. These are, of course, just opinions of the author. I hope others will post their opinions, as well.

Gene-C · Post by **Gene-C** » Thu Sep 29, 2005 5:29 am

I think i decided to go with a Counterweighted crank kit with the 92mm jugs, A cam, (still undecided weather a low end or high end, going to be street use) Im going to do the head work myself, i build Garden tractor pulling engines, so the valve job, port and polishing wont be a problem. Probabbly a lightened flywheel, and duel webbers. Santa clause will need a new budget for me this year.

Gene-C · Post by **Gene-C** » Thu Sep 29, 2005 6:03 am

forget the 92's, go 90 or 94 the cost is the same. If your on a buget, just use your stock crank. unless you plan on running over 5000 rpm (LOL) Don't buy a one piece cast cw crank. what ever you do plan on a full balance job

Gene-C · Post by **Gene-C** » Thu Sep 29, 2005 6:08 am

why would the 90s be better than the 92s, i herd something about watching out for jugs that are bored real thin. instead of making new jugs for that bore????

Gene-C · Post by **Gene-C** » Thu Sep 29, 2005 6:18 am

92's are the thinest walled cylinder on the market They 1st came out in the early 70's, why there still made is anyone's guess. I had them back then and do still have one engine whith 92's. They will fail or wear out before a 90 or 94t

Gene-C · Post by **Gene-C** » Thu Sep 29, 2005 6:25 am

If i go 94s with higher comp heads, driving it on the street, do i have to worry about heat, i have a dog house. What about a Stroker crank and rods? i dont want to be able to run single digits in the 1/4mile, but when i step on it i dont want it to seem like a 4cyl either. Im definatly going to some swap meet this year, and hopefully ill be able to get some ride of bugs already done, so i will have an idea of what $$$ produce what power, before i envest into it.

Gene-C · Post by **Gene-C** » Thu Sep 29, 2005 6:55 am

to be honest ive never driven a vw. my mom had one when i was 6 but dont remember what it was capable of, neither one of the two i bought run, and i just dont want to be disapointed when i get the buggy finished.