Makes absolute sense to me Paul. Our conversions are from the dark ages now. The developments over the last 6 years have been huge. What with the VXR injectors, no need for lower compression and the advances in mapping, high power figures are well within reach. I had a conversation with Jon over 2 years ago and they had just done a Stage 1 conversion that produced 225bhp.
The cooler intake temperatures will make a noticable difference too. Steve has a large pre-rad charge cooler and also has the dual pass modification fitted to his inlet manifold which will further reduce intake temperatures. What with that and the mapping, its entirely possible.
When mine was done back in 2008, my power was limited only to the mechanicals of the engine. There was more power available but Jon wouldn't push it to the point that it wasn't safe. 263bhp was where he felt comfortable. Only a few months later, 270bhp came with uprated rods and then onto 300bhp+. Once the internals have been uprated, the next limitation is the Eaton M62 charger itself. After that comes the Harrop and a whole new array of mods. I do believe that Courtenay were looking into using the z20LET ECU to advance mapping further for the conversions. What with a 3" system from front to back, pistons and a Tullet SC manifold, things can go as far as your wallet will let you.
Back to Steve's figures, yes its possible. The low torque figure makes sense and is where you'd expect to find a Stage 1.
Well done Steve. :thumbup: