QUOTE(horizontally-opposed @ Oct 12 2020, 05:13 PM)
QUOTE(ClayPerrine @ Oct 12 2020, 02:23 PM)
And a b1tch to live with on a daily basis.
Do dish…
2.4L MFI engine with 195HP:
It is cold out and early on a Sunday morning. I am going to an AX an hour away so I get up 30 minutes earlier than I normally would just to get the 914 started and warmed up. I roll it out of the garage and down the driveway into the street so I don't disturb my neighbors with the Bursch MFI exhaust noise.
The engine has 2.2 mag stacks on it, with K&N watershield air cleaners. But I don't have the "firestarter" cold start system hooked up. So I spray ether under each watershield. Jump in and try to start it. It coughs, spits, and dies. Repeat the ether treatment. It coughs, spits and starts to sputter on 3 cylinders. Set the hand throttle and sit there in the cold car, waiting. Slowly it would start to run on 4, then on 5 and finally on 6. Slowly lower the hand throttle as it warms up.
I can't really give it any throttle because it would be too loud. So I keep the hand throttle up at about 1500 rpm and ease it out of the neighborhood and down the road. I actually have heat exchangers so I can turn on the heat. But not much comes out. 1500 rpm doesn't move much air through the HEs on a cold morning. I finally get out to the main road, and I start driving normally.
A cop stops me and asks why I am going so fast and so loud this early in the morning. I explain that the heat output is tied to the engine fan speed. He chuckles and lets me go with a warning to "keep the noise and the speed down".
At the AX, I work the first run group, and drive the second run group. So I go off and work. When I get done, I have minutes to go through the whole ether and repeated restarts to get a now cold engine fired up and running so I can make my runs. First run is terrible. I don't want to push a cold engine.
I let it sit and idle between runs to get it to operating temp. Second through
I stop for gas on the way home. 16MPG on a good day. Gas is 3.50 a gallon too. AX cost was about 1 3/4 tank of gas.
4.0L Motronic Engine with 430HP:
I am going to an AX an hour away. I get up with enough time to get to the AX and stop for something to eat.
I walk out to the garage, get in the car, push the door opener button, and start the car. It idles smoothly with no drama.
I am able to back out of the garage, and drive away. I am able to do more than just idle out of the neighborhood, but I don't hammer it because it is still cold.
No heat, but an electrically heated jacket keeps me warm enough. And the alternator is big enough to handle the extra load from the jacket.
I keep the speed down, and the supertrapps are not too loud because the RPMs are low. The cop watches me go by but doesn't do anything else.
At the AX, I work first and run second. After working, the car is cold. I start it up and it idles smoothly while I get myself strapped in and ready to run. I make my first run, it is slow because of cold tires. The rest of the runs are good, but lots of wheelspin. I have to finish the chassis setup one of these days.
I don't have to stop for gas on the way home because it gets 31 MPG. Gas is now 1.75 a gallon. AX costs, including travel, is one tank of gas.
For sheer fun factor and sound factor, the MFI wins, hands down.
For practicality, the Motronic 4.0L engine is the better choice.