SA built Land Rover Defender 2.8i

[E-B]

Hi all,

I've posted this in the LR section of the Forum but thought i might stick it up here too.

Does anyone here know much about the BMW M52 2.8i engine that was fitted in the SA built Defenders between '97 and 2000?

I know a few were imported into the UK and the fit was developed jointly between the factory in Pretoria and LR here in the UK.

What i'm trying to find out is things like:

Were the chassis used V8 or tdi/td5 chassis or were they bespoke?
Were the gearboxes tdi or V8 versions?
The part numbers of the bellhousing and the engine mounts.
and in general what parts differ from BMW car fitment?

Reason is that i need to replace the V8 in my RRC with an engine not exceeding 3.5L with a maximum of 6 cyls. This would allow me to compete in stage rallies. It would also mean that there wouldn't be much of a problem with regard to insurance etc as all the parts would have a LR part number etc.

your help as always is greatly appreciated.

Cheers E-B

[norman156]

If you're still looking for the above information this thread may be of use to you:

http://pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&f...

[E-B]

Cheers for that