A Very PistonHeads Christmas.
Discussion
Well I've had a splendid week on EBay spending lots of my father's money for him.... been buying up lots of little bits and pieces for the E-Type. Hopefully it's most of the parts we need to give us something to work on over the Christmas break. This means that my entire Christmas break will be spent with grease under the fingernails and the sweet smell of petrol vapour mixed with the scent of Connolly hides soaking into my pores.... With any luck, by early January we'll be almost in a position to send the old girl off to be certified and then she'll be registered.... GLORY BE 
How will you be spending your Christmas? I know that with mine I'll be in PH cloud nine!
The bonus is that I'm closing in on my financial target which means I can start buying in stuff for Project TR7....... the journey is about to begin.
Merry Christmas to all PHers from me and my babies!
How will you be spending your Christmas? I know that with mine I'll be in PH cloud nine!
The bonus is that I'm closing in on my financial target which means I can start buying in stuff for Project TR7....... the journey is about to begin. Merry Christmas to all PHers from me and my babies!
Sounds great George, I bet your Dad will be pleased when he sees the bill 
"whats these TR parts doing on here" he says 
Happy Xmas to you!
We are heading to Timaru and Fairlie to see the folks and relatives. Have hired a brand new black XR6 for the whole trip. Taking some more photos for the artwork side of things in the Lindis Pass, spending a night in Clyde with some mates and got a house sorted for new years in Queenstown should be a great time.
Back to work on the 10th Jan. Not much of a PHers holiday not being able to drive black beauty, but we did make the effort of forking out for a half decent looking car for the travels. Might even post something when we get back.
"whats these TR parts doing on here" he says Happy Xmas to you! We are heading to Timaru and Fairlie to see the folks and relatives. Have hired a brand new black XR6 for the whole trip. Taking some more photos for the artwork side of things in the Lindis Pass, spending a night in Clyde with some mates and got a house sorted for new years in Queenstown should be a great time.
Back to work on the 10th Jan. Not much of a PHers holiday not being able to drive black beauty, but we did make the effort of forking out for a half decent looking car for the travels. Might even post something when we get back.
Merry Xmas to you all! I should be finishing off the TVR mods and waiting it's front-end respray (clumsy driver reversed into it - bugger all damage though). I may also do a couple of bits on the WRX (new stereo).
Hey George, your funds could be available at a very good time as I hear a reasonably priced 5.0litre Rover could be coming up for sale very soon with most of the bits you'll need to get it up and running in the TR.......
Hey George, your funds could be available at a very good time as I hear a reasonably priced 5.0litre Rover could be coming up for sale very soon with most of the bits you'll need to get it up and running in the TR.......
Hehehe Jamie I'm certainly considering it,.... but having said that, my plans are a bit more ambitious than a 5.0L TVR unit.... the only standard thing about my engine is going to be the block casting, everything, including the liners are going in the bin I'm afraid.... But we'll see.... if I've regained my sanity by the time this engine becomes available I might consider it :P
Roger A said:
that's one Gorgeous looking Jag!
Have fun over Christmas.
i'll be leaving my new baby locked up in the garage and taking to the 4wd for the trip to Tuateawa (Coromandel) for a cuppla weeks of lazing about.
Sounds nice and relaxing. I'm heading to my sister's in Paeroa for Christmas itself, but then heading down to Havelock North over Boxing Day to spend the rest of my 2 weeks down there laxing out at the folks' place. Might even REG and WOF the TR7 and put some miles on her for a christmas treat
Forget sanity George listen to ME!
A 5.0litre ex-TVR Rover will have PLENTY of power for your TR. Buy it, it's going to be a reasonable price, and if it's not enough for you then you'll have a good basis for future development. Even if you decide it's not enough you could still sell the rotating assembly as a stroker kit to offset your initial outlay. Remember with this you won't even need to get a computer or spend hours on the dyno - it will work straight out the box and will give most things on the road a bloody nose.
Install it then spend the next year sorting out the inadequate suspension, brakes, gearbox, broken drive shafts etc etc.
Oh and whilst you're about it get rid of the bloody tartan!
A 5.0litre ex-TVR Rover will have PLENTY of power for your TR. Buy it, it's going to be a reasonable price, and if it's not enough for you then you'll have a good basis for future development. Even if you decide it's not enough you could still sell the rotating assembly as a stroker kit to offset your initial outlay. Remember with this you won't even need to get a computer or spend hours on the dyno - it will work straight out the box and will give most things on the road a bloody nose.
Install it then spend the next year sorting out the inadequate suspension, brakes, gearbox, broken drive shafts etc etc.
Oh and whilst you're about it get rid of the bloody tartan!
jamieheasman said:
Forget sanity George listen to ME!
A 5.0litre ex-TVR Rover will have PLENTY of power for your TR. Buy it, it's going to be a reasonable price, and if it's not enough for you then you'll have a good basis for future development. Even if you decide it's not enough you could still sell the rotating assembly as a stroker kit to offset your initial outlay. Remember with this you won't even need to get a computer or spend hours on the dyno - it will work straight out the box and will give most things on the road a bloody nose.
Install it then spend the next year sorting out the inadequate suspension, brakes, gearbox, broken drive shafts etc etc.
Oh and whilst you're about it get rid of the bloody tartan!
I'll admit Jamie it's tempting and I'll certainly give it some thought... if the price is right I'll snap it up, and dump it in as-is (well it won't be a dump-in as I'll still be bolting a new gearbox and new rear end up to it and that'll take a while to sort) I'll then strip and rebuild the chassis and cage and interior and run it as a 500-engined car for a while... I might THEN scratch-build myself a RV8 insanity engine to replace it at a later date... but we'll see... if the price is right I could possibly be persuaded
In any case it'll be about the quickest TR7 around. What sort of ACTUAL power are those 500 Engines? Paul told me it's a TVR 340bhp engine which should mean that if it's a good'un it'll be about 300 flat eh?
Realistically? Probably about 260-280bhp and 320+ lb/ft torque which is where these engines really excel and where they have an advantage over a similarly priced Chevvy.
Of course the power will be affected by how well you can get air into and out of it - are the headers any good that will allow the Rover to fit in the TR?
At the end of the day I think the most attractive aspect of going this route is that you'll be able to use the car a lot sooner and develop it at your leisure. Speaking as someone who's car was all too frequently off the road during engine development, I can tell you that this is where your car deteriorates through lack of use and your enthusiasm for the project can waver. You can also spread out the costs a lot more effectively.
All IMHO of course!
Of course the power will be affected by how well you can get air into and out of it - are the headers any good that will allow the Rover to fit in the TR?
At the end of the day I think the most attractive aspect of going this route is that you'll be able to use the car a lot sooner and develop it at your leisure. Speaking as someone who's car was all too frequently off the road during engine development, I can tell you that this is where your car deteriorates through lack of use and your enthusiasm for the project can waver. You can also spread out the costs a lot more effectively.
All IMHO of course!
I see said engine is for sale on TradeMe :
www.trademe.co.nz/Trade-Me-Motors/Car-parts/Performance/Core-engine/auction-19815155.htm
Opening bid of $7,000 - you couldn't buy the wool and knit it for that!
Good luck whatever you decide.
www.trademe.co.nz/Trade-Me-Motors/Car-parts/Performance/Core-engine/auction-19815155.htm
Opening bid of $7,000 - you couldn't buy the wool and knit it for that!
Good luck whatever you decide.
Hehe
Yeah I decided that it was the right thing to do.... I still plan to build a nuts-out engine down the track... but using this as a test-bed engine to see what a TR7 is like with ~300bhp should be a good move..... Only thing I need now is a T5 gearbox to suit... I'm getting the bellhousing but not Paul's gearbox. If you know of any, let me know.... you might be outta luck on the commission, but I'll buy ya a lager next time I see you
Yeah I decided that it was the right thing to do.... I still plan to build a nuts-out engine down the track... but using this as a test-bed engine to see what a TR7 is like with ~300bhp should be a good move..... Only thing I need now is a T5 gearbox to suit... I'm getting the bellhousing but not Paul's gearbox. If you know of any, let me know.... you might be outta luck on the commission, but I'll buy ya a lager next time I see you
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