Superbee engine

[pruettpack]

I appreciate the guidance of the members here and want to thank Letterman for his input.

Before I even got my car I was already planning on changing out the engine.

Letterman suggested that I get to know the car and give the stock 1600 a chance which I did and he was right. The stock 1600 runs fine and cruises along on the level to hilly areas at 70 MPH with no problem (have not verified the speed-o yet) and really handles better than I thought it would.

However I lack the power I need for the mountainous area that I live and need a little more pep, I am not looking to be able to burn the tires off just want to go up a hill without sounding like It has to work to reach the top.

I want to stay with the air cooled VW, something that will be a direct fit with a larger CC.

Does anybody have a recommended size and a recommended supplier or builder?

I have been looking at this place on E-Bay, VW Complete Motor 2180 trike, sand rail, bug, speedster | eBay does anybody have any suggestions, comments or concerns?

What is the recommended oil change intervals?

And I know this is going to sound stupid but does the engine come out the bottom without having to hurt the car in anyway?

 

[letterman7]

Lots of threads on engines in here; I personally would find a reputable builder in your area if there is one. There is a guy in Maryland who does nice work, you can find him on Samba. I would proceed cautiously with anything advertised like that eBay engine; many threads on Samba about poor quality builds from those guys. Samba has a buyer feedback section - definitely read through that to see what's what. A low price, in general, equates to low quality. Some of the larger west coast builders I can definitely recommend is anything from CB Performance and Rancho for their transmissions.

If you're mechanically inclined, you can build out your motor by yourself with a piston kit. I think up to a 1776 you don't need casework done, but the kit advertising should tell you that. You can add high ratio rockers and different carburetors for simple add-ons. General consensus for engine sizes is that anything over a 1914 will require some serious, compromising casework which weakens the entire engine. It's not uncommon to rebuild larger engines like that after several thousand miles.

As for oil changes; every three thousand miles or twice a year, whichever comes first. Set the valves when you change the oil.

Removing the engine with bonded-on panels like yours; I'll be facing the same thing this winter. It makes removal much more difficult when you can't remove the back of the rear valance, but if you can take as much stuff off the engine as you can before you start (fan shroud, carbs) wiggling it out the bottom of the car shouldn't be too much issue. You have to make sure the back of the car is up as far as possible via ramps or jacks to gain the "drop" room.

 

[pruettpack]

Octane

Can these older air cooled engines handle higher octane fuels without causing damage to the valves? I don't mean using octane boosters, just high octane fuels at the pump.

 

[letterman7]

Actually, yes, higher octanes tend to be "better" for the engines than the lower grades as it helps with avoiding pre-detonation. Octane ratings have changed drastically over the years, I think I read at somewhere that the current 92 RON was equivalent to the mid '60's 82/84 RON. A little lead additive can help valve seats, and a zinc additive in the oil, like ZTTP, will help with the everyday wear.

 

[Brett Proctor]

Can these older air cooled engines handle higher octane fuels without causing damage to the valves?

How do you figure that high octane damages the valves??

The octane number tells you how much fuel can be compressed before it spontaneously ignites. If your engine runs fine on regular with no preignition problems(assumming nothing else is wrong with the engine)you'll be wasteing your money going to a high octane fuel. Going from regular to premium gas will not give you any more HP or MPG or cause any problems with engine parts. Infact I think the fuels are the same except for the additives that are used to raise the octane ratings.

Check the owners manual for the octane they recommend.(assumming the engine is stock or close to it).

So in a nut shell lower octane gas will ignite easier than a higher octane gas will

Check out the internet on fuel octane

The Low-Down on High Octane Gasoline

Octane rating - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Brett

 

[pruettpack]

I was under the impression that higher octane fuels burned hotter and if that was true I thought depending on the composition of the valves may cause premature failure.

 

[letterman7]

In 99% of the engines, your valves will be just fine with whatever fuel you chose to burn. Pinging due to lugging the engine or poor tune will do more damage to the seats than to the valves. You can cook a valve, but you would really have to be abusing the engine to do so.