Im not a redneck nor an import basher. I drive a Civic on a daily basis and it's a great car. I dont care about where a car is from. All I care about is the bottom line.
Here is the bottom line: There is no way to get a 100% brand new, reliable, daily driveable, naturally aspirated 400hp & 400lbTq Lexus V8 for $6000 or so. Even if it was available, a Toyota crate motor like that would cost $15-20K. To me, it just seems stupid to spend that much for a motor that's going into a car that's going to cost less than half that much. Using detroit crate V8's has proven to be a great way to get reliable, daily driven muscle into various older imports like Mercedes, Volvos, Miatas, and even Porsches.
I would love to have a silky 32V 4cam VVT motor....but it just doesnt seem likely. If anyone has another 300-400 hp/tq, daily driveable, naturally aspirated solution that can be done for $6000 or so please let me know.