What is your FAVORITE 4 cyl for a HotRod project? MPG-HP !

So now that we are faced with $2.00 + a gallon for gas, and the likley-hood that it will continue to increase to near $3.00, the reality of fuel mileage/power begins to rear it's ugly head.
So, if you have one now, what and why did you choose it?

If you were buidling a light-weight HotRod, what engines would you consider using today?

Glenn

 

<font color="green"> The 2300 ford 4-cylinder.

I had one with a five speed to go with it that I was going to use in a Track-T project.

My X-bitch got it all and sold it dirt cheap to a guy she knows I hate.

Should of killed her when I got the chance.

But, I digress.

There are all kinds of aftermarket crap for them.

RASHY </font>

 

may dad has a t-bucket with an early pinto motor and a 4 speed. It goes pretty good for what it is. It has 31" tall tires and 3.00 gears in the rear and still pulls pretty good.

It is cool to wind it throught the gears and listen to the noise. It is probably more fun that way than if it was actually fast.

I think the quad-four motors look pretty cool....kinda like an Offy.

 

I agree, the 2.3l Ford banger is the shit. Get a set-up from an older ranger with the 5-speed attached, that has definitely gone through my mind more than twice.
Mike

 

What kinda mileage can a person pull outta one of those though?
I had the 2.3l in my old Ranger ('84) and it only got 20 mpg.

I still have the engine an tranny too. I originally planned to make a little "A" bomb modified out of it....maybe I still will.

But this 20mpg thing makes me go hmmmmmmm. My Fairlane with a 289 is getting 16-18 mpg with a 3 speed and 3.50 in the 8 inch.

Anyone got any speed secrets for the 2.3l.....or more importantly...anyone got any MPG secrets?

 

Vega 140 baby!!

HaaaaHaa

 

Damn straight...Vega 140ci (2300cc) four banger!

Get a later (75-77) one with hydraulic followers and HEI ignition...and for maximum service life, have it sleeved if it hasn't been already!

You get a light (all aluminum!) large displcaement (for a passenger car four cylinder) engine that features OHC design and accepts basic bolt-ons such as a header, aftermarket intake and different carb combos.

Think I'm kiddin'??? I'll post the pics sometime in the next week or two...how to drop a Vega 140 into a lightweight 1949 Chevy Fleetline! Geeky 70s style econo-classic cruiser!

(Laugh if ya must, but it'll match or beat any stock 216 on power...and live ALOT longer than those splash-oiled time bombs while getting better mileage!)

Only drawback...Vega fours are kinda homely lookin'!!

 

Now, for a total econo-rod...my plan would be the following:

1 lightweight T-bucket
1 1975-78 Datsun B-210 dinky four w/5speed

Mix together and keep everything super light!

It'll give ya a fun to drive little buzz-bomb that'll run forever while delivering 40-50mpg!

(Our old stock B-210 delivered 42mpg on the highway!)

It'll piss some people off...but it'd be cheap as hell to build and GREAT on gas!

 

Yep.
Somehow I knew that as soon as somebody mentioned the "V" word, it would summon LORD DISCO.

 

Hack,

I had to throw that in there!

I knew you'd chime in on this post sooner or later!

FWIW, I once put a Olds 215 in a Vega wagon!

 

[ QUOTE ]
Yep.
Somehow I knew that as soon as somebody mentioned the "V" word, it would summon LORD DISCO.



[/ QUOTE ]

Just like a Funky Bat Signal, Bro!

 

I'm with the Ford 2.3L crowd. If you're not afraid if technology, get one out of a T-Bird Turbo Coupe, a Merkur XR4-Ti or better yet a Mustang SVO. 180-200hp stock.

 

Alfa Romeo 2000.
All aluminum, twin overhead cam, hemi head, twin Webers standard on the Euro versions, used in Racing ( so you can buy hot cams, etc ), comes with a 5 speed, Looks like a mini Offy, good horse power, one of the best sounding 4 Cyl's ever...

 

What about some of the Import engines?

Mazda!

Mitsubishi?

 

My Dad has two of those Turbo Coupes. You would never suspect it is a 4 banger. I always make a point to lay a patch when he lets me drive it.

 

I have a 2000cc pinto motor in my track T. Those motors were used in mini stocks for quite a while so there's a lot of speed equipment available for them. With some head work, a cam, header, and some simple carburator changes it's pretty easy to get 150hp out of them. I don't have any problem keeping up with the flatheads I run with. The weak link is the puny transmissions. This I know from bad experience.

 

Im with the 2.0 pinto crowd , we have used loads of them in our cars. Our budget package is set up for these little engines and they are cheap , tunable , plentiful and we get 40-45 mpg out of ours.

One of the reasons , we offer lots of pinto style cars is because we have a fuel price crisis here as well.

I wish ours was $2.00 a gallon.....try just under $8.00 a gallon and most of the gas stations are gone to be replaced with apartment blocks so you use half a gallon finding a station !!

 

Dooster -hotrods do you have any more pics of that car ?Mostly full side and a couple of the front suspension

 

$8.00 a Gallon?

Shit Man, we are spoiled then, even at $3.00 a gallon.

Got any more pictures of your 2.0 powered rides?

Glenn

 

Just paid $2.50 a gallon

But my hot rod, even with its v8... gets 20mpg...

If I had to pick a 4 banger... I'd go with an old Iron Duke... they're pretty cool.

Sam.

 

Fordnutz has a T tub with an old Chevy II four in it with a PG. I imagine that combo would get a heap of MPG...

My first 57 Chevy had a 235 in it that I had a mechanic wizard friend go through, BUT I added the 3/4" Bakelite carb spacer off a Canadian Pontiac 261. Pontiacs had them, and an old timer told me that this goofy little spacer was added to give the Pontiacs more mpg's to compensate for the extra heavy bumpers on them versus a Chevy For what it was worth, that damn 57 got a consistent 26-7 mpg with that spacer, a 3 speed standard, and the 3.36's out of a 5-6-7 powerglide car.

 

I have a 72 Pinto 2.0L in my track T. It gets 30 mpg with a single 2 barrel. It's hopped up some with a cam, and head work. I have three other manifolds for it, a 4 barrel, a dual 1 barrel, and one for dual webers. I'll be changing it to one of these pretty soon. It all depends on what will fit under the hood. The Pinto motors are getting hard to find. Rangers and S10 motors work well too. Dean

 

my track t although not done yet is getting a Turbo 2.3 out of an XR4TI. I have parted out several now and drove the last one for about a year before I blew it apart. With a slightly warmed over 200 hp in the heavy as hell 3200 lb stock XR I still got around 32 mpg. I fugure the T will be around 1200-1400 lbs all said and done. It ought to be pretty nasty on the street not to mention easy at the pump.

 

While I have never done it, I think the Datsun 510 four with twin sidedrafts would make a great little rod motor. Tons of speed parts for them too.

 

SamIyam nailed it. My 2.5L Iron Duke is in my shop. With the Weber 40 DCOE sidedraft (should be delivered today) on my homebuilt aluminum intake with 10" runners, my Offy-style 4-into-1 header, and the 77mm 5-speed w/overdrive in a 1200 lb. lakester it might save me a few bucks on fuel...

With the 3.78 gear and the overdrive 5th the overall computes to roughly 3.10 on the highway.

 

I'm right now building a 26T Lakes Modified streetrod and using the entire eng/trans/rear-end from an 83 TurboCoupe Thunderbird. The 2.3 Turbo motor came with 165 HP and with some 86-87 Turbo Coupe upgrades(Bigger VAM, 35# injectors , Intercooler,etc.) and a few other common tweaks , 250-275 HP is not at all hard to reach. I'm trying to stay around 1600#'s , so 6-7 lbs./HP should make a pretty decent combination. Also should still get decent gas mileage ..and there's something about a 4-banger T track roadster that just seems right!!!

 

What about a rotary ive got one i've been thinking about using for something but not sure

 

Late 80's- early 90's nissan dual plug motor.

 

The new turbo 4cyl Dodge has in the SRT-4 Neon is a total MONSTER. I saw a website with a teardown of one, it makes a hemi look frail. Too bad they're not selling them outside of the Neons.

 

I was going to put a Mazda Rotary in a Morris Minor about 10 years ago.
That is a cool engine.........