And therein the point, of course. In day-to-day driving, what matters is bottom end torque, not absolute power. It's the big V8 technique of being able to put your foot down and rip up the tarmac at slow speeds that shifts you... I might venture to suggest that a 1200 Mk1 Punto is probably quicker than the majority of coupes to 30mph; the coupe has barely woken up.

Back in the day before Joe sold his car to Eldinho, he couldn't get away from me on the twisties... the shortest straight, and off he went, but while it was twisty, he was mine. And others who have been to Red Lion meets when we've had a run will testify that the 16NA does not hang around.

Is it time for my perennial suggestion that the best mod for a 20vt might be a *smaller* turbo? Less top end power, but more torque at the bottom... it'd be spinning all the time. (I recall driving a 1050 turbo 127 - an absolute hoot!)

Jules - save your money, get the car you showed me and take it to the SAFE limit of the standard internals, with a good GT turbo (GT28RSR??). Spend a few quid on suspension and brakes and drive it with the smug satisfaction that you're almost as quick as the big power cars, but you've spent just a couple of grand to get there. If the big power bug bites, you can always develop the car in stages, but I reckon you'll be happy below 350bhp

Good informative thread.

So what's your decision Cyclone?

You forgot a clutch.

brakes and suspension are also not in the list...