V8 from California

[fett]

depends if you liked the trouble you had recently noisy

 

[zen]

if in states and you want cheap landy then you must import 25yr+ one...no chance otherwise...

then...rip out ****ty 3.5v8 and (do yourself/get garage to do )install proper yankie v8,gasoline or diesel..WITH matching gearbox...cost of engine/box bugger all, cost of fitting up to you...

THEN...make up adapter plate from gearbox to lt230 transferbox...

NOW..not sure on this..but..(and the reason i kept mine nice and safe) one may well be able to use the adapter assembly from the early 3 speed auto box fitted to rrc.(as mentioned before torqueflight 350) to match up gearbox to transferbox aslong as same make...?????

 

[fett]

theres one on ebay atm for £350 if you fancy a play zen

not sure this was the o/p's or anyones question apart from john w though lol

 

[Fur Trapper]

if in states and you want cheap landy then you must import 25yr+ one...no chance otherwise...

then...rip out ****ty 3.5v8 and (do yourself/get garage to do )install proper yankie v8,gasoline or diesel..WITH matching gearbox...cost of engine/box bugger all, cost of fitting up to you...

THEN...make up adapter plate from gearbox to lt230 transferbox...

NOW..not sure on this..but..(and the reason i kept mine nice and safe) one may well be able to use the adapter assembly from the early 3 speed auto box fitted to rrc.(as mentioned before torqueflight 350) to match up gearbox to transferbox aslong as same make...?????

there are all kinds of disco's LR in the states just with gas motors no defenders since the 90's and no diesels. But what I was asking is the v8 are based on buick (gm) and the shared transmissions, so a chevy small block should fit in for a swap. But people here don't seem to have the problem with there LR v8's like you brits do!!!!!!!!!!! how do you figure that is????????????

 

[Mr Noisy]

depends if you liked the trouble you had recently noisy

Im not saying I enjoyed it, but it was less work to figure out and repair than it would be to say scrap it and fit a modern engine.

If the liner had gone or the block went porous or it cracked or whatever then there'd be some thinking to do. Especially if I was lOoking to tune the engine.

However with the plucky 3.5 I am VERY unlikely to encounter serious trouble.

I'm with you on this fett because I've seen a few 3.5s and ok they can be broke but they're rarely ****ed, whereas I've seen a few bummed large bore motors, and we're only a car sales business so it's not like engine problems come here on purpose.

On a lighter note I did a full days laning yesterday and it was a beauty all day, runs much smoother and the jerkiness on part throttle has gone, Im guessing cos the CO trim is set correctly now.

No reason to consider changing it anymore, it's not even that dear to run as far as laning days go. Motorways are bad but I'm not doing that a lot...

 

[fett]

glad you fixed it noisy and like you I will only be 3.5 with the rv8 unless I could find a p76 motor that is

 

[Fango]

I plan on taking my D Reg 110 to the states in June! Hopefully to Cali. It has a 3.9 efi and I just fitted an autobox with a custom center console. New galv chassis, wiring, suspension, etc...Now all that is left is paint....or I'll just wait until I get to the states since I can't find a decent paint job here for less than 4k! And I don't get paid in pounds so that hurts a little.

 

[fett]

take a spare 3.9 too

 

[POAH]

take a spare 3.9 too

You've got a real bee in your bonnet about 94mm blocks lol

 

[fett]

yes I bloody have! Pain in the wallet! :doh:

 

[zen]

reason we slag off 3-9l is we had many more than the us,so more people have killed them,also as price for old disco/rangie is so low compared to usa,they are proberly not as well looked after as yankie ones...ie you spend $40k on one you gonna service it well...!!

reason no 1990's defenders is they dont pass usa safty standards,so were not exported by lr to usa..import tax on sub 25yr old cars into usa is very very steep+ all sorts of regs apply..if over 25 yrs then easy..

so boys,make cash export GOOD defenders etc over 25yrs old to usa...go check usa ebay for prices,you will be amazed!

 

[zen]

oh..to answer your question...

nothing wrong with rover v8..if maintained well.(espically cooling system)

(apart from gutless,uneconomical..)..

any defender sells well over here,v8's too..infact they sell better if converted to lpg (propane) or are for sale in london (as lez made most 2001 or older diesel defenders banned from london)

 

[fett]

slipped liner cracked/porous block not always or often down to maintainace

 

[joe1972]

there are all kinds of disco's LR in the states just with gas motors no defenders since the 90's and no diesels. But what I was asking is the v8 are based on buick (gm) and the shared transmissions, so a chevy small block should fit in for a swap. But people here don't seem to have the problem with there LR v8's like you brits do!!!!!!!!!!! how do you figure that is????????????

It's a numbers game... There's more of them here, so there's gonna be more of them with problems... simples

OR, are you sure about that? Buy a car from NY and it will potentially be the same rusty piece of crap as here in Blighty (or worse)... Buy a rust free one from CA, but potentially the engine will be fookin cooked!:doh:

I know, cos I've seen them

 

[acmerocket]

Hi guys. New member here, from Cal. Got here looking for help with the strombergs on my Stage I V8. US Defenders are super rare and expensive but at least you do have a chance of getting one doesn't need rust repair. On the other hand Classics and Discos are plentiful and cheap.

I'd expect a Buick 350 or similar v8 would bolt in but not a chevy. Do a 455 if you think the rest of the drive train is up to the torque. Plenty of used engines and Rover shops here. Check out these folks Land Rover Repair Forums - LRRForums.com - Welcome to LRRForums

Though it would be perfectly drivable I wouldn't do it or advise it even if the Def had no engine at all. Gain maybe a little power lose maybe a lot of originality and resale value Yeah, I do value originality. Enough so to revive the strombergs even though I have both Holley and Edelbrock quads in the garage.

 

[Planny]

I remember when we used to build the NAS 90, they were the Dogs Bollocks, best looking Defender to leave Solihull. Unfortunately only American market. Our european version was nowhere near as nice. Lucky Americans. Like a symphony from the Exhaust too, all 8 cylinders in sequence.

 

[Sean Ehtoz]

Check out Eliot:

Tuning the Rover V8

This will answer all if not most of you questions...esp check out his chevy conversion pages...in hs whole site esp. the haynes/lucas pages...enjoy

 

[Mr Noisy]

^^^

yeah great site that

 

[rappy1]

I went over all the options engine wise with my 110. I had a free p76 i could have fitted but in the end i have kept with the 3.5.
The reason being the 4.4 p76 is a very lazy engine and does not like to rev. In the 110 you would have to have custom radiators made to try and keep it cool enough as they are prone to running hot and damaging the engine when used under load. They also still need to be modified to fit the land rover. Its not just a straight bolt in.
The 3.5 revs much better and parts and uprated parts can be bought. The fact the Land Rover comes with it means its meant to be there.
I am going to put an offroad cam in mine and i think i will leave it at that. At the end of the day it has enough power in most situations. The biggest problem with going larger is finding a gearbox and conversion that is able to handle the power.

 

[fett]

send me the p76 engine