The BritishV8 Pub

Hi, Jed. Glad you finally joined the fun over here. You are right...this is home! :)

Hi boys and girls. I am the owner of a 71 TR6 with a 2.0L Ecotec LSJ. I am very happy to report that it is running very well. I find excuses to jump in it and drive. I think my car has the weight/HP ratio the TR6 should have had from the factory. It is a very well mannered car with a ton of power. I have a smaller SC pulley producing 12 lbs boost, GM world class T-5, 4.08 R200 diff, GP CV hub/axle the engine delivers 218 rwhp. The engine happily yields 29.5 mpg highway; 5th gear is 0.63. I will be placing a summary and pictures in the Gallery later.

Welcome Albert. It is good to see another SC user aboard. We look forward to some pictures and a description.

Jim

Hi all,

I just found this site because of youtube. Another member posted a link to his pictures on this site. I gotta say I am already falling in love with this site.

I live in Upstate NY, a little north of Syracuse, NY and have a 1971 TR6 with a 300HP SBC crate motor and a tremec T5 transmission.

When I retired from the Air Force I started looking for a Triumph but always liked the idea of V8 power I found my little gem on eBay, brought it home to NY from Utah and hope to start a frame off full restoration in the next couple of years. It is a very nice car now just missing the details I would like it to have.

I look forward to learning many, many things from this organization.

Brad

Welcome Brad! we are glad to have you. several SBC and SBF plus LS TR-6's. Even have a Ford 4 cyl Turbo. please begin planning to attend our events. You will meet the great people. SAFETY FASTER!

Hi, my name is John and I'm a Britaholic.

I found this site last year and lurked for a while before joining this spring. My BritCar problem goes way back, lusting after TR4s, TR6s, MGBs in my childhood. Seeing Patrick McGoohan in that Seven in The Prisoner... Norton, Triumph bikes, I wanted them all.

My pinings went unrequited until I was in need of wheels at the same time a coworker had a surplus RB Midget. It needed work, but the DCOE 45 hanging off the little 4 banger lured me.


I was stationed in Dover DE at the time, and my search for rehab parts led me to a local guy named Glenn Towery. Most of you probably know the name. Glenn gave me a ride in his MGBGT V8 (the same one he now has 500,000 miles on), and my obsession took the next step. WOW, I needed one. But life moved on, I left the USAF, took my Midget to Atlanta, GA. Then I saw a writeup about a guy in Maryland who was making Lotus Seven clones. Not just any fragile little roadster, but ones with Buick/Rover V8s in them. I really, really wanted one....

So I did.


'94 to '95 I put together this Seven. The Rotus is a bit larger than the Lotus/Caterham, 4" wider 7" longer, but at 6'4" I don't fit too well in the originals. Back then I had never built an engine myself, so I had Phil and Ray Baker do one for me. They did good work, it's an Olds turbo block with Buick 300 heads and crank. 292 cid, 4.8L.

Life unfortunately got in the way and the Seven sat in my garage for 11 years.
After finally getting power for my welder and a new compressor, I set out last year to get it back on the road. Much progress has been made, fiberglass repaired, new windshield, new oil plumbing. But as you know, these projects take on a life of their own. I've finished everything I thought needed doing, but now I'm in the middle of a complete rewiring. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, and it's getting closer.

This board has been a great source of info. I'm working with Gary Walker on a flange for my Buick 300 heads. This'll be the first step towards some greatly improved headers I'll be building this winter. After that, I'm gathering parts for a fuel injection conversion.

John, you have my deepest sympathy.

Jim

Hey there, just joined up as I have the bug bad (old British car bug).
Two 1947 Austin A40 pick ups, mostly holes held together with rust.
A 1956 Morris Minor two door ( want to make a blown gassed out of it).
A locost seven. Chassis that I have a four barrel Skylark alu V8 to put in.
A 1973 E type roadster (4spd,V12).
A 1980 Tr7 rag, 5 spd. (have 215 olds that may get thrown in)
A 1982 Tr8 rag, 5 spd.
Also have two more alu V8's that need homes.
Also have a blown fox body mustang and a 1968 six pack Super bee.
A handful of motorbikes as well
Garage is very big but I've managed to fill it right up.
I'm 56 now, and will have to make it to one hundred and fifty to finish all my projects.
Get a load of this....... I'M still managing to stay married!

Welcome Jeff, you'll fit in with most of us. Remember "you can please most of the people most of the time, but not all the people all the time, SAFETY FASTER!

Hey everyone. First post here.... I'm Mike from Pennsylvania.
Just bumped into this site looking for tips on putting an 8.8 in my TR7. I've got a Ford 5.0 on a stand ready to go in it, but I want to work through the front suspension and make sure I have a good plan for the rear axle before I start adding weight and power to it.

I've had my 1976 TR7 Victory Edition since I was 16, which was 25 yrs ago. It was pretty beat when I got it, but it was great as a kid. About 18 yrs ago I painted it, built a good stock engine, and put a 1980 TR7 5 speed transmission and rear in it.

Now I'm feeling the desire to put a V8 in it.

Anyway, I'll have to post up some pics and info in a project thread.

Hi,
new guy w/o a British car. Maybe I can mention my Swedish car now and then? If not I get it. I understand its a British car forum.
I joined thinking I could learn about swaps being I plan on a swap on my 66 Volvo Amazon.
I figure the learning/entertainment factor is worth joining the forum even if I'm not welcome to post Volvo content. Again I understand and will be nice and respectful and stay on topic or just lurk.

I was gung ho about a 60* GM V6 now I'm thinking SBF. Not as cool or funky as say a Quad4 or SHO V6. Hard to beat the dime a dozen factor of the SBF. Bit concerned about balanced performance. Anyway I'll be studying up as I bet I will find answers to all my questions.




Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/10/2013 03:23PM by nonhog.

Hi to all English marque followers
I have been an English car collector for some time now, and have just purchased a factory V8 from the uk.
It has arrived by ship this week and I'm off to get it tomorrow. I've enjoyed collecting a variety of English cars, but now I'm into
finding more unique models, such as the V8. I have a twin cam MGA, limited edition MGB, XKE, and 67 MGB/GT.
addicting isn't it!! Hope to get to some shows and meet some other BRITISH NUTS.

Regards
Dusty Rose

Welcome! Welcome! And Welcome!

A 1966 Amazon isn't technically British, but it's super cool. I'm keen to hear and see all about it.

good evening folks, newbie here, and the fever to have a v8 b has brought me here. I own 2, 1 driver, 1 parts( for educating me on the car).

i'll be doing a lot of reading, but, probably, not a lot of posting, until a bit later.

I do have 1 question to start.

is there a lot of cost difference in doing a conversion, vs, having it done?

I have gotten an estimate to have it done, and the labor was only around 1800.

thanks in advance

Welcome Edward. Wow, $1800 to do the swap is pretty cheap IMO. At a shop rate of $75/hr -- which is on the low side for any sort of custom work around where I live -- that's only 24hrs. I suppose if you're using one of the engine choices that have a complete kit (engine mounts, headers, modified cross member if needed, trans cross member, shaved intake to fit under the hood if needed, etc.) -- and the person doing the work is already familiar with the MG such that pulling the original motor/trans only takes a couple of those 24hrs, it could be done but odds are it'll take a bit more time than that when it's all said & done. I'd be surprised if most shops would do it for that so it sounds like a very good price to me - maybe too good.

Edward, it sort of depends on the level of completion the shop is providing. At a guess, for that price I'd say they probably are planning to get the new engine in the car and capable of rolling under it's own power, not much more. And there is quite a bit more to it than that. If you are happy with cleaning up the details it could be a sweet deal for you, but ask if they can direct you to some examples of their work. These conversions can be done well, but they also can be done poorly. A poorly done conversion can make you wish you'd never heard of it, and this is the big advantage of doing it yourself. You can insure the quality.

Jim

Welcome to BritishV8!

Quote:

I do have 1 question to start.

Your question deserves a brand new thread of its own. Please don't hesitate to start one... here.

I've noticed there aren't any Ford (Mercury) Capri's here. They were available in the UK from 1969 through 1986 in MK1 through MK3 versions. Here in the states we got MK1's and MK2's up through 1977. The Capri's were built in the UK at Ford's Halewood facility and in Cologne Germany. Eventually all production shifted to the Cologne facility around 1980.

Capri's in Europe had a wide variety of engines ranging from 1.3 liter 4 cylinders to 3 liter Essex V6's. In the states we got the 1.6 liter Kent, 2.0 liter "Pinto" 4 cylinder, 2.3 liter "Lima" 4 cylinder, 2.6 liter Cologne V6, and the 2.8 liter Cologne V6.

I have 2 1976 Capri MK2's with unusual engines.


The Capri R/S was a conversion of a 2.8 Liter Capri S to European X-Pack bodywork. The conversion was performed by ASC in Michigan prior to dealer shipment. The original fiberglass body panels were riveted onto the car as delivered and the rivets were visible. The cars were white with black stripes. Somewhere between 44 and 50 conversions were made. The exact number is unknown but most sources agree on 46. A fire at ASC destroyed the records.

The cars were fitted with front and rear fender extensions, front spoiler, and a rear whaletail. They also got rear window louvers and a blacked out interior and trim option.

The car originally had a 2.8 Cologne V6 with 109 hp. It currently has a Ford 2.3 Lima Turbo 4 cylinder that has been modified. It runs MegaSquirt, a Boport cam, and other hi po parts. Its about 275 hp at 18 psi boost.


My other Capri is shown below. It was originally a 2.3 liter car with a whopping 88 hp. It has a "Folvo" 2.3 liter Lima turbocharged engine. More on the "Folvo" below. The car has a T5 5 speed transmission and many Ford of Europe performance parts from their 280i MK3 Capri's. I just recently put a Ford 8.8 Traction Loc 3.73 ratio rear in the car. The car has 15 x 7 wheels with 225/45 tires.


The engine is unique. It turns out that the Ford Lima 2.3 and the Volvo B23 engines share the same head bolt pattern. Both are timing belt driven. Volvo produced a limited number of 2.3 liter engines with a DOHC 4 valve per cylinder head. With some significant effort this head can be adapted to the Ford 2.3 turbo block. The result is a "Folvo" engine.

My Folvo runs Megasquirt, 75 pph injectors, front mount intercooler, Borg Warner 6258 EFR turbo, and custom built intake and exhaust manifolds. An early dyno run with 9 psi boost showed 225 hp at the wheels. The car is now up to 18 psi boost but has not gone back on the dyno. I expect that it has about 350 hp at 18 psi boost. I hope to put it on the dyno in the next several months. Right now I have a vibration issue as a result of the 8.8 installation I just finished.

Don, those Capris are great! Thanks for posting. Your cars will be two very welcome additions to our Photo Gallery section. We'll need lots more photos to appreciate the original Capri design and also all the updates. Here's info on what we'll need to make that happen: [www.britishv8.org]

More Capri Stuff....

I know Dale (TR6Turbo) from the Turboford.org board. He mentioned that you guys love road racing.

Here is our 1973 Capri MK1 SCCA GT3/SPU road racing car. The current configuration is a Lima 2.3 4 cylinder normally aspirated engine with Esslinger ARCA head, 13:1 compression, MegaSquirt EFI, T5, and 7.5 Traction LOk rear. The car currently weighs 2430lbs with fuel and 250 lb driver.

We've had a significant number of teething issues and blew an engine early this year. We just got the engine back together in October. Here is a link to a video of the car on a dyno pull. That's me in the car working the laptop. This run was 195 whp at 7500 rpm.
[www.amcansolutions.com]
[www.amcansolutions.com]

Here is a picture of the other partner (and Driver - Mark) of our team.


Here is a picture from several years ago before we reworked the front spoiler. We were running a Cologne 2.8 V6 then. We couldn't keep it together though.


And here is a picture of the current engine compartment.


Hmmm, Got any interest in a Cosworth YB turbo powered, Cortina MK1, tube chassis road racing monster? We're working on getting this car back in racing trim. 1800 lbs, right hand drive, either a 380 or 440 hp YB (we're not sure which). Been stored unkindly for about 10 years.