FAQ’s
Q. According to Ford the Duratec HE & Zetec SE / Sigma engines are described as throw away is this really the case?
A. Whilst originally this was the case we can now supply main and big end bearings for both engines and pistons, rods and rings for the Zetec SE /Sigma engine. Crankshafts are not possible to obtain and should they be damaged then a new short engine will need to be sourced.
Q. How do I know what the torque settings are for bottom ends of the above engines?
A. Have a look on the engine data page on our site.
Q. What is the difference between reprofiled and blank cams?
A. Reprofiled cams are standard Ford cams which have been remachined to give a different lift and duration specification from the standard Ford specification. Only certain cam profiles are suitable for reprofiled cams. To achieve an increase in lift the base circle of the standard cam must be reduced and ‘top hat’ shims which sit on top of the valve stem are used to make up the increase in clearance. Due to standard shim configurations we would only recommend fitting reprofiled cams to Phase 2 (Black plastic cam cover) engines. Phase 1 and Puma engines should be fitted with blanks. Blank cams are a pair of new cams machined to Original Equipment standards and can be shimmed the same as standard Ford cams. Blank cams give subtle improvements over reprofiled cams with lower cam loadings and smoother cam accelerations.
Q. Can SS4 cams be fitted to a 1.7 Puma engine and retain the VCT?
A. Yes SS4 cams will still be suitable to run VCT in a 1.7 engine. We would only recommend fitting blank cams to the Puma engine due to the standard shim configuration.
Q. Is shipping overseas possible?
A. Yes we can arrange shipping overseas please contact us for details and prices.
Q. At what level of tuning are heavy duty valve springs required?
A. We would recommend that HD valve springs are fitted once the engine is fitted with throttle bodies or a twin carburettor set up due to the increased rev limit that can be achieved.
Q. What gains can be achieved to a std 1.6 Fiesta engine?
A. In a standard road car configuration cams, remap and good exhaust manifold and system will see 135-140 bhp. The addition of throttle bodies and aftermarket management will see this rise to 150-160 bhp. A further addition of forged components to this specification in conjunction with head work will see close to 200bhp achieved.
Q. What oil is recommended for engines which have cams fitted?
A. For cars which just have cams fitted but retain the standard inlet plenum we would advise that the standard Ford oil specification of semi-synthetic 5W-30 is adequate. For use with throttle bodies a change to a good fully synthetic 5W-30 would be advisable and for track use a change to a 10W-40 or 10W-50 can be beneficial.