So? If it works' date=' what's wrong with that? Forced induction is an efficient method of boosting power. If married to other technologies, it'll always reign supreme.

A n/a engine is just a turbocharged engine with permanent lag.[/quote']

That is taking an easy way out To produce more efficient/powerful engines you need to invest time and money into it. If everyone took the same attitude then we would still be on Push Rod technology.

Honda/Toyota are pushing engine technology in the right direction IMHO by actually not taking the easy route out and placing Turbo's on their petrol engines.

Adding a turbo onto a car is a no brainer, it takes brains to redesign an engine from the ground up which is why the 2.0 litre S2000 lump in my opinion is a very well designed engine. Yes you have to keep it on song all the time but it is still a very quick engine. Show me a production 2.0 litre engine in a car that VW produce without a turbo that makes that kind of HP and is on sale in an everyday car.

Electronic Valve Train Technology as someone mentioned is the next big thing we can expect to see. This would be the ultimate control of the engine management. Being able to control each valve independently would be the holy grail in engine technology. Let see who gets there first.

This of course is all in my opinion

You need big revs to get big power on a NA motor

Only if the motor is too small. The problem with many 16v modern engines that produce lots of power is that they are normally pretty crap to drive off a track because they are too small (CTR included IMHO). Anything near 100bhp/litre on an na petrol is invariably a torqueless, buzzy lump that only goes fast past 5krpm - good for track, crap for road.

I was looking at a DB6 the other day, 5k redline and 180 on the clock! That's a real engine.

There's no substitute for cubic inches

The problem with square motors is they do not like to be revved high, so building one that is going to rev to 10000 will be a challenge

The Clio 1.8 16v has a Square engine and rev to a respectable 7,250 before redlining. 10,000 rpm will require a shorter throw engine.

Only if the motor is too small. The problem with many 16v modern engines that produce lots of power is that they are normally pretty crap to drive off a track because they are too small (CTR included IMHO). Anything near 100bhp/litre on an na petrol is invariably a torqueless' date=' buzzy lump that only goes fast past 5krpm - good for track, crap for road.[/b']

I was looking at a DB6 the other day, 5k redline and 180 on the clock! That's a real engine.

There's no substitute for cubic inches

Only while Electronic valve train technology is not available though. Being able to adjust the timing per valve will overcome this.

Also you will probably find the Aston is a long throw engine, bit like a diesel engine

I must say that the Astra VXR looks absolutely stunning. And those seats :eek: And looks like the build quality has improved somewhat too. I think the new Astra is a turning point for Vauxhall...

I'd have one.

Would be a new Astra VXR for me as it looks so sharp and aggresive compared to all the other comparable cars.

and at a good price aswell.

I know I am going to get shot down , but your biggest increase in performance over the next decade will be diesel. There is a limit ot the amount of energy you can extract out of a given volume of petrol. The only way to improve this is to use another fuel. Diesel. diesel has a higher calorific content per given volume of fuel compared to petrol, so potentially you can extract more energy for less fuel usage.Good example is the 330 D BMW, that is quite a quick car and fuel efficent too. the new ultra high pressure injection systems which are planned are going to give excellent consumption with good power. I am not a diesel fan, but cannot avoid them I think.

I really like the VXR although I know them as Opel not vauxhall. Going to be a fair price (hopefully) for a decent car. No more dash rattles and rust afflictions I hope.

I know I am going to get shot down ' date=' but your biggest increase in performance over the next decade will be diesel. There is a limit ot the amount of energy you can extract out of a given volume of petrol. The only way to improve this is to use another fuel. Diesel. diesel has a higher calorific content per given volume of fuel compared to petrol, so potentially you can extract more energy for less fuel usage.Good example is the 330 D BMW, that is quite a quick car and fuel efficent too. the new ultra high pressure injection systems which are planned are going to give excellent consumption with good power. I am not a diesel fan, but cannot avoid them I think.

I really like the VXR although I know them as Opel not vauxhall. Going to be a fair price (hopefully) for a decent car. No more dash rattles and rust afflictions I hope.[/quote']

I think you are right in terms of diesel having a higher calorific content but it's getting this out of the fuel as it is such a slow burning fuel. The only way to tune a diesel IIRC is high injector pressure and maybe variable injector timing which I believe is already be done on the Seat Cupra Diesel.

The only other fuel which maybe any good is hydrogen with produces water as an exhaust, what about electric with fuel cell technology getting better each day ?

The high presure diesel injection presures are 5 to 10 times as high than what is currently being used ( not sure on the exact presure but it is huge) with the ability to have multiple injection pulses per intake sequence. The problem with hydrogen fuel is it energy density, you need a lot of it to compare to petrol or even diesel. Diesel is what the world runs on trucks, ships, generators (big one's at least) etc. Once an alternative fuel can power trucks and industrial applications you know you are on to a winner. fuel cells are a medium term solution 20 years + as the technology currently is in is infancy. The short term 10 to 15 year window will be diesel , showing the greatest improvement IMHO.

... and the biggest price increase.....

the astra vxr does look nice, but i think i prefer the new focus st

... and the biggest price increase.....

too true. crazy the price at the moment. Time for some marches I think.