Lexus/ Toyota supplied the powerplant in the form of a 4.0 litre, all aluminum, double over head cam, 32 valve V8. Reputed by drag racers to be able to handle 2500+hp on the stock block and crank, I figure it should more than take the 600-800 I want to put through it. Orginally available in the LS400 and SC400 cars, this engine is extremely lightweight and cheap. I picked this engine up for 250$ and I have seen others not sold at 350-400$. The engine made 250hp and 260 ft-lbs stock. Since there is little demand and they are so durable, they can be found fairly easily and cheaply as well. I am going to use Megasquirt to run the intial versions. I have two units built and ready to go. I haven't decided if I am going to use the stock intake manifold or run a set of Individual throttle bodies. Both options are available now. My plan is to start out with a stock engine to get the car running and sort out the suspension and brakes. 300hp should be no problem with a custom set of headers. In the future my plan is to run either a twin turbo setup or a high revving NA motor. Both would be cool as hell. The turbos would provide and easy 1000+hp and I should be able to easily get 650-750 out of a built NA motor in race trim. Neither will be cheap.

Don't even ask about the tranny. I have yet to find a suitable solution. The car will start out with a modified 901 but that won't last long. I was looking at the Audi 016 gear box, but since I have to flip the gearbox upside down to get a reasonable axle angle I can't run it. The 915 looked good for about 10mins. Hell it is at least 25 years old and the synchros suck. I have thought about a G50 as they are a nice tranny. Modern, stout, five speeds, etc. I ruled out the 930 gear box because of it being a four speed. I have look at at Fortin transaxles, and found them overpriced for what they are. Hewland makes a nice box but it can't handle the power. Quaiffe makes a really slick box that can handle some of the power it is reasonably priced at $15K. http://www.mendeolatransaxles.com has some nice possibilites. They make a nice sequential box, but that is a little out there. I can get a five speed box for around 10K$. Not bad considering it is a five speed and can handle 450+ ft-lbs.



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