1835 or ACN 1800 for my daily driver

[Rowroy]

I won't bore you with the details, but on Saturday the 1600DP in my '66 Beetle shit the bed in a big way (it wasn't pretty). Now I am looking to rebuild it . . . better than it was before.

I am intrigued by the AC.net 1800 . . .
http://www.aircooled.net/1800cc-vw-engine-no-machine-combo/
But I am also considering a plain ol' 1835

This car is my TRUE dailey driver. That means that I drive the car to work EVERYDAY. It also sees about 5 +1000 mile road trips per year.

I built a very nice 1776 (ported stock heads, W110, dual Kads) that powered my '69 Beetle, but I am looking to step up a little this go-around. I already have a set of 36mm DRLA's, 1 3/8" header w/ hide-a-way muffler, and plan to reuse the SVDA dist.

What is the concensus on using ported stock heads with either of these engines?

I am open to any and all opinions . . . .
_________________
Suicide is man's way of telling God, "You can't fire me; I quit!" - Bill Maher

[AlteWagen]

Thick wall 92s for the 1835 or 74x88 will both be great DD engines. Personally I would just go with the 74mm forged crank regardless of piston choice. Ported stock heads would be great in this application on either build.

The 36s and 1 3/8 header will give great performance and mileage as well.

A 110ish cam, high rev springs,HD aluminum push rods, solid rocker shaft shimmed to keep side play to a minimum will allow the engine to rev reliably. Running 9:1 compression will really wake up the build and help with mpg as well, tight deck is the trick.

If you are still running the 4.37 trans you will shred the tires! Make sure to run HD OEM trans mounts (211 part number), a bell house strap kit, mid mount of some kind and a traction bar or kafer brace to control all that new found power.
_________________
Grapes of Wrath $200 Engine Rebuild
Official Dual Carb Thread
Cylinder Head Quick Reference Sheet

[pow_rider17]

For my true daily driver I am currently building a 1800 for my winter time motor with heat, vs my current 1955 with no heat.

I went around much like you are and many things made me decide this option. I would say it has to do with what you want to pay for/where you spend the money.

I went this way because for many reasons but much like my 1955, I knew what I wanted to build and what I didn't want to build. Then looked at all the options and got to the engine size that way. For each upgrade to X part, you have to factor in the changes it will make to Y and Z parts and whether or not that now means upgrading Y and Z.

......sky's the limit and its a slippery slope so I have to set limitations and stop myself somewhere. Usually pocketbook helps decide this.

[sactojesse]

If you are sticking w/ the stock 69 mm stroke, make sure to get a CW crankshaft. (Not an issue with the 1800 because stroker cranks are CW already.) If I were in your shoes, I'd go with 94s and build a 1915 instead of an 1835 with the thickwall 92s. It's going in a beetle, so the cylinders should be plenty thick enough. A 1915 with 9:1, ported and polished stock DP heads with single HD springs, dual 36 or 40 DRLAs, W110 or similar cam, and 1 3/8" exhaust would make a nice 100-110 hp daily driver.

Alternatively, you could go w/ a 74 mm stroke crank, 90.5 mm pistons/cylinders, 5.325" rods, and build a 1904 with the stuff.
_________________
1966 Karmann-Ghia convertible

[Rowroy]

Yeah, I considered a 1915, but was concerned about the heat issue. My '66 has a solid deck lid (i. e., no vents). I'm just not familiar enough with the 1915 to feel comfortable pushing it to 3300RPM for hours on end in 95° heat.

The other part of the equation is that I will be using stock heater boxes. I wonder if they will restrict breathing too much on anything larger than an 1835.

FYI, the tranny has a 4.12 R & P, so cruising @ 65mph yields around 3200RPM.
_________________
Suicide is man's way of telling God, "You can't fire me; I quit!" - Bill Maher

[Danwvw]

I did an 1800cc for my bus, It's turned out to have a lot of torque! Makes me want to drive it gentle and just enjoy how well it pulls. Bet you could get more RPM and easily as much power with the 1835cc in a bug. But build it to handle some RPM etc...
when you get your heater boxes off take some measurements and see if they are the larger ones that came on the later models, sometimes they have repairs to the JTube part of the exhaust pipes which can restrict them down to 3/4"
My 1971 pipes are about 31 mm ID. At the port end.
_________________
1960 Beetle And 1679cc DP W-100 & Dual Zeniths!

[AlteWagen]

Even a 1600 with DH cooling needs extra vents. For longetivity (more than 60K miles) I would stick with the TW 92/TW 88. If you do want to go 1.9 then use the 74 crank with 90.5 pistons like mentioned above.

With the heaters you should stick with the stock exh valve and only mild porting on the intake

FYI the aftermarket large diameter heater boxes suck for actual heat output.
_________________
Grapes of Wrath $200 Engine Rebuild
Official Dual Carb Thread
Cylinder Head Quick Reference Sheet

[vwracerdave]

If the case and head machine work isn't a problem then the 1835 will be a lot easier to build then the 1800. It is more work to build the 1800 because of checking clearances, shimming, and setting up rocker arm geometry. The power difference between the 2 will not be enough to measure. If the machine work is a problem or you are intimidated by it, then the 1800 is your best option.
_________________
2017 Street Comp Champion - Thunder Valley Raceway Park - Noble, OK
2010 Sportsman ET Champion - Mid-America Dragway - Arkansas City, KS
1997 Sportsman ET Champion - Thunder Valley Raceway Park - Noble ,OK

[Rowroy]

Well my old heads are trash. So I will be looking for new ones. I'm thinking about the L3 heads from AC.NET

Any thought on how they would perform with an 1835?
_________________
Suicide is man's way of telling God, "You can't fire me; I quit!" - Bill Maher

[AlteWagen]

Im wondering what casting John will be using for the L3 now that the AA 501 is NLA.

edit:

http://vwparts.aircooled.net/ACN-Stocker-Plus-Dual-Port-Cylinder-Heads-35-X-32-p/l3-heads-pair.htm

I just looked at the site and it looks like he is using AA 500 casting now. These are GREAT heads with better cooling than the 501 casting but still have the "heart" chamber.

I just used this casting on a TW 1835 build and they are NICE!. I suggest putting the short block together first, get your DH to .050 and then order the heads with the chamber cc you need to get the compression you desire.

Looks like they might be cheaper directly from AA
http://aapistons.com/shop/cylinder-heads-and-compo...-5x32.html

I know AA can flycut the chambers to the cc you need as well.
_________________
Grapes of Wrath $200 Engine Rebuild
Official Dual Carb Thread
Cylinder Head Quick Reference Sheet

[[email protected]]

The 500-400s are not L3s.

http://vwparts.aircooled.net/Dual-Port-Cylinder-Head-35-x-32mm-Valves-PAIR-p/500-400.htm

are the 500-400s on our site.
_________________
It's just advice, do whatever you want with it!

Please do NOT send me Private Messages through the Samba PM System (I will not see them). Send me an e-mail to john at aircooled dot net

"Like" our Facebook page at
http://www.facebook.com/vwpartsaircoolednet
and get a 5% off code for use on one order for VW Parts ON OUR PARTS STORE WEBSITE, vwparts.aircooled.net

[AlteWagen]

[[email protected]]

so what valve job are in our L3s? How about porting?

There have been several recent threads where we discussed the casting changes on our L3s.
_________________
It's just advice, do whatever you want with it!

Please do NOT send me Private Messages through the Samba PM System (I will not see them). Send me an e-mail to john at aircooled dot net

"Like" our Facebook page at
http://www.facebook.com/vwpartsaircoolednet
and get a 5% off code for use on one order for VW Parts ON OUR PARTS STORE WEBSITE, vwparts.aircooled.net

[stan_tichomirov]

I'm in a similar situation and I'm leaning towards building a 1915 with the L3 heads. I've had an earlier version of them a few years ago and they worked well on a smaller engine. I had the same dilemma and was building a new 2110 with L5s, but life changed and I sold the car and parted everything out before completion This time around I'll try to keep it more simple due to cost.

IMO, keep it simple or step up to the 82mm stroke -- it should be almost as easy, but more expensive.

Stan
_________________
Aircooled.net
Jansen Enterprise
My 1835cc build
My budget 2276 build

[Danwvw]

http://www.drdracingheads.com/xcart/DRD-Stocker-plus-35.5X32mm.html
http://www.drdracingheads.com/xcart/DRD-L5-CNC-ported-type1-heads-90.5mm-bore.html
http://vwparts.aircooled.net/ACN-Stocker-Plus-Dual-Port-Cylinder-Heads-35-X-32-p/l3-heads-pair.htm
http://vwparts.aircooled.net/ACN-Road-Warrior-Dual-Port-Cylinder-Heads-L5s-p/l5-heads-pair.htm
_________________
1960 Beetle And 1679cc DP W-100 & Dual Zeniths!

[GodJockey]

Here are my $.02 - its probably overkill but...
If you are looking for a daily driver with some oomph and are willing to have your case machined why not build a mild 1955 - A CB Performance 76mm crank cost just the same as a 69mm. If you need new rods anyway the 5.5" cost just the same as a 5.4". That was the rational I used on my 2020cc for my THING. I had to clearance the case which took me about 3 hours but if I had to do it again it'd probably take me less than half the time. This engine went together really easy and is about stock length. I'm sure you could still use a stock valved head to retain your heat.

[RailBoy]

Comment on Exhaust diameters making the decision for you..........

To make a 1800 flow well a 1 1/2" header is needed for the L-3's to breath properly with the Dells..... Stock Exhaust has been seen to cut down on HP by as much as 20 HP on the 1800/1849's....... Forget which one, but I am thinking of the 1849, that you can get an estimated 115 HP with DRLA's, 1 1/2" Header w/1 1/2" heater boxes and L-3's on a 1849, yea, so if memory surves me right, I am speaking of a 1849.. Nice little motor, been spec'ed out by a few people plus makers of these parts to kick out about 115 HP if all things are taken in concern and done properly and maybe get up to 31/32 mpg @ sea level and "normal" driving...

Yea, it is the above thinking on doing either the 1800/1849 builds plus what is mandatory to get the 115 HP there, which catapults me into 2110 Terrotory, why, gots to by matching exhaust and all, so, why not go bigger, trade off they say is economics, MPG in the end.. But if correct parts are picked like with the smaller strokers, you can get 80,000-100,000 miles out of them easily....

1835, not really into a non-stroker motor, why, well, more leverage with a stroker crank vs. OEM stock, regardless if it is a CW crank...... RB
_________________
[quote="smitty24"]"HELP, I ported my own heads and now have fire coming out my ass" .[/quote]

[AlteWagen]

[[email protected]]

You are the one comparing the 500-400 to our L3 claiming they are the same, despite my linking to the 500-400 for less than AA's site. If I took your comment the wrong way I apologize, but I think I read it accurately.
_________________
It's just advice, do whatever you want with it!

Please do NOT send me Private Messages through the Samba PM System (I will not see them). Send me an e-mail to john at aircooled dot net

"Like" our Facebook page at
http://www.facebook.com/vwpartsaircoolednet
and get a 5% off code for use on one order for VW Parts ON OUR PARTS STORE WEBSITE, vwparts.aircooled.net

[AlteWagen]

I know it is difficult to nail down head products these days since the industry is in flux as much as it is due to the end of genuine VW head.

My understanding was that the "L" series heads originated from DRD and he would engrave what ever name you wanted on it. On the DRD site they specified that the L3 which was based on the new at the time AA500 casting which did not need porting due to the larger cast port.

Now that the 500 is NLA DRD is using the Revmaster 049 casting for the larger L series. Since the 049 is not available with stock size valves DRD L3 is using another casting which you verified has a step in the chamber.

Since I seem to be mistaken, what casting and in house mods make up the new and improved L3?
_________________
Grapes of Wrath $200 Engine Rebuild
Official Dual Carb Thread
Cylinder Head Quick Reference Sheet