MG Sports Cars

Hi guys, I am new to this sight and looking for some advice from all of you lovely people, I am in the planning stages of an mgb gt v8 conversion but I am struggling to decide which engine would be best to use, I was swaying towards the 3.9l range rover inline as they seem to be readily available from the likes of eBay and other breakers, what would your advice and opinions be, also a recommendation for a manual gearbox would also be appreciated.
Thanks a bunch guys, mike.

Mike, from your post I take it you are in Great Britian. Over there the primary engine used in conversions is indeed the Rover, in any of its displacements, from the original 3.5 as in the SD1 up to the latest. Transmission choices are usually either from a SD1 or a TR8, really same box as I understand. If you can find a Ford 302 V8 and T5 transmission that also makes a great combination in a MGB. The Rover conversion has been well documented and is prehaps the easiest of the two especially on your side of the pond.
You should take a look at the article on David Tetlow's MGB V8 conversion here on the forum. [www.britishv8.org]
A very well done conversion and the article describes most of the necessary modifications and other improvements David chose.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/30/2011 08:41AM by Bill Young.

Welcome to the forum, Mike!

Make sure to check out the looong list of How It Was Done and other articles in our archives (from the pull-down menus at the top of the page). They go into great detail! There are lots of different right answers, and it's hard to guess which answer will be right for someone else.

The 3.9 V8 is one fine choice. I wouldn't buy one on eBay... they're always available locally. Actually, the newer versions of the engine are even easier to find now (particularly the 4.0, which is very similar but with four bolt mains and a different "front end"). I see them on my local Craigs List, and also when I've been to the local U-Pull-It I see them there. I'd prefer to hear an engine run before buying it, and to pull it myself. I'd at least prefer to speak to its owner face to face before committing. I prefer not to pay shipping charges.

Checking the How It Was Done articles, you might notice something interesting about Rover engine swaps... most people in the UK use the SD1 (LT77) 5-speed, most people in North America use the Borg Warner (T5) 5-speed from a Camaro, and most people in Australia use Toyota 5-speeds. There is some crossover... but partly it comes down to how readily available (and thus cost effective) the boxes are and also what bellhousings are available locally. I think the Toyota box would be more popular in North America if adapter bellhousings (from Dellow in Australia) weren't so very expensive here. Personally, I'd strongly prefer a T5 to an SD1 but none of these are bad boxes.

Novak makes a Chevy to Toyota (actually AX15) adapter. For the small GM V6 you can use a Dodge Dakota 2.5 Bellhousing. In addition to the R154 Toyota transmission you can also use the Colorado/Canyon/H3/Solstice/Skye MA5 transmission. Ratio's are close to V6 T5. Shifter would be further forward except Solstice/Skye further back.

Thanks for the replies guys, yeh I can see the " how it was done" section being very usefull indeed in the future, which ever engine I go for will be completely stripped and rebuilt so not to fussed about hearing the engine running although it would be nice, to be honest I am not sure where else to look, I am in the uk and most breakers seem to advertise on eBay, £300 seems to be the average price for the 3.9, does any1 know if ther is a difference between the early and late engines ( pre 1995)???? I was reading a conversion build project on the web and there was some info stating that the post 1995 engines were different and parts much harder to come across, has any1 experienced it and what are your views...

Some TVRs used the Borg Warner T5 with the Rover based V8. As alot of TVRs get crashed that might be an option in the UK.

Welcome, Mike. When anyone asks about the Rover variations, I usually post this link: [en.wikipedia.org] This explains the different versions quite well.

I've got the 3.5 and LT77 in my conversion. It works fine and originally came from a 1980 SD1.

As mentioned, look at this site as well as the MG Experience conversions forum. Doing your homework and research is the biggest task involved in a conversion. Before you even start, figure out what you want from the car at the end. Nothing worse than getting into a project and then going off on a tangent just because someone said you should do it a different way.

Being in the UK, you've got access to Clive Wheatley and Dave Vale, both big names in the V8 MG world.

Pick up a copy of the book "How to give your MGB V8 power" 3rd edition. This book got me through my conversion.

Oh yeah....and ask lots of questions. :)

3 other sites that might help :
MGOC V8 Register

Burblers V8

MGRV8 . com



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/23/2012 05:16AM by Kerbut.