Hey guys, how does an engine behave once it starts to wear out?

The past two races my Plus 4 has been doing ok. But it seems real boggy in low speed areas when the race is about 10 minutes in. After race warm up laps it seems real good and then as the race runs on it gets more and more weak on the bottom. The temps don't fluctuate too much from what we can tell. I've been thinking I'm having clutch bog problems but not sure why it would just start all of a sudden.

I know there are many, many more factors to it. With the engine head off and the flywheel off I can spin the crank and not be able to tell where TDC is. I think I'm at the point of needing a slight pinch. Anyway let me know your opinions.

This baby has been rock solid the past two seasons till now. I run buggy and truggy at most out of town races which are 3 days long. We do these races at LEAST once a month. But by my guestimate I'm around the 10 gallon + mark. The Plus 4 has been the only engine in my buggy since I purchased it from Houston.

Thanx
Chris

I say get a new one cheapskate!

Fareal though , get new and send that one in and I will fix it up as a backup for ya

LOL. 10-4 good buddy. I'll get with you soon.

I think I have narrowed down my engine choices for my truggy to the following:
Bonito 21-7XLB
Plus 21-4BTT
Plus 21-4C 2010 ceramic team edition

I can get the 4C the cheapest by about $65 and there isn't really a big difference in price between the Bonito and the BTT... Opinions? Also, what pipe/header should I go with?

Thanks,

Shane

Houston - whats the breakin procedure you use with a new nova plus4

Keen to get your view as there are so many opinions floating around

Any one of those will be good for your truck. If you want a little extra grunt everywhere with a small sacrafic in mileage, go with the Bonito. If you want something smooth with great runtimes, either Plus 4 will do the job. The BTT with the wider exhaust ceiling will give it a little more pop on the bottom but the timing between the BTT and 4C Team is the same. The pipe that works well all around on the Bonito is the 9901/20 and the 9901/21 for the Plus 4's will be the way to go for a great all around feel with very good runtimes. I have specials on the BTT and Plus4C Teams in stock and modified trim if you or anyone else is interested.

let me find my write up

Will the 20 header work with the Mugen Truggy? I thought I needed to stick with the 29 or 30. Also, what does a long or short header do for me??? (I think I'm going with the Bonito)

+1....My BTTS still waiting....

Yes please....I'm interested as well.

I have not tried the Bonito, but if it's similar to the Toro Team then it does not have enough torque for truggy. Unless you use harder springs and that causes premature clutch wear...I would go with the Plus-4 btt over the Bonito...the Toro team started off great, but quickly lost bottom end and never really worked as good as the old toro, so unless some major changes happened to the 7 port I would stick with a p5 or plus-4 port for longevity and bottom end.....the only 7 port that I've heard any good things about is the Fusion X7 from Monty and Jim. If I were to go with a 7 port I would only trust him....He says it has the bottom end of a p5 with the top of a 7 port....Sounds perfect for a truggy.....

The 20 header works on the 6T just not the 6. My teammate runs the Toro Nero Team with the 9901/20 in his truck and runs awesome. I run the same engine/pipe in my xray 09 spec and it works great. The toro and bonito with the 17.6mm stroke really respond well to the longer system as it allows the pulse to return later allowing better scavaging and the engine will make more all around power with better efficiency. The shorter header with the longer stroke allows the pulse to return too soon and pushes some of the fresh charge back down into the case and some of the burnt gases from the previous cycle back into the chamber causing a lean condition and also higher running temps as the engine starves for fuel. This will also cause irratic tune and lack of low end response.

The Toro Nero/Bonito in stock trim are decent but really come alive with some work. If you are looking for the engine to work it's best in truggy, go with the full race ported versions of either engine. I also have Toro Teams in stock that I can get you with the full race porting which it really responds well to and in my opinion needs the modifications to work well in truggy for less than a stock Bonito. I have both engines available in stock or modified trim if interested. Let me know fellas!

Thanks for the explanation...

I wondered why the Toro Team felt sluggish on the bottom, The longer header didn't fit in the buggy and I never needed one before. The long header makes more torque so it's really to help out the obviously sluggish Toro team and Bonito engines that for some reason can't be made from the factory to have torque, not even enough for buggy. I would still go with another engine because if you take a 400 dollar engine and still need to modify it to make power then that's some serious cash on one engine. Why not just go with an engine that has torque from the start. that would save money and be less work. I would rather have a plus-4 or p5 tuned or modded to make more rpm than to help an engine get close to making enough torque..I say Novarossi should retire the Toro and Bonito and make a 7 port that is easier to tune, and doesn't require help to make low end power....The closest I've raced and owned is the FMS, and that's being nice......Still not a factory engine.....

My point is, for 400 dollars I want torque and rpm's. Otherwise it's all about the plus-4 and p5 for my buggy....I never miss the extra 5,000 rpms anyway....I'm too busy jumping, and for that I need torque, longevity, and the ability to tune my engine perfectly, I could not do that with the factory 7 ports, from the 367, to the toro, to the team....but I will say the FMS is one badass engine....even though it's picky..I still love it...

Anyone know where i can get the new style exhaust gasket

do you need the gasket for a plus 21-4btt or bonito?

or one of the earlier models?