Great quotes from the past, still relevant today. please feel free to add, if you KNOW its right. no stupid questions.

"N1 cams make peak HP from 7800 to 8400 RPMs depending on what motor configuration they are on like headers and intake for example".

"Springs/retainers will not really make more peak HP because N1 cams are not starting to float the valves until above 8500rpms. With a great header , and the correct intake on it, with the cams setup right and tuned you should see peak WHP close to 8000rpm. The motors that are peaking at 7000-7200rpm are not tuned correctly, or they do not have a good header. The SSAC really limits the potential of the N1 cams, especially above 7000rpm."

"as for setting up the N1 cams. If you are setting the cams up by "guessing" at what centerlines to run, or "so and so ran this and made this here so i'm gonna do this instead" Then you really dont know what is going on with the valve events and why the N1 cams are ground with the profile that they do have. the VE motors still respond to the same similar centerlines as the DE motor does but with a higher flowing head. people started doing the +4-4, +5-5 thing because of a few people years ago that started testing them on the dyno and yes it has trickled down the ladder but that doesnt mean it is the best or will work best for your setup. Exhaust valve opening and header design go hand in hand so what works with one header may not work with another one as well.

the only TRUE way to setup ANY camshaft(s) is by degreeing them in an knowing where u are starting at with the opening/closing events and C/L's"


"The N1 cams are not designed for a 2.0L motor and thus the opening/closing ramps and centerlines are designed around a 68.7mm stroke with a 2.10 R/S ratio and with less displacement these cams are not anywhere near optimized for a 2.0L motor. these are designed around the VE head though as the 1.6 and 2.0 heads are the same casting and have the same/similar flow properties.

"The main thing that is needed for a lot of power from these motors is yes cams, but besides that, before that, you need a lot of intake flow. That includes the cylinder head AND the intake manifold. The N1 is not designed for a 2.0L motor and will actually max out the flow and have low port velocity on a 2.0L or larger motor."

" There are problems with the VE head in running a cam over 12.7mm lift. more so above 13.0mm lift. there is modification needed to several parts to get this to work in the head and it is no where near drop in. The highest amount of lift you can go for a drop in cam is 12.7mm IN and 12.46mm EX roughly. that is where the cam lobe will contact the rocker arm".

"the biggest power gains that I have seen with these motors is with the header design, the collector megaphone used and also the quality of the header built and they way it is built. the other aspect is tuning. Someone mentioned how the VE's like a lot of timing.... If you are adding a lot of ignition timing to gain power, then you are not running a very efficient setup. the more ignition timing needed means that you are not achieving a high cylinder fill because the more air/fuel in the cylinder at a higher pressure means that the A/F burns at a faster rate. If you have a very efficient setup with the proper cam timing and proper header you will be running much less ignition timing. If you are running 34-38 deg timing at 7-8000rpm like some people have stated then you are not making anywhere near what your motor should be making if you had the proper header.... N1 cams set at the "proper" cam specs and a tuned length header ( less than 30" with megaphone/reverse cone) will want less than 30 deg timing to make the most power"

"As for a basic port job making 300CFM, I would say otherwise. Only the Early production VE heads are the "good" ones because they do not have any core shift. The later heads have enough core shift that unless you weld the head up or Install larger valve seats you will be left with a few large steps from the port to the valve seat. A stock VE head flows anywhere from 235cfm-274cfm @ .500" lift. with no good cams to lift that high, the number that we should be worried about is .450" lift, just under 12.0mm. I have seen several pics of people with "ported" heads on many forums including this one and all people seem to do is stick the gasket on the intake surface and port the runner opening in the head out as large as they can and then leave the Valve pockets and throats stock and dont even give it a good valve grind or any grind at all. Some of the cheapest power can be picked up in a good valve grind. Factory valve grinds are not made for power but for longevity".

"A SR16VE N1 Exhaust cam has about 330 deg duration at .004" lift at the valve. that is a big duration cam. HOWEVER it has one of the smoothest ramps of any camshaft out there and because of its profile, depending on the exact stock VE valve spring harmonics, you may be able to rev to 10,000rpm on stock springs before valve float may occur. The N1 cams have 250 @ .050" Exhaust and 249 @ .050" IN duration. the IN is about 305 Deg @ .004" lift. Now all of these cam measurements are dependent on correct valve lash. Such as HOT valve lash because that is the clearance that the engine runs with. If in doubt measure with "0" lash first then at cold specs and again at Hot specs.

Getting NA drop in cams for the VE is not a hard thing to do. Getting them to make power is. I have flowed several stock VE heads ranging from 238-277 CFM @ .500" lift. The draw back is the intake manifold. Because of the VE's intake manifold ( even the SR16VE N1) we get a low pressure area forming in the middle of the intake runners because they are a slight reverse taper. So you have to design cams around this "drawback" for them to work and make power. The N1 cams are designed for a 1.6L motor, but with that head design and intake manifold as well. So the best way to start with a drop in cam is with the N1 profile and actually modify it from a short stroke/ long rod motor setup ( 68.7mm, 144.6mm rod 2.10 R/S) to a long stroke short rod setup ( 86mm, 136mm rod 1.58 R/S). Because the piston Dwell time is higher on a short stroke motor, the valve timing events are different for max performance operation at high RPM compared to a Long stroke motor with higher piston speed. Thus why you need to tweak the cam gears on N1's to get the most power out of them. I do agree with the stock P12 SR20VE Low cam lobes for starters with any new cam design at this point because they have short duration and high lift for great cylinder fill and high cylinder pressures. N1 Cams do have the potential to make a lot of power on a higher RPM motor with the right cylinder head setup, but it still comes down to the right intake manifold".

"1/4, 2/3 pairing is actually mainly to keep exhaust temps constant in the manifold for even heat expansion as well as keeping the exhaust pulses constant for fast cat warm up. For performance, a 4-2-1 needs to be 1,2 or 1,3 and 2,4 or 3,4. This is for optimal scavenging. You only gain the maximum benefits of this type setup if the header length is correct. if it is too long or too short you will loose a lot of power".

"Pairing the cylinders correctly is critical for scavenging. Of all the headers I build, I RARELY have a 4-2-1 header that makes more power than a CORRECTLY WELL BUILT 4-1. The design of the header is highly influenced on the size of the camshafts, the amount of overlap, the exhaust valve opening, the R/S ratio, B/S ratio, the Piston speed over the RPM range of the powerband the header is designed for, exhaust valve size, flow and a few other complicated ones".


"Coatings are great, There are 3 main coatings that you can do to the piston. The ceramic coating on top is great for keeping heat out of the piston, great for Turbo or Nitrous applications. Also a teflon coating on the piston ring lands and skirts. Most companies dont do this much other than one or two. The last coating is a sort of teflon coating on the bottom of the piston. This helps keep oil from sticking to the piston. This is also a great coating to get done to the crank and rods as well."

"On stock motors, using an aluminum crank pulley is a gamble. When you remove the dampening abilities then the harmonics get transferred across the crank and can actually loosen the rod bolts. You can sustain high rpm without a crank damper, but that is very dependent on how well the complete assembly is balanced as well as how well the motor is tuned. Detonation, pre ignition, are other factors that affect crank vibration. When building a motor for longevity it is always wise to keep a damper on the crank. If you have a very high HP motor, you may want a larger front crank damper because of the higher forces acting on the crank."

The biggest problem is a large crank throw. When the rod journals are far from the crank center line you get much more rotational flex between each crank shaft arm. Rotational flex between each crank shaft arm is the problem harmonic dampers try to remedy.High torque creates high crank harmonics, not high horse power.