Which engine

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blink_turbo

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Hi,

Im thinking about buying a Range Rover as a bit of a toy. I had wanted a 4.6V8 from about 98ish of a decent interior spec.

I have just been told today that the 4.0l engine is much better as the 4.6 is a bored out 3.5l old Rover engine.

I definately want a petrol engine and im not bothered about fuel consumption and dont mind fixing it when it breaks but I would like to be able to drive it once in a while!

Any pointers would be appriciated :)
 
is the 4.6 problematic against the 4.0? Im being told that they over did it a bit and it overheats a lot and the 4.0 is better
 
i got a 4.0 and that has gone as far as i can see both the same problems. but after that said when they is good thay is very good.
 
i suppose in a 10-12 year old car, anythings possible. I have to admit, i fancy the 4.6, just didnt want to run into loads more problems than the 4.0 would give.

Is the top spec the vogue by the way? Just seems to be loads of different interiors on these with no way to know whats what!
 
blink_turbo said:
i suppose in a 10-12 year old car, anythings possible. I have to admit, i fancy the 4.6, just didnt want to run into loads more problems than the 4.0 would give.

he way? Is the top spec the vogue by tJust seems to be loads of different interiors on these with no way to know whats what!
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:DIt is SE then HSE then Vogue then Autobiography( Which is what ever the first owner wanted on it) but you also have several specials around such as Holland & Holland, Overfinch etc hope that helps:D
 
is the 4.6 problematic against the 4.0? Im being told that they over did it a bit and it overheats a lot and the 4.0 is better
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Nope. As Gav says the 4.6 just has a longer stroke. Its a bit of a urban myth that they all overheat. The earlier GEMS engines had a dodgy fuel map that ran them hot under certain conditions leading to cooking engines and head gasket failure and liner slip. The later THOR engined motors from 98 on are a lot better and although its not unknown for them to overheat it is less likely as they use a Motronic engine management that is a lot better.
 
rewmer said:
Nope. As Gav says the 4.6 just has a longer stroke. Its a bit of a urban myth that they all overheat. The earlier GEMS engines had a dodgy fuel map that ran them hot under certain conditions leading to cooking engines and head gasket failure and liner slip. The later THOR engined motors from 98 on are a lot better and although its not unknown for them to overheat it is less likely as they use a Motronic engine management that is a lot better.
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And the dodgy fuel map is a myth too,load of crap put out by various peeps who were either trying to sell chip upgrades or just didnt know.
 
Thanks for the help, was it 1998 when the Lucas engine management gave way to the Bosch then? is there an easy way to spot the Bosch ones?

Thought the vogue was top spec, not many autobiography ones about, i like the cream leather trim best I think
 
Bosch (Thor) engines can be recognised by the inlet manifold, they have what is best described as a bunch of bananas. The earlier ones have a square plenum chamber with the CC on it (4.0 4.6).

Ally,(Sorry, Eight) so what are your thoughts on the GEMS then ? are you saying there are no issues with them ? I stand to be corrected, and will always bow to your experience :eek:
 
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First time anyone has noticed that ! ;)
I realised that there was nothing wrong with 14CUX,Gems or fuel maps ages ago when I started scoping Oxygen sensors.(Mostly to tune LPG systems or sort out Emissions failures.) They simply run properly,doing all you would expect of a modern,(Ish) closed loop engine with the Oxy sensors cycling nicely under light throttle or cruise conditions,switch rich immediately when large throttle openings happen and go lean on overrun.The other suprising thing is how quickly Oxy sensors start switching during warm up,its just that the ecu keeps the rich side of the cycle longer till it gets to up to temp.
I have a customer with a 4Ltr Gems which I fitted Mark Adams chips to,this does pretty much the same as standard except the ecu is more willing to go open loop when you boot it,plus I would imagine the igniton advance curve is more aggressive - makes it run more like a modern OHC multivalve engine.
My opinion is that for a mass produced design,94mm bore was too much for the original block size - given the indifferent quality control.If they had been built with stepped liners from the start it would have been fine.The most irritating thing to me is the way so many of them end up being scrapped as a result of cracked blocks.
One last comment I would make is that in my opinion the engine was always best at 3.5 ltrs,a decent one is smoother,longer lasting and MUCH more tolerant of abuse than any of the bigger ones - bit like the A series engines in Morris Minors,always better at 948cc than they were as a 1098cc unit.
Sorry to dribble on.....
 
i think the fact tht they were trying to bore the engine out as large as they could was the main oversight!!

has anyone ever stroked a 3.5? (was it the old 4.2?) maybe a stroked 3.5 with all the adjustments to make it fit the p38 would be the ideal route?

to be honest the top hat linered block looks about as bullit proof as these engines can be, locking the pressure in where it should be means the relatively low pressure of the coolant system can be sealed with an addative sealer if it does put water into the oil (dont see why it would tho)

the top hats looked impressive hen i bought mine and i would expect it to last a while!
 
Purely from a interest point of view I've done head gaskets on a v8 which I was very dubious about the liners.

It has continued to suffer overheating even though heads were skimmed and crack tested.

Evidence of very very minor exhaust gas into coolant, hairline crack perhaps'

So I K sealed it and am looking to find another lump, so far no overheating and other weird issues- see how long it lasts.

I also believe it's possible for liners to slip on severe overheating and under normal operating conditions not move again.
While I agree composite gasket better generally, any slight lip on liner will give sequential head gasket failure.

£0.99 pence steel headgaskets and we will see
 
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i have found that poorly earthed engines all cause the porus block problem due to excess static electricity arcing though the block to the piston to this end i always fit a few extra earth straps and use a very strong good antifreeze to help.
me personaly go for a 4.6 if you do have gas make sure it is a multi point system not mono.
the 4.2 was a 3.9 block with a stroked crank and rods from the defunc diesel v8 called icberg
 
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vougese39 said:
i have found that poorly earthed engines all cause the porus block problem due to excess static electricity arcing though the block to the piston to this end i always fit a few extra earth straps and use a very strong good antifreeze to help.
me personaly go for a 4.6 if you do have gas make sure it is a multi point system not mono
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Fook me is it april 1st already :doh:
 
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