BUILDING HP-BASED A 36HP-BASED 1700ccENGINE

IF YOU WERE GOING TO BUILD A HIGH-PERFORMANCE 1700CC ENGINE, what would you use? Of course, the vast majority of you would start with a new 1600 replacement case from VW, add 88mm pistons and go from there. But what if you were required to use a 36hp case, with stock head stud location and 36hp-style heads due to class racing rules? Then, what would you do? Changes things doesn’t it. What you are about to witness is an exercise in thinking way outside the box, but that’s what Whitey Worsham from Fletcher, North Carolina does best. From what we’ve seen in recent 36hp engine builds is that this tiny engine has a number of major short-comings that curtail the progress of making three or four times the stock horsepower. And unless you make drastic changes to the internals, you will soon have a pile of broken (expensive) parts.

The following engine build modifies a 36hp-based Volkswagen for Land Speed racing. These