[ap72]

Originally Posted by vinniekq2

where are the specs for the "big" cam? and I dont like hydraulics cams but sounds like a small hydraulic roller would be perfect for you. 225 duration at 50 is very mild,480 to 510 lift.move the icl and lda around for sound and rpm range wanted

234/234 @.050", .450/.450 lift, 106lsa

[V8 Super Beetle]

Originally Posted by hcompton

Sweet ride looks cool.

Have you tried giving it a little less gear with the cam you have. Since your going to change the gears anyway.

Four speed auto trans would solve alot of your issues. And let you keep the cam that works. No room in the tunnel?

The summit cam: one search onthe internet for wiped summit cams and they dont look as cheap. That being said i do see ppl running them. But i think the advertised duration here is trying to help you out. 274 By letting you know its going to drive like a big cam sep it will fall on its face just when the other cam was setting you back in your seat. Still bad idle still will need gears. You would be better with a longer duration and wider lobe center. Idle would smooth out and off idle power would come back so gears could be changed to a much lower set. I have seen a cam with these specs before and it was the wild racing cam for stock heads back in the day. Sounded good but boring power. Often sold as 3/4 race cam to ppl that dont know any better.

I would call comp and have them run the numbers on a nice roller for the car. With smooth idle and good power. You will be on the phone for an hour but will be worth it. A cam considered strong for efi car my be the best bet.

Either you will make power with crazy idle or smooth and less power. Not much way to make a cam sound big and still be streetable.

Hyd flat tappet Have you looked at the Comp thumpr cams they will still need some gear and idle is bad but may be more of what will work with your ride. They also are fast not just poorly timed. But many ppl think they are crap. So who knows. Llight car and gears it will be right where its made to be with 3.73-3.08

Thanks! A roller cam would be nice, and I love the sound of them but for now, I'm going to stick with a flat tappet.

Originally Posted by F-BIRD'88

I would change the cam to a summit cam #1103 if you want to use a stock 2100 stall 12" converter and
drop the gears down.
214-224-.442-.465 112 LSA good idle, good fuel mileage, good cruise, good power right from idle to 5500 rpm.

You will find this much more civil in daily driving yest makes very good power when you rug it.
Fine with a stock converter. 3.08 to 3.55 gears are fine in your light car.
The car is light weight . Its still going to GLH.

I had this cam in my 350 vortec motor with 3.42's. Its a nice cam that works well.
How you design your exhaust system makes a big difference in how you enjoy driving the car.
I spent quite a bit of time doing mine. The mufflers are custom home hand built. The overall result was very good.
makes power yet doesn't drone or get old.

I agree with the other poster. Try just reducing the gear ratio, first. Your car is very light.
Then if you decide you also want a tamer more civil camshaft try a similar Isky cam #201264/271-12 "264/270 Mega Hyd"
Isky cams and lifters are high quality. This cam will still make a ton of power and torque in your V8 bug.
And cruise a lot more civil. 264/270 214-221@.050" .450"-.465" 112LSA

Thanks for the suggestion. I've tried my current cam with a stock stall and 3.08 gears when I first got her running. I didn't quite like how it wanted to pull me through stop lights. With manual brakes, I really had to hold it down and fight the car. It still did GLH though even with that setup. It would throw me back in the seat and light em up just by stomping on it.

Originally Posted by F-BIRD'88

Did you ever get a track time slip on this car?
What is the rear tire diameter?

When you drive on the hiway, what speed do you drive at?

Unfortunately, I've yet to take it to the track. One of the reasons for wanting to tame it down and turn it into a weekend cruiser.

I don't have a speedo in the car, so I'm not sure how fast I'm going at freeway speeds. I do know the engine RPMs are screaming at freeway speeds though.

Rear tires are 275/60/15.

[V8 Super Beetle]

Originally Posted by hcompton

The summit cam: one search onthe internet for wiped summit cams and they dont look as cheap. That being said i do see ppl running them.

From what I've read after a quick search, is that it's been a problem of improper break-in procedure or someone reinstalling a used cam, mismatching the lifters, and running them without any kind of break-in procedure. In other words, user error. I currently have summit lifters on the isky cam in my engine with zero problems.

Heck, the paint on my car is Summit paint. Looks great and is holding up well when done right.

[hcompton]

Originally Posted by V8 Super Beetle

From what I've read after a quick search, is that it's been a problem of improper break-in procedure or someone reinstalling a used cam, mismatching the lifters, and running them without any kind of break-in procedure. In other words, user error. I currently have summit lifters on the isky cam in my engine with zero problems.

Heck, the paint on my car is Summit paint. Looks great and is holding up well when done right.

i like a few of there cams they use some good old grinds that work well. but with all the problems i have read about I have been tunred off. But may give them a try on my next cheap build current engines cost to much to test an unknown cam.

I would put the 3.08 gears in with the 2400 stall should be fine. last time you tried the gears it was with the stock converter? 2400 should help alot over the stock stall. 3.73 and 3.55 would still be better.

[V8 Super Beetle]

Originally Posted by hcompton

i like a few of there cams they use some good old grinds that work well. but with all the problems i have read about I have been tunred off. But may give them a try on my next cheap build current engines cost to much to test an unknown cam.

I would put the 3.08 gears in with the 2400 stall should be fine. last time you tried the gears it was with the stock converter? 2400 should help alot over the stock stall. 3.73 and 3.55 would still be better.

It was even pulling the 2400 stall.

[vinniekq2]

If you use a flat tappet cam,at least use a solid.better idle and they make power over a wider range.If you want a built in rev limiter,use a flat tappet hydraulic.Another user that builds engines uses a flat hydraulic motor for customers that over rev or abuse engines,it just keeps them limited

[V8 Super Beetle]

Originally Posted by vinniekq2

If you use a flat tappet cam,at least use a solid.better idle and they make power over a wider range.If you want a built in rev limiter,use a flat tappet hydraulic.Another user that builds engines uses a flat hydraulic motor for customers that over rev or abuse engines,it just keeps them limited

Thanks Vinnie. Although, I like the "set it and forget" aspect of hydraulic cams. I'm not after ever ounce of power. I'm actually going the other way.

[vinniekq2]

what a solid cam will do is let you keep the power AND get it sooner and smoother.I used a solid cam years ago(sig erson high flow II solid) it had a mild idle and pulled off idle to 6200.Maybe someone in the forum has specs on it?
was listed as maybe 288 duration and 500 lift.get something like that.It was around 028 lash so valve lift was 460 ish. get a modern version like that and you will be surprised how mellow it is and I remember shifting at 7k from first to second as it comes up fast in the lower gears.My friend had the same cam in his 57 belair except hydraulic,high flow II and it fell off a lot sooner.I think it was .490 lift and had a rougher idle.
Adjusting valves takes 30 minutes after you have done it twice.The first time takes a lot longer.

[F-BIRD'88]

The isky 278H mega cam will not work well with a stock converter.
You would want to keep the high stall converter, with that cam.
I would not go less than a 3.55 gear, with that cam (your car is light and will take that well)
But keep the hi stall.

If you are going to go all the way down to a 3.08 from 4.11 and change the converter too
to a low stall then change the cam too, to something like what I suggested.
1. the car will be a lot more civil in traffic.
2. better on gas.
3. the power band will be right where you will use it with 3.08's and a low stall.
Getting the cam just right to suit how you want to drive your car is critical.