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16 valve or 531...which should I go with

Quattro said:
16v is the easy way out.And so far no one on TB in the states have made anything 'impressive' for a 16v that couldn't be done or has already been done on a 8v over the pond.

Just sayin.

I do see the bigger bang for the buck with the 16v.That weighs a big factor over messing with the 8v heads.
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you boys in florida haven't fielded any quantitative proof that "you're getting it done" with your collection of 8v's.

no one in the states has done anything impressive with any volvo engine compared with what's going on over the pond, and contrary to popular belief, the swedes are not mass-producing massively powered engines. In addition to that, 95% of the numbers produced are BHP not WHP. Take from that what you will, but know that you and your group of buddies are not anywhere on the same decade in terms of achievements with the swedes.
 
Dammit Kenny! Now you have me thinking I should sell the 16V and the 531 and buy an RSI head!!! AHHHH!!! Options!!!
 
Seeing at the OP said that he was going to run a 531 + cam and "call it good", I'm not sure where all of the "You should fit the 16V because it has more peak potential" talk is coming from.

FWIW, the 8V head has a ton of potential. With some good porting, it can outflow the best you can get from a 16V Nissan SR20, for example.
I was initially very skeptical when I heard the story about "Stock 16V wins, but ported they're basically equal", but I now believe it to be true. (Which is pretty much what Kenny said).

This suggests to me that a 16V is a better option in only a fairly narrow range of applications - for mild power goals, the conversion dramas outweigh the benefits, and for 'big' power goals, the benefits aren't really there. Maybe somewhere in the middle, and at the very ragged edge the 16V conversion is worth the effort.
 
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Spac said:
Seeing at the OP said that he was going to run a 531 + cam and "call it good", I'm not sure where all of the "You should fit the 16V because it has more peak potential" talk is coming from.

FWIW, the 8V head has a ton of potential. With some good porting, it can outflow the best you can get from a 16V Nissan SR20, for example.
I was initially very skeptical when I heard the story about "Stock 16V wins, but ported they're basically equal", but I now believe it to be true. (Which is pretty much what Kenny said).

This suggests to me that a 16V is a better option in only a fairly narrow range of applications - for mild power goals, the conversion dramas outweigh the benefits, and for 'big' power goals, the benefits aren't really there. Maybe somewhere in the middle, and at the very ragged edge the 16V conversion is worth the effort.
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no, a race ported and prep'd 16v will outflow the **** out of any OEM cast 8v ported or otherwise.
 
Budget, goals, and ability are 3 things missing from this conversation.


Sound quality is pretty subjective. I prefer a T5 whiteblock myself but a properly pissed off 16v redblock can sound pretty cool.
 
linuxman51 said:
no, a race ported and prep'd 16v will outflow the **** out of any OEM cast 8v ported or otherwise.
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Yes. I didn't meant to imply both ported they are equal.

What I meant was that a ported 8v is similar in cost to all of the bits an pieces needed to do a (stock) 16v.

The ported 8v and the stock 16v would have similar potential.

A "max effort" 16v is going to destroy a "max effort" 8V every day of the week.
 
Quattro said:
16v is the easy way out.And so far no one on TB in the states have made anything 'impressive' for a 16v that couldn't be done or has already been done on a 8v over the pond.

Just sayin.

I do see the bigger bang for the buck with the 16v.That weighs a big factor over messing with the 8v heads.
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This is probably the dumbest post I've seen in a while.

Just sayin.
 
sdturbo said:
Budget, goals, and ability are 3 things missing from this conversation.


Sound quality is pretty subjective. I prefer a T5 whiteblock myself but a properly pissed off 16v redblock can sound pretty cool.
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Did I mention I also have a complete T5 longblock on ANOTHER engine stand in my carport!!! :oogle: No...no...no. That one is destined for my S70 T5.
 
i crammed my 16vt together at the last minute in preparation for SE8, drove it 750mi down, made 370whp on pump gas then drove it back 750mi.

i dunno how the miracle florida guys do it but cost/benefit ratio lies with the 16v, it's worth any extra effort it takes putting together.

Quattro said:
Nothing beats the sound of a 8v making 400-500whp.
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except the sound of a 16v doing it with half the boost.
 
I dunno i just like the sound of a 8v over a 16v.Plus its more of an under dog vs the 16v.Its just odd that the same amount of effort put into doing the 16v can be done with less effort on a 8v and make around the same numbers.But you'll have to run a ****load of boost to make the same amount of power as a 16v car would.

Plus i like how simple the 8v's are and there very easy to find compared to me finding 2 16v heads in a period of 2 damn years.There not no where near as easy to come by as the ole 8v heads are.

A basic bolt on 8v car with a big ole t3/t4 would give your everyday 16v car a run for its money.It'd be damn close to say the least.
 
Quattro said:
But you'll have to run a ****load of boost to make the same amount of power as a 16v car would.
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Really, now why do you think that is?

A basic bolt on 8v car with a big ole t3/t4 would give your everyday 16v car a run for its money.It'd be damn close to say the least.
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Well lets define 'basic bolton' so we're all on the same page.....
 
Personally if you have a good 531 around I would spend some time porting it the best you can to help flow, throw it on along with a bondo header or build your own and get a custom intake manifold and go from there. I think most 8v people might be surprised how fast you can go with an 8v.

Myself with a stock 8v head and intake and all of the other goodies am already getting pretty quick, Adding a better intake manifold should also net some good gains. Add a well ported and worked 8v head am I am sure you will need a better block to make more power than the setup can support
 
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