LSx V8 or Turbo 4? Car performance trends.

[axlon]

The Nova seems more current in thinking. Recent cars have smaller turbo engines for emissions and economy, plus better handling with less weight in the nose. The old school way was more displacement and don't worry about the understeer! Would anyone put a turbo 4 into a classic musclecar?

 

SEMA Nova 2.0T

 

e12 LS7 V8

 

e12 3.5L

 

Gremlin 401-XR

[ocnblu]

I don't have a problemo with the 2.0L Nova, it seems appropriate for a small car like that.  I am sure it does pretty well for itself.  If I were to do one, I would leave it more aesthetically stock, however, to fool everyone into thinking it is run-of-the-mill.

[Robert Hall]

Kind of reminds me of a couple magazine articles I read back around 1979-80...Car Craft or Hot Rod put a then-new and trendy GM V6 (don't recall if it was the Chevy or Buick one) into a '67-68 Camaro and applied various aftermarket parts of the day to it...

 

In a similar vein, a blogger somewhere is/was building a Fox Mustang w/ the new 2.3 Ecoboost engine..

Edited December 7, 2015 by Cubical-aka-Moltar

[ocnblu]

I was over onto the Facebook this morning advocating a 2.3L Ecoboost Pinto build.

[Drew Dowdell]

Moving my Toronado from the wheezing old 5.0 liter V8 it has now to the 2.0T 4-cylinder from the ATS would be a welcome upgrade for me.  I also wouldn't mind a 5.3  V8 in there, but that's the most powerful I'd go.

[ocnblu]

A decent carburetor would help your driveability immensely, imo.  GM carbs from the period were junk.

[G. David Felt]

Would be interesting to replace the 305 V8 in a 85 or 86 Monte Carlo SS Areo version with a proper Turbo 4 banger and see how she would handle.

Moving my Toronado from the wheezing old 5.0 liter V8 it has now to the 2.0T 4-cylinder from the ATS would be a welcome upgrade for me.  I also wouldn't mind a 5.3  V8 in there, but that's the most powerful I'd go.

Why not replace the carb with a Holley or Edelbrock EFI kit?

[Drew Dowdell]

Would be interesting to replace the 305 V8 in a 85 or 86 Monte Carlo SS Areo version with a proper Turbo 4 banger and see how she would handle.

Moving my Toronado from the wheezing old 5.0 liter V8 it has now to the 2.0T 4-cylinder from the ATS would be a welcome upgrade for me.  I also wouldn't mind a 5.3  V8 in there, but that's the most powerful I'd go.

Why not replace the carb with a Holley or Edelbrock EFI kit?

 

Why not put lipstick on a pig?

 

The 307s aren't very tuneable.  I'd get better start-up and maybe slightly better fuel economy, but no additional power. 

[ocnblu]

So you're scared then.

[Drew Dowdell]

huh?

[oldshurst442]

restomodding and pro-touring could go many different ways...

 

If I was doing a 1980s G-Body from GM....other than a numbers matchiung GNX that Id keep stock...I would NEVER go higher than a modern 5.3 liter V8 from GM ...

 

Id probably do 300 horse 3.6 liter V6 ...

 

A 3rd generation F-Body?  Hell..because those arent exactly classics yet...other than maybe a 1989 Turbo Trans Am...Id even tinker with the idea of a 2.0T...

 

When classic muscle is concerned though from the 1960s and early 1970s....pro-touring resto-modded LSx motors would be the way Id go...

 

No...not Novas...those would be 2.0Ts and TTV6 3.6liters...Im talking about faux GTos and 442s and Chevelles and Impala SS...

[Drew Dowdell]

restomodding and pro-touring could go many different ways...

 

If I was doing a 1980s G-Body from GM....other than a numbers matchiung GNX that Id keep stock...I would NEVER go higher than a modern 5.3 liter V8 from GM ...

 

Id probably do 300 horse 3.6 liter V6 ...

 

A 3rd generation F-Body?  Hell..because those arent exactly classics yet...other than maybe a 1989 Turbo Trans Am...Id even tinker with the idea of a 2.0T...

 

When classic muscle is concerned though from the 1960s and early 1970s....pro-touring resto-modded LSx motors would be the way Id go...

 

No...not Novas...those would be 2.0Ts and TTV6 3.6liters...Im talking about faux GTos and 442s and Chevelles and Impala SS...

 

I'm the same... My Toronado is not a sports car, it doesn't handle great, it just needs to have more get up and go. 295 lb-ft from the 2.0T would be sufficient.

[Frisky Dingo]

No way would I want a boosted 4 in an old car like that Nova. That BMW with the 7.0 is dope though, sacrilege be damned.