So I'm a bit biased as I've rebuilt several of both types of engines. I would say without a doubt the 4age is a better built engine. It's immediately evident just from looking at the rods that are used, the bushed rod with the 12 point hardware is really no joke. On several of the 16v motors we cut the engine off at 9300 rpm, it's always seemed that the camshaft selection was the limiting factor in the 4age performance. Also it's important to not Toyota did an excellent job reducing parts and the mass of the valve assembly. As cool as vtec is for getting around smog it also has a negative, part of the reason there's an eliminator kit for that.
I've also seen many extremely abused 4age engines have lifetimes well over 200k miles, it's apparent Toyota build for durability. The B series motors that have been used hard usually require refreshing or repair by 100k.
I also loved that people posted modified B16 figures, and left out hasselgren for the 4age. https://youtu.be/M7Q44W6uEpA
I love all the motor heads out there, and if there were not all the Honda fans out there I would not have had as many people to play with in the back roads.
And just because, never forget about the 503e I think Toyota did it's fair share for putting the Japanese into a real contender for 4 cylinder performance.
