HorsepowerFreak said:
I also think if you're rebuilding your own motors it'd be much cheaper to do so with a 13B. There's a lot less parts that break and need replaced.
There are fewer moving parts, but they break more often. How many 500HP rotaries have you seen up close and personal? There were ~5 of them around Columbus (where I used to live) that I would see almost weekly. First off, a 500HP rotary sounds OBNOXIOUS! I haven't met one person that ever said, "Damn, that sounds better then that Z06 over there!" If you see any racing videos with "NOCAB" turn up the volume and you'll know what I mean. He didn't even have an extreme port on his. Seeing as how you're in OR and you've mentioned Pineapple Racing before, I assume you know what a ported rotary sounds like. They built pretty much everyone's engines in Columbus.
Also, pushing 500hp on a turbo 13B is asking for trouble. I haven't seen any survive for large amounts of time, especially when compared to an LS1 that runs forever.
And even so..... Is "the easiest way" the correct way? Not really. Racing and winning is more about doing something different and being innovative. Coming up with newer and better ways of doing things, not just throwing a big motor at it. It's not impressive in the least bit to strap some V8 into a lightweight Japanese car to make it fast. That's the cheap and easy way out of it.
So it more innovative to throw more boost at an engine then to engineer an entire engine and tranny swap that leaves the car just as balanced and has a broader powerband?
There's also more to your power numbers than just the number. How you got to that number means more.
You're right, and area under the curve matters most. What's the HP and torque curves of a 500HP rotary look like?
I don't hate rotaries, and I'm not trying to flame you. But I do find arguements like, "That's an American POS" ignorant and unfounded, especially when talking about the LS series of engines. All I ever hear ricers say is, "Look at all the work he has in his car. I don't like it, it's ugly as hell, but props on how much time you've put into it. At least it's different." Yet I haven't seen one person take that stance on anything else. Why can't you just appreciate the amount of work that went into this car to make it faster and more reliable, while keeping it as well balanced as it was from the factory?