After seeing a view pics and reviews of 1600's with the Rover all alloy 4.2lt V8. I have put this conversion up for serious consideration.

How Much for one of these Rover V8's ??

What Rover are they from ?

Anyone have a idea on weight ?

One owner of such a car said it weighed less than the standard L-series ! Is this possible ??

What sort of power in standard NA form do these motors make ?

Any info on this topic would be great.

Thanks

Dave

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1975 P610/180B SSS ex PRC3 Rally car (parts car)
1974 P610/180B SSS (parts car)
1972 P510/1600 Currently sitting untouched
1977 P610/180B Wagon Daily Driver

I'm no expert, but have driven an MGB powered by a Rover V8 (only the 3.5 version). It certainly went extremely well, and handled well also. From memory, it had a Supra 5 speed that was fitted with a bellhousing that enabled it to bolt up to the rover motor.

One lasting memory is of it in a motorkhana (driven by the owner) dissappearing in a cloud of tyre smoke that it generated.

Colin Bond also campaigned a Triumph TR7 powered by one of these in rallies in the early 80's. Used to be extremely good value to watch.

The Rover V8's were available in a range of capacities from 3.5 up to 4.2, and were fitted to a fair range of Rover cars, along with a few other makes who used them. They were originally based on a Buick engine, I believe.

You could even go the 4.4 out of a Leyland P76, which was based on the same engine.

The "same weight as an L4" is based on the fact that they are an all-alloy motor (ie alloy block).

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1970 ex Group A Rally P510
1971 P510
1972 180B SSS
1965 SP310 Fairlady
1966 SP311 Fairlady

I have seen some Buick V8s with automatics
The Buick was the same weight maybe slightly less.
My buddys TR8 Automatic( real one) had ABOUT 140HP at the crank. it did go well. before he rolled it.I believe this is the Rover motor 3500
Personally I would keep it Nissan.

FUKC keeping it Nissan - jeezus

actually the rover V8s are available up to 4.6L - in the HSE 4WDs. expect to pay about $7k for one of these from a wrecker or about the same for a crate engine. hmmm...which one would i choose....?

you'll want the "stiff block" version - 1984 onwards 3.9L. they have a webbed valley and are infintely stronger than the 3.5L they replace. they also have a 3 part EFI inlet manifold with individual trumpets and runners which makes custom inlet manifold very easy to produce if clearance is an issue.

the 3.9L weighs 185kg with inlet manifold.

add an M90 supercharger kit and traction becomes a thing of the past.

talk to Jordan Rover Tech here in Perth for more info.

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frankenstein projects R us.

The Republic of Western Australia -
Propping up the Nation's Economy since 1901.

Mike King (I think that's his name) was at the Datnats with 4.2L rover V8 in an r30 skyline. His son had a 1600 with a V8 but I can't remember which one, I think it may have been a 5L commonwhore donk.

Anyway if he is on these forums he knew all there was to know about converting to the rover V8's and I had a good 20min chat with him

I saw a fitting kit for a 3.5L rover V8 going for sale on ebay a little while back, including engine mounts, bellhousing adapator to bolt the motor to a standard Lseries, and a modified sump. went for about $200 US i think?

The 3.5 is lighter then the L20...damn all alloy motors...

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78' 200B. 5 speed, extractors, 2 1/2" exhaust, 32/36 weber, 14" mags, Elec ign, Redlands motor. Slowly Pulling parts off while still driving around. Tree unfortunately signed its death cert.

Recommended Traders: Datsport

The later 3.5 blocks (1983 onwards) were also "stiff block". I don't know exactly what they weigh, except that mine topped the bathroom scales at over 145kg (complete engine without torque converter). I'd say it's perfectly feasible that a 3.5 would weigh the same as an L20 (certainly less than an FJ20)

They are a good reliable engine, with about 200hp in standard (efi) form. The standard ECU, AFM, fuel pump and injectors are good for about 280hp.

Of course the low compression version (fitted to a lot of later Australian models) lends itself nicely to a turbo or supercharger setup - allegedly....

Expect to pay around $500 for a going engine, although bargains do come up occasionally (mine cost me well under that )

The 4.4 engine is basically the same, with a 3.5" stroke (compared to 2.73" or something for the 3500). These are early 70's vintage, so not as refined (and I use the term loosely) as the later 3500's, but still a good basis for upgrades. They have very small ports and valves, making them good for torque, but lousy for power (about 190hp @ 4000RPM, 390Nm torque).

Aaron - yeh, we should keep it Nissan, but some of us are just a bit more demented than others . Picking up the first of my turbos on Thursday next week, bu which time the second should have arrived in the mail

Warps

thanks for the info

So you have done this conversion. Was it auto ? Whats it in ?

I might have to get onto an engineer for the legality of a 3.5 V8 in a 1600.
Normally I would never think of putting a V8 in a 1600 due to the typical V8's weight and size, but these Rover V8's are light and small.

Realisticly what would this conversion cost me?

Thanks

Dave

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1975 P610/180B SSS ex PRC3 Rally car (parts car)
1974 P610/180B SSS (parts car)
1972 P510/1600 Currently sitting untouched
1977 P610/180B Wagon Daily Driver

I didn't do the conversion myself. I have a 240K with a P76 4.4 engine, mated to a steel case Celica 5 speed (I think - have yet to confirm whether it;s a Celica or Supra, but I'm 80% sure it's a Celica).

The conversion's a bit ordinary - the right hand extractors were too close to the steering box, so the engine has been mounted at an angle. This means the whole engine sits too high, and a hole had to be cut through the bonnet to fit the air cleaner through (Holley 500)

I couldn't get the holley working (leaked fuel no matter what I did to it) so decided to EFI it. I bought a complete Rover 3500 for the EFI, but decided it's simpler to throw the whole engine into the Datto. I currently have no room or time to work on it, so haven't done much more, apart from design new mounts.

The Rover also has a lot more room on the right hand side (starter motor is oriented differently to let the exhaust pass) so I can mount the engine properly.

One day I'll get around to fitting the engine in there properly, and getting the whole EFI setup working. The EFI is pretty basic (fuel only) so would be a dead easy swap into any other car (as long as you get all the sensors)

You can usually pick up a complete EFI Rover 3500 for a grand or so, giving you all the bits you need for the engine. You can pick up bell housing from Dellow Automotive (they make them to suit Celica and Supra 5 speeds) and of course the 5 speed box.

Then you need to get exhaust, cooling system, gearbox mounts etc. made up for it. I'd factor about $3k for everything if you did a lot of the work yourself, but you could probably get stuff done cheaper if you know people.

No idea whether it would be legal in a 1600 (I doubt it) and I don't think I'd do that to a 1600. I know it's hypocritical of me to say that, I bought mine as is, and like the fact that the engine is a lot lighter than the standard L6 that came out. One day mine will return to a Nissan I6, probably with at least one turbo, but for now, I'll have some V8 dinosaur fun

Dave, tracys rover had over 4K spent on it & the old SC stanza saw it off no probs,
I think that, & the fact that it drank fuel like crazy, helped make up her mind to get the Cima.
Leave it alone mate.

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A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.
www.datsport.com

"R.I.P. Baz. 29 April 2022. Thank you for all your contributions to the Datsun community over the years. You will be missed." - OZDAT

Baz

I was counting on you to have something to say about your Rover.
How much did the Rover weigh ? I'm guessing around 1500 kgs
You think similar money could be spent on a cima VG30 ?
No motor swap anyway until the current L18 dies.

Baz here is a pic of the Mirrors I am after.
Are these the ones you can get ??

This car won the "Most Original" Award.

So I would be guessing that those are factory mirrors.
Also notice the bumper over-riders

Here is a awesome Jap 1600 with same mirrors but mat black, painted I'm guessing.

again same mirrors, sweet 1600.

Baz if you can get me some of those mirrors for a half decent price, you can have my First born child. Seriously though they look sweet and are the look I'm after for my 1600.

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1975 P610/180B SSS ex PRC3 Rally car (parts car)
1974 P610/180B SSS (parts car)
1972 P510/1600 Currently sitting untouched
1977 P610/180B Wagon Daily Driver

Spoke to the SA RTA today about the guard mirrors.
I was informed that only the factory style with the spring base is legal.

So Baz/anyone I am after a set of the above mirrors.

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1975 P610/180B SSS ex PRC3 Rally car (parts car)
1974 P610/180B SSS (parts car)
1972 P510/1600 Currently sitting untouched
1977 P610/180B Wagon Daily Driver

Twin Turbo V8 Im assuming??

in the 240k? which turbos?

Sorry if you've said all this before I mustn't have been paying attention.

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Errr did i say that?

Yes, I'm looking at bolting a couple of small turbos onto the V8, just for a larf (and to see how strong those Celica boxes really were).

I haven't said too much around here because:
a) By the time I get around to doing it, I'll have changed my mind 20 times
b) I don't want to be one of these "yeah, when I put my 650hp quad turbo Ferrari V12 in there I'll run flat 10's on street tyres" type wankers
c) i wanto to wait till I actually have something to talk about before advertising what I'm doing (have done).

Yes, there's a shiite load of engineering to do, which I'm slowly plodding my way through. This is all an exercise in "how much of this can I develop myself, on a mopderate budget [1] and actually get it to work".

Don't hold your breath - I'm not.

[1]Turbo selection was based on one very important criterion: Price. That the compressor map actually suits a 1.75 OHV engine quite nicely [2]is just a very lucky fluke.
[2] Truth be told, the turbos are a bit small for outright performance on the engine. Since I hate the power delivery of highly strung turbos, it should still be a nice drive, with enough power to make life interesting.

Sweet sounds like an interesting project. Let us know how it goes...

I know what you mean about changing your mind, I'm the worlds worst!

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