1.9bx 16v verses 2.0litre zx 16v

benj · Post by **benj** » 18 Sep 2003, 18:37

would like some of your views on this
i know the 1.9 has an alloy block,
but isnt it true a decatted zx 16v with the fabricated speghetti manifold off a 1.9 will produce a lot more power?
how much bhp does a catted bx 16v have?
got loads more questions but would like to know if anyone else knows anything or if anyones interested in this topic as a thread
cheers
ben

VisaGTi16v · Post by **VisaGTi16v** » 18 Sep 2003, 19:13

afaik the catted 1.9 ally bx 16v engine put out 148bhp, non-cat was 160. The 405 mi16 was never sold with the 1.9 cat, it went to the 2 litre iron block in 1993.
the 1998 in the zx 16v/306 s16/mk2 405 mi16's puts out 155 with a cat. You would expect it to maybe be low 160's decatted but I dont know if the ecu would need remapping etc. It is a far heavier engine though.
Then you have the other thing of a fair number of late 1993 zx's like mine are only 150bhp for some reason and have completly different torque curves being far more gutsy from 3000 but running out of steam high up. It makes mine great to drive though as the take off from 3000 is incredible and so much more relaxing to drive which is good as the clutch is so stiff again that changing gears is tedious to the point where i have been driving home from work not using the clutch unless i really have to.
ps: have you still got the window motors/cables etc?

benj · Post by **benj** » 19 Sep 2003, 14:59

hi
yep i do mate sorry for not getting back been soooo busy with everything, if we can sort some sort of delivery u can have um free of charge

VisaGTi16v · Post by **VisaGTi16v** » 19 Sep 2003, 16:27

hi,
ok cheers, if you email me your address to darren@visagti.com then I can post you a cheque for £10 which will cover parcel force and a bit extra if thats ok?
Is your 16v back on the road now or is it still in peices?
Mines been on my parents drive for a week waiting on citroen to get in a front shock boot and top bearing. One of the anti roll bar drop links broke 2 weeks ago which was noisy and then led to interesting handling to say the least

benj · Post by **benj** » 19 Sep 2003, 17:06

ive got everything on the car perfect, new tyres, brakes, all the niggly things are now sorted, the head has all been rebuilt, with new exhaust valves and seats, just waitting for a headset and cam belt from citroen to put it all back together! should be good then!
ps sent you an email

benj · Post by **benj** » 19 Sep 2003, 17:07

by the way this means i didnt have to touch the other engine, even tho i have taken it out of the car it will be up for sale!
how much u reckon? 100k with service history and all docs?

VisaGTi16v · Post by **VisaGTi16v** » 19 Sep 2003, 17:46

Sounds good. A while back I sorted my brakes. All calipers off, cleaned down etc as they were sticking as they float. New pads and discs on front, copper slipped it all and now it pulls dead straight and was amazing last time I competed in it at an airfield. I really couldnt belive how well it was stopping as they are only 266mm after all. Im wondering on a xantia estate/2litre 16vhatchback swapping session. They use the 287mm from the xsara vts/306 gti-6 and there must be a fair few in scrap yards

The calipers should bolt straight onto the zx hubs, failing that swap them over as well.
After this drop link went I thought ok, I dont need to eat for a few weeks so went to citroen and came back with 2 new front shocks, new top mounts, new bearing, new drop links to do the whole lot as it was so loose and clattery. I think I will do the lower arm bushes next month which will make every bit new there.
Re: tyres, I had 4 cheapo uniroyals on mine and the back was so tail happy it was bordering on ridiculous. 2 Months back i replaced the rears with some new pirelli p7000s and they have transformed it, back is very hard to entice out now. I cant imagine how well it will handle when ive got all this new front suspension on and if i swapped the front tyres as well as its incredible at the moment.
I also bought some interior bulbs as none of my centre console ones work but ive not got onto them yet as taking the stereo out etc sounds tediuos

The single thing that annoys me the most with mine is the clutch. Its so stiff its a joke. It had a new one about 10k ago which helped. The old one was so bad it kept pulling the clutch cable through at the pedal end as the clip would bend out. Once it did this in stationary traffic in the outside lane on the m25. You can imagine the colourful language as I had to start it in gear and barge my way through to the next slip road.
It hasnt come off again yet but its so stiff that im paranoid about it happening again. Drove home other day practising clutch less changes just in case

I will try swapping the cable again I guess as that helps a bit.
Regarding the engine, ive seen S16 ones on www.rallyusedparts.co.uk and www.findit.co.uk for £300-£350. Whether they sell for this amount I dont know but if you make sure you state the history and how it is the same as the S16 and will also go in 205's etc if people wish to use them in MI16 conversions bearing in mind its not the ally one though but its 2 litres not 1.9. They may want the wiring loom in that case.
Darren

adrianeaton · Post by **adrianeaton** » 19 Sep 2003, 19:25

Hi Ben
I'd expect a standard BX 16V to be quicker in a straight line than a ZX, mainly down to the lighter weight and shorter gearing. It's likely a ZX would handle better once the going got twisty - the BX is best on fast A roads really, the wheelbase is a bit long for twisty B roads.
I have the (mis)fortune of owning the only catted BX in the owners club - there's only a handful ever imported to the UK as cat's weren't required on BX's till after 1/1/93 so if you come up against a BX it's likely to have the full 160BHP - I defo wouldn't mess with a phase 1 BX, it's way lighter than a phase 2 and different engine management so dumps as much fuel in as it can take. It's likely that only the phase 1's make a genuine 160BHP anyway.
I've looked into de-catting mine, and I agree with Darren - you have to rechip the ECU as the fuel map will be biased towards protecting the cat, even when it's not fitted! Since the lamda probe is 'up wind' of the cat it can't tell if it's there or not!
My BX still won't produce as much power as a non-cat BX as it has lower compression ratio and smaller valves - it's only below 4,500 revs that mine has ANY advantage over a non-cat when mine is more torquey thanks to the restriction in the exhaust, believe it or not!
Can answer most questions on differences between BX's if you have any more [:D]

VisaGTi16v · Post by **VisaGTi16v** » 19 Sep 2003, 21:05

interesting, didnt know they made quite fundamental changes when they added the cat. My donor bx was a mk1 with the lip rear spoiler not the raised one. I had to travel over 100 miles to find it. Looked at 2 others that had big ends on the way out backed up by the owners telling me how it deffinatly wasnt the big ends as "ive heard dead big ends before and they sound totally different". Yer sure

The rest of the car was old and tatty so dont hate me for killing it. Its heart lives on in my Visa, well my garage floor at this exact moment

405 mi16's however are just bought, de-engined and then scrapped it seems. Quite often see them on ebay etc in "good to immaculate condition, everything available except engine"

adrianeaton · Post by **adrianeaton** » 19 Sep 2003, 21:46

..the differences are fundamental enough for cat and non-cat versions to have totally different chassis number sequences - there's a pair of repeating letters in the chassis number (FJ? for the cat) that vary between them.
Sensors and ECU are totally different systems between phase 1 and 2.
Friday feeling - I'm off [;)]
Adrian