View Full Version : gettin the most out of an xe
jon boy
19-10-06, 10:37 PM
looking to get more power out of my engine ,
dont really want to waist money on bolt on mods that aint going to do much ,
can anyone point me in the right direction as to what parts/procedures I will benifit from . even if its just basic stuff (gettng the engine to run correctly ).
Also ,i read somewhere that when the c20xe engine was under development was running 170bhp , but was detuned for emission reasons , altering the timing etc etc ..
true / false ??
Thanks jon .
Twin carbs.
Or
Throttle bodies
Set of cams.
Free flowing exhaust.
jon boy
20-10-06, 05:03 PM
seriously ??
nitrous oxide ??:eek:
i want my engine to last !!!
whats better bodies or carbs ??
what brand ??
lol someones been taking nitrous lessons from F&F... you can use nitrous for ages wihtout wearing the engine /melting things any worse than other tuning.... meh you carry on beliving the "hype"lol
TB's are better than carbs, but require extensive mapping to get running sweet as a nut and to their best setup (SBD kits are ok but need remapping so arent as cheap in the long term)
as for TB brands.. well no matter where you go in the uk (and ignoring bike tb's) you will "only" get jenvey ones rebranded
Nitrous is the easiest/cheapest option.
short term its the cheapest, but long term its quite costly.... i guess you need to weigh up how much you want to spend and how often you want power (and for what purpose)
Philsutton
20-10-06, 08:31 PM
seriously ??
nitrous oxide ??:eek:
i want my engine to last !!!
oh dear, if its set up by a chimp then your engine will scatter itself over a larger radius, if done right its not going to damage your engine. It wont blow the welds on your intake and cause your floor to fall out at 300mph
craig green
20-10-06, 08:59 PM
/\/\/\ LOL
I'd chuck it off a cliff. That'll get an XE moving fast.
All tuning methods are exhausted on this engine tbh. Its all tried & tested & if you want significant power without chucking money away, save up & fit TB's & do away with the SFi box. Anyone boasting 180bhp etc & still using the SFi is talking sh[t. (nos aside)
can you run twin 40's on 2.0 valvers or are they restrictive?
salso has anyone put t50's on? what sort of spec would you need to run 50's?
just intrested like. never seen these on before
Ive seen 48s on an XE (martin Kelsons)
40s have been used too (Austin)
AFAIK 40s gave loads of torque but restricted the top end!
ah right so you can use 40's on xe's
what mod's do you have to do to the engine to put carbs on, seein as its injection?
Only need one fuel line no return, inlet manifold and carbs fitted, Ignition can be looked after with aftermarket stuff eg. alpha or just use Vac advance dizzy from a cav i think!
ARP rod bolts are reccomended, and aslo you will need a good fuel pressure regulator!
40s are ok on a xe.
45s are better tho.
50s probably overkill tbh plus they cost more to buy etc.
You can use a mk2 cav distributor/coil setup, not ideal tho, as the advance curve etc is not set for a twin carb'd XE.
Thats it Cav MK2 Vac advance dizzy!
Ive got a coscast head with one fitted, for to when i use the 45s i have!!!
Nitrous is a false economy on a road car IMO. Its a fantastic tool for the strip boys like Mr Sutton, and some of the nutty track lads such as Brummie, but on a road car, id rather pay to have the power always availiable rather than popping down the shops for a refill of happy gas every week!
novadicko
21-10-06, 03:37 PM
/\/\/\ LOL
I'd chuck it off a cliff. That'll get an XE moving fast.
All tuning methods are exhausted on this engine tbh. Its all tried & tested & if you want significant power without chucking money away, save up & fit TB's & do away with the SFi box. Anyone boasting 180bhp etc & still using the SFi is talking sh[t. (nos aside)
lad few miles from me stil has removed the sfi box and put the later ecoteck induction pipe on and he is running 185bhp on rr.
The Ecotek pipe mod is just a cheaper way of making a power cap! What other mods for 185BHP??
novadicko
21-10-06, 03:54 PM
The Ecotek pipe mod is just a cheaper way of making a power cap! What other mods for 185BHP??
hes had head work, cams, chip with arp rod bolts thats all i no. but it limits round near the 0 mark on the rev counter to and i think the power is quit late in the revs. wen i went in it i wosh shocked to hear the engine rev so high.lol sound awsome tho.
Needs to get some TBs o carbs on really!! Make the most of the work!
He should really limit the revs to MAX 8kRPM
novadicko
22-10-06, 11:53 AM
yea hes going to put tbs on it then its goin up 4 sale.
why bother then......
just sounds like "your mate" is on the blag with you re the spec/what it does etc. but meh im not getting into another RR accuracy argument lol
SBD can run 244 out an XE.come on !!!
craig green
22-10-06, 09:13 PM
lad few miles from me stil has removed the sfi box and put the later ecoteck induction pipe on and he is running 185bhp on rr.
Still essentially a std size butterfly in the std inlet manifold which gets pretty hot.
Timmy; SBD can get 250+ bhp from the 1600 16v.
Timmy; SBD can get 250+ bhp from the 1600 16v.
On a NASA budget!!
oh yeah thats right, i'll find out what to top figer for the XE is LOL. but BT has a po
int about the cost.
TommySR
23-10-06, 02:54 AM
oh dear, if its set up by a chimp then your engine will scatter itself over a larger radius, if done right its not going to damage your engine. It wont blow the welds on your intake and cause your floor to fall out at 300mph
lol beat me to the floor falling out bit, Can just imagine the bottom dropping out of a Nova halfway up Pod and purple/green/red flames coming out the back from the NOS! :roll:
SBD and the like have had 300 BHP out of an XE when the old Cav Touring cars had XEs!!
Had to turn the head around though so the inlet side was on the front of the engine!!!
Swindon did that. and the benefit was the exuahst route as opposed to the "ram air" effect that really didnt do much until 80-90mph.
SBD and the like have had 300 BHP out of an XE when the old Cav Touring cars had XEs!!
Had to turn the head around though so the inlet side was on the front of the engine!!!
Yup, and they were actually de tuned to around 280bhp for reliability issues towards the end of its BTCC life before the V6 came along in the veccy iirc.
300 really is the jagged edge of tuning a 20XE
IMHO - If you want easy reliable power get tapered throttle bodies. i.e. the SBD TP208 kit. Its expensive but worth every penny. You get everything you need including the ARP rod bolts.
Other than that spend your money on getting the thing handling better. Nova's with standard XE's in are rapid enough.
Other than that spend your money on getting the thing handling better. Nova's with standard XE's in are rapid enough.
id agree with that - ive only had a standard XE lump in my old nova and i was well impressed with how it went
SBD and the like have had 300 BHP out of an XE when the old Cav Touring cars had XEs!!
Had to turn the head around though so the inlet side was on the front of the engine!!!
:wtf: never heard of that being done before. would it take much work to do? or is it just a matter of turning it round? many benifits?
Theres alot to think about, for example, TIMING BELT + Pulleys!!!! your bottom pulley will be on left, cam pulleys on right!!!
It was done for a simpler route for the exhaust, more torque i believe!
Aslo at Plus 80 ish MPH itd get the Ram Air Effect so to speak!
ah yeh good point! bloody good idea and clever i think. anyone going to try it? lol
TBH i dont think anyone on here has a six figure budget and a dedicated R&D Team!
haha fair enough! would be mental to see though lol
Its already been done though!!
Apparently the only benift of turning the head around is the exhaust routing is simpler. If you wanted the head that way around you could graft a Mi16 engine in. That would be easier.
valvercorsa
23-10-06, 11:54 PM
i think its all about getting the 150bhp to the tarmac.
if you can get it to grip then they are fast enough, standard xe in nova or corsa will light the wheels up really easy as most of you no.
lsd in standard or mild tuned xe :thumb:
the head wasnt litterally turned round!!!!! they changed the valve sizes etc and put in different cams so that the std inlet side became the exhaust and vice versa. Kinda easy in theory but if it was that "easy" then why arent they all like it lol.
craig green
24-10-06, 01:39 PM
Apparently the only benift of turning the head around is the exhaust routing is simpler. If you wanted the head that way around you could graft a Mi16 engine in. That would be easier.
MI16 head will fit on an XE bottom end. its been done.
Powered by vBulletin® Version 4.2.5 Copyright © 2025 vBulletin Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved.