Interesting question

[Dave]

A friend of mine asked me a question the other day that I really couldn't think of a good answer. He is undergoing a swap on his car over the winter but isn't looking for enormous power.
His head is interchangeable betwen 2 blocks of different displacements. He has the low displacement block readily available, giving him time to clean it up and replace rings, check specs, etc, essentially allowing him to make sure it won't fail him anytime in the near future. The larger block would not get this prep if he put it on the car due to time constraints. No large upgrades will be done on either, so expenses will be minimal between the two. I asked him why not just push it back and use the larger block and fully prep it, but he said that wasn't an option. The amount of work between the two will be negligible, since the block cleaning will occur while he amasses money for the rest of the swap.
Essentially, would you go with a lower ultimate power/torque in trade for a greater amount of reliability over the long run?

[ScottyB]

i'd always put reliability first. cars are no fun when they sit in your driveway all blown up. i know its an over-used phrase too, but power is nothing without control.

also, if the head is interchangable, he can always switch to the bigger block later.

[mpg9999]

A friend of mine asked me a question the other day that I really couldn't think of a good answer.

IMHO, thats because there is none. Its up to personal opinion. How much reliability is he willing to sacrifice for more power? Only he can make that call. I'd ask how much more power are we talking about, and is the condition of the larger block questionable or does it have very high mileage.

[white_2kgt]

Why do you consider more displacement less reliable? Or is this just in this particular situation? Anytime you squeese more hp/liter you are going to have less reliability, not just by increasing cylinder count.

--chad

[.RJ]

not just by increasing cylinder count.

Unless its a ford

[mpg9999]

Why do you consider more displacement less reliable? Or is this just in this particular situation? Anytime you squeese more hp/liter you are going to have less reliability, not just by increasing cylinder count.

--chad

He is just talking about this particular situation. In his post he said "He has the low displacement block readily available, giving him time to clean it up and replace rings, check specs, etc".

[Ryan T]

Is this a debate between the 1jz block and the 2jz block? In my opinion, I'd probably do the larger displacement block, but thats probably just the domestic ricer coming out in me.

[Sijray21]

i've always read in posts about higher torque/power cars being less reliable in the long run, including FI engines. I don't think this is true for all cases, but i think the engine is more likely to be less reliable with more torque (given build quality is all the same -- which isn't true).

I'd prefer lower displacement, more tuning, more reliability, with cost/budget in mind. Plus lower powered cars are generally lighter as well, and i like that. This is definitely subjective however.

[CaptainHenreh]

Personally, I'd rather go for the short-stroke, big bore engine. I like oversquare engines, they make me happy. If it's good enough for Schumi, it's good enough for me.

So, I say go with the small-displacement.

[Andy]

What motors are you talking about, so we can have some idea what he's working on.

[Dave]

guy currently has a 2JZ-GE (same as my engine) in his mkII supra and is going to put a 1JZ-GTE in. Has the possibility of using the block from the 2J b/c it bolts up to the 1J, but already has the 1J sitting in his garage. The bad part is that he doesn't have a second car and he wants it done over the course of a weekend + a couple days (crazy if you ask me, but he said putting the GE in wasn't that bad and doesn't anticipate much hardship from the 1J swap).
So, essentially he can clean up the 1J as it is and have it totally ready to put into the car and run forever. OR, he can pop the 2J out, use the 2J block with no work and essentially slap the head and goodies on. Option 1 leaves him with 2.5 liters fully prepped, option 2 gives 3 liters but not as much prep. The JZ engines aren't known for grenading, so he isn't too worried, but he doesn't want any problems. I tell him he's crazy and I think he should just go with the 1J block, but I just wanted to see what you guys though.

[mpg9999]

he said putting the GE in wasn't that bad and doesn't anticipate much hardship from the 1J swap).

Haha, famous last words!!!

[Dave]

yeah, tell me about it :-p

[Mike]

i'd go with the bigger block... i don't claim to know much about those motors, but i have a feeling it will still be pretty darn near bulletproof despite not being "as reliable."

it's like saying "a 100% on an exam owns a 98%" (i really wish i could have come up with a better analogy but i'm on vacation so screw it)

[bassmangrammy]

I agree...bigger block owns