View single post by Esprit2
 Posted: 06-10-2005 08:27 pm
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Esprit2

 

Joined: 05-01-2005
Location: Minneapolis, Minnesota USA
Posts: 572
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The 107 cams don't make huge horsepower,  but they do make a pretty dramatic improvement in low end torque.   The car's top speed (horsepower) won't be significantly improved,  but it's acceleration and low speed driveability (torque) will be much better.   As a result,  the car will be easier to live with in traffic and will feel more powerful.
The 104 cams have the same duration as the OEM cams,  but they're re-timed to a 104 MOP giving them more overlap.   They also have a lot more lift which really helps the engine breath (requires special springs or deeper spring pockets).   The 104s will make more top end horsepower,  but at the expense of low end torque.   If you're a banzai boy racer and live at the top of the rev range all the time,  the 104s will be fine.   If you're looking for a general improvement in street driving and want a comfortable car in which to commute,  then 104s may not be the right choice.

A compromise to consider is to put a 104 on the intake and a 107 on the exhaust.   It will give you some of the high end improvement without hurting the low end torque very much.   The intake cam has more impact on the car's personality than the exhaust and will give some high end improvement.   But pairing the 104 intake with a 107 exhaust keeps the overlap in check so you don't have to live with the lumpy idle and weak low end that goes with large overlap.

There's more to cams than duration and lift,  and both the 107 and 104 cams are designed to run at different maximum opening points (MOP) than stock.   In other words,  they are timed differently compared to the OEM cams.   The cam's MOP is controlled by the location of the keyway that's cut into the pulley's bore.   So when you install either of these cams the matching MOP pulleys will also be required.

The best thing you can do to improve a 2.0 is to convert it to a 2.2.   Before investing in lots of add ons like cams and Dellortos,  check into the cost of a used 2.2 crankshaft.     If you really want a stronger street engine rather than  hotrod,  the longer stroke and larger displacement will pay bigger dividnends across the rev range than cams and carbs.

Tim