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The first thing to consider was engine choice
but in the end this ended up being for me a fairly easy
decision. As I was buying a new Caterham kit, I had to have an engine that they would supply, so this limited my choice to Vauxhall 8V (1.6 - 1.8) which would deliver between 100 & 120 BHP, Rover K Series (1.6 - 1.8) with a range of 115 to 240 BHP options or a Honda BlackBird powered version (1.1) giving around 160 BHP at 11,000 rpm! My choices where rulled out firstly by discarding the Vauxhall for many reasons and other engine options on a cost basis, so out went the BlackBird, VVC, SLR and SLR500. This left me with a choice of 1.6K Supersport (133BHP at 7000rpm) or the standard 1.8K (122 BHP at 5700 rpm). At first glance this seems a no brainer, however if you are planning to 'modify' the engine to get more power the 1.8 is a better starting place. Due in part to its bigger capacity and the fact that you have to junk the supersport kit if you want to go further. After much deliberation I choose the 1.6K Supersport for a number of reasons: 1. When I get the upgrade bug the 1.6K is still good for 185 BHP plus, and if I want to get more then it is not that much effort to change to 1.8K by changing crank pistons etc. 2. I wanted out of the box performance and the 1.6K SS is better than the 1.8 in this respect. Any upgrades will not be for 18 months. 3. My previous car was a 1.6K SS and I really enjoyed thrashing it about. It does have it downsides but these can be easily rectified. Whilst I am sure I will get the upgrade bug, (this car being my latest upgrade) I hope to put of the little red demon on my left shoulder for a while :-) |
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Page Last Updated : 31/01/2005