Engine hot off the dyno!
Posted: Thu Dec 17, 2015 12:01 am
I am the original owner of a 69 S4 SE DHC that I picked up at the factory July 69 and brought back to California.
The car had been sitting (usual problem - water pump) for the last 13 years. Now having the time, decided to get it back on the road. The car was basically in good shape, no rust, engine and driveline fine, original paint, .. but figured since I pulled the engine that I might as well improve things after 46 years of ownership. Some may disparage the departure from strictly original but I am certainly keeping things in the original "spirit". No body changes, keeping Lotus twin cam power, etc. But, the selfish aim is the car is purely for my driving pleasure so upgrades were in order across the board (alternator, oil cooler, 26R cooling, CV joints, uprated prop shaft, uprated differential outputs, Quaife ATB, uprated stub axles, adjustable suspension, new springs/shocks, removable water pump, Pertronix ignition, etc) .
The engine has been stroked (1700 cc) and I put a new SAS head (street -not race- porting) on it so I could finally have the Webers that I didn't get when I bought the car in 1969. Put on Weber 40's not 45's. The original block has been retained. It really didn't have much wear. So the engine number "matches" but as you will see performance is a bit different.
The goal of the engine build was to have a reliable, torque oriented motor for the street.
The dyno verdict just in from my engine builder (well known top builder, supplying twin cams for a lot of racers and a few for the street like mine). The numbers are impressive:
141.5 lbs peak torque @ 5000 then slight dip and back above 140 at 6000
Makes 133.1 lbs torque at 4200 and never drops below 133 all the way to 7000.
179.6 bhp @ 6900 (just about 180 bhp !) Torque at peak hp: 136.7
91 Octane unleaded California pump gas.
Compression ratio 10.2, reduced total advance. No pinging.
Should be exhilarating to drive after I finish installing all the suspension, driveline upgrades - that are my job. A challenge will be tire size as I don't want to do flares.
I think these excellent torque and bhp numbers are the result of the combination of a meticulous top builder with decades of experience and proven success along with the potential contribution from a new (replica), better breathing, twin cam head from SAS. I think the care taken in the build is evident from the pictures.
Some pictures
The car had been sitting (usual problem - water pump) for the last 13 years. Now having the time, decided to get it back on the road. The car was basically in good shape, no rust, engine and driveline fine, original paint, .. but figured since I pulled the engine that I might as well improve things after 46 years of ownership. Some may disparage the departure from strictly original but I am certainly keeping things in the original "spirit". No body changes, keeping Lotus twin cam power, etc. But, the selfish aim is the car is purely for my driving pleasure so upgrades were in order across the board (alternator, oil cooler, 26R cooling, CV joints, uprated prop shaft, uprated differential outputs, Quaife ATB, uprated stub axles, adjustable suspension, new springs/shocks, removable water pump, Pertronix ignition, etc) .
The engine has been stroked (1700 cc) and I put a new SAS head (street -not race- porting) on it so I could finally have the Webers that I didn't get when I bought the car in 1969. Put on Weber 40's not 45's. The original block has been retained. It really didn't have much wear. So the engine number "matches" but as you will see performance is a bit different.
The goal of the engine build was to have a reliable, torque oriented motor for the street.
The dyno verdict just in from my engine builder (well known top builder, supplying twin cams for a lot of racers and a few for the street like mine). The numbers are impressive:
141.5 lbs peak torque @ 5000 then slight dip and back above 140 at 6000
Makes 133.1 lbs torque at 4200 and never drops below 133 all the way to 7000.
179.6 bhp @ 6900 (just about 180 bhp !) Torque at peak hp: 136.7
91 Octane unleaded California pump gas.
Compression ratio 10.2, reduced total advance. No pinging.
Should be exhilarating to drive after I finish installing all the suspension, driveline upgrades - that are my job. A challenge will be tire size as I don't want to do flares.
I think these excellent torque and bhp numbers are the result of the combination of a meticulous top builder with decades of experience and proven success along with the potential contribution from a new (replica), better breathing, twin cam head from SAS. I think the care taken in the build is evident from the pictures.
Some pictures