Over the winter I’m very probably going to swap an S4R engine (996) into my S4 (916) special. While it’s out, I may get a bit of tuning work done to it. I am not chasing massive power/torque - drivability and reliability are more important, as is budget, so I won’t be going mad. Hence, I’m probably not talking about things like Ti rods and Pistal pistons etc, but more looking for bolt on or minimally-invasive mods that give good bang for the buck. Also I’m thinking that dialling in the cams would probably make sense and maybe getting the head ported and polished is a possibility (is it worth it?). Are there any “hacks” such as thinner head gasket or cams from another model etc which boost power on this engine? PS: the bike doesn’t have an airbox and is running cones. Thanks
Blue print the standard engine your get some good power out of it. I did it with my 996sps engine , turned out to be a cracker.
What? It fell in half while making a weak bang noise and all you ended up with was a shit toy and a crap joke? Not good.
I’ve thought about that. Apart from the fact I’ve been warned off them by tales of bottom end issues, I’d need the whole kit and kaboodle from dash to rear wheel (or have the case machined to take an S4R swingarm) which is prohibitively expensive just in parts alone. Plus, as I don’t have a workshop of my own, or the necessary skills, I’d have to pay someone to do it for me and having spoken to them about it, the costs would be OTT. On the other hand, through the magic of man maths, I can get the S4R engine more or less for free, and it is more or less a direct bolt in replacement for the 916 lump. I also don’t need 150bhp. 120 will be more than plenty in a bike which has pretty much everything superfluous removed and/or replaced with carbon fibre (including the wheels) and so weighs about as much as a bag of popcorn That was pre-carbon wheels and Motogadget dash. The headlight was also just a get through the MOT job and I’m designing a one-off item which will be a mash up of a unit from a scooter and an S4 rear mudguard. But you get the idea.
Yes, fully understand the issue. I should have added a smiling sarcasm emoji to my post. I do know from first hand, though that you don't need a new dash, ecu, etc to get a 1098 engine to work. Don't know about the swinging arm issues, though. How about a 1200 monster engine? Is that compatible at the swinging arm pivot?
Thanks. I didn’t take it that way. All suggestions are valid and I’d rather have that and not miss out on some little gem of knowledge than people thinking they better not go off topic by suggesting alternatives.
