Yesterday, we did a little topic on the 7age hybrid stroker engine. Bob is the one who tried many different setups and can tell you the reason why a particular engine is better than another. In the end it’s all about the butt-dyno.
4age 20V – The first one
How many engines did you have, tell us something about the setups.
All started with a stock 20V blacktop, 150bhp (crank) on the dyno. It passed away the day I bought the car. Got another 20V blacktop, stock again, 153 or 154bhp (can’t remember) which brought me through the rest of the 2009 season.
I optimized that last engine during winter 2009/2010 by gasket matching the ports, adding some Catcams, TODA valvesprings, adjustable pulleys, Haltech standalone ECU, Jubiride stacks, Fidanza flywheel, ARP studs and bolts everything. I broke in the engine, got it dyno tuned, and killed it 500km after that.
Then I got tired of all these 20V’s, sold all my blacktop and conversion stuff and got back to the 16V that had been in the car some years ago. Did a quick port matching job, added the usual (Catcams, uprated valvesprings, pulleys, ITB’s) and threw it in the car and had fun on the tracks. After the dyno tuning this engine had 153bhp (crank).
Finally the 7AGE: the idea grew on me for several months and I just wanted to try something new. And I have to say it was well worth it! I do love this engine, the power feels pretty much the same as on my 190hp 20V because the grunt kicks in earlier. The comparing dyno shows pretty well that below 7000RPM, both engines are pretty similar.
4age 20V – built – 190bhp
Which engines do you like the most?
The 20V had that fast revving almost motorbike(ish) feel which I miss a bit on my current 7AGE. Probably some lighter flywheel/clutch combination will cure this a bit. After all I think I do prefer the 7AGE, it’s just way more (daily) driveable than the modded 20V.
What are the drawbacks of the 7age build?
Drawbacks? There are 2 things that keep bugging me. First of all that there are no nice flywheels on the market and second of all, there aren’t any good conrod bearings on the market. All you get are OEM or KING/ACL (all are only 2-layer). Then everybody tells me the 7AFE block is bad because it has no oil squirting nozzles to cool the pistons *[Kolbenbodenkühlung]* but till now everything works fine, so I guess I don’t miss it.
4age 16V – with mild mods – 158bhp
What are the next steps you‘ d like to go with the engine?
I really would like to improve the airflow even more. Better headers, bigger exhaust valves, more grinding on the exhaust ports. But I just spent too much money on the engine the past years, so these things have to wait a while.
The 7age – Bob’s last evolution
Do you have a dyno comparison and can you explain the graphs a little further?
The graph compares my actual 7AGE to my previous 16V and my 20V. The 7A has
the most torque but tops out earlier than the 20V.
The comparison of various 4age stages
Hope to see you next trackday!
More pix from the build: Bob’s Blog – Monkeymagic86
The Luxy’s will be back for the time attack in August. Won’t win anything, but we will have quite some fun with you Schwiitzerdütschs again!Yesterday, we did a little topic on the 7age hybrid stroker engine. Bob is the one who tried many different setups and can tell you the reason why a particular engine is better than another. In the end it’s all about the butt-dyno.
4age 20V – The first one
How many engines did you have, tell us something about the setups.
All started with a stock 20V blacktop, 150bhp (crank) on the dyno. It passed away the day I bought the car. Got another 20V blacktop, stock again, 153 or 154bhp (can’t remember) which brought me through the rest of the 2009 season.
I optimized that last engine during winter 2009/2010 by gasket matching the ports, adding some Catcams, TODA valvesprings, adjustable pulleys, Haltech standalone ECU, Jubiride stacks, Fidanza flywheel, ARP studs and bolts everything. I broke in the engine, got it dyno tuned, and killed it 500km after that.
Then I got tired of all these 20V’s, sold all my blacktop and conversion stuff and got back to the 16V that had been in the car some years ago. Did a quick port matching job, added the usual (Catcams, uprated valvesprings, pulleys, ITB’s) and threw it in the car and had fun on the tracks. After the dyno tuning this engine had 153bhp (crank).
Finally the 7AGE: the idea grew on me for several months and I just wanted to try something new. And I have to say it was well worth it! I do love this engine, the power feels pretty much the same as on my 190hp 20V because the grunt kicks in earlier. The comparing dyno shows pretty well that below 7000RPM, both engines are pretty similar.
4age 20V – built – 190bhp
Which engines do you like the most?
The 20V had that fast revving almost motorbike(ish) feel which I miss a bit on my current 7AGE. Probably some lighter flywheel/clutch combination will cure this a bit. After all I think I do prefer the 7AGE, it’s just way more (daily) driveable than the modded 20V.
What are the drawbacks of the 7age build?
Drawbacks? There are 2 things that keep bugging me. First of all that there are no nice flywheels on the market and second of all, there aren’t any good conrod bearings on the market. All you get are OEM or KING/ACL (all are only 2-layer). Then everybody tells me the 7AFE block is bad because it has no oil squirting nozzles to cool the pistons *[Kolbenbodenkühlung]* but till now everything works fine, so I guess I don’t miss it.
4age 16V – with mild mods – 158bhp
What are the next steps you‘ d like to go with the engine?
I really would like to improve the airflow even more. Better headers, bigger exhaust valves, more grinding on the exhaust ports. But I just spent too much money on the engine the past years, so these things have to wait a while.
The 7age – Bob’s last evolution
Do you have a dyno comparison and can you explain the graphs a little further?
The graph compares my actual 7AGE to my previous 16V and my 20V. The 7A has
the most torque but tops out earlier than the 20V.
The comparison of various 4age stages
Hope to see you next trackday!
More pix from the build: Bob’s Blog – Monkeymagic86
The Luxy’s will be back for the time attack in August. Won’t win anything, but we will have quite some fun with you Schwiitzerdütschs again!