Alternative Engine's (V8) for the Excel

[257spring]

your engine as is £400 if you are very lucky
Carbs if ok£400
starter and alternator £150
dizzy and ign. amplifier £50
total £1000
cheapest v 8 available- old rover v8 £250 rebuild £1000
exhaust manifolds about from mg v8 say £500 exhaust £200
carbs, £200
starter and alternator £150
total £2300
Engineering to chassis and new bell housing £1500 at least unless you can do it yourself.
you may diagree with some of the above estimates but the short awnser to your qauestion is NO.
i think that you have four options, fix the engine and enjoy the car say £400, fix the engine and sell the car, sell as is or, finally, get lotus bits to fit a replacement engine, £800 for engine plus fitting say £400 plus vat.

Don't agree with these figure's but get your point, like lots of people just waiting for the
time/money and opportunity to get this moving. Cheer's

[257spring]

Also in my book £400 is an overestimate of the value of old/used unrestored DHLA45 carbs. £200 - £250 for a pair or ropey ones is more like it unless you wait for the unwary willing to pay over the odds.

If I were in your position (caught-out having bought a dog with no auto-mechanical knowledge and apparently little extra money to spend), I'd do as advised and find a 2nd hand Lotus 912 engine, fit it, then sell the car on to recoupe at least some of the money spent so far. Much easier to sell a complete runner with original parts than an abandoned transplant project.

Then, if you still really want another Excel, wait for a really good one to come along with no issues and be prepared to pay good money (£5K - £7K).

You can only run a Lotus on the cheap if you buy a GOOD one with NO issues OR you're prepared to do ALL of the work yourself and beg /borrow or steal the parts you need, because parts tend to be expensive.

You're not the first, and won't be the last, to be caught-out by the apparent low values of the 70's/80's 2+2 Lotus cars.

Tar, first thing is price up a gasket set, I know I can do this job, be really careful etc, It's just I an't got the tools for it, it looks like lotus have used some different arrangments in there engines, requiring some different tools.
This cars cost me less than a grand so far so not overly worried about the cost's should still be even, even after this problem.

[257spring]

Have bearly any money, but willing to offer free tea to anyone close by with the tool's to change the head gaskets, I've grow attached to this car, I think sometime's you've got to get to know how to treat the car and I didn't realize what I was doing,what are these cars? Race cars right, it's not a GT car, it's not a run about. It's not really what I'd call a sports car. It's a race car.

Ps- do have some stuff to trade.

There just isn't that much tools needed you could buy them for like £20-30.
I changed my headgasket in about 5hrs, FIRST time ive done it on an lotus so quite fast.
Sadly i live in sweden and don't have ability to help you but i am sure u can find someone in the forum who is willing to help for a dinner, cup of coffe(tea for you haha) and 20 quid

I was looking at torque wrench's they started at 75 quid!! I'll keep looking, cheers mate!

[257spring]

Or alternatively, Mazda rotary !!!!
http://www.alsoranracing.com/?cat=7

Bash

Really like this, but the fuel comsumption! like the sounds of the Lexus V8 also,
but needs must at the minute..

[yroll]

Have bearly any money, but willing to offer free tea to anyone close by with the tool's to change the head gaskets, I've grow attached to this car, I think sometime's you've got to get to know how to treat the car and I didn't realize what I was doing,what are these cars? Race cars right, it's not a GT car, it's not a run about. It's not really what I'd call a sports car. It's a race car.

Ps- do have some stuff to trade.

There just isn't that much tools needed you could buy them for like £20-30.
I changed my headgasket in about 5hrs, FIRST time ive done it on an lotus so quite fast.
Sadly i live in sweden and don't have ability to help you but i am sure u can find someone in the forum who is willing to help for a dinner, cup of coffe(tea for you haha) and 20 quid

I was looking at torque wrench's they started at 75 quid!! I'll keep looking, cheers mate!

yeah forgot about the torquewrench (facepalm), maybe you can borrow a friends? or maybe just have a machanic do just that bit.
you know it's only the head fastening nuts that need to be torque (if you are able to feel in your arm when its enough on all other).

[257spring]

Got bad news from lotus bits

my SE 912 180hp engine is needing a full rebuild,

Now I'm thinking that the easist thing to do is swap it for the supra engine which will fit directly onto the gearbox, I guess you'd have to fix up the engine mounts, and I sure there's more to it, but with some gizzmo added I'm sure it wouldn't be to hard.

But this Idea about the Jag V8.. sounds like it comes from the dark side.

Got 500 quid and the old engine to trade, can it be done or is the lake in Derbyshire a better bet??

[Ozzy_UK]

a 6pot supra twin turbo would be a bit mental you also have the option of the Lexus engines (which also used the W58 box right up until 2004 ish) again straight 6...



it is also my understanding that this puppy bolts right up too:


personally im all for the Jag V8 though (thats due to family connections and history, as my uncle invented the lister jaguar)

make sure you go for an AJ26 or newer though... very very well built engines, 300bhp in stock format, the bottom end (build by cosworth) can handle almost 750bhp without modification.

Oz.

[Lotus-e-Clan]

Pretty sure none of the Toyota engines will fit without a serious bonnet bulge .... and then there's the engine management side of things ... so you'll have plenty of grief to look forward to until you have a reliably running and aesthetically acceptable Excel ...you will need to have good automotive skills or the dosh to pay someone else to help you out.

I think most on here would agree that your best option is to buy a used 912 (or 907) engine.

[invjbo]

Quite interesting thread with alternatives and ideas. There have been som Rover conversions and we all have seen the Toyota V8 conversion. But without knowing better couldn´t the Esprit V8 be an option here, just to maintain the brand or is it agailn the problems with turbos and heat?

[Ozzy_UK]

Pretty sure none of the Toyota engines will fit without a serious bonnet bulge .... and then there's the engine management side of things ... so you'll have plenty of grief to look forward to until you have a reliably running and aesthetically acceptable Excel ...you will need to have good automotive skills or the dosh to pay someone else to help you out.

I think most on here would agree that your best option is to buy a used 912 (or 907) engine.

emerald ECU - £400-500 2nd hand, and canbus compatable, can run a v8 in wasted spark configuration, its the road i am going down

[257spring]

The name of the puppy that bolts right in?

[Ozzy_UK]

The name of the puppy that bolts right in?

step by step here:

http://www.stancenation.com/forums/show ... ota-Lexus)

obviously we have the gearbox not the engine, as opposed to this guide where the engine is already fitted...

would probably need a small sump modification, and some custom engine mounts, fuel injection system (pump, swirl pot, fuel tank mod), and an ally rad to improve cooling of 8 cylinders instead of 4...

1UZFE is the toyota/lexus lump...

all parts available off the shelf except engine mounts that your local fab shop can build, and a custom exhaust will be needed (just headers & down pipes)...

Oz.

[Simpatico]

[257spring]

Thought you meant it bolted strait into the engine bay, My mistake, guess only the lotus engine will do that.

So which is the best Lexus engine? that will bolt strait to the W58 gearbox no fuss. These strait six's sound interesting. But what do I look for, what do I type into the search engine?

I want to move on this soon there's this rover on e-bay, the guy reckens it's got less than 100 thousand onit. If I buy something then I can get the old one out, start selling parts and recoup some losses,

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/281087588736? ... _133wt_972

or this lexus, will this bolt strait on?

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Lexus-IS-400- ... _252wt_972

Or maybe wisest to get this, and swap the engine when the tax runs out, here's the thing- it's probably a nicer car than the lotus!

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/230957501650? ... 1132wt_972

[Ozzy_UK]

Thought you meant it bolted strait into the engine bay, My mistake, guess only the lotus engine will do that.

So which is the best Lexus engine? that will bolt strait to the W58 gearbox no fuss. These strait six's sound interesting. But what do I look for, what do I type into the search engine?

I want to move on this soon there's this rover on e-bay, the guy reckens it's got less than 100 thousand onit. If I buy something then I can get the old one out, start selling parts and recoup some losses,

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/281087588736? ... _133wt_972

join the V8owners forum, some great advice, and very knowledgeable people on there...

any engine conversion is a bit of a faff unless your buying an off the shelf kit from a well developed source... hence most people go back to the stock engine...

theres loads of lumps that bolt to the W58, but you have to change the bell housings for the appropraite engine... probably 6 or 7 different bell housings that i know of for the W58, and R154 transmissions, some of which fit both gearboxes... theres lots of options withe W58, and the R154 which is a common swap for the W58 with higher power outputs...

Oz.