i've got a b16 with a built head and a bone stock bottom end. i've been looking for a block to rebuild to give my cams some more compression to work with. i was trying to decide between a b16 (low price, fits well in my engine bay, rev happy) and a b18c (pricier, taller, 1.58:1 r/s ratio, but more power). well, neither of those have popped up for sale in my local area in the last year or so, but i just caught wind of a b17 block, crank, and rods for sale. now this seems promising to me. same deck height, half the price of a b18c, 1.62:1 r/s ratio, and .1 more liters.

i'm looking for around 11.5:1 CR, does anyone have some piston recommendations? is there anything else i need to think about that's unique to the b17 block? is the extra displacement worth the lower r/s ratio?

 

dont worry about RS ratio..its overrated.
a b17 crank with pr3 or p30 pistons will yield a nice 10.7-10.9 compression ratio.

I would say go for it. B17 cranks are nice and rare.