Looking for the right 4 cyl engine to produce 200

[Jerry]

We are building a 1967 cortina to road race. It currently has no engine so we can shop for whatever is out there. We want to stick with a 4 cyl engine to keep the weight down, but are really looking for something that will produce about 200hp without a lot of modification. IE: we have a limited budget and a $5000 engine is not going to happen. So thinking about stock or only slightly modified, any make, what engines would you look at? so far we have reveiwed:
240SX
2.3 liter ford (has to be prepped to hit 200hp
Honda s2000 (we thought we could get one cheap, but fell through)

Any other ideas?
Thanks

Jerry

 

[Monkeywrench]

Relatively stock motors with those power figures pretty much leaves you with either a Honda B or K series. There are a handful of other 4cyl motors in the 160hp range, but will require some work to get them to 200bhp.

 

[Jerry]

Ok, so which honda is the cheapest to get a motor and manual transmission out of?

 

[Monkeywrench]

Well, the big problem with them is, except for the S2000, they're all front wheel drive and would take a custom transmission to make work in a rear wheel drive platform.

The only rear wheel drive engine/trans set ups you're going to find are the 1.8L out of a Miata or MX5/Duratec Ford (140-160hp), Chevy Ecotec (160), Toyota 4AG (165hp), S2000 (240hp), and Ford Zetec (130hp and a T5 transmission with an aftermarket bell housing).

 

[Jerry]

That is the problem. I seach craigs list and find front wheel drive cars which is not going to work with our Cortina. We had someone that owed us with a wrecked S2000 which would be a great engine, but the person found out the engine and transmission are worth a lot as parts.
back to searching.

 

[aeronca65t]

Look for a Duratec from a Ford Renger (Roughly 2000 to 2006). Comes with a nice Japanese 5 speed trans.

Common so should be cheap. They'll make 200 HP but honestly, in a Cortina, a stock one would probably be pretty speedy too.

 

[swift6]

You may be able to find a 2.0 Pinto engine for a decent price, they are OHC and can produce a lot of power. Or search through the local scrap yards for a Merkur XR4Ti. 2.3litre turbocharged with a 5-speed already attached and originally rear wheel drive to boot.

 

[dougie]

Jerry -

Just curious what type of road racing you're planning on doing? If it's with any type of organized group whether vintage or SCCA you might need to stick with a ford block. A mate of mine here in the NW does pretty well in his vintage legal '67 Cortina running upper mid-pack. If you'll be doing the build just for shi..& giggles then I like Nial's advice.

Dougie

 

[tr8todd]

BMW 2.3 liter s14 engine out of an e30 M3 produced 240 out of the box. 5K should get you the engine and 5 speed along with all the fixings. Another option is the Toyota twin cam whatever you call it. Seen those make tons of power in Formula Atlantics.

 

[tiga2]

I raced SP2000, the Ford Pinto engine, most were 120HP, you could maybe get 140, but that was considered a "granade". Could'nt do too much to them tho.

 

[Gundy]

I have a good friend who has a Formula Ford 105 E cross flow
engine with dry sump and pump with carb and dizzy. It's a 1600cc pushrod.
Been in dry storage for about 40 years.
He asked me to post this info for him.
You can contact him at 864-233-5431 from 9-5 eastern time.

 

[billspohn]

Assuming you are allowed to do it, consider the Ecotec from the Kappa chassis (Solstice, Sky). The NA version produces high 170s net and you can bump that up with the usual work. The tranmsission may also be usable in a Cortina.

Much easier than trying to adapt a transverse engine.

 

[Alphonse]

A ford 2.0 BDV race engine is readily capable of 200 and would fit in a Cortina without much work. You need a good tanny to handle the hp and torque.
There is a fellow running in the Southern region VMC with this setup.

 

[billspit]

I think the Ford Duratec is your best bet. Be careful because there are several versions.

 

[JodyFKerr]

If you wanted to keep it british you could put a Lotus 907/910/912. Those can be made to produce 200+ HP relatively easily.

 

[Jerry]

Our race is a 24 hours of lemons type. IE: junker cars, no specs beyond you are not supposed to spend anymore than $500 for the car. Of course, most people seem to cheat on this and it becomes, whatever you can get by the judges. Our first car was fined 25 laps for having a turbo. Well, it blew up in 30 laps.
We found a ford Ranger 2.3 with tranmission. One of our crew works at the UTI mechanics school and his racing class is going to see what can be done to up the horsepower cheaply.

Jerry

 

[Deleted member 8987]

It's realy too bad your race officals insist on right engines. I understand there is an overabundance of left angines to be had for a pittance.

 

[swift6]

Of course, most people seem to cheat on this and it becomes, whatever you can get by the judges.

Which is how most racing is and has been done for a VERY long time. Rulebooks tend to explicitly describe what you can't do. When someone gets caught with a new cheat, the rule book gets amended. In the late sixties/early seventies Smokey Yunick had many new rules changes attributed to his actions to get his cars a little ahead of the competition. He wasn't cheating, he was doing things not explicitly forbidden until they became so.

 

[Deleted member 8987]

One of the things that has always puzzled me about some racing groups is the mandate that the bodies match the template.
Fine, okay, good.
So, the car gets into a big mashup on turn three, and the crew pounds, pulls, cuts, and tapes said vehicle back together again.
If said car wins, and no longer matches said template, what do they do?

 

[Silverghost]

One of the things that has always puzzled me about some racing groups is the mandate that the bodies match the template.
Fine, okay, good.
So, the car gets into a big mashup on turn three, and the crew pounds, pulls, cuts, and tapes said vehicle back together again.
If said car wins, and no longer matches said template, what do they do?

In the very early days of racing, when horsepower was actual horses, a template system was initiated to verify that the horse and rider that finished the race were the same ones that started the race. And to enforce the requirements, an organization of knights was estabilshed. They became known as the Knights Template!