With your power goal , you don't need all that work for the head . That's a lot of money for porting , Ferrea valves , shimless buckets , GSC guides and Titan Cam gears . You will be spending at least $2k on those items which is truly not needed to get into your goals. The stock head valve train of the 2jz have been proven to handle power up to 1krwhp just with a pair of good camshafts. As mentioned , get a good valve job so the valves seats and seals well and replace your tired valve seals. This is all on the assumption that you don't have a damaged head. If it is not warped meaning it is straight then don't even get it decked. Remember you change your compression ratio depending on the amount of material taken out of the head.

Fast Goodies ? Quite a bit ..... not unless I missed them haven't seen anything on the fuel system ( pump, injectors , lines , filters , regulator ) and most important for an NA-T setup if you want to make good power ... a good aftermarket ECU . It will also be your safety net so you can properly control timing and fuel injection. Don't try to save on that ECU. Get the best you can of course considering the funds. Remember , it is the heart of your NA-T setup.

Any moving part , get reliable and proven parts. We have seen a lot of people complaining that their boosted car isn't reliable or is a sh?tty driving car or konked out . Just look at the parts they used or how things have been done and you can tell why.

 

This is great feedback Gerry! Maybe I need to reconsider the head porting like you mentioned in terms of losing low end power/torque...

I am definitely getting the AEM Infinity ECU, there is no skimping out on that...the reason I want to continue with the head components (valves, springs, etc...) is because I got this head from a junkyard (been buying these GE non-VVTi heads as I come across them). I don't know the exact status of the head whether its warped or not (the motor was in good shape that this head came off of) I am assuming it's straight. Remember, I still have a complete original GE motor in my SC300...my plan was to leave that aside for emergency use. However, about what you stated with compression ratio changing with decking, I completely understand that...yet, how do most folks get a good RA finish on the head for proper gasket sealing? Looking at the head I got now (assuming it's straight) still looks like cr@p with the remaining old gasket residue. Don't heads almost always need resurfacing when being rebuilt?

What are your recommendations on fuel setups ( pump, injectors , lines , filters , regulator, etc... )?

Thanks again for the advice!

 

IF you have no idea of the head's status then you definitely need to get it inspected and do what has to be done to get it in good shape. Assuming the head surface is straight , they should still be able to clean it well and be able to remove all the gasket residue without resurfacing just like you can clean up a block of its gasket residue without taking any material from it. Otherwise you will need to consider how much is taken out and take it in consideration when choosing your head gasket and what compression you want to work with.

Fuel setups will depend on the kind of fuel you will use . If you will use both pump gas and E-85 then all those items should be E-85 friendly . I suggest you might as well go with PTFE lines so it is E-85 ready. Do it right the first time. Anfittingsdirect dot com is one of the cheapest provider of E-85 friendly lines and fittings. With corn syrup you use around 35% more volume so make sure those lines , pumps & injectors can handle that too. When it comes to brand , just use well known ones like Denso or Bosch Pumps , Aeromotive filters & Regulators. I am kinda bias , I prefer to use Weldon whenever I have the money at the time I am working on a setup. Fuel setup is one of the most important component of your boosted car . So using a very reliable pump is a must . You go lean while on boost and without failsafes.... there goes your engine. You can't go wrong by having more or going over kill on fuel delivery .

 

Gerrb....a few questions if I may please:

1) I am sure there are some minor tiny imperfections on the surface...will need to see after cleaning. If so, what would be the maximum amount to take off the head?

2) What would be the maximum be to take off the block?

3) If I deck the block and head, would the GTE gasket still be a viable option for head gasket?....if not, what would you recommend in terms of custom head gaskets to maintain a good compression ratio?

Thanks.

 

Before you decide on how much to take off anything or deck the head or block , you need to make some decisions

a) what Compression ratio you want to run on your turbo charged engine . And before you even decide on compression ratio , you have to ask yourself , what fuel will you be always using ? Like E85 love high compression 10:1 engines that is if you have good access to E85. The lower / standard 8.5:1 compression would be good for Pump 93 . How much power are you trying to make at what boost ? Are all your parts E85 friendly ? Knowing your answers will allow you to get or gather the parts you need to achieve your goals.

b) Compression is affected not only by the amount of material you take out of the head or block. It is affected by the piston dome designs . That is why pistons have compression rating. What Pistons do you have or are you buying ?

So all these have to be taken into consideration ... once known , you now can compute for the amount of material to be taken out , taking into consideration what available reliable head gasket you will be using so you can get into that compression ratio you are trying to shoot for.

So it is not really just oh.. you take this amount from the head or the block. Got to do some pencil pushing based on all your set objectives and the parts you are using That should answer your 1st and 2nd question.

For question #3 , the moment you deck block and head ... yes you can still use the GTE gasket BUT your compression will change depending on the amount of material taken out .. What do I recommend ? That all depends on your answer on my first point .. what compression ratio do you want to run which is answered based on what fuel will you run , how much boost will you want to run to attain your power goals , what pistons do you have . are all your other parts capable to run let's say E85 , and so on.... so many variables..

My suggestion , if you have access to E85 and good tuner ... go for high compression and gather parts needed to support that compression . You usually can attain higher HP with lower boosts on high compression engines. Turbo spool are faster on E85 because of higher volume of exhaust gas. But they are less forgiving . That is why you need a good tuner. Better maintenance of the car is a necessity like you have to be mindful that you don't let E85 fuel sit for a long time cause it is hygroscopic meaning it tends to attract moisture / water.

 

Gerrb, thanks for taking the time to go over this with me...greatly appreciated.

So, I want to be able to do a flex-fuel setup. E85 primarily (plentiful in Chicago), but want to run pump in the event no E85 (I am almost sure the AEM Infinity handles it with the right sensor...from what I am told).

Keeping the above in mind, I am boring/honing the block 0.10 over to clean-up the block (getting 86.25mm pistons with 8.5:1 compression ratio). Now, assuming I don't take off any material from the cylinder head or block, what type of head gasket can I run in that scenario?

Assuming I do resurface the head and block (clean-up pass), what type of head gasket can I run in that scenario?....or is it difficult to determine until I know how much material is taken off?

In regards to raising the compression, any recommendations on pistons?....and if I do raise the compression with pistons, how well will it perform between pump and E85?

Thanks again for help!

 

In the above scenario use the TT head gasket since you want 8.5:1 compression. But my question is why stick with 8.5:1 ? Then you are not even taking full advantage of the benefits of E85 . That fuel loves high compression engines .. 10:1 . The lowest I will go is 9:1 if you are going flex fuel.

The shop first need to examine block and head and determine what is the minimum needed to be taken out . Then they tell you that number . And once you know what compression you want to run your turbo charged engine , then you do your computation (considering your parts like pistons & gasket) , you tell them the final numbers of what to take out so you get into your desired compression



I maybe biased but I always use CP Pistons if I am building the engine. I always go with well proven parts (so not necessarily CP for the pistons) when it comes to any moving part of a turbo charged car. You start skimping to save money, you might as well don't build it in my opinion since you will just find yourself in a bad situation later and wonder why your car isn't reliable. So many people want to have a fast car but are not willing to spend on the right parts and on the right people to do it. Just look around and check the number of people whose build they have to part out because of the numerous performance issues they have.

Performance is relative . That all depends on all the different parts you put together , who and how it is built and how it is tuned. There should be no reason a flex fueled car will not perform well if everything was done well.

When someone starts complaining that his turbo charged car isn't performing well then one just have to look at all the parts used , who / how they were put together and who / how was it tuned.

 

Gerrb, I dropped off the head this morning at the machine shop nearby to check if its straight, hot tank, and pressure test the head. Once I pick it up tomorrow, I will know basically where to go from there.

So, if the head is straight and all cleaned up...is there any concerns with minor scratches on the head surface?....or will that require resurfacing? By minor I don't mean deep gouges, but "imperfections" as I want the gasket to seat well and not blow out because of the imperfections. I am not sure, im only asking as I will find out tomorrow when I see the head finally cleaned up.

Also, if I decide to go 10:1 on the pistons....how will this play with pump gas in the event I need to run pump gas? I mean I am building up the motor with forged parts, but any danger going 10:1 instead of 9:1 while running pump gas?

Finally, if I do need to resurface the head and block....what is the most that can be taken off the 2JZGE head and block in order to still be able to use the factory OEM GTE gasket?.....If OEM gasket cannot be used after decking, what gasket brand do you recommend that would or could do a custom size for the 2JZ?

Thanks!!!

 

Regardless of what compression you use , a good tuner should be able to take advantage of your flex fuel setup. So it doesn't matter if you have E85 or pump 93 on 10:1 or 9.1 compression.

 

Gerrb, it's a good thing Sound Performance is 20 minutes from my house.... ;-)

So here is the verdict from the machine shop:
- The head is not straight, needs to be decked 0.005 off to be straight.
- The pressure test shows no signs of leaking, so no cracks in the head.

Now, I can do one of two things from here on....one is to continue with the build and resurface this head, or two use the original motor that's in the car now (no issues at all). If I decide to use the junkyard head, it will need resurfacing, however, if I use the original head of the motor in the car now, how can I guarantee it doesn't warp when removing it? Heard these inline six heads warp slightly almost all the time during disassembly.

Thanks.

 

Exchanged the BC 272 GE non-VVTi cams for the 272 GTE VVTi cams. Everything else for the build should be the same between the two motors.



Waiting on the GTE motor...more updates soon.

 

I sold the non-VVT-i NA-T motor I was building as I am going with an Aristo VVT-i GTE motor, more on that a little later this year...

As most of you know I purchased the APTech/KBD kit (see my previous post)...as I wasn't aware that this kit needed time to "settle" to return back to shape, its been a few weeks and it has settled 98% back to shape. Still a few minor areas that might need some heat to them to get them to be 100%. However, I cannot give my honest opinion on this kit until it is fully painted and installed...so, more on that when the car goes in for body work and re-paint this winter. Here is what the parts look like now:



I also got a new (used from a donor car) rear trunk as mine was rusting in some spots and had the spoiler holes bulging out a bit...not worth the extra cost in repairs. This will obviously be repainted with the car:


Picked up a JDM non-VVT-i GTE intake manifold for the Aristo GTE VVT-i motor. I got it for a great deal, complete with a IACV, throttle body, sensors, injectors, etc... The reason for this is because I don't want to mess around too much with the Aristo DBW and idle tuning ( i know i know, if going standalone it's not so bad...but this should make it that much easier). Taking it apart soon for media blasting and powder coating:


Found a brand new set of OEM 97+ fog lights...these will go on with the body kit this winter:

 

looking good Dadi. It'll be fun to see the progress!

 

Thanks Jim! I know the car will be in good hands during its restoration