[SHOracer14]

I am new to TD's but I have an 86' GTS I am doing the TII swap and adding some goodies and boost. For piece of mind I want to use stock TII rods and pistons with new rings. I have a line on a set in the classified section out of an 89' common block. Will these work in my older engine? If so I want them. Thanks for any input.

BTW... I am also looking for advice on a few other areas of this car. My planned setup was Stock TII rods/pistons, 1 piece intake, TII exhaust mani and Turbo, +20 injectors, 3" DP with a 3" cutout, TBI roller cam setup, underdrive pulley and 3bar MAP. All will be montiored with an AEM wideband. I was thinking of FWD stage 5 cal and run 12 pounds for cruising with the cutout closed and run maybe 16 or so with the cutout open for fun times. Is a stage 5 cal too much? I may get crazy one day and want to do more so that's why I was leaning towards the stage 5. It is unfortuneatly an auto I will run with a honkin' big cooler but, that will be the other weak link. I'm still collecting information/ research on what to do with that.

 

[turismolover22]

The rod lengths are the same in all 2.2, so they will swap out. If they are good, it may be a good option to get them shot peened and drilled for better oiling, if you decide to get crazy on your setup later down the road.

The crank however will not swap out between the CB and older blocks. So if you decide you want the forged crank, then you may need to either source an 87-88 TII block, or swap your parts out for the CB motor. Not a hard swap. They bolt up the same, some of the small things are different, like the water pump, etc.

 

[cawcislo]

If you're going through the trouble of rebuilding an engine I would say go with forged pistons. A bad tank of gas or raising the boost and or a boost spike by accident and the stock (cast) t2 pistons will crack (I know I've busted 3 of them at only 18 psi). So for the piece of mind forged pistons are a great investment!

 

[ILIKESHELBYS]

Another difference in early and late rods is the early rod (either the light or heavy version) uses a pressed pin in the top of the rod to hold it in the piston. The later T2 rods use a full floating piston setup. Forged pistons are of course best for strength and durability under hi-torque and boost conditions and they add quite a bit to a rebuild. Plan on spending at least $500 on a set of forged pistons. The block must be honed to fit the pistons so take your block and all the moving parts to the machine shop at the same time. If they will bore your block w/o pistons, pickup your stuff from the counter and go somewhere else! Also note that if U go forged, it's not a good idea to jump in it with a cold engine, crank and go. Forged pistons need a little bit to warm up...like a good minute or two if U want to take extra care. The forged pistons swell in the bore more than a cast piston will and the engine quiets down after the pistons expand and warm up to operating temp or close. Personally I like the Venolia forged pistons have had nothing but good results and quality from them. There are other choices. The forged crank is a nice option but it adds a lot of weight to the reciprocating assembly and if U r not building a mountain monster its a bit of over-kill. There are plenty of 300-400HP units in the coral that have the cast crank and they have survived countless passes and driver abuse. Our cars from the factory are a bit choked in the exhaust area, so that is a good first place to start, larger turbo, swing valve and exhaust w/HP cat. No need to worry about the intake till the exhaust is opened a bit. Once the exhaust is more free flowing, the mods you make on the intake will give you more bang for your buck. 14.7lbs of boost is the top end of our ECU/MAP combo. To go over 15lbs of boost U need to upgrade the ECU with a custom calibration to support larger injectors and 3bar MAP. Our cars are OEM equiped with a 2 bar MAP and at 15 lbs and up it will not provide a proper signal that the engine ECU needs to advance timing and fuel curves as needed for the additional boost.

The difference between Stage 1 and stage 3 is pretty dramatic. The step from stage 3 to stage 5 seems even more impressive. Stage 5 units really do need forged pistons or factory Mahale cast pistons with a dead on tune that never fails! High boost and cast pistons are a high risk combo.

Also note that the factory turbo and intercooler comb is good to about 250 HP, past that the blower wont deliver any more air and if it did, the intercooler becomes the choke point.

The log manifold will not flow well over 15 lbs...heck its not a great flower at any level of boost but it works. The 1 piece is better flowing but difficult to port because of the design. It has to be cut up and rewelded to port it well and you then might as well have gone with the Shelby 2 piece instead. They are easier to port but harder to source/find.

Going over the factory HP/torque levels also means you will need a stronger clutch pressure plate. A common upgrade is to take a T3 PP and combine it with the T2 clutch disk. Otherwise, most the site vendors offer an upgraded clutch package complete with alignment tool and throw-out bearing. I went with the yellow plate and 6 puck ceramic from one of our vendors.

 

[SHOracer14]

Thank you for the replies. I have been collecting parts. This is my entire planned setup. I have everything except a PCM, lifters and rockers and a BOV. Stock T2 garret, intercooler, TB and 1 piece intake. TBI roller cam, ported exhaust manifold, 3" downpipe. Running plus 20 injectors on the fuel side with 3 bar. The trans will have a shift kit and huge cooler... plan to change something when I blow that up. Say I run 14 pounds dayly and 16-18 pounds sometimes. If the tune is on and I dedicate my life to watching the wideband should I be worried about the stock bottom end at these levels?

 

[ILIKESHELBYS]

No worries. There is no such thing as 16-18 pounds sometimes. Once you taste that, its hard to go on a diet. LOL

 

[SHOracer14]

No worries. There is no such thing as 16-18 pounds sometimes. Once you taste that, its hard to go on a diet. LOL

Ha! I know what you mean... that's how it was back in my nitrous loving days.