 | Home > V8 > 300tdi to 3.5 v8 conversion |
 
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| L110CDL Member Since: 31 Oct 2015 Location: Devon Posts: 10491  
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Thanks for that
 I will now look for you in the V8 section  1996 Golf Blue 300Tdi 110 Pick up. Keeper.
Clayton. |
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24th Jul 2016 9:06pm |
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| charcoal Member Since: 28 Jul 2014 Location: Hampshire Posts: 941  
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Good to know L110, before long I'll be one of the forums 'v8 experts'
Anyway, work continues on making my perfect Land Rover. The old 300tdi engine and gearbox had been removed quickly and they were both sitting outside. I had a guy lined up to buy the 300tdi as soon as it was removed which got me some much needed cash towards this project. They also steam cleaned my engine bay while it was empty which was a nice little touch.  Click image to enlarge It's surprising how small the 300tdi is in comparison to the v8, the flywheel looks almost half the size of the v8 one! On my second visit the engine and gearbox were in and they were making the engine mounts. Click image to enlarge Click image to enlarge A few days later the guy who bought my 300tdi was finally ready to collect it which gave me an excuse to check up on progress once again. The new alternator and ignition coil had both been fitted and the wiring had all been completed. Click image to enlarge Click image to enlarge A few more days passed before any notable advancements occurred. I did however get a call saying they'd got the engine running. The fuel was over-pressured because I forgot to buy a restrictor but after the fuel pump was turned off and the pressure dropped they said it ran perfectly for a few seconds before running out of petrol. As you can imagine it's good to hear an engine you bought without seeing running actually runs! After getting that call I decided to go and check on progress the next day. The whole exhaust had been fitted, the fuel tank had been cleaned and the petrol pump fitted, the engine had been plumbed up completely with the exception of the yet-to-arrive fuel restrictor. Click image to enlarge Click image to enlarge Sadly a few missing parts were brought to my attention these included the correct gear stick, correct power steering pipe and the lower bellhousing cover. No idea how I forgot to buy that 
We'd also only just realised that the ex-Snatch lt85 had a larger drive flange so I had to purchase a new one. Not only that but the front prop had to be send away to be extended by an inch and a half as the gearbox had to sit and inch and a half further back. A week passed since the missing restrictor was brought to my attention and it finally arrived albeit five days late. Anyway it could finally be plumbed into the fuel lines to complete them. This allowed the engine to be run properly for the first time. Safe to say I was rather excited and hung around the garage for an hour while they done the finishing touches before the first startup. Here is a video of the v8 running for the first time. Progress seemed slower and slower as missing bits failed to arrive on time and more missing parts surfaced. Before I knew it a month had passed without my Land Rover. The next major milestone is probably when the correct power steering pipe finally arrived. This allowed the radiator and the front grill to be fitted. Click image to enlarge Click image to enlarge Eventually the propshafts were sorted along with the rest of the engine bay and the end was in sight. That was until out of nowhere there was a weak spark going from the coil to the distributor. I immediately thought it'd be a problem with the king lead as it look pretty crap so I went to get a set of new leads. Upon delivery of the leads to the garage the problem had been resolved, the distributor wasn't being earthed so an earth cable was connected. Now we were back on track and just needed an air filter and the carburettors needed tuning. The original air filter would not fit due to the engine siting an inch and a half further back so one from an MG ZR was retro fitted and the engine bay was complete. Click image to enlarge Click image to enlarge The garage tried to contact a few carburettor tuners but the only one that replied was not willing to do it. It was perfectly usable without a proper tune so I finally got her back, some seven weeks later! Turns out the required tuning consisted mainly of balancing the carburettors. I found this out the hard way while joining the A27 in rush hour  It wasn't a problem as long as I could resist fast acceleration and didn't surpass 60mph though!
After getting her back something was really bugging me and needed attention as soon as possible.. Click image to enlarge Click image to enlarge Much better
So that's it. Over a year in the planning and I finally have my perfect Defender, a white 110 station wagon with a v8 
The adventure doesn't end there though, in the future I plan to replace the LT85 with an LT77s which is the correct gearbox for a mid 90's v8 Defender (in Africa at least), this will also push the engine forward and inch and a half allowing the proper air filter to be fitted and therefor a raised air intake connected! I may add a few posts about replacing some engine control cables and balancing the carburettors in the future. For now though, I hope you all enjoyed 1999 Land Rover Defender 110 td5 station wagon
1998 Land Rover Defender 110 County Station Wagon ~ Sold 1995 Land Rover Defender 110 V8 Station Wagon ~ Sold 
1985 Land Rover 110 ex mod project Tithonus ~ Sold |
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24th Jul 2016 11:50pm |
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| Retroanaconda Member Since: 04 Jan 2012 Location: Scotland Posts: 2547 
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I see they cut the middle out of the gearbox crossmember in order to allow the exhaust to fit.
Did they replace it with the proper V8 assembly? I'm not sure I'd want to run without any cross-bracing there at all. |
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25th Jul 2016 8:57pm |
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| charcoal Member Since: 28 Jul 2014 Location: Hampshire Posts: 941
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Ah yes, I forgot to mention.. It was cut out because it was in the way of the exhaust. A new one was fabricated to the same dimensions as a v8 gearbox crossmember and fitted in the correct place. I don't have any pictures with it in as they'd taken it off the ramp by then. 1999 Land Rover Defender 110 td5 station wagon
1998 Land Rover Defender 110 County Station Wagon ~ Sold 1995 Land Rover Defender 110 V8 Station Wagon ~ Sold
1985 Land Rover 110 ex mod project Tithonus ~ Sold |
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25th Jul 2016 9:37pm |
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| Pickles Member Since: 26 May 2013 Location: Melbourne Posts: 3753  
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Good thread Charcoal, Thanks for posting,..I hope you get a good run out of your V8.
I noticed that the muffler looked like an ordinary standard item,...a big bore exhaust, say 2.5", with a nice "straight through" muffler will give you a bit more performance, AND a MUCH better sound!! ( a MAJOR benefit of a V8!) And make sure those carbies are right, if they're not, wrong mixtures etc, there is a possibility of some engine damage in the long term, plus of course, a lack of performance. There's NOTHING like a V8!!, Pickles. |
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25th Jul 2016 11:32pm |
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| charcoal Member Since: 28 Jul 2014 Location: Hampshire Posts: 941
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Glad you enjoyed it Pickles
The whole exhaust is standard. I agree that a big old exhaust would sound excellent but it's not quite for me. To be honest when spending six or more hours driving it'd give me a headache! The stock exhaust still sounds pretty damn good and putting your foot down still give a noticeable roar. I balanced the carburettors myself a few weeks after getting her back, they are still running a bit weak though and I'm too scared to do any serious tuning. Despite being weak she still goes like sh*t off a shovel Will take her to a professional with a rolling road eventually to get the most out of the engine.
Indeed nothing beats a v8! After seeing and hearing a ninety v8 mid restoration a few years back I knew I needed a v8 in my life 1999 Land Rover Defender 110 td5 station wagon
1998 Land Rover Defender 110 County Station Wagon ~ Sold 1995 Land Rover Defender 110 V8 Station Wagon ~ Sold
1985 Land Rover 110 ex mod project Tithonus ~ Sold |
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26th Jul 2016 1:13am |
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| Electron Member Since: 28 May 2016 Location: Basingstoke Posts: 15 |
Interesting read !!
One small comment - ask the rolling road if their building is tall enough for a Land Rover !! I drove to Guildford to find mine didn't fit !! Still looking for a four wheel rolling road for mine so if you know of one in Hampshire or close I'm all ears 
Chris |
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26th Jul 2016 10:25am |
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| charcoal Member Since: 28 Jul 2014 Location: Hampshire Posts: 941
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This tuner I know has dealt with a few Land Rovers over the years so the building height should be fine. That would be embarrassing if you couldn't do business because of the height
Sadly I don't know of any four wheel rolling roads, do they even exist? I'm just planning on going to a two wheel one and removing the front propshaft. 1999 Land Rover Defender 110 td5 station wagon 1998 Land Rover Defender 110 County Station Wagon ~ Sold 1995 Land Rover Defender 110 V8 Station Wagon ~ Sold
1985 Land Rover 110 ex mod project Tithonus ~ Sold |
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26th Jul 2016 2:00pm |
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| L110CDL Member Since: 31 Oct 2015 Location: Devon Posts: 10491
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Enjoying the good read there Charcoal, 4X4 rolling roads do exist, there was one not to far from me
1996 Golf Blue 300Tdi 110 Pick up. Keeper.
Clayton. |
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26th Jul 2016 6:47pm |
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| charcoal Member Since: 28 Jul 2014 Location: Hampshire Posts: 941
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Glad you liked it Clayton! That's lucky for you, I'm sure a 2wd one will do the job and there is a bloke not too far from here with one who specialises in carburettors which is perfect
1999 Land Rover Defender 110 td5 station wagon
1998 Land Rover Defender 110 County Station Wagon ~ Sold 1995 Land Rover Defender 110 V8 Station Wagon ~ Sold
1985 Land Rover 110 ex mod project Tithonus ~ Sold |
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26th Jul 2016 9:49pm |
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| GREENI Member Since: 22 Aug 2010 Location: staffs Posts: 10359
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Fab, it's nice to see people going against the flow.
V8's are having a bit of a resurgence I think. |
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26th Jul 2016 9:58pm |
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| charcoal Member Since: 28 Jul 2014 Location: Hampshire Posts: 941
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Yes, I think so too. They seem to be selling and selling for decent prices now, at least on ebay. No idea why because it still costs a kidney to run
1999 Land Rover Defender 110 td5 station wagon
1998 Land Rover Defender 110 County Station Wagon ~ Sold 1995 Land Rover Defender 110 V8 Station Wagon ~ Sold
1985 Land Rover 110 ex mod project Tithonus ~ Sold |
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26th Jul 2016 10:42pm |
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| GREENI Member Since: 22 Aug 2010 Location: staffs Posts: 10359
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Winning isn't cheap
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26th Jul 2016 10:59pm |
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| Pickles Member Since: 26 May 2013 Location: Melbourne Posts: 3753
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I did "enjoy it"mate, & I shall continue to enjoy your "journey", particularly how you find things on the dyno. I don't know much about Rover 3.5/3.9 engines, but I believe some of the "Landrover" engines as distinct from the "Range Rover" engines had "restrictors" somewhere in the inlet, to restrict power?....You didn't find any of these? As far as the exhaust is concerned, yes, I hear what you say, but that (too much noise) should not happen with a properly mounted & designed system, which should make "noise" only when you want it, ie, when you "put the pedal to the metal". There is nothing worse than a badly designed & installed exhaust. V8s?...love 'em, Pickles. |
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26th Jul 2016 11:04pm |
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