QUOTE(Eric_Shea @ Dec 24 2003, 07:45 PM)
I heard 1.8 heads are better to "build". Any truth to that? I heard the 2.0's were more susceptible to the spark plug crack than the 1.8's. Don't the 1.8 heads have the larger valves to retain the HP when they added the new FI?
The plug angle on a 1.8 head allows higher compression than 2.0s.
Because...
On a 2.0, getting wild makes you have to take out a trough of metal, so there is a place for ignition to happen, and if they are CCd as a set of comparable 1.8s, you'll still find a big wet spot on the lower 1/4-1/3rd of the chamber where there will always be unspent fuel... not good.. really.
This just adds to the unstable nature of the 2.0 crack-heads.
The 1.8 has slightly larger valves than the 1.7 stock, and 1mm larger pistons, to retain the stock hp of the 1.7.
Yes, you can get bigger valves in a modded 1.8 than a 2.0, I have seen them look like they are touching, and those heads had valve seats that were pressed in at 1200 degrees, and the seats are TREMENDOUS.
M