Building a 150hp type4 for a bus..opinions Please:)

[jonas n]

I want to build a type4 for a friends Westfalia, he wants 150hp.. Money is not a problem, how would you build a reliable bus-engine?

[raygreenwood]

Just asking.....what do you call "has the money"....meaning what do you think it will take and what level of life span and reliability do you expect? Ray

[Clatter]

WHOA!
A voice from the past!

How you been?
Time to update your build thread, it was SO inspirational!

We should be asking you how to build a bus motor, eh??

Anyhow,
Seems to me that some big stroke, and a set of Nickies would be your ticket.
Maybe keep the bore to 98 or some such, to keep meat in the heads?

Jake built a bigger bus motor a few years go like that.
It went in a double cab, had a 923 5-speed in it.
Can't remember the spec, it was big enough to have 48x38 valves, tho, IIRC.
Maybe you are on facebook, and he will tell you?

Small turbo?

Its a tough nut to crack 150HP in a bus..
The simple physics of dumping heat from the motor is a challenge at sustained power levels.
Maybe gear it a bit low (numerically high) to spin the motor more,
build it to spin, so it was OK doing that,
and it will shed more heat from the heads.
Then you could use coolers to deal with the elevated oil temps you might get?

[jonas n]

I'm thinking about something like 96x78 something.. Low tourque long lastning motor.. No turbo since thats just a problem with heat.. I want to build a big, strong motor for a bus..
Since i'm used to build very cheap engines i like to hear your opinions how to build it right;)

[jonas n]

No need to update my buildthread, the fasty sits in a shead collecting dust.. But som day..

[type3]

Welcome back.

[jonas n]

And...the plan is changed! Since there's pointless to build a bus-engine on the "150hp Idea" it's better to just build a strong, reliable one. The only parts on the shelf here is a pair of 44idf's, wich could be a good start.
Where do we buy a pair of high quality cylinderheads for the type4? something like 42x36 might be good.

[Clatter]

www.type4store.com

[falcor]

http://www.hamincgroup.com/vw.php

[jonas n]

We start getting clear about how We should build this engine now, but there is some questions left..

We're thinking about to order a 96x78 engine kit from AA-performance, and maybe use 1800-heads from the shelf,if they are 41x34.
Any ideas of wich cam to use?
Is the heads really a good choise or is the valves to small to make some power on this big engine?

[wreck]

If money is not an issue you should ring Len Hoffman tell him what you want from the engine combination and get a set of heads from him .

http://www.hamincgroup.com/vw.php

[type3]

Go larger on the exhaust valve I woulda thought.

[jonas n]

The "Money is not a problem" was after some beers, now suddenly he has a limit.

[wreck]

Ha ha , nothing like a quote to curb the dreams , AA do bigger valve heads but I've no idea on the quality of the valves /seats etc , maybe send them an email. If they use SI valves bits then all good .
I've a 102x71 engine in a camper , low comp (7.3 to 1) ,hydraulic cam . (Australian 6 cylinder Muscle car grind) when it was new and had 41 34 valves it made 95rwhp with 31 inch off road tyres(sap HP on a dyno) , I did a top end overhaul recently and went to 42 36 valves and 8 to 1 comp and noticed a big difference . haven't dynoed it yet but I think it would be close to 150 flywheel hp .

[Clatter]

It's no secret that I'm a big believer in Jake's work developing bus combos..

If it's a heavy bay camper, I'd be sticking with Jake specs.
If it's a lighter split, with a lighter load, you might be able to go with 96s..

My experience with a copy of Jake's 'Camper Special' has been all great fun for years: 1971cc,
42 x 36 valves in AMC bus castings (no porting, just bowls opened up to match seats) , 8:1CR, 72-74 heaters and a t-bird header, dual-pattern cam - near Web 73.

If you really want to hot it up, add a 76 crank from DPR or Demello..

AA is China junk; gamble to win or lose.
I'll take stock OEM internal parts any day, especially pushing a heavy bus far from home.