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Reply to "Newbie with many questions"

Todd M posted:

@edsnova

"But there is no scenario in which one is necessary"

Yup.

And if I get another car, I doubt if necessary will enter into my decision making process.  If I am honest, another car is the opposite of necessary, it is actually madness.  I am telling myself this, more than I am telling you, so I know exactly what I am getting into.  So, how much madness do I want, and how much madness can I afford?

And, I truly appreciate all the info.  It is magnificent.

You know, @Todd M--  this post shows me that you are so far ahead of where I was when I came to this, that perhaps you don't need a ton of advice. But since I seem to feel that everybody is entitled to my opinion, I'm going to disseminate it anyhow.

I'm kinda' slow, but I almost always (wrongly) think I know more than conventional wisdom. As a result, I do things two (or three... or four) times before just arriving back where I was told to go to start with. If insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result, then I should probably be in a rubber room.

I used to advocate for cute little engines, "because they more accurately replicate the powerband of an original", or some such nonsense. I've had two 1176s, two 2110s, a 2332, and two 2276 built by Serrano, AJ Sims, Chico Performance, Art Thraen, and Blackline Racing. I've had about that many permutations of transaxle as well.

I'm not a builder, or a reseller-- this is just a hobby for me, and I've worked my way up the food-chain because I enjoy working in the garage. It's been a very expensive way to learn a couple of things-- primary among them is the wisdom in listening to the guys who have been in this for a long time, and laying aside my own (non-applicable) experience in some other venue.

What I can say with 100% conviction is that  no matter what you decide to do, more is more.

More power and more gears IS more fun. And more money. In this hobby, there are no shortcuts. You might not always get what you pay for, but you'll always pay for what you get. Always.

Spending more with a reputable vendor always means getting more. But but after a certain point, the additional money spent starts to buy less and less of the "more" that brings enjoyment. The secret to being smart about this (and I would inject here that I've been a poor example) is knowing where the point of diminishing return is. Some times less is "more".

Guys are going to give conflicting advice regarding where the point of diminishing return is, but here's my take:

The engine and transaxle need to be paired to work together. Dollars buy horsepower, and they buy gears. Up to a certain point, the money is best spent on the horsepower. But once that point is reached, the money is better spent on gears. If a guy has $5,000 to spend, it's best spent on a better engine. If he's got $10,000 to pump into making his car better, the second $5,000 is best spent on the transaxle. I've had a $10,000 Type 1, and I'd have rather had a $5,000 engine and a 5-speed.

Further, there's a point where spending more on a Type 1 stops being the best way to get "more". Once a guy starts creeping up past 150 hp, the money is probably better spent on a Type 4. A $10,000 Type 4 is a lot more enjoyable (to me) than a $10,000 Type 1.

Either way, a $10,000 engine is definitely "more", but it's more work and not twice as nice as a $5000 engine. A $5,000 transaxle is twice as nice as a $2,500 transaxle.

Obviously the calculus changes with a Subaru engine, and I'm not the guy there. You'd need to talk to Henry or Carey or Greg to determine if you are that guy. Soliciting the advice of guys here is just going to bring out our own biases.  

Last edited by Stan Galat
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