Element Tuning

Element Tuning Pro Comp Short Block engines are built from 100% new components and starts life from a Subaru STi bare block and a STi forged crankshaft. Fitted to our exact standards, competition crank and rod bearing are assembled to a crank that has been verified for perfect trueness . Our bearings and clearances have been tested for 10,000+ miles of racing. You may ask us how is this possible? It's very common for racing teams to run new engines multiple times in a racing season but we would not allow this for our long term R&D. The only way to have long term durability data on your engine program is to continue using the same parts. Each season or sometimes midway through the season we would tear down our motors to inspect how the parts were holding up and how our building specifications were performing. We would inspect items such as cylinder wear, ring wear, piston wear, oil consumption, hardware fatigue, and finally crank and rod bearing wear. As long as there was no component failure we would reuse the same bearings, crank, rods, block, and pistons and continue the durability testing.

It was not uncommon for us to push all the extremes to find the maximum and minimum operating range of each component and it's clearance. With this data we have been able to build an engine that not only makes huge power but has near OEM oil level consumption. All too often motors are built too loose causing lots of engine noise, too much cylinder blow-by, and major oil consumption issues. We have tested our combination to deliver the tightest, most trouble free, and durable engine you can buy at any price.

Element Tuning's engines are fitted with CP forged pistons and rings, along with 4340 forged H beam rods which are manufactured to the highest standards in the industry. Element Tuning has fully tested these rods in our Time Attack program with exceptional success and performance. Each rod is CNC machined from 4340 steel forgings, shot peened, stress relieved, heat treated, and magnafluxed for uncompromised strength and reliability. Precision machined in the USA to within .0002" ensures exacting fitment and rod length is set to exact OEM specification at 5.137," not shorter like many other rods.

Through years of testing on the track and on the dyno the key to maximum power is unlocking the potential within the Subaru heads. The first step in the process is to select a more aggressive camshaft set utilizing more lift and duration, but even then power is bottlenecked by the OEM intake and exhaust valves. Testing with a Garrett GT35R or the Element GT65 turbocharger results in a +100 whp gain with this head package and camshafts over a stock head package.

The key to this gain in the +1mm larger stainless steel intake and Inconel exhaust valves. Just camshafts alone are held back by over 40 whp when the heads are left with the OEM valves.

Element Tuning has discovered that the majority of the gains from the Subaru head are attributed to the valve size itself and not the intake and exhaust ports. Often "Big Valve" heads can be $4000 plus dollars due to the labor required to port the heads. The modifications start with a 5 angle intake valve job and it finished off with a bowl blend to maximize the flow through the intake port to the larger valve. The stems of the valves are larger and stronger than OEM therefore a precision hone of the valve guides is performed.

Many may ask why don't you port the intake ports fully? We don't do this because almost 100% of the gain is realized by just fitting the larger intake valve and performing a bowl blend. (HP/value/compared to porting) On top of this the head retains 100% of it's reliability due to how thin the cast walls are. It's all too common to see highly stressed, high HP, road race engines blow through over ported head walls.

On the exhaust side we also install a +1mm valve and hone the guide but a 2 angle with a radius valve job is performed. The exhaust port is again blended to maximize the potential of the larger exhaust valve. We are seeing +20% increase in flow on the exhaust side alone!