Firstly, Im new to this, please be gentle lol.

Any way, I've recently bought a 1987 360 GLT Saloon, with the intention of engine swapping it, now i have already stripped it and in the process of sorting the bodywork, new underseal etc so I'm a little way off the engine but i need to start thinking about options and what do i start looking for?

So first question is what kind of power can the drive train hold safely, I'm not going to be running a welded diff so just the standard setup, now I've seen various 200bhp 360s about, so can i go more safely?

Secondly, the engine in question that i had in mind was a B230FK out of the 940 turbos, but then i was looking around various forums etc last night and found there are different variations of that engine such as the B230FT, B230ET and then the 531 head kept popping as well, so what are the differences? and I'm after a nice strong engine thats going to give me 200bhp range with ease,with out risk of it shitting itself etc. I'm going to be making a custom stainless system anyway, FMIC, boost controller, Port and Polished Head and fully rebuilding the whole engine (which ever one i end up getting)

Any help/advice is all appreciated

You want the 13mm rod engine so B230FK or FT

Power wise there are some 360's running upto 300BHP but the drive line is on the limit and needs to be treated and driven with care.

The 531 head is just a slightly better flowing head with slightly better combustion chamber shape. If you are going to work the head the a 530 will be fine. Do not open up the exhaust port especially at the bottom. Ideally you want to weld the bottom of the exhaust port up to lift it be 5 or 6mm to improve flow.

Whoever you choose to do your porting might slap you if you ask for the ports to be polished as it is very well know that a polished port will loose a little power and use more fuel in doing so.

In addition to that, you should look for '93 or later engine. Those come with the 13mm rods ('91>) and oil squirters ('93>).
The b230fk (low pressure) or b230ft (high pressure) engines run on lh 2.4 management, which can be installed in a 360 without to much work. The b230et runs on Motronic which is a less advanced system and does not has many aftermarket options, gets expensive quickly if something has to be replaced. The 230et does have the 531 head and 9.3 CR, where the b230fk/ft have 530 head and a lower CR. The 530 can be ported to flow the same as a 531 head but only if you know what you are doing.

Performance in factory form; the b230fk had 135 hp (0.3 bar), the b230ft had 165 hp (0.6 bar) and the b230et had 185 hp (0.6 bar).
Upping the boost on a fk makes it a ft, the et had the 531 head and a A-cam, which is better than the T-cam and explaines the 185 hp.

I'm building a b230fb+t, which shoud have all the good bits together when done. Better management, '93 block, 531 head, 9.3 CR, A-cam, and ft wastegate. Should be good for 190 hp in factory spec. I hope.