Topwelshman Posted February 27, 2005 Share Posted February 27, 2005 Whst's involved in changing from a Vauxhall engines car to a Zetec, Duratec or K series, other than them having different mountings etc. Is it worth doing? XL Motorsport....Racing into the Future Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AMMO Posted February 27, 2005 Share Posted February 27, 2005 Personally the only engine I would change to is a Duratec. The Zetec is nice bullet-proof engine but a little heavy. To do a nice Duratec conversion you are looking at around £10,000.00. A Zetec can be done for around half of that. If you can't stretch to these sort of prices then tune the engine you have. I assume you have a 16 valve. If not, even the 8 valve Vauxhall is a sweet little engine and responds to a bit of tuning. Depends what you want your car to do that it isn't doing now. What engine do you have? Live axle or De Dion? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Topwelshman Posted February 27, 2005 Author Share Posted February 27, 2005 I'm just considering my options, I've been offered a 16v Vauxhall engined car & there are quite a few for sale that are reasonably priced, but also want something that will still be up to date in a few years time, so was considering an engine swap. Is it really that much, maybe it was a bad idea! XL Motorsport....Racing into the Future Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ewan Posted February 27, 2005 Share Posted February 27, 2005 Zetec is a great engine, a lot lighter than either VX, about the same as Xflow, so light, Duratec is the current YUPPIES must have, but even a standard 2 litre zetec with TB's/emerald and a decent exhaust makes 170BHP with great grunt which in a light car like a cat is ample frightening in fact, don't let anybody psych you into thinking it ain't. I swopped my Xflow for the above setup and it cost me 2670pounds I used a guaranteed secondhand engine, standard westfield exhaust manifold[half the cost of a raceline] a retro ford sump [third the cost of raceline], And am staggered by the difference the Zetec makes over the webered 1700Xflow[135 shetland ponies] my Zetec has 170odd shire horses. the difference is well worth the cost, Oh and did i mention the car now does mid 30's to the gallon as opposed to 22 for the Xflow. --- don't think about it do it *thumbup* 😬 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul D Jones Posted February 27, 2005 Share Posted February 27, 2005 Cost depends on what you need to buy Ie you will need Exhaust manifold engine mounts belhousing Some things could be used again Tb's if manifold mounted clutch [maybee] fuel pump etc if useing the same set up carbs or TB's my Zetec to Duratec has cost approx £6000 sale of the Zetec helped Paul. See My Car Here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chelspeed Posted February 27, 2005 Share Posted February 27, 2005 Naught wrong with the 16V Vauxhall engine. I agree with Ewan's sentiments if changing from a crossflow but hardly think the Vauxhall is the same thing. It may not be flavour of the month but it's a damn fine engine. Only downside is it's a bit heavier than some modern options but some cash spent on springs and dampers means that's no real problem. The Vauxhall on carbs will make 170bhp, spend part of Ewan's swop to a Zetec budget on throttle bodies and a decent 3D ECU and the Vauxhall will do over 200bhp without touching the internals (apart form rod bolts). Spend Ammo's £10k on the Vauxhall and you've got over 270bhp easily. And your car's still got the original engine then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ewan Posted February 27, 2005 Share Posted February 27, 2005 Agree with chelsea, if you have VX 16v stick with it, apart from extra 20kgs weigh wise it produces the goods, for a lot less than the figures i quoted, but for anyone with a Xflow the zetec is the sensible choice, to upgrade to for sensible money. My figures can be improved upon for instance if i were to sell the old Xflow engine/webers/lumition etc I'd probably get 4-500 pounds back on the total outlay. so an easy to achieve figure for the Xflow-zetec EFIconversion would be 2500 pounds. of course if you stuck with the webers, and normal ignition you could do the swop for 1000-1500pounds easily Cheep as chips - as that saddo on the antiques show would say!!! *cool* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anthony Posted February 27, 2005 Share Posted February 27, 2005 Another vote for keeping it VX 😬 Pretty well bullet proof then, just set a sensible level and stick to it, easy to spend Ammo's 10k on any of the options Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rgrigsby Posted February 27, 2005 Share Posted February 27, 2005 I'm currently going from an Xflow to a Duratec, it's not the cheapest option as you need to swap sides for the exhaust, bonnet hole etc. Having said that the engine does have a lot of advantages judging from the reactoin of people running them already! Rob G www.SpeedySeven.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackbirdman Posted February 27, 2005 Share Posted February 27, 2005 And 270bhp from a VX imakes for a very special 7 😬 Matt Life begins at 10,000 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary-Cornwall Posted February 27, 2005 Share Posted February 27, 2005 Another vote for keeping the Vaux from me Engine swaps normally come about with a need for big power gain so K-series and Zetec are of no use unless you just want to spend a fortune to shed 20kg's. Vaux gives you bags of grunt without stressing the engine in standard tune and masses of power if you want to spend the bucks. "Up to date" is not something I'd apply to a 7. The older my car gets the better it gets....bigger engine...dry sump...aeroscreen....Tillets...where will it end??? 😬 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonbell Posted February 27, 2005 Share Posted February 27, 2005 I`m fitting a duratec from new...........which is the sensible option these days....... However I don`t think it is economical as a replacement engine unless the car happens to need a reskin and the engine you have is tired. The Vauxhall 16V.......whilst being a bit of a boat anchor .......is widely recognised as a good performance engine option. There will be loads of options and tuning parts available and you will even be able to pick up second hand parts as people upgrade etc. The duratec is still relatively new and as such you will spend a lot on the engine installation..........believe me I know............and if you then have to reskin the car, respray and buy a new bonnet it starts to become uneconomical.........you might as well just start from scratch with a starter kit. Simon Bell - Caterham 7 Duratec R I`ve seen the future.....and it`s powered by duratec Check out the website here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Topwelshman Posted February 27, 2005 Author Share Posted February 27, 2005 I've done some research and the VX engines seem superb, I was more concerned about upgradeabilityt and didn't want to be stuck with technology that was old hat. How easy would it be to upgrade from a 1600 8v to 2000 16v then as if I do buy an 8v engine this would be the logical upgrade path before looking to sell for something newer XL Motorsport....Racing into the Future Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul McKenzie Posted February 28, 2005 Share Posted February 28, 2005 Uograding the 8V to a 16V is not a practical proposition...unless you like to do things the hard way...and I'm inclined to think you do Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheds Moderator Posted February 28, 2005 Share Posted February 28, 2005 Buy the car that you want to own. Detail changes are fine but it will cost a fortune to change engines (notable exception XF to Zetec). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Topwelshman Posted February 28, 2005 Author Share Posted February 28, 2005 Yep, If it's easy it ain't worth doing! XL Motorsport....Racing into the Future Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rust Red Seven Posted February 28, 2005 Share Posted February 28, 2005 Go for it 2.0l zetec. Mines a stage 2 headed affair with fast road cams and knocks out 193 BHP Out the box is 160 mines on 45 DCOE's and sounds great and 5th at 80 up the moteway gives 35 to the galon according to Burton you can push this engine to 260bhp on 45's with the forged bits in the bottom, and about 210 on the std ford bottom and stage three top Great bullet proof power plant for a seven. You can also pick up a std mondeo lump for about 300 to 500 quid from a breakers that has done about 20k miles a good starting place. Rust Red Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheds Moderator Posted February 28, 2005 Share Posted February 28, 2005 Yep, Zetecs are underrated IMO. At the risk of repeating myself though - if you want a Zetec 7, buy one with the right engine to start with! They are out there and a couple of nice ones recently went for a long way under 10k - that's Crossflow money. The only reason I can think of for changing an engine is "I've had this car for x years, the engine's worn out/not powerful enough and rather than spend £1000 sorting it I'll spend a bit more and put the engine of my choice in." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Topwelshman Posted February 28, 2005 Author Share Posted February 28, 2005 I'm going to keep searching for now but the cash is burning a hole in my pocket & the mrs has her eye on a conservatory so I need to act quickly! There's just so many different types it's unreal. All I want is a car set up car primarily for track that is in good condition, easy to maintain, has an upgrade path that is not from the dark ages & is between 10 - 13k. I'm starting to think that the only way might to be build it. XL Motorsport....Racing into the Future Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheds Moderator Posted February 28, 2005 Share Posted February 28, 2005 Primarily for track...there are lots of bike engined ultralight 7 type cars out there. Upgrades - you name it, it's there, replacement engines drop in easily. Badger Bill recently sold a Sylva Blade for under 5k IIRC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Topwelshman Posted February 28, 2005 Author Share Posted February 28, 2005 i'd prefer a Caterham for 2 reasons, firstly because I've wanted one since I was 12 & from my limited knowledge of 7's they seem to be the best. I also might race it later on & Caterham's are much better supported than Westfields or some of the other kit cars. Most of the cars i've seen at the lower (preferred) end of my budget have all the right track goodies but have Xflow or VX engines, hence my questions on engine swaps as I want something that is also modern in terms of engine technology. I might just have to find a K series as this seems to be the easiest route XL Motorsport....Racing into the Future Edited by - Topwelshman on 28 Feb 2005 15:04:16 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gambo Posted February 28, 2005 Share Posted February 28, 2005 Topwelshman. You live in Cardiff, I live in Cowbridge, if you would like to know what a 200bhpish vx caterham goes like, get over to my place,or come along to llandow on the 19th March and i'll take you out in mine. She's finally Home!!!!!!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gambo Posted February 28, 2005 Share Posted February 28, 2005 Topwelshman, I can also short you out with a conservatory. 😬 😬 😬 She's finally Home!!!!!!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Topwelshman Posted February 28, 2005 Author Share Posted February 28, 2005 Gambo, you have mail mate XL Motorsport....Racing into the Future Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonbell Posted February 28, 2005 Share Posted February 28, 2005 Not a k series..............anyhting but a k series 😬 😬 Simon Bell - Caterham 7 Duratec R I`ve seen the future.....and it`s powered by duratec Check out the website here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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