Here's a tip for all you 16v owners out there. The interesting thing about the 16v engine is that it is designed to run at a speed of 4450 rpm, whereas the 8v (NA and Turbo) are designed to run around 2700 to 3000 rpm. This explains the rpm lag the engine suffers. But it has an added benefit. You can clean your engine by running it at that speed. I took it on the beltway and left it in 3rd gear going 65 mph. This ran the engine at 4500 rpm (I've got a manual tranny). I did this for about 20 min or so and the engine is running a bit smoother. I have heard that doing this for an hour or more will really help in terms of smoothness and overall efficiency. "But," you say, "this can be done to any car, what's so great about the 16v?" The answer is two-fold: Since the engine is designed to run at that speed constantly, there is less wear on it at that speed than other engines. Also, you will suck less gas doing that than other engines. I did that, and there was little difference in the gas mileage. A difference, but not big. Just thought you all would appreciate this...
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Manual tran 16v Wagon... Booyah!