Built like it's ours
Every engine build starts with a full strip, clean and measure. From there we agree the spec with you — a standard rebuild to factory tolerances, a fast-road build with uprated rods and machined pistons, or a full performance engine with ported head, uprated cam and matched turbo package.
- Full strip-down, inspection & measurement
- Forged rods, piston machining & balancing
- Ported & polished or refurbished cylinder heads
- Blueprint assembly with documented clearances
- Matched turbo, injector & tuning packages
One workshop, no finger pointing
Because machining, parts, assembly, fitting and mapping all happen under one roof, the spec stays coherent from crank to calibration — and there's one person responsible for the result. That's rarer than it should be.
What a build looks like
Power goal, budget, how the car gets used — track weapon and forgiving daily need different bottom ends. We spec the build to the goal, not the other way round.
The engine comes apart, everything is measured, and machining happens in-house — crank polished, block honed and decked, pistons machined to spec where the build calls for it.
Built up with new bearings, seals, bolts and oil pump every time — and forged rods, machined pistons and uprated head work where the power demands it. Block cleaned and painted in your colour.
Fitted, checked and handed back with run-in guidance. If we're also mapping it, software and hardware are signed off together.
Proven on our own cars
Our 449bhp Mk4 Golf — 590 on nitrous — runs a bottom end built exactly this way: machined ARL pistons, Pro-Race rods, ported head, dBilas 272 cam. The white Bora GTB2260VK build in the gallery is the fast-road version of the same recipe. The parts in our shop are the parts in our builds; nothing goes in a customer engine that we haven't run ourselves.
We're known for 1.9 and 2.0 PD builds, but we build all engines — petrol or diesel. You supply the engine (or the car it's in); if you're stuck finding one, ask and we may be able to help source it.
Common questions
What power do I need a built bottom end for?
As a rule of thumb on the PD engines: past roughly 300bhp you should be thinking about forged rods, and serious builds want machined pistons and head work too. Tell us the goal in the booking form and we'll spec what it genuinely needs — no more, no less.
How long does a build take?
It depends on spec, machining and parts lead times — a stock refresh is quicker than a full performance build. We'll give you an honest timescale when we've agreed the spec, and keep you updated as it progresses.
Can you fit and map it too?
Yes — most builds leave here fitted, run in and mapped as one job. That's the advantage of the engine, the parts and the software all coming from the same workshop.