ST170 engine tuning ideas please

Q

Quarryman

Newbie
Points
1
Location
Cornwall
Car
Mk 4 Escort ST170
Hi there all, I've recently purchased an ex circuit mk4 Escort fitted with a ST170 engine. It's fitted with weber 48's and as far as I can see is pretty much standard apart from this. I cant see that the vvt is connected and was wondering if anyone had any ideas what to do to get around the 200bhp mark to start with?
Any information would be gratefully received
 
i have a bit of knowledge on the st170, first of all they never made 170bhp as standard they were on average around 155-158bhp.
i know on the oe cam set up you can retime the exhaust cam to give around 5-8bhp, look at a 4-2-1 manifold as well.

you could always look into sticking a set of piper 285 cams in there as they will work very well with the 48s you have in place.
http://www.pipercams.co.uk/pipercams/www/product.php?pid=FOCSTBP285
 
Hello and Welcome.

200 bhp out of the 170 is costly and most would tell you it's not worth the cost for the power you end up with.
Individual TB's should get you to around 195bhp then if you change the cams you should go over 200, but then you want to increase the revs and the oil pump is a weakness so you would be looking at dry sump.
Which would have to be bespoke in design as you cannot by an off the shelf kit then change rods and pistons etc.

You could slap a turbo on for around 240bhp but again it gets very costly. Ultimately it depends on how deep your pockets are really.
 
Hi all, thanks for the info. Since starting this thread i have read that throttle bodies seem to be the preferred option to get more out of the engine and CAT cams seem to be a popular choice as well so your input has helped and confirmed! I dont know if anyone has any info on running the vvt on a stand alone ignition system, I've read somewhere about linking a feed to a shift light to activate the oil solenoid engaging the vvt? Does this sound feasable? If so is anyone an electrical genius that can give further guidance??!!
Cheers Q
 
May I as the site admin wish you a very warm welcome to TorqueCars. It is really nice to meet you and I hope you'll be spending some time with us over the months to come.

You'll find us one of the friendliest and most helpful car tuning forums around.

What plans do you have for your car? Will it be a daily driver or a weekend fun car project? I'm sure we can give you lots of ideas and suggestions if you need any.
 
Thanks for the warm welcome and advice given so far, it's all very helpful. The plan for the car is to keep it in its current race form but to use it for hillclimb and sprints.
 
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