Series 1 Fitting a 2.25 to a '57 Series 1

So as not to upset the purists who will view this as sacrilege I will explain a little about the vehicle:
My friend has a 1957 series 1 which in a previous life has had series 3 gearboxes and axles fitted. It also had had an obscure Peugeot diesel engine conversion. We have not been able to work out which Peugeot engine was actually fitted so sourcing spares and service parts is a challenge. The injection pump on it is leaking, and on the last trip out is has thrown several rods.

At the weekend we pulled the engine out and the plan is to replace it with a land rover 2.25 diesel engine from a series 3 so the complete drive train is matched, we know what everything is, and spares/service items are easier to source. I know this conversion has been done many times before but I am struggling to find much information on how to carry it out. Is anyone aware of a decent write up on how to undertake this?

The chassis engine mounts have been moved for the Peugeot engine so will require cutting off and re-positioning. I am aware of the basics, bolt the engine to the gearbox to get the mount position on the chassis etc., but am after more details. Which engine mounts should be used, exhaust system, clutch etc. Plumbing/wiring the engine in is straight forward enough once it is fitted to the chassis. Once we have this information we can begin to source the parts needed to complete this swap as we have yet to source an engine let alone the ancillaries.

Couple of picture from the weekend for people who are interested, all came out very nicely and was only 4 hours start to finish.

This would be an 88 series one so just need standard 88/2.25 mounts. The exhaust manifold may need changing to the type that exits through the wing and passes down in front of the foot well.

Watch the front pulley on the diff.
You can grind a bit off the top off the axle.(if needed) make sure you have wings/Bonnet on for measurements as carb inlet pipe Close to bonnnet.
We got a S3 box & hydraulic clutch under the floor.so using the same pedal(out the floor) fabricated a bracket off next to brake master cylinder.

I don't write up any jobs I do it's more agricultural,jacks & welding
If you need a photo of bits just ask

Series 1 80" with 2 2.5 petrol
Mounts may be the same etc

Good luck

Hicap phill said:

Watch the front pulley on the diff.
You can grind a bit off the top off the axle.(if needed) make sure you have wings/Bonnet on for measurements as carb inlet pipe Close to bonnnet.
We got a S3 box & hydraulic clutch under the floor.so using the same pedal(out the floor) fabricated a bracket off next to brake master cylinder.

I don't write up any jobs I do it's more agricultural,jacks & welding
If you need a photo of bits just ask

Series 1 80" with 2 2.5 petrol
Mounts may be the same etc

Good luck

Click to expand...

Going to be diesel so don't need to worry about the carb but will bear bonnet clearance in mind.

The current pedal arrangement is not the through the floor pedals and are along the top of the foot-well similar to later models, and the later series box is already fitted so I am not worried about that. It is more getting the engine mounted in the right place.

I had read about the pulley clearance on the axle, how close is it, how much needs to be removed? If you have a photo of that that would be great.

tottot said:

This would be an 88 series one so just need standard 88/2.25 mounts. The exhaust manifold may need changing to the type that exits through the wing and passes down in front of the foot well.

Click to expand...

Thanks I had worked out we would need the side exit manifold rather than the downward one, the current exhaust is on the other side so we are likely to need most of, if not a whole new, exhaust system.

At least then you can use a standard early 2/2a exhaust system.

Mine touches the pulley if I hit a deep rut. About 1/4 to low. Just chipped the front pulley. Just carry a round file to smooth it out.
You may be ok with the diesel.
Drop the axle onto the bump stops & work backwards on the height needed.

Will take photos tomorrow when out the garage.