Hi guys Here are some progress pics of my rod - I ditched the flathead in favour of something cheaper to buy parts for. Steve Its sitting pretty high at present with the stock axle but I'll take out 3 leaves from the spring and it should go down a coupla inches Thanks heaps to the HAMBers whove offered help and advice on the build so far Steve
Right on it...oops flat batteries - I'll get a shot of the bracket ASAP- here in Aus we're not allowed to space the radius rods more than 300mm apart. Steve
Looks like a Rover block to me. Or berhaps a Buick or Olds 215. I have an Olds 215 out in the shop that I am going to run with a 700R-4 transmission. I'm using a D&D Fabrications adapter and a the small bell housing transmission out of a 92 Camero 3.1 V6. The set up almost looks factory. Inerested in what you are going to your motor to make it scoot.
Hey Bib, Is D&D still making adapters for the 215? I bought one from them about 20yrs. ago to adapt a 215 to a Datsun 5 speed for my Z car. I've still got a couple sets of 215 and 300 aluminum heads that I found back then. Anyone making parts for the 300 Buick? A buddy of mine has one that he has been trying to sell me for awhile now.
[ QUOTE ] Hey Bib, Is D&D still making adapters for the 215? I bought one from them about 20yrs. ago to adapt a 215 to a Datsun 5 speed for my Z car. I've still got a couple sets of 215 and 300 aluminum heads that I found back then. Anyone making parts for the 300 Buick? A buddy of mine has one that he has been trying to sell me for awhile now. [/ QUOTE ] D&D Fabrications is the mother lode for Olds/Buick/Rover 215s. They have a web site http://aluminumv8.com/ but it is not as up to date as their catalog. 215 and 300 aluminum heads show up on EBay from time to time. They typically sell for $100-$200. A little more if they are complete with rocker shafts and rockers. If you use the 300 heads on an Olds or Buick 215 the compression goes south. They are best used on one of the larger displacement Rover blocks running a stroker crank. Buick 300 cranks are used to stroke 215s and the larger Rovers. The mains have to be turned down, a rear seal adapter is required, as is a custom flywheel. Buick 300 and early Buick V6 front covers will work on Buick, Olds, and Rover blocks. Buick 300 water pumps are an upgrade for Olds and Buick 215s. Original four barrel intakes for Olds and Buick 215s sell for about $75 on EBay is you are willing to ship overseas. Rover owners in Europe like to swap out the original carbs for an Edelbrock 500 CFM unit. But there are a lot of restrictions on engine modifications in some countries and the use of an obvious performace intacke can get them flaged. Edelbrock makes a good intake. Summit has a mini starter for about $200. Crowler offers a number of cam grinds. There is a lot of interchange between the 215s and the 300s; cams, lifters, etc. You could build a peppy 300. But they have more value as a crank, front cover, water pump, and aluminum head donor for 215s.
The engine you see here is a 4.4 litre Leyland produced in Australia. Its basically a stroked Rover. The bore's the same as the Rover 3.5. When we rebuilt it, we found the pistons cracked so replaced them with Land Rover ones - they were a bit flatter on top so it will have slightly higher compression. I plan to run a Holley 350. g'box is a Borg Warner 35 auto. Steve
good lookin frame there steve, does the driveshaft run under that x-member?looks that way in the shots. Im going to have to do a similar thing with my split bones at the front, they are currently on the rails,where they should be,but cant be.
[ QUOTE ] The engine you see here is a 4.4 litre Leyland produced in Australia. Its basically a stroked Rover. The bore's the same as the Rover 3.5. [/ QUOTE ] Now you have me thinking. I wounder if the Leyland crank would fit in a Buick or Olds 215? 4.4 cubic litres equals 268 cubic inches. When you use a Buick 300 crank in a 215 you get 266 cubic inches. To close to be a coincident. Is it possible Leyland crank has the Buick 300 stroke and the 215 bearings, seal, and flywheel flang? If so, you could use it to stroke a 215 without resorting to a rear seal adapter or special flywheels. Can you EMail or post the crank's specs? Hate to think what it would cost to get one and ship it to the States on a slow boat. But it would most likely be cheaper than acquiring a 300 crank and having the necessary machine work done plus the additional expense of the seal adapter and the special flywheel.
Spent some time on the net. The engine's proper name is Leyland P76 4.4 aluminum V8. Compared to the 215 the deck is 17mm taller. The stroke is 3.5", the same as the bore. Buick 300 cranks have a 3.36" stroke. P76 cranks have been used in the Rover equivelent of the 215. The mains must be taken down to 2.3" (From 2.5495"). Not certain about the flywheel flange and it's compatability with 215 flywheels and flex plates. The one in the pictures looks diferent from the one on my 215 crank. Would appreciate a close up picture. Something to think about. Like my mind is not a cluttered up with phantom projects already.
Hey Bib I dont have a close up pic and the cranks inside the rebuilt engine now but if you tell me what specs you wanna know I'll ask around Steve
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