268s in at last

[Kevin Bacon 5]

Had my Schrick 268 cams fitted at Stealth today and I can see why they're so good with the VGI and AMD throttle :lol:

 

After a bit of discussion, we decided the AMD rechip (set for throttle and VGI) will suffice for now, and there were certainly no flat spots or pinking during the 120 mile trip home. A pinch more fuel for the top end would probably be beneficial but I'm not too bothered about that at the moment. We didn't have to time tune it or roller it anyway :(

 

The first thing you notice with the 268s is there is no loss of bottom end, in fact I can detect a slight improvement there, and the idle quality doesn't suffer one little bit. Both a testament to Schrick's proven design and quality.

 

You also get a bigger clout in the 'VGI zone' and the whole rev-range is smoothed out, making it more drivable and less peaky than with the VGI on it's own. The engine is far smoother throughout the range too.

 

They're not really what I was expecting to be honest. I thought I'd get an even more peaky engine but it feels like the torque curve has been flattened off but giving more at the same time. The transition from VGI to coming on the cam is totally seemless. No longer feels like you've put the brakes on at 4000rpm.

 

I guess that's down to design - VGI + Standard cams = big surge as induction resonance and cam overlap come on at once. VGI + 268 = same surge from 3K to 4K and then cams come on at 4000...... and keep the motor on the boil :lol:

 

Highly recommended if you've got a VGI :lol:

[corradovr6sc 0]

Sounds great, I would have gone that route too if I'd stayed n/a. Did Stealth change the valve springs?

[Joe M 0]

Nice one, I still cant decide whether to go for the 268's or hold out for a charger. Any plans on getting it on the rollers soon Kev? I wouldnt mind seeing the graph.

[Kevin Bacon 5]

They didn't change the valve springs, no. I know Schrick insist on them but as you can imagine, Stealth have been fitting 268s for years and have never bothered (unless a customer specifically wanted them) with the uprated springs. They've never seen a snapped standard spring as a result. He gave me the option but I trust Vince's judgement.

 

I don't take the engine over 5500 rpm anyway (no need to, even with the 268s) so I'm not anticipating any problems.

 

If a spring snaps, it snaps. Will just result in a 3.0 rebuild with big valve head :lol:

[Kevin Bacon 5]

Joe, I'm a bit scared of rollering it to be honest in case it only makes 2 more ponies than standard and then standard VR boys will rip the hell out of me!

 

There is a rolling road meet organised in October, so I will get it rollered then.... but I'm not expecting massive improvements on paper.... but there are definitely improvements on the road :wink:

[emax 0]

Nice one Kev. How much was it all-in with fitting? If my compression woes turn out to be nothing too major (ie. rings), I might treat myself ;-)

[Kevin Bacon 5]

Hard to say mate as the bill was basically a whole day's labour (other work done at the same time) and I bought the cams some time ago at a good price. I would estimate 2 to 3 hours to fit the cams (removing the surrounding hardware is the time consuming bit) and the cams themselves are a whopping £550+VAT, I think, retail.

 

If the initial 120 miles are anything to go buy, I think I would still have gone for them at the retail price though.

 

If all is well with the engine, the 268s are good for an additional 12-15hp. But no two engines are the same and mine took to them like a duck to water.

 

Imo, they are worth the money just for smoothing the torque delivery alone!

 

If you've ever driven a BMW 328i.... that's probably the nearest thing I can think of in terms of power delivery, which is a good thing as that Bimmer engine is a cracking unit.

[NormanCoal 0]

kev, Really glad to hear the report Kev, hopefully the ingredients for my other VR should make for a good engine - basically the same as yours but with the addition of the BVH.

 

I may have to come to the RR day just to see what the torque curve looks like

[dr_mat 0]

I wonder whether the improved smoothness and torque delivery could be down to either the cam position sensor sender wheel replacement, or maybe the ineffable corrado-spending-time-in-garage effect. Mine is always smoother and more torquey on the way back from a garage...... :)

(Mental note: must ask Vince to swap the cam position sender wheel when my tappets get (re)done.)

[Kevin Bacon 5]

Always the pessemist ay Matt? The reasons surely can't be because of the cams...... no, it's gotta be the £7 cam trigger wheel.....LOL! What a waste of money the cams are :lol:

 

The sender cracked as it came off the cam mate, it was fine before. Stealth always put new ones on anyway due to the regularity of them breaking upon removal. The cam trigger wheel has integral washer for the main sprocket bolt. Due to this compressing, it A) makes the rear cam sprocket harder work to remove (stealth do it in a vice) than the front cam and B) the plastic casing for the cam trigger then cracks when you spin the bolt out.

 

But anyway, the car was ballistic on the way to work this morning (into a mighty head wind I might add), so both your theorys have been quashed I'm afraid :wink:

 

The extra grunt is very addictive and as Kieron mentioned a while ago, you find yourself driving like a nutter everywhere! Mainly because it's delivered in such a smooth manner and it doesn't seem to stopping coming, either!

 

The best bit is 2nd gear off a roundabout and hammering it....silky smooth pull and the revs climb like a turbo'd engine!

 

These cams are brilliant :lol:

[dr_mat 0]

Sounds good, I didn't mean to imply the cams weren't worth the cash.. (Though there's no way you'll catch me payin £500 for 'em!) :)

Yeah, but robbo also had probs recently with the cam position sensor that were only solved by replacing the cam wheel - that's where the magnet is. Just thought it might be worth doing while the cams are out, that's all.

[Kevin Bacon 5]

Yeah they're not cheap!

 

It's worth replacing the trigger wheel if it's broken, but if there's no visible cracking etc, it's now worth doing.

[dinkus 10]

Heh heh nice one Kev 8) Careful with then Ipswich roundabouts tho ;) :lol:

[vr6dom 0]

I don't take the engine over 5500 rpm anyway (no need to, even with the 268s)

 

Hey :?: :!: :!: :shocked!: You haven't lived :lol: 328, ta tah :) Try it... especially now.

 

Be joining the 268 brigade in a few months but mated to my VSR. Glad to read that there's another happy chappie out there with this poven mod. The most famous of course is the legandary Kieron Johnson :salute: , proved beyond doubt they really make the VR fly! :D :D :D

[Kevin Bacon 5]

I have taken it right round & through the limiter on a few occasions :lol: It absolutely flies.....

 

I want my timing chains to last more than 3 years though, so that kind of behaviour will be saved for the occasional treat!

 

If you've got 268s, doesn't mean you have to wring it's neck everywhere...... you still get plenty of Shrekiness in the midrange :lol:

 

I'm not sure how well these cams would work on a standard engine but with the VGI & flowed throttle, it's ballistic.....

[NormanCoal 0]

Did you speak with Vince the effects of a BVH would have on your particular engine Kev?

[Kevin Bacon 5]

I didn't speak to him about big valve heads mate. From what I've read about them, they do give good results.

 

Is yours a Schrick head or a custom made one?

 

Personally speaking, that's probably a route I'd take alongside a capacity increase but if you've got all the other Schrick goodies and a bigger throttle, then a BV head can only improve things further!!

 

The VR needs more air than VW let in as standard, and then the motor really starts to fly..... not night and day differences like you get with forced induction, but worthwhile improvements for real world driving.

[jedi-knight83 0]

is it time to say goodbye to your beloved standard air box then?? :lol:

[NormanCoal 0]

Pass, I honestly dont know. The history as I know is that it was originally on the Orange rear engined VR MK1 that Dubsport built (that subsequently went down the turbo route I believe?)

Since been in a MK3 Golf VR, and now will be going on my 2.9 complete with the schricks and a MK4 12v metal head gasket

 

I've a geabox to rebuild before the engine can go back in, but hoping to finish the project before Christmas, or at least get it to a driveable state

[yellowslc 0]

268's just begin to breathe at 5500rpms.. wind it out to 7000 and you'll feel it pull although I wouldn't suggest it with stock valve springs. A friend of mine whom I built an 83mm balanced/blueprinted bottom end, 42mm ported/polished/flowbenched cyl head, 268's, supersprint header, etc etc.. shifts between 7200 and 7500 on a regular basis. Ceramic coated ABV intake (port matched of course), fully ported/ceramic'd lower intake, ceramic coated velocity/ v-dubz.com TB.. car is amazing.. We should have dyno #'s on it within a month. So Kev.. you're next upgrade is a proper cyl head. :D

[Kevin Bacon 5]

268's just begin to breathe at 5500rpms.. wind it out to 7000 and you'll feel it pull although I wouldn't suggest it with stock valve springs. A friend of mine whom I built an 83mm balanced/blueprinted bottom end, 42mm ported/polished/flowbenched cyl head, 268's, supersprint header, etc etc.. shifts between 7200 and 7500 on a regular basis. Ceramic coated ABV intake (port matched of course), fully ported/ceramic'd lower intake, ceramic coated velocity/ v-dubz.com TB.. car is amazing.. We should have dyno #'s on it within a month. So Kev.. you're next upgrade is a proper cyl head. :D

 

I'm not really interested in taking the engine out to those revs unless it's proven to make power up there. I've yet to see a N/A curve with the usual mods still climbing past 6500rpm.... it's usually on the down slope by then.

 

How do you find the Supersprint header? Are they tuned ports to make them effectively symmetric like the VGI inlet?

 

That was going to be my next mod, looking at the exhaust system.

 

I don't think the VR head is *that* bad in terms of flow...... I like torque and don't want to slow the gas speed down too much.