VTEC gods please impart some wisdom to me. I know the basics of the system - at some point in the RPM range the engine switches to a larger set of cam lobes, generating more power by allowing the valves to stay open longer. I've heard of increases as much as 40hp when a civic owner installs a VTEC head. Thats quite a bit of power generated by a fairly simple head swap, plus its cheap since turbo kits cost more and need very specific tuning.

Now this technology seems like it can be applied to nearly any engine with OHC so why hasnt an anftermarket company started researching VTEC possibilities with other engines? It would seem to me that it wouldnt take much more than modifying the valve train and ecu to create a vtec head. Why not develop a vtec kit for nissan engines like the VG30 or KA24? Is it more complicated than I thought?

BTW, I am talking about engines that were never offered with variable valve timing. I am aware that most new engines offer some sort of variable valve timing.

A lot of car companies have vtec like thing....bmw, ferrari (well, sort of), and i *think* it was either toyota or nissan.

Those are only the most recent engines, and nissan & toyota dont exactly make swappable heads.

BTW, I am talking about engines that were never offered with variable valve timing.

Maybe they want to be original. If you're going to buy something, you usually want the best, and the best is the original or the one thats been around the longest cause they've worked on it and continue to survive, honda's VTEC in this case, and it already has in incredible market. It would be difficult to go up against them. Besides, I've heard(HEARD, ok :uhoh: ) that VTEC was honda's answer to a Turbo. So other companies may go a different route instead of copying, not that there's anything wrong with toyota and all those others... Besides, it kicks in at like over 5,000 RPM. How many engines can regularly hit an 8K redline.(or even have one).