# need mk3 golf 8 valve performance advice for my race car please!



## 8valveautocross (Aug 14, 2013)

this weekend i just ran my first autocross in a 98 golf 2.0 with a totally stock motor. the interior of the car is completely gutted, i have a full cage, racing seat and harness, etc. (as per race rules). we run bilstein suspension, chesterfield race brakes, and dunlop star specs. 

this was a 2 day endurance race, and on day 1 we were 35th overall out of 140+ cars and 8th in our class. i think we were doing quite well as we were racing against e-30's e-36's, mercedes', mustangs, camaros, v8's, etc. 

at the end of day 1 we smoked a clutch, which we replaced that night. on day 2 we developed an oil leak that saturated the clutch and made it slip under any moderate throttle application so we were forced to race for 5 hours limping. we lost an hour and 15 minuets that day, but still managed to finish 13th in our class and 52nd overall. mathematically, we would have finished 3rd in our class without the downtime making repairs. 

my question is this: what can we do to this motor to give it 40-50 reliable horsepower that will allow us to run with the big boys on the straights. we were killing most cars on the track in the turns, but lacked the power to keep up on the long straights. the tricky part about adding power to the car is that it has to be stealthy. if i bolt on a turbo, i will be penalized laps, usually enough to make a win impossible. that leaves me with pretty much only internal mods to accomplish my goals. what would you do if you were in this situation? 

i would love to hear your thoughts on how to get those extra horsepower out of the car while maintaining its reliability (very important in 14 hour races). also, what clutch would you recommend that wont get overheated? on the first clutch, the clutch disc itself wasnt worn at all, but it got hot enough to "blue" the pressure plate assembly and weaken the springs enough to make them useless, we had no pedal by the end of it. 

i appreciate any feedback, and i trust that you would get as much pleasure as me seeing a 2.0 finish higher than those bmw's and v8's. thank you in advance for your help!


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## 8valveautocross (Aug 14, 2013)

thanks everyone for the opinions, i appreciate your insights. i now have a clear game plan!:thumbdown:


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## 78Jagerbomb (Aug 18, 2013)

So, to clarify, you're endurance road racing and not autocrossing, correct?


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## REIGNSPEED (Aug 19, 2013)

You could look into finding a good used S/C kit? I don't see you making an additional 40-50 HP and staying N/A with the 8 valve.


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## mudder1310 (Feb 9, 2004)

If you want to stay normally aspirated then there are a few thing you can do. Full exhaust, headers or flow the manifold, no cat, straight pipe out. Polish/flow the head. Upgrade cam. Right there you'll get more air moving, more power, and better flow. Then you can lighten the flywheel and get thing revving more freely.


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## Cushy (Oct 16, 2008)

Personally, Id look into some Mk4 8v stuff. I hear the heads, or at least the intake manifold is good for some power, IE gains of 15hp or so. Like others stated, flow is your friend, so the better it is inside the head, the more power you are going to make. Bolt on's are good for incremental power.

OR for giggles, you could bolt a 16v head to it and make an ABF clone which would give you ~170hp without having to do much work to it, as thats what those were factory rated so far as I know. It can be done using all VW factory parts as well which is a plus. 

Or if you are really feeling gutsy, find a wrecked TFSI, pull the head, block off the secondary fuel pump, get some custom cams made and throw an SRI on the front. I hear that factory TFSI heads outflow most ported 16v heads in terms of CFM, so port that with serious cams and start leaving E46's behind. At that point an LSD would be necessary however. :thumbup:


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