Which engine for a V8 conversion?

Heya!

I have had a good look around here for the type of V8 to put into my 90 but it seems that many people have found several ways to skin said cat.

Can anyone advice me on which 4Ltr + V8 engine woudl be the most straight forward fit for a conversion.

Also any indication on price I should be paying for the conversion etc would be great!

Ideally I would like to find a newer donor car that I can donor the engine and gearbox from (ideally manual) rather than rebuild an engine - I have done this a few times and it always costs a small fortune - I just want a cheap, simple, raw noisy V8 in my occasional off-road, rarely motorwayed daily run around / workhorse.

Cheers peeps.

M

im biased so i would say the small bore engine, ie 3.5.

im biased so i would say the later type small bore engine, so 3.5 efi, usually out of a disco.

if i were not so biased i would say a 3.9 out of a late RRC or a Disco is not too bad.

either way i would say avoid the 4.0 cos they just seem to want the heads off all the time, although the ignition system is a great improvement.

simple option and definitely the most trouble free is the 3.5 efi, its got the good block and its not got carb downfalls, also they have the latest type dizzy and a very reliable injection system

Ok ... don't kill me.. What is RRC?

Range rover classic mate.

I would go for a 3.9 lots of power and loads about and plentiful spares.

Had a brain storm the other day and am investigation putting a Rolls Royce Silver Spirit engine in my P38. I am just imagining the smooth power from the Rollers 6.75 litre V8. So am starting to get some dimensions. The Roller is a 90 degree V8 against the Range Rover 60 degree so will be wider low down but it might work. Plenty of scrap Rollers. The ignition system is Motronic as is my Range Rovers ? Any suggestions welcomed (be polite!)

corvette LS1/LS2 lump.

Mr Noisy said:

im biased so i would say the small bore engine, ie 3.5.

im biased so i would say the later type small bore engine, so 3.5 efi, usually out of a disco.

if i were not so biased i would say a 3.9 out of a late RRC or a Disco is not too bad.

either way i would say avoid the 4.0 cos they just seem to want the heads off all the time, although the ignition system is a great improvement.

simple option and definitely the most trouble free is the 3.5 efi, its got the good block and its not got carb downfalls, also they have the latest type dizzy and a very reliable injection system

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the only failure in the argument of biased unbiased is the 3.9 and the 4.0 are the same engine!

my point of veiw a good 4.6 will knock the socks of anything else and is easy on parts and improving and is stright bolt in no adptor plates
oh and just to add this into the smelting pot
currently producing a turn key conversion kit with a gems plug and play ecu too to go on any year range rover or land rover v8 engine

vougese39 said:

the only failure in the argument of biased unbiased is the 3.9 and the 4.0 are the same engine!

my point of veiw a good 4.6 will knock the socks of anything else and is easy on parts and improving and is stright bolt in no adptor plates
oh and just to add this into the smelting pot
currently producing a turn key conversion kit with a gems plug and play ecu too to go on any year range rover or land rover v8 engine

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I agree, 4.6 is same bore as 3.9 ,4.0 & 4.2. But does need some mods to run a dizzy etc. I used a 4.2 as it has a dizzy so no mods needed.

OK to get hold of a 4.6 V8 from a Range ROver - I am new to this so am still trying to get my head round the when a RR becomes a RRC!

Found this: Land Rover Range Rover P38 4.6L V8 Light bulb Braking/Spares | eBay

So I am assuming getting hold of one of these engines would be my first step. If it bolts straight in, I then need to sort fuel tank - but am i correct in thinking that everything else will donor?

I am actually quite excited about this just typing! You guys are forming the plan!

Ooh look...

Land Rover : Low Mileage 4.6HSE P38 Range Rover

WOnder what I would do with a P38 shell?!!

WHat is a DIzzy?

WHat is a DIzzy?

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Distributor...

Strip it. Sell part on ebay with link on here.

Weigh the chassis and shell in. Scrap vin

You guys are a totally different breed to the JapTuner crew brilliant!

RIght the more i dig into this .. the more i realise that for bigger power the automatics are favoured... I would have thought a manual would be more fun?

the strongest manual land rover made was the 4 speed lt95 gearbox but in a road car is like stirring a bowl of beans.
i have a d2 with 300+ bhp 4.6 engine i built on a r380 it is getting past it so am building a auto with flappy paddle gear change for rapid shifting

OK now you are talking my language.. I just sold a Porsche with a PDK flappy paddle and I loved it.

How the hell do I put a flappy from a range into a defender?

ok it can be done quite a few ways
1 ashcrofts do a kit called compushift
2 use a p38a or d2 electronic auto box and have a ecu made to do the job

like mr noisy says you are better off with the small bore 3.5 engine as they dont slip liners or crack block like the others from 3.9 to 4.6 do.

you will tend to find many of the people that think the 4.6 is reliable and wont cost thousands to keep fixing the above issues are the ones who build and sell engines for a living, as thats how they make there money.

I know some of them use cermaic sealer quickfix (like irontite) in there engines after a rebuild with top hat liners costing thousands as they still cant be sure the block liner head issues are solved. it just doesnt seem worth the money and risk to me!

if you can find one the p76 leyland v8 engine has the same bores as 3.5 so no issues there with liner/block/head problems but as its a longer stroke its 4.4l about the same power as 4.6 but built way back in 73.

They were the basis for most race rover v8's (if you read david harcastles book, power tuning rover v8's you will see) and they are quite the engine and fit very well , almost bolt straight in a rover v8 application. just a question of finding one! most are in aus or NZ. I was quoted £620 to ship one to the uk

NorthernGit said:

RIght the more i dig into this .. the more i realise that for bigger power the automatics are favoured... I would have thought a manual would be more fun?

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big power will kill autos - auto is great for off road though.

also big power from a rover v8 is hard to get. 4.6 with a cam (suitable for a land rover), heads and mapping will give about 280hp. all of the engine is pretty restrictive.

you can get over 300hp from the 4.6 but you'll need to use a pretty wild cam which is totally unsuitable for a heavy slow brick like a land rover.