Is This A Decent Engine?

[bwaz]

I'm looking (or will be) at a car that has a new engine that would come along with the deal. Not knowing much about higher performance but here's the spec's:
Fully Balanced 2085cc machined by Bernie Bergmann Enterprises, 78.4mm counterweighted/8-doweled crank, 92mm Cima/Mahle pistons and cylinders, Porsche Rods, Straight-cut gears, Street/Strip Hydraulic Cam and Lifters, Chromoly pushrods w/ sprung tubes, Ported and polished 40mm intake/35.5mm exhaust 041 Cylinder heads with match ported manifolds and enlarged intake/exhaust ports, Gene Berg high-flow oil pump, full-flowed/o-ringed/ shuffle-pinned AS21 case, 1-5/8

[silas]

i havent heard many positive things about bergman engines.

 

[bwaz]

Any idea what the issues are?  breakage, tuning, timing, leaks or overall bad vibes? Don't want to buy a headache!
thanks for the input
Brian  

[Bruce]

Many years ago Mirko bought a \"new\" Bergmann engine.  It suffered a fatal death at around 5k miles.  When he went to rebuild it, he discovered the \"new\" crank was ground 3rd cut on the mains, and 2nd cut on the rods.  
Bernie Bergmann made a choice to install a piece of junk crank into Mirko's engine.  As a result, I think everyone should make the choice to boycott Bergmann engines.

[jim martin]

the guy must be doing something right . he's still in buisness and must be selling allot of  motors with some sort of reliability or i don't think he would still be advertising in hot vw's.
oh yeah , but the purple motor it's faster cause it's got the crank with the holes in it :lol:
--sorry couldn't help myself

[silas]

it's got the crank with the holes in it :lol:

wouldnt that turn the oil in your engine into a nice frothy milkshake? i only ask because i've thought about it quite a bit, but have heard conflicting answers.

imho, the biggest, brightest add does not always represent the best company. take art thraen at ACE. tiny add in the back of the mag, but from what i know, the guy can tune a mean set of carbs. same goes for all the other \"little guys\" who focus more on quality workmanship rather than razzle dazzle, full page adds. i can think of a handfull off the top of my head. kcr, franklins, geoff hart......some place called airspeed.

but your right jim. bergmann must be doing something right. but then again, you know what they say. \"there's a sucker born every minute.\"

bwaz, if you're stoked on the car, see if the owner will sell you it motorless and then you can build one yourself or get someone to build one for you. (k-rok?).

[Cameron]

Bergmann products don't have a very good reputation. But I see no reason why you can't get a few miles out of this motor. It will definitely wear out quickly, 92mm cylinder have a short life. If you are looking for a performance motor to get you through the summer, buy it.  Just don't beat on it.

If you plan to rebuild it, be prepared for a can of worms. Like the case has already been align bored to it's maximum. Or the crank cannot be reground, because it is already undersize.

Do a search of Bernie Bergmann products, at these VW forums:
http://www.cal-look.com/forum/index.php
http://shoptalkforums.com/index.php
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/

 

[bwaz]

Actually there's a chance to buy the car separate, $1500 U.S. extra for the Motor, sounds like a home built rebuild with parts I know might be the better way to go!
thanks for the advice and direction where to look at others thoughts too!
Brian

[Bruce]

the guy must be doing something right . he's still in buisness and must be selling allot of  motors .......

I think it is because there is an infinite supply of new customers avaliable to dissatisfy.  Just like GEX.

[silas]

I think it is because there is an infinite supply of new customers avaliable to dissatisfy.  Just like GEX.

or...

\"there's a sucker born every minute.\"

 B)