Ok, this has been pissing me off for a while.....

My friend and I are constantly having convos on whose car is better, whose car can beat whose car. As obvious we are both men and we both stand behind our cars. The only way to tell is by an actual race, or by experienced men. We have convos also about how his engine is not stock. The engine in his from car comes from the 2004 PT cruiser; the only difference is that his car is 'beefed' up by a Japanese Pearl Harbor bombing Mitsubishi turbo. He can't admit that his stock engine is half of its current power, and sits in the engine bay of a 2004 PT cruiser.

His cars specs are listed here:

*4 Banger
Horsepower: 230 hp @ 5300 rpm
Torque: 250 lb-ft @ 2200 rpm
Fuel: Pump Gas, tuned EFI
Redline: 6750 rpm
Top speed: 153 mph
0-60 mph: 5.6 sec.
0-¼ mile : 14.2 sec @ 102.0 mph
Curb Weight : 2970 lbs

A stock '77 Vette is:

CURB WEIGHT lbs- 3448
ENGINE DATA

Displacement- 350 cubic inch V-8
Compression Ratio- 8.5 to 1
Horsepower- 200 (L-48), 210 (L-82)
Torque lbs-ft- 270 (base) 255 (optional)
Fuel: Pump Gas, Rochester Quadra jet 4 barrel model M4MC

The weight differential between the 2 cars is:  478LBS

My '77 is:

Displacement- 350(5)cubic inch V-8
Compression Ratio- 10:1
Horsepower- 360HP
Torque lbs-ft- 400(base)
Fuel: Pump Gas, Edlebrock 1406 600CFM 12% richer
Top Speed: Unknown

So between the new 1977 Vette I'm building and his stock 4 banger, who would win? Please respond so I can stop the ricer rant madness!

new77guy38416.1817013889

Ah yes, the classic 4-cyl v8 debate.  I have sat through many of these.  In my experience there is usually one guy saying how he can add a new intake and exhaust to his 4-banger and be running whatever in the quarter, and then one guy saying how he can find a 80s mustang and spend half the money, be naturally aspirated, blah.. blah... blah....  

Now which car is "better" is kinda personal.  For me the 73 corvette sitting in my garage in a bunch of pieces is better than any modern 4 cylinder.  First off It just looks so much better, and the rumble the 350 will make sounds infinetly better than the whine of that 4-cyl. 

 As for which is faster I have no idea.  Which car has more potentail? the vette, for horsepower at a certain point all you can do is add displacement and you are already far ahead in the game.

 

just my 2cents

..and being a better driver has a big influence on the outcome. Take 'em to the track and let's see who's reaction time is better. Let's see who can come out of the hole with minimal wheelspin. You can have lots of power under the hood, but not being able to put it down efficiently you might get your a$$ beat.

I've seen it happen many times.

before the big show down louis, you might want to wait until the motor is broken in (about 500 miles of gentle driving)then do a few practice drags in the vette to become familiar with the car, like how much gas it needs off the line, if its better to manually shift the automatic, play around with tire pressures for less wheel spin and such. also you might "cheat" abit by forgetting to put the spare tire back on or leave the a/c compressor off. anything to keep the weight down. also is your friend heavier than you? you might have an advantage. say you weigh 200lbs and your vette is 3400. thats 3600lbs you engine has got to move. Have FUN! Tumarr38416.488912037

It's back to "Run What You Brung!"  Sofa racing really means nothing.

Git to the track and find out.

Ok, let’s run down a few things here:

He weighs about 185LBS, I weight about 238LBS. I believe that every 100LBS added makes the car 1 tenth of a second slower in the 1/4th. But also neither of us are 'perfect' or 'great' drivers. He’s been missing second gear when shifting for like a almost a whole year since has gotten the car. I don't even have a license yet, I still have to drive with mommy. So we are both fat 45535, and we are not perfect drivers. The only 2 advantages he has over me are power to weight ratio, and he weights about 53LBS lighter than me. I still think he would get pwned, but we'll find out. I was expected some sort of math from you guys. But it seems (no offense) that it’s all guessing. Also I know the age old ricer 4 banger VS. V8 blah blah blah, ect, ect, ect.... But the fact of the matter is someone has to lose, and I'm voting American Muscle will win. Until a 4 banger from the factory reaches 500HP and is within the same price range as the 2006 C6 - Z06, or the Ford 2004 GT, then it will get no respect from me. And by the looks of how they are developing these cars, that’s a long way away....

new77guy38416.5153009259

Your right about the guessing factor, calculations cannot predict driver reaction times, traction factor, and other such variables. I do think you do have a good chance of pulling a low 14 in the quarter though, maybe even a high 13.

Well, I mean here is what I'm getting at:

My friend Andrew used to own a rare 1990 IROC camaro, it’s a 3rd gen camaro I-ROC it’s going to always have probs, I don't think his dad understood that. Also after he sold it he was looking around for a while for a new car. He asked my dad and I to go with him because he knew my dad knew a lot about cars, he’s been around them for a long time, he’s rebuilt a total of about 6 sports cars, and muscle cars combined. He said his dad didn't really like the idea of him getting such an old car, plus since his dad was not really able to make a good mechanical decision, he asked my dad to go. When we got there we saw this beautiful black, on black '79. He decided not to even haggle the price b/c the car hadn't been turned over in like 5 months, and the battery needed a charge, I tried to explain but it still freaked him out. Anyhow I did agree the price was a bit high b/c it needed some work, the guys never did budge on the price. So instead of looking for another Vette, he listened to his non-mechanically inclined dad and bought a new car. This car happened to be a: ________ you guessed it a Dodge (Neon) srt-4. This car may be American (German, built in America) but it gets its real power boost from a Japanese Pearl Harbor bombing foreign Mitsubishi turbo. My dad said that when he found another Vette we would got take a look at it, and if Andrew needed help restoring it my dad would help him, hell, I would why not put another American Legend back on the road? Another interesting point is that the car her purchased was $23,000USD and he got this:

*4 Banger
Horsepower: 230 hp @ 5300 rpm
Torque: 250 lb-ft @ 2200 rpm
Fuel: Pump Gas, tuned EFI
Redline: 6750 rpm
Top speed: 153 mph
0-60 mph: 5.6 sec.
0-¼ mile : 14.2 sec @ 102.0 mph
Curb Weight : 2970 lbs
Type: Want to be new-kid on the block 'American' ricer sell-out.

Let’s break down the Vette's info:

Initial purchase: $4,000.00
engine rebuild/clean: $1,278.00
tranny rebuild with stage one shift kit: $550
parts: $4,963.34
Tack on an extra $3,000 for the Z06 Wheels from Corvette central, the exhaust, and caliper kit, and were done. Now how much is that?

Total: $13,791.34

And for that you get:
Displacement- 350(5)cubic inch V-8
Compression Ratio- 10:1
Horsepower- 360HP
Torque lbs-ft- 400(base)
Fuel: Pump Gas, Edlebrock 1406 600CFM 12% richer
Top Speed: Unknown Estimated 160-170MPH
Type: True American sports car, and a True American Legend that will live on for a long time. Plus a pride in knowing your purchased a classic American car such as the Vette, something with true meaning to American people, a feeling that you have done your best, and all you can to get another old school legend back on the road. Plus, the most rewarding feeling: YOU built YOUR OWN car.

I'm not trying to be a bad 455, and down the Srt-4 as a dirty commie bastage, I have ridden in it many times, for what it is this car is truly amazing for a 4banger, but the fact of the matter is you could have gotten a lot more performance for $10k less, not to mention that if you put the $10k that you didn't spend back into the car do you know what you can do to that thing? Shiznit Lingelfelter would hook you up with $10k, then you can blast out just about any DSM you want!

-Louis

new77guy38416.7728009259

There's always going to be somebody who thinks they are faster, or who wants to find out. Don't stoop down to their level and start racing on the streets. I was young once too, and I know how tempting street racing can be. The only problem is people get hurt or killed for a very stupid reason. Take it to the track, not on the street!  

The SRT-4 is a great little car for what is. Why fight over whose car is better? So he picked the new car over an old Vette...maybe he just wanted something he could get in and have fun with rather that have an older driver quality Vette that could need constant attention. In the end there will be no meeting of the minds so you're better off just respecting the fact that he's a car guy who likes a high performance ride, just like you do. If you really care about whose is faster, take them to the track and find out.Daytona6938416.9175