Rover 75 1.8T engine in a Metro
 

https://youtu.be/ofSmqgyMs2s

great idea if your into small cars

It's a very popular upgrade for anything smaller than a 75. One of the reasons a lot of 1.8t's are getting scrapped. When used with the standard turbo and a map the driveability is unbelievable at times, turbo spoils up from about 2000rpm. I think the craze is on the way back down now though, good engines are getting hard to come by and rot is really setting in on zr's 25's etc. However with a couple of mods people are getting really good power, in excess of 400bhp. They're good for almost 300 with standard internals and a couple of supporting upgrades.
I've got one in a 25 gti and it's great fun on a track day.

Can you tell us more.It was my understanding that the standard internals are at their limit at 200-210.

Not even close! Standard turbo is the biggest restrictor, then fueling. Basically, you need Astra vxr injectors or similar, gapped piston rings, bigger intercooler, bigger fuel pump and a larger turbo then a very good map with an aftermarket ecu of some description.
The standard rods are good for 350bhp, the standard crank is good for over 400bhp, liners and Pistons need upgrading over 300.

Which are the couple of supporting upgrades that get you to just under 300? Or is it all of the above?
It starts to get very expensive when you use an aftermarket ECU and custom mapping.I know from painful experience with my coupe :eek:

Yes, you need everything mentioned, however kmaps are doing mapped standard ecus that will get you up over 250, I'm not sure how close they get to 300 but the point is provided the engine is strong and the ring gaps have been opened up a touch you don't need to do anything else to the engine. They are cheaper to achieve more power than the t series.
If you can sort everything your only looking at £2500 for a 300 bhp engine which is pretty good going.