Engine Recommendations

[Baldrick]

Hi all

Sorry if there are other threads on this subject, I tried searching but couldn't find anything recent. Also "Engine" is excluded when searching as it is used too often.

I'm after a bit more power and have been recommended getting a 1776. (Current engine is not worth spending money on.)

Where is the best place to buy from? (Remtec? TES?)

Also are there any comparitive figures for power Vs economy from the various options? I guess nothing is ever that straight forward, so any comments would be appreciated.

Thanks

 

[Bookwus]

Hiya rick,

.......Also are there any comparitive figures for power Vs economy from the various options? I guess nothing is ever that straight forward, so any comments would be appreciated.

You'll probably get a few comments advising doing this or that engine-wise for a 1776. But the bottom line in this matter is simply this.............there are so many options in building a 1776 that a brief summary of just this one option is difficult. It boils down to the fact that a 1776 can be built wild or mild. Variants in the build can (and do) include carburetion, choice of cranks (cw or not), valve sizing, camshafts and more. So.........not all 1776s are equal........not by a long shot! So, beware of simply buying an engine off a shelf just because it's a 1776.

The best thing you can do is to sit down and make of list of performance, reliability, and economy demands you'd like to see your engine meet. From that list an engine builder can make suggestions to you about how to go about building an engine (1776 if you like) that will meet your requirements.

 

[K@rlos]

If you do get an off the shelf motor you can't go wrong with TES, good value and well built

 

[Matt_B]

I had mine built by Richard and Martin at AirspeedUK, great engine great service, http://www.airspeeduk.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

 

[ProfessorWheeto]

Personally I'd be ringing Laurie Petit or Aircooled Performance.

 

[Bay-low71]

Friend of mine just bought a standard motor from Remtec and its turned out to be a bit disappointing.

Definately have a good think about what you need and what from your engine as mentioned, a 1776cc can be built in a multitude of ways. I went down the home strip down got case machined then re-buil with engle 110 cam, standard 69mm stroke crank, new standard heads and twin 34's. Hoping it will be around the 90hp mark when completed. Take a look at John Mahr's website for some more info.

Ben

 

[Baldrick]

If you do get an off the shelf motor you can't go wrong with TES, good value and well built

Spoke to them on the phone and they weren't very helpful, which is a shame as they are local to me and that would have made life easier.

I'm not brilliantly technical and I got the idea that the guy I spoke to just thought I was stupid. (Might be true, but I don't need reminding!)

I just wanted to have an idea of what the differences were in their engines. He seemed reluctant to even give me BHP figures or anything else so I could understand the differences. The is £400 difference between the basic 1641 and the top of the range...and I have no idea what difference the extra money makes.

I'll try out some of the other suggestions...



Thanks

 

[dubdubz]

http://forum.earlybay.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=20376" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

questions you'll need to know the answers to [imho]

why do you want the extra power? roughly how much extra? and where in the revs?
what sort of driving do you do? mways, scenic country jaunts, mixture, town driving?
what sort of driver are you? drive like it's stolen or smooth and considerate
Are you ever going to consider running on the strip?
what is your overall budget - this is important as a very well built 1776 will cost 1000's by the right person BUT you can get a very good engine by correctly outsourcing some of the work and doing some yourself.
will you eventually change the gearbox ratios or never?


I would with info to hand speak to Laurie Petitt or John Maher, both rank highly [not just by me!]

A 1641 isn't great in a bus - mine ran quite hot....not destruction hot but hotter than it should have been. You can extract good performance from a std 1600 by decent carbs, and a good exhaust.
If as suspect you're after something that'll be more inline with modern traffic then a 1776 probably is the most cost effective way of getting extra poke without sacricing too much in terms of economy.

hth's?

 

[froggy]

Whats up with your current engine?
A good rebuild, new bearings, re-worked cylinder heads , new set of barrel and pistons and a decent set of (small) twin carbs and you can get the desired power upgrade your after for a lot less than you can buy a replacement for.
Dont forget that a replacement will only be the bottom end (case, internals and heads) you will still need to transfer your existing tinware, carb, dynamo, dizzy etc etc.
Its your choice at the end of the day but personally i would get yours rebuilt. Maybe even speak to the engine builders suggested to see what they can do with your current engine.

 

[dubdubz]

thanks froggy I had overlooked that - heads.

GAC for around £150 iirc - can transform the throughput and as Froggy says with a rolling road setup on decent dual carbs, will reap far more than a 1641 would.

In fact I'm of the opinion a well set up 1600 ie worked heads and really well set up could 'feel' almost as quick/pokey as a std 1776.

 

[Baldrick]

Whats up with your current engine?

That's sort of where I started, but had it checked out at the weekend and the advice (which I trust totally) was that money would be better spent on something new. Hence the question. I just hoped it more straight forward!

 

[dubdubz]

can I ask why? what was wrong with the current one?

 

[Baldrick]

can I ask why? what was wrong with the current one?

Its got crankshaft end float and also other components are showin their age somewhat.

I'd say again I'm horribly untechnical so there might have been other issues that I didn't pick up on.

 

[froggy]

The case can be bore aligned and the crankshaft shimmed out to take out the end float, a new set of bearings and its good for another few thousand miles, a new set od B&Ps (or even just a set of rings if yours are all good), head work and it should be fine.
The cheaper TES engines are only re-con'ed units anyway.

 

[streetboy]

Wish I'd not read through this thread :roll:

Having done so I am even more undecided on what to do regards my engine. As it stands its a standard (as far as I know) 1600 twin port that is leaking oil for England! but it does run ok and certainly pulls well. It does suffer the 009/34pict fluff but not too bad. Good compression on all bores.
My intention was to hook it out and deal with all the gaskets and seals and prehaps fit new rings and clean the heads up. I then thought about new b&p's and new heads but this seemed like false economy if the bottm end was a little worn and gave trouble at a later date.
I then decided that a rebuilt 1641 unit from TES might be the way to go, but reading this thread it would seem a sorted 1600 would be as good. :?
Airspeed could be an option with one of their engines or even get them or another reputable builder to rebuild my engine.

My biggest factor in this is time scale. I missed Volksworld last year as the bus was on the water, and I don't want to miss it again this year. I'm also off to France on the 15th April so need it done and a few miles on it before then.
I plan to take the 4-5th of March off and incuding the weekend this gives me 4 days to get it up and running.

Oh what to do :shock:

 

[Baldrick]

The case can be bore aligned and the crankshaft shimmed out to take out the end float, a new set of bearings and its good for another few thousand miles, a new set od B&Ps (or even just a set of rings if yours are all good), head work and it should be fine.
The cheaper TES engines are only re-con'ed units anyway.

Thanks Froggy, I appreciate your help. Whatever happens I'll have to pay to have this done and so I think I'll need to stick with the advice I have.
The question really is still the same; what do I replace it with.

I'll try talking with airspeed and the others named here, but to be honest all I'll I'm after is something that is reliable and has a good balance between power and economy. I don't have the technical knowledge to make it more detailed than that.

 

[dubdubz]

also get involved with local people near to you, a club? then you may be able to try the engine size you're thinking or at least start to build up some more knowledge to be able to ask the right questions.

 

[easy]

The case can be bore aligned and the crankshaft shimmed out to take out the end float, a new set of bearings and its good for another few thousand miles, a new set od B&Ps (or even just a set of rings if yours are all good), head work and it should be fine.
The cheaper TES engines are only re-con'ed units anyway.

Thanks Froggy, I appreciate your help. Whatever happens I'll have to pay to have this done and so I think I'll need to stick with the advice I have.
The question really is still the same; what do I replace it with.

I'll try talking with airspeed and the others named here, but to be honest all I'll I'm after is something that is reliable and has a good balance between power and economy. I don't have the technical knowledge to make it more detailed than that.

Dood! I have just the chaps :mrgreen:

Give Jason a call at Interpro in Bristol and tell him that I gave you his number.

01454412777

They build first class engines ( I have 2 ) and work on or build lots of engines in my Club. The 1776 in my notch is awsome :mrgreen:

They have a rolling road and seriously know there stuff, Give em a call and mention me 8) for extra special treatment.

This is the 1776 in the notch nudging the 100 BHP :mrgreen:

 

[dubdubz]

The case can be bore aligned and the crankshaft shimmed out to take out the end float, a new set of bearings and its good for another few thousand miles, a new set od B&Ps (or even just a set of rings if yours are all good), head work and it should be fine.
The cheaper TES engines are only re-con'ed units anyway.

Thanks Froggy, I appreciate your help. Whatever happens I'll have to pay to have this done and so I think I'll need to stick with the advice I have.
The question really is still the same; what do I replace it with.

I'll try talking with airspeed and the others named here, but to be honest all I'll I'm after is something that is reliable and has a good balance between power and economy. I don't have the technical knowledge to make it more detailed than that.

Dood! I have just the chaps :mrgreen:

Give Jason a call at Interpro in Bristol and tell him that I gave you his number.

01454412777

They build first class engines ( I have 2 ) and work on or build lots of engines in my Club. The 1776 in my notch is awsome :mrgreen:

They have a rolling road and seriously know there stuff, Give em a call and mention me 8) for extra special treatment.

This is the 1776 in the notch nudging the 100 BHP :mrgreen:

cool 8)

 

[Baldrick]

Hi Easy

Thanks for the info. They are a bit out of my area which is a shame. They have amazing reviews if you google them!

I'm currently talking to Rich as Air Speed. He's been very helpful and is able to communicate in non-technical terms which is a help to me. A 1776 is a distinct possibility but still asking questions.