TheSamba.com :: View topic - 2110 daily driver, good balance between power (2023)

That being said, unless you are dead set on jumping in with both feet & building your own performance motor from scratch, I think you maybe should consider purchasing a longblock from a known reputable source. The problem here may be cost. A pro built stroker 2110 will run easily into the thousands. The reason for this is the same reason why I think that if you want to build your own you ought to consider a non-stroker for your first build. There is more work/know how to building a stroker (not to mention the parts -crank/rods- cost more).

I believe you should consider a 1914cc (yes, 94mm pistons) whether pro built or home built. If you are really freaked out by the 94 p/c then get the thick-walled 92s & build an 1835. Use a quality counterweighted 69mm crank & properly rebuilt & balanced rods at a minimum. 125 hp is achievable with this combo but you need to decide where do you place the most importance. High MPGs/reliability/longevity or Max HP/fun/run with the V8 big dogs.

If your budget will not accomodate $5-$600 worth of heads & $5-$600 worth of carbs, then stay smaller/milder & build an 1835 (thick wall) with no bigger than an Engle 110 cam & stick with your proposed progressive single carb or dual Weber ICTs or Kadrons. This will yield 90-100 HP & decent fuel economy if built & tuned correctly. If the need for more speed is still there then the same shortblock can accept more head & carb when funds allow & put you at or near your goal of 125 HP.

If you can afford it & the MPGs are of less concern then build a 1914 with dual 44s, ported 40x35 heads (minimum) at least 8.5 compression, Engle 120 cam, 1 1/2" merged header & lightened flywheel. This will not have V8 torque (more like a big Stroker) But more of a peaky high revving engine (like Twin cam inline 4).

Don't be too afraid of the 94 pistons. They are better than you are probably giving them credit for & even if they only last 40-50,000 miles instead of the 80-100,000 that you would hopefully get out of the thicker 90.5 or 92s, they are relatively easy to change & only $160.

Now, If you are going to launch it hard against your V8 pals & drive it with gusto you better plan on some dinero for Transmission & brake upgrades :shock:

Thanks again gentlemen I appreciate the effort.
Hope I don't come off as too large of an a$$ hole, sorry if I do.

There are dizzying #s of combos out there & as a newbie I was suggesting tried & proven, affordable & more straightforward engine builds to get your feet wet with.

To me the low end grunt of added Stroke is unmatched by any standard 69 stroke combo. Even so called "baby" strokers that use 74/76 cranks make noticeable, usable extra torque through the entire rev range. Many people don't like the small 74/76 strokes & refer to them as bastard strokes however. While they take less clearancing (grinding away) of the internal webbing of the engine case, more attention must be given to achieving proper piston deck height, pushrod length, & proper rocker arm geometry (among other things). Because of this ,some feel the gains are not worth the hassle & either stay with a standard stroke or go with the "go big or go home" thinking that "if your gonna stroke it...Stroke it"

Assembling an engine correctly takes mechanical inclination, following procedures, the right tools & parts, & yes a good mentor is a huge bonus. Building a stroker will take additional patience, time, machining, measuring, attention to detail, & oh yeah-money! What gets really discouraging is putting your high dollar motor together & having catostrophic failure shortly after from something that was missed, overlooked, or forgotten.

VW engines ain't rocket science but most probably start rebuilding a stock engine or 2 before moving on to performance flat 4 territory.

Hope this is more helpful than not. -Laurence

What carb/ induction set up do you have on that for that kind of mileage (impressive)?
Do you find the A1 exhaust overly loud for a daily driver, or is it loud and you just like it that way?

gordo.

The a1 is on the louder side of things, but I'm running a super trapp on the end to cut some sound. I'm having a new setup made now out of stainless that puts the exhaust past the bumper rather than resonating under the car. Should be pretty badaass...egt probe, o2 sensor, case evac all stainless throughout. The egt will let me do some pretty tight tuning and I expect to see 32 maybe as high as 35 mpg....maybe.

man as long as you have a competent machine shop nearby, do it. build a stroker. its not much more effort than a stock stroke motor imo.
i built my first 2180 after having only built one stocker before that. i was younger, and collected the parts a piece or two at a time to assemble the block, and got 90% of it used. case, crank, heads, webers etc....
that 82mm cb crank is still standard and about to go in its second motor. maybe i had good luck, but i was able to build a pretty solid 2110 on the cheap(ish)

Send the case to Rimco for clearancing. It is so light just send it by UPS it is pretty cheap for shipping. Just pack it well. Cost you about 150.00 for the machining. Have it opened for the pistons as well. Then....Send it to my friends at one of the best shops for VW engines. It is in Kansas City to build your case out. Vee Village. They have been doing this for 35 years. They have a great machine shop and the proper tooling for our cars. Not all shops have this.
Buy your crank, pistons, cam and a new case kit with the all the nuts, Relief Valves. Then send it to them. Have them build it to where the rods are hanging out or a short block and assemble it yourself. This will save you a lot of money. Freight should not be to bad from TX. My engine probably has 10k on it since and still runs very strong.