Scroll through text to read my general answers ;^)
----- Original Message -----
From: "Matt M." <afterburn27@yahoo.com>
To: <6pack@autox.team.net>
Sent: Saturday, December 29, 2001 12:07 PM
Subject: General Questions
> Alright, yesterday I got the engine out of my '74 six
> and disassembled it and today I am going to try and
> get it to a machine shop. One of the questions I have
> is about all of the emmissions junk that is on this
> car. Someone tried to plug the EGR valve, but I think
> they did it wrong because when I am driving, it makes
> an annoying sound. I would like to remove this and as
> much of the emmissions equipment as possible unless it
> doesn't hurt the car's performance. I know that the
> EGR valves are known for making engines run badly, but
> I don't know about any of the other equipment. How
> many of you have removed or disabled it?
Matt, you need to keep what's necessary for your state's emission laws.
A functional EGR valve will have no ill effects on performance, but I'd
get rid of the air pump if possible.
Also, my TR-6 six is an early '74 because the front bumper is under
> the turn signals. Does this mean that I can buy a
> bumper from an earlier TR-6 and it will fit onto mine?
Yes, you can. I have done it with good results.
> Or is it possible to just remove the rubber bumpers?
> It looks to me like there will be a hole in the bumper
> if I did that.
I think replacement of the front and rear center is nicer. Be sure to
get a 73 rear center to get the proper holes.
Next, I am looking to buy a higher lift
> cam to put into my TR-6, and I was eyeing the crane
> mild-street cam. Does this sound like a wise choice?
My personal cam favorite is an Elgin cams mild street cam. Run the
lightest valve spring for the max RPM you will use and not get valve
float. A new set of stock springs or the uprated ones that BPNW sell
work fine with the above mentioned cam. I'd go ahead and mill to get
about a 9 to 9.5 to 1 compression ratio if you are going to be running
93 octane pump gas, and grind your combustion chambers in the head to
smooth out all the sharp edges and blend in around the plug holes. The
last sets of valves I bought weren't uniform in size, so have your
machine shop check them carefully if you get new ones.
> What other upgrades would be reccomended with this
> modification, such as stiffened valve springs, cam
> bearings, ect.? One other modification I was thinking
> of performing is milling the head to gain a higher
> compression ratio, but it seems most people who have
> done this are getting more problems than performance
> increase. Wouldn't you need to buy shortened pushrods
> and other modded engine parts to have the engine run
> nicely with the milled head?
Moderate milling works if you run good gas and take steps to alleviate
hot spots in the head. (see above) Using light spings and moderate lift,
cam bearings aren't necessary IMHO.
If you end up needing the shorter pushrods, they are cheap. I have an
11:1 head and needed the short pushrods for it. Got em from BPNW.
Plus, would the engine
> need better cooling? It seems that a higher
> compression wold make the car run hotter. I think that
> is all for now, thanks in advance for your help.
How was the car's cooling system before? You definitely want to have a
clean radiator, proper cam and ignition timing, and all the shrouds in
place. You haven't said what climate you live in, so it's hard to say
more.
Good luck!
Jim
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