VVC unit going cheap... do I or don't I?

[Meldonte]

So Chaps, need a bit of advice ASAP please,

It appears my old Rover Tomcat that I sold to a mate may be off to the scrap yard in the sky tomorrow - he just can't be arsed to wait for it to sell anymore. It has 8 months tax and MOT aswell I believe and apart from a couple of issues there is nothing wrong with it - crying shame but it's his car now and he can do what he wants with it.

The scrap man had offered him 175 quid which I think is an absolute joke but there we go and he is all for driving it there and leaving it today....

Now I had always liked the idea of putting rebuilding the vvc unit in it and putting it in the caterham after I bought it so a part of the car that served me so well for so many years would live on...sad I know but it was prohibitively costly when you can buy a vvc 160 engine on ebay for about 600 quid. Now this has changed, I could buy the car back for 175, take the engine out and flog a few bits / weigh it in and for a bit of effort probably come out of this cost neutral I would have thought (selling bumpers/wing mirrors/trim/interior etc separately).


Now the real question is, is the engine any use to me?

My ultimate goal is VVC-R spec - roughly 180-190bhp. I would like to keep the VVC in just because as an engineer I appreciate the technology, but understand similar gains can be had from blanking it off and fitting pipers.

Now, the engine is a EU2 spec 145bhp 1800KVVC =106,000 miles, not had a particularly easy life for the last 40,000 if I'm honest () but has had regular oil changes.

The engine in the cat is a ~5000 mile 140bhp minister power supersport 1600k with forged pistons and I suppose uprated cams and pulls like a train.

Which bits can I use from the VVC lump to help blend the two toward my end goal (obviously with a rebuild for vvc bits etc.)? So far I think it is only the ECU, 5AS, uprated oil ladder I put on it, the Crankshaft (with new shells) and the VVC head (ported further and recut valve seats).

This would give me a 1800k vvc with forged pistons and uprated oil ladder for the price of some oil/coolant and a bit of elbow grease from which I would only need to add emerald and throttle bodies to get to my desired spec, non? (cat already has a 4-1 manifold)

What worries me is the fatigue life left in the VVC mechanism before it goes pop (its done 106k), especially as I am not going to be overly kind to it in the caterham?

Sorry for the long ramble, thoughts please?

[BSA627]

Please correct me if i am wrong but it sounds like your on a very tight budget, I have found from passed experiences

It never pays to cut corners whilst building a race engine, The time you strip the Engine down and replace all bearing sets , gaskets , long bolts , etc machining of the head or block deck , Over hauling the VVC mechanism etc its not going to be cheap.

[BSA627]

Or have i got the wrong end of the stick ? Do you want to keep your bottom end and just replace your head with the 1600 VVC one?

[Meldonte]

Yes and no. I don't have endless money to throw at it but I like the idea of the best part of the tomcat staying alive. I would essentially be hoping to swap the crank and head (rebuilt) onto the minister lump to make an 1800 vvc with forged pistons, then at a later date put roller barrels and a flashed eu3 mems with vvc-r map on for a tractable 180bhp.

I take your point about cutting corners but as far as I see it some costs can be cut without cutting corners

[DVandrews]

The VVC mechs are an accident waiting to happen, they fail at higher mileages at an alarming rate and will quickly lunch our engine if they do.

You'll need the VVC crank, rods, head, cambelt covers, tensioner and a new set of liners, rings and bearings. Depending on the vintage of your engine you may also need the bottom cam sprocket and pulley from the VVC. If you are retaining the VVC mechs you may find you need the VVC offside engine mount from Caterham too.

Swapping the forged pistons to the 1800 rods will be a non trivial job as the interference fit isnt really safely re-usable once the old pistons are pushed off, you would really need to bush the small ends of the rods and have circlip grooves machined into the pistons (if they are not already there) to allow fully floating fitment.

I've yet to see a successful VVC engine with TBs, generally the results are dissapointing.

You might want to trade the exhaust cam for one with a bit more lift and duration, this will help.

Dave

Edited by DVandrews on Saturday 28th January 16:53

[Meldonte]

Dave,

Thanks for such an informed reply.

I have looked into it and discovered a few (but not all) of the stumbling blocks you pointed out so have decided not to go ahead. It would end up being far too much hassle with the limited free time I have these days. The engine is EU2 as you say which adds even more complications in the way.

As sad as it is I think I will let the tomcat go to its final resting place I'll steal the drivers seat out of it and make a good office chair anyway.

Don't suppose anyone wants to save a tahiti blue VVC Tomcat as a runabout - 106k miles, slightly tatty on the outside, immaculate interior, 8 months MOT, 1 months tax? £250 - alot of car for the money if you ask me! (Mods if this is classed as advertising just remove..)