What did your first big motor look like...I'm almost embarrassed to post. :-)

[rick m]

It was the summer of 1970.  I had just picked up my first VW bug...a 66 to be exact.  It came with chrome reverse rims, a Stewart Warner black face/chrome bezel oil pressure gauge, an extractor exhaust and a low mileage 1300cc motor.  Within three months I had blown the motor by over winding it and sucking a valve through the piston on #3.  Over 6 months later, with a new paint job and fresh built 1968cc motor, I thought I was in the big time.

I cracked up when I found this old shot of my first hopped up motor with the Rapid Cool cooler on the back of the fan schroud and the oil filter hung on the front of the schroud.  The motor had a HOLLEY 2 barrel, dual port heads that were flycut way too much, 010 distributor, 92NPRs, 74mm Bug Whitfield circular (cast) crank, stock VW rods, Norris Cam, Sig Erson rockers, HD clutch & pressure plate,  and some other miscellaneous mods.  

It is funny how much things have change in my engine compartment since those days.

Rick Mortensen

[karl h]

this was mine (late eighties): 1776 with 041 heads, a sig erson cam, dual dells and a home built header, did a 15.1 in the quater (won my first ever dragrace against all of my VW buddies )
installed in a 63 "roadster" (hacksaw convertible)

[Hotrodvw]

My first car at 16 yrs old when I live in Orange, with a new GEX  1776, 40 DRLA's, 110cam, 041 heads, yada yada




1641 that was in my current '67 the day I bought it   

[Berger]

My first was a 1835ccm, 041 heads, Engle 120, Dual Dellorto 45`s, 009 ignition. Fully ballanced.
I think this was in 1989

Berger 

[58vw]

darn...no pic..bout 1986

1835
engle 140
shaun mccarthy/fumio heads
10 to 1
48 webers
ran like a raped ape

loved that engine

[Hotrodvw]

Cracks me up........our ideas of our first "BIG' motors......non-strokers.   

[bugnut68]

So far my 1776 with semi hemi heads and Engle 100 cam is the biggest I've owned to date... once the 2017 gets finished it'll be a different story. Lol.

[volksnut]

Here's my first motor, 1600 with Weber 40 dcnf, stock cam, single port, Treuhaft header....the year was 1979, car ran 19's

[rick m]

Volksnut...I noticed you were sporting the stylish filter set up too!  :-)  Most of us oldies usually started on a 2 barrel and graduated to dual carbs from there.  Those were the days!

RM

[glenn]

Circa 1980: 1776, dual Dells, single QP and oo9.

[So.Cal.Life]

     Keith Sueme posted a pic of mine (circa 1973) on another thread , I still have the F&A dyno sheet!!!  I'm sorry I don't have the ability to post pics, or transfer from one thread to another.   Cool pics all you guys old motors are great to see     Great thread Rick!!!        KG

[SCOTTP]

This is my first "Big" motor, but it's not in the car it started out in.  2074cc  92x78.4 , Rimco super rods,  Engle K-8 , 40x37.5  Flycut 100 thousandths , ported by me, 48IDA carbs. Motor was built in 1980. I got this car without an engine, as a trade from Larry VanWilgen, for a 1970 Karmann Ghia.

[Cheesepanzer]

I couldn't find any pics but try to picture an IDA engine running a real 36hp shroud, std pre-71 non-dog house cooler, tin painted Krylon Glossy Black, Santana pulley and chrome generator pulley.   

I was concerned with running "b" pistons with valve notches, so I had GBE machine a new set of 90.5 A pistons to clear the stroker crank (trimmed the skirts).  The engine consisted of the following"
EDS 82mm porsche journal, wedge-mated crank purchased at "Street Scene" in Anaheim
912 porsche rods, shot-peened at GBE
Cima 90.5's
W140 cam with 1.1 rockers (why I notched the pistons I'll never know  )
about 9 to 1 compression (and I thought I was living on the edge on 91 octaine socal gas  )
44x37.5 welded heads (anyone remember "Racers Choice" in Stanton?)
IDA's with 42mm vents, Berg Linkage.
Berg/Phoenix 1 5/8" merged, dual QP exhaust
Berg Stinger ignition


I thought this engine was a pig.  Idled like a stocker, super flat power curve, and it was all done by 7,000 rpms.  At the time we were all shooting for 12 second time slips, and this combo was too mild.  Looking back, it was probably a really nice "street" engine.  I drove it everywhere and it never ran hot.  And it ran a pre-71 oil cooler too!

I later "woke it up" by swapping out the W140 cam with a FK89 with 1.4 rockers (applying the "go big or go home" train of thought!  ).  I set the compression at 10 to 1.  Bingo!  A 12 second street car.  I can't believe that I drove that combo for nearly 20,000 miles before freshing up the heads and going to 94's (2276).  It was my sole transportation at the time.   

Oh, and the gearbox was a 3.80/2.06/1.48/1.125 gear stack with a 4.125 R&P.  I took the freeway daily.   

[speed7]

This was the first replacement engine for the standard 1300 DA that came with the car.
It was 1600 Gex engine , with Engle 110 cam , Bosch 009 and blue coil and 2 40 DRLA Dell's.
Exhaust was a Bugpack hide out , later replaced by a Mondo.
Best ET was 18.6 .... [ Attachment: You are not allowed to view attachments ]

[rick m]

Ok...I want to know how you get a 1776 with a stock carb to run 15.1 in the quarter.  That had to be a misprint!  :-)

Rick M

[karl h]

if you mean my engine it had dual 40mm dells

[kingsburgphil]

First big motor...Okrasa 82x88, 356b rods, engle 130, square ports, 11-1. Assembled by FAT, paired with
a Vanderbeke prepped trans was good enough for 12.60's. With an engle 160 it ran in the teens, not bad
for 37 years ago.

[So.Cal.Life]

    And after Phil had his fun stretching the 356b rods to their limit, I used them on my 84 Okrasa for many more miles until I stretched them beyond their limit and damned near sawed my motor in half     I opened the deck lid , and #3 rod cap was laying next to the pulley..... What a great day    Porsche rods were the best!!!!   

[TexasTom]

Speaking of Porsche rods ... I have yet to find a photo to post, but my first (bigger than 1600) engine was an 82 X 90.5. I purchased a cast 82 crank with original Porsche rods froma guy, a used, machined case from Rimco, ran a 125 Engle, Berg sump, a used 4Tuned header from my brother with new dual quiet packs, spent the most on a set of 40 X 35.5 heads from Fumio(!), and topped it all off with a set of used 42DCNFs from Berg.
I remember how excited I was to see the listing on the back of the Berg pricelist/flyer and called RIGHT AWAY to secure the 42s.

Also, another side note, those Fumio heads are STILL on my current engine today!!! Course they've been 'upgraded' a few times; now 42 X 37 welded, IDAs & 94 cyls.
Now that I think of it, my current engine is ALL based on this original assembly ... now Okrasa crank, swapped the Porsche rods for Carrillo, went to FK87 & now 86C cam, stock to Autocraft 1.4 rockers to now Berg 1.45s, replaced the case with new that I machined myself, 009 to Berg Stinger S4 to MAG, on and on ... Hmmm, what's next

 
TxT

[Dominick Luppino]

Rick, mine looked just like yours minus the oil filter. We came from that time when it was cool to have a Holley Bug Spray

[rick m]

Domminick ....It is hilarious looking back at what we probably got excited about I had not yet seen a set of dual webers until after I built this motor. After attending my first Bug-In in late 70, I knew I was headed for some more spending!

Rick M

[Catbox]

I am late to playing with bugs.

My dad almost bought me one when I was sixteen that was all kinds of fancy and lime green, but he just did not have the knowledge base to help me out if something went wrong.

No bug.

Twenty years later.
I am in the middle of building my first baby stroker.....
and these are its "birth" pictures that I have from the other day when we were figuring out how much we needed to have the new long cylinders cut too.










It will be a 2332 with 9.5 to 1, Tims stage 2 heads, FK-8, and Dell 45's.

It should be just a little bit better than the 1600 it will be replacing....