Was talking about this the other day and would like the views of people more smarterer than myself

Right here goes -

If i was looking to buy an escort cossie with the view of running it on aftermarket management, would it be better to go for a small turbo over the big turbo? I think the small turbo as if i'm correct, it has a slightly better engine? Inlet manifold etc is more efficient than the large turbo version? Also you get a few added safety features - side impact bars, airbags etc. Disregarding the management on the small turbo its really just the t28 turbo that would hold the engine back a lot sooner than the t34 would on the older cars isn't it?