I am considering a rebuild on my 996 turbo, I am told I am at the limits of my rods with my current mods, am considering a rebuild to strengthen the motor and add a bit more power as well.

I am thinking of 800-900wheel hp (more if I can swing it) and will need pump (91oct at 6500' asl) and race tunes. I am not looking for a state of the art build that costs $50-60k+, takes 2+ years to complete and can only be supported by that particular builder.

Does anyone have any recommendations and some lessons learned?

 

Lots of lessons learned here, as I'm one of the very few to have completed more than one build (a major one and a minor one).

Keep in mind that the stock rods are proving to be good to over 900rwhp, but the Pauters are no doubt stronger and will provide more protection. It really comes down to whether or not you want to spend the money on a build.

If you do, but only want to stick to the absolute basics, then I recommend Pauter rods and new OEM lifters (with the newest part #'s). If you want to go further, a little headwork is about all you need. Stick with the stock pistons, stock displacement, stock liners and stock headstuds. There's absolutely no need to mess with anything else for your purposes.

Should cost you around $15k - $20k.

 

I just went through a build myself after blowing a headgasket. All I did was replace the rods (w/o splitting the case), Evo head studs, and all factory gaskets replaced. You will also want to weld in the coolant fittings that are prone to coming out. You can also replace the intake manifolds with 997 units which flow better than the 996 plenums.

If you are looking to do 8-900whp you also need to plan in doing a $$ Tilton clutch and have a built transmission. Slippery slope

Like Scott says, plan on spending 15-20K and dont expect it to be done quickly.

 

I would reccomend a couple people, first would NOT be Akram in Houston Tx. Next Todd at protomotive does builds. And also bbi can do them.

Alex at Max RPM Built my 1000whp motor

Rods stock displacement with some head work can easily run into 30k so just be careful what you are ready for.

Labor on the build is generally 100-130 hrs at 100$ an hr it adds up quick

 

Todd doesn't do the builds, its his wife, Cynthia

 

do some rods, good head studs, leave the head alone and call it a day...
800rwhp all day long...

 

Do yourself a favor and go with a good set of rods. After you determine which ones are good do yourself another favor and check the rod weight of those manufacturer's you have narrowed your choices to. The one rod mentioned above weight wise is like dragging a trailer around with you when running the bases ....... so to speak. They are a strong rod ....... but heavy. You then can look at price and come to the best buy for the dollars you want to spend. I have utilized most if not all of the rods available for our engines at one time or another. There are equally strong rods available which are far lighter. Do your homework first and it will pay off in a faster responding motor.

The reciprocating weight has everything to do with your engine response. Imagine a rod that is 10 grams lighter. 10 grams times 6 rods times let's say 6000 rpm's. You get and idea now as to how much less reciprocating weight your engine has to lug around.

 

I would recommend Alex at Maxrpm in Bremerton Washington. We just got finished with my car. It made 785 AWHP on pump (in 100 degrees) and 1109 AWHP on race.

Jag

 

My two cents, Bluey was built in 2007 by Akram who now owns Motorwerks. The car was a basic build except for the cams that were design by Todd Knighton. It uses ARP 8mm studs, Pauter rods, CP pistons, the original turbo crank and modified 3.8 liter one off head gaskets. The car has 15,000 miles since that build, has seen over 1100 RWHP and the only thing that has broke... well actually everything except the motor! I think it would be wise to PM everyone who has built a motor, then siph through the feed back which should give you unbiased answers to all your questions.
Robert

 

Rob,

I have used Carillo, Pauter, Arrow Precision, Ruf and Pankl (before they bought Carrillo). I would stay with steel for big street hp. Steel rods will work well with big power where you don't want to do regular scheduled tear downs....... the difference is the weight of the rod and the cost of the rod.

 

Chad
I think for the cost, Pauter is the best? What do you think?
R

 

I would go with Akram...he always does quality work and would never do anything second rate.

The only problem is that he is swamped with work, so you would need to be patient.

 

If I remember correctly the Pauter was the most inexpensive, but also the heaviest. Pauter and Carrillo were real close price wise. Pauter was a little cheaper. If I remember correctly I was paying somewhere between $1450.00 and $1600.00 for Pauter and Carrillo. The Arrow Precision were about $2.400.00 however they were far lighter.

Again, you really need to look at the weight per rod and buy the lightest rod you can afford. All these rods will hold up to the big hp. It's the engine response you are paying for. I know the AP rods weighs about 370 grams per rod. I believe Pauter is about 545 grams per rod. Don't remember what the weight of Carrillo is. Maybe someone has the current weights.

 

Chad,

What is the weight of the OEM rods?

 

Kevin at UMW not in "vogue" any more :-) - I've had some excellent recommendations of his work?