engine swap info needed

[Blacksack]

this is probably gonna generate some flak but hey you dont ask you dont get

i'm ripping out the old leaky gutless flat 4 in my van and swapping it for a more modern 1.6 or 1.8 golf engine i was just wondering if anyone had any experience with this mod or where i could get parts from?

i've done some digging around and most seem to favour either the subaru engine or the golf tdi deisel engine neither of which i'm too keen on (subaru's are thirsty and turbo deisels tend to be gutless untill the turbo kicks in at which point its usually time to change gear)
i'm gunning more for a 1.8 petrol and sticking the radiators under the floor so from the outside it still looks 100% original

the other thing i'm looking for is a 5 speed box does anyone know of such a creature that will fit with the setup i've described?

cheers

 

[Marvel]

Try speaking to these guys
http://www.rjes.com/

They deal with scooby conversions, but may be a good source of info.

 

[Blacksack]

good man! thanks for that every bit helps :mrgreen:

 

[uber cool]

also look at this forum

http://www.volkszone.com/VZi/forumdisplay.php?f=51

or this one

http://www.vwkd.co.uk/bb/

 

[Blacksack]

good links both of them chap thanks very much time to get the reading specs on 8)

 

[Matt_B]

I have a golf 1.9TDi 130HP that pulls like a train from 1800rpm - I'd love to have that type of power/torque in my bus, and economy of 60mpg! Surely the engine (or similar diesel) to use if doing it? Also the remaps in diesels are fantastic, mine was remapped to 160HP+ but ate front tyres and granted didn't pull as well down the rev range, but kicked arse at 2500rpm+ Unfortunately the box has been taken off now!

 

[Blacksack]

agreed i'd love to keep the stock engine but its the same as the one in my bug and that only just keeps up with traffic and in the process guzzles fuel like george best guzzled vodka and thats in my bug god knows how it manages in something shaped like a block of flats and weighing nearly as much :lol:
a golf tdi would be nice but i'm not a fan of turbo diesels i'd rather have it un-turbo'd and petrol ive seen people slapping subaru engines in there and the whole process seems pretty straight forward but after all is said and done subaru engines might be fast down the strip but for road use there thirsty i'd rather have less power and more mpg :mrgreen:

 

[Pete B]

and turbo deisels tend to be gutless untill the turbo kicks in at which point its usually time to change gear
i'm gunning more for a 1.8 petrol

Mate, have you driven a turbo diesel in the last 10 years? Turbo lag is a thing of the past, the things produce so much torque low down that they are ideally suited to the installation you are doing. If you do go the 1.8 petrol route, do not use a 16 valve engine, all revs/noise and no torque, and that is what you need to pull a vehicle the shape and weight of a bus.
My last daily was a Pug 406 Diesel estate with just 90 bhp. Replaced last year with another 406, but a 1.8 16v 115bhp petrol version. What a load of rubbish in comparison, the diesel was soooooooo much better to drive, better on fuel and definately quicker from A to B. With a bus you need torque, and a turbo diesel is the way to go to get it.
In my humble opinion anyway

 

[sparkywig]

and turbo deisels tend to be gutless untill the turbo kicks in at which point its usually time to change gear
i'm gunning more for a 1.8 petrol

Mate, have you driven a turbo diesel in the last 10 years? Turbo lag is a thing of the past, the things produce so much torque low down that they are ideally suited to the installation you are doing. If you do go the 1.8 petrol route, do not use a 16 valve engine, all revs/noise and no torque, and that is what you need to pull a vehicle the shape and weight of a bus.
My last daily was a Pug 406 Diesel estate with just 90 bhp. Replaced last year with another 406, but a 1.8 16v 115bhp petrol version. What a load of rubbish in comparison, the diesel was soooooooo much better to drive, better on fuel and definately quicker from A to B. With a bus you need torque, and a turbo diesel is the way to go to get it.
In my humble opinion anyway

Seconded.

 

[Blacksack]

and turbo deisels tend to be gutless untill the turbo kicks in at which point its usually time to change gear
i'm gunning more for a 1.8 petrol

Mate, have you driven a turbo diesel in the last 10 years? Turbo lag is a thing of the past, the things produce so much torque low down that they are ideally suited to the installation you are doing. If you do go the 1.8 petrol route, do not use a 16 valve engine, all revs/noise and no torque, and that is what you need to pull a vehicle the shape and weight of a bus.
My last daily was a Pug 406 Diesel estate with just 90 bhp. Replaced last year with another 406, but a 1.8 16v 115bhp petrol version. What a load of rubbish in comparison, the diesel was soooooooo much better to drive, better on fuel and definately quicker from A to B. With a bus you need torque, and a turbo diesel is the way to go to get it.
In my humble opinion anyway

i'll be honest last deisel i had was an old vauxhall astra and that was painfully gutless and that was a 1.9 turbo but it was pretty old so maybe the newer ones do have more toruqe but i've not driven one and i've heard mixed views on engines on several forums some claiming the 8v engine is vastly underpowered in a van compared to a 16v
i might look into deisels but ive heard there heavyer and dont they require more cooling too? plus isnt a deisel going to be a royal pain in the ass to install compared to a petrol?
all i know for sure is i'm not bothering with a scooby engine as subaru have always made fuel greedy engines and the whole point of this conversion is to make the van a bit cheaper to run so i can use it more

 

[Pete B]

Take your point about weight, cooling etc concerns but all I can say for certain is that it has been done. There are a few splittys out there running on 'the fuel of satan' as Clarkson calls it and I'm damn sure a current issue of one of the 4 magazines has an article on one of them. Think it may be 'Camper and Commercial', will have a look in the newsagents when I go out for a paper.

 

[Bundy]

Well I'll chuck mine into the mix...
I've got an old Subaru Legacy sat in the drive waiting to give up its heart for my van... :msn4:
Nothing flash...just a reliable normally aspirated 2 litre that will give me over double the power and a bit more torque to get me to the campsite without some of the worries of the aircooled lump.
It's an engine that is reliable, cheap to buy, lots of them and has been done many times so all the bits to convert are readily available. Also, it shouldn't destroy my standard gearbox.
It should be more economical, but granted not anywhere near diesel terms....but better nontheless
The good thing about the subaru engine is how neatly it fits in the van and how 'at home' it will look in there...
Downsides of anything turbo'd is finding somewhere to put intercoolers, etc...very doable, but just gets a bit more complicated!
Anyway....good luck with the conversion...I'll post pics of mine when it starts, but may not be until spring.
Cheers
Al

 

[Blacksack]

Take your point about weight, cooling etc concerns but all I can say for certain is that it has been done.

this is what upsets me the most i can find pictures and i can find people who have seen one or driven one but i cant find anywhere with parts or more detailed information on the instalation or suppliers etc its like its so close but also miles away
anyone got any info on where to buy a conversion kit (bell housing etc) or the name of someone who can fabricate one for say a 1.9 golf tdi?

keep the info coming guys every little bit helps trust me just from the links ive got so far ive got a much better idea :mrgreen:

 

[fannehbatter]

i went for the 2.0L 8v petrol golf motor. dirt cheap to buy, can be put at standard 15 degree, or 45 degree. i did mine via self designed billet ally adaptot and t25 diesel flywheel.

if you get t25 diesel bellhousing, flywheel, and sump you can have the engine at 45 degree so it doesnt poke through the rear shelf.

2.0L 8v digifant is real easy, loom is a peice of piss, just use a golf engine loom and fusebox, you only need to put positive and negative to the fusebox to run the engine.

 

[Blacksack]

awesome got any pics of the van now or even better durin the conversion?

 

[fannehbatter]

nope, not got pics of the van, cos the conversion was in a ghia

lol

engine, adaptor plate and swingaxle gearbox

into the car, this adaptor plate puts the engine at the standard 15 degrees. it would actually have been better to run it at 45 degrees as it would then fit under the engine lid and lower centre of gravity, but i want to put twin carbs on it in the future. the digifant injection will work at 45 degrees no problem.

when using a beetle gearbox the bellhousing needs clearancing, and the starter wont mesh with the flywheel, so i cut off the starter mount, and also cut the starter mount off a golf gearbox and bolted it to the engine, so it can run the more powerfull golf motor...... but usuing a bay or t25 bellhousing you wont have this problem.

 

[fannehbatter]

the exhaust, i used the origional manifold, and used some downpipes off an MGB exhaust i had lying around. i'll be making a tubular manifold for the new race engine that i'm building.

i used a polo/mk2 golf rad in the inner wing,

note the ally scoop above the rad, there is also a duct on the wing:

it stays cool even when racing, alltho i'll be replacing the rad with an alloy one, and have since but an external oil cooler on the engine too.

 

[Blacksack]

VERY VERY VERY VERY helpfull pics thanks so much for that its nice to get a refference sometimes
i'm currently researching how to get a t25 five speed box in there too i've got some info on a few sites what i'm hoping is if i buy enough bottles of bells and a few war documentry dvd's i can sweet talk my old man and his big engineering brain into doing most of the work :msn4:

 

[ibérico]

Very interesting post indeed, and thanks to all those taht have added extra info I have opened my mind to other possibilities....although I live in warm Spain and 2 things bother me , cooling(which im sure canbe arranged !) and Spanish mot ( which Im not so sure!)

 

[fannehbatter]

on a camper there is loads of room between the chassis rails for nice big radiators, so cooling is no problem