Have been browsing this forum for a while now, looking for some sound advice and suggestions from all the experienced people here.
We have a 2004 Cuore, L501. From what I can understand from Wikipedia, this was built only in Pakistan from 2000 to 2012 , after it ended production for other markets in 1998. It comes with the ED 10 engine. The car is in great shape and doesn’t actually need any work at all. However, for a while now I have been thinking of increasing its power by engine swapping it, with the condition that it be able to beat most, if not all cars produced in this country.
I did some research and at first thought that the K3 VE2 engine would be perfect for the desired performance, however my father argued that it is too big an engine to fit in the car, and would require too much cutting of the frame . He insisted on finding a small engine that could produce enough power. So I found the KF-DET engine. More common than the special, high revving K3 VE2 and newer, but 660cc. Of course this engine will fit much easier in the Cuore. But, after researching some more, I’m starting to think the KF-DET in stock form won’t be able to give us enough acceleration.
It seems like at the very least an ecu upgrade would be needed to at least get the engine to about 80hp. Then the power to weight ratio should be equal to other cars we would like to be faster than. Just a slight problem though. The prices and availability of upgrades might make such a project unsuitable for us. Performance parts for such engines are usually not thought about here so the only option is importing, which in itself is a hassle especially in Pakistan.
I would like to keep this as short as possible instead of ranting uselessly. According to my calculations, at least 90- 100 hp is what we want from an engine swap. I could be wrong though. So, from your experiences:
What kind of acceleration should a stock KF-DET in a ~700kg cuore give?
Are there any other viable swaps, any other engines that you think might be suited to our requirements?
How much cutting and fabrication will actually be needed (theoretically) for an engine like the 1.3 KF VE2?
Any other cheap routes you know of to achieve sufficient power? (For example, maybe swapping a KF-DET and simply trying to attach a larger turbocharger from another turbo car like a hilux or a starlet)
The main thing is that it can be done in a relatively short amount of time instead of sitting at a workshop for months and get the job done of being quick.
Sorry if this post is formatted wrong/ it’s written badly, this is my first ever post on such a forum.
I look forward to your responses.
