ibrooks

Mark II Astra GTE's had a digital dash. The temp sender should fit a Sierra lump. The rev counter (bargraph display) should be do-able as it probably runs from the ignition. The speedo was run by a sender that fastened into the box where the cable went in on lesser models and a wire went to the guages. Now if all that sender generates is pulses then it should be possible to drive the thing accurately from a Sierra drivetrain (or any other car for that matter). Fuel senders can be done (most of us have) and illumination should be simple. Just a suggestion. Iain

Best place I could suggest is Burton. I think www.burtonpower.co.uk Iain

Must admit I saw that last night too (I'm stuck in a hotel in Portsmouth during the week at the moment). The DJ struck me as an alright sort of bloke though (he hadn't asked to be in the programme). The skinny guy really annoys me but the fat guy (hey pot this is kettle) seems like a decent sort - he doesn't pretend to know the top of an engine from the bottom but he does know the trade which is what he's there for - look what he did to the Ferrari dealers profit margin. The same presenters were in (I think) an episode of fifth gear where Damon Hill was test driving two sports cars (one was a Merc so don't take that too literally). Well Mr Hill really did seem to be giving the cars some stick and the presenters, one in each car were very quiet during the drives around the test track - that was at least until the fat guy had to lean out of the window to throw up. Hats off to him for letting them show it on telly. Iain

Stu, I would suggest visiting the previous owner maybe with a heavy object about his head. Or just shake him warmly by the neck coz it looks like it was in a thump and he knew it had taken damage and palmed it of on a poor unsuspecting hoodie. Seriously though if you get a spare injection engine then you shouldn't have an enormous bill to get the thing running again. Was there damage to the piston in the cylinder that had the problem? if so you need a piston or a set (alright these could be pricey if they are special for the turbo application). The block from your injection engine is suitable (it should be a 205 which is capable of coping with fairly mental power and it will easily overbore to 2.1). The crank will probably be the same and is OK for lots of power if you dowel it to the flywheel (they tend to snap the bolts on high torque motors if not). The auxiliary shafts should be the same so you have a spare in the injection (or carb) lump. The oil pump will probably work but I would suggest a high capacity (maybe high pressure as well) one to ensure the turbo has enough of the slippery stuff (£60ish from memory). Now you're looking at con-rods - well the injection ones are supposed to be OK for 7500rpm but not sure about the extra loads the turbo generates but you should have 3 good ones so can you get a single one to match as a replacement for your broken one? Oh and you'll be wanting new heavy duty bolts as well ;> Is the cam and valve gear OK? a new spray-bar is only a few quid so the head should be relatively easy re-use if they are. Barring the piston/s and con-rod/s you shouldn't be looking at more than a hundred quid for the injection block to be bored and the work to be done on the crank. Maybe £200 including the oil pump, shells, gaskets and various bolts. Alright it's annoying to have to pay when it wasn't expected but what price having that sort of engine? Start looking for pistons and rods first as they will be the most difficult/expensive stuff to find so they may end up being the death of the project rather than anything else. Good luck Iain

I have such an item that can be borrowed for free by any club member who is willing to travel to Darwen to collect it (unless it happens to have one of my engines bolted to it at the time of course - but like Pete says that's fairly infrequent). Iain

What sort of XR4i is it?. If it's the 2.8 V6 3 door then the transmission and brakes are the same as the 2.0 of the same age (vented front discs and rear drums). The servo is fiercer (a bad thing on a lighter car) and the input shaft on the box is longer (a good thing if you want to apply it to the business end of a V8). If it's a 2.0 DOHC then yes it should have rear discs but I don't think it will have an LSD. As far as I'm aware these were only fitted to 4x4's (including XR4x4's). Have fun Iain

Interesting to see the same vellum chamber and airflow meter as my boggers injection setup. Do you know what has been done to the injection system to allow it to work outside the "normal" operating ranges or is it flexible enough to sort itself out? I ask because I've fitted a 2.1 with a lumpy cam to my donor and I'm not sure whether I'll be limited power-wise by the standard injection. I'll find out when I get long enough at home to visit the rolling road but it would be nice to be forewarned. Iain

In theory (I hope) the angle is dictated by the supports. The bottom edge of the support should be parallel to the line between the bonnet/scuttle and the side panel. This gives the angle and the 66 inch measurement should then locate the whole thing. Please could someone confirm that this is right coz that's how I fitted my screen. I haven't got it on at the mo (SVA to come) so I just had it all temporarily fitted with self tappers. Hopefully if it's wrong these holes will still be covered by the supports if they have to move. I'd just like confirmation before I drill bigger holes for a more substantial fastener. Iain

I had this problem with a 1.6 that I was stripping to send the block back to Vulcan in exchange for my nice new 2.1. I ended up cutting deep slots in the side of the head which cut through the bolts. Obviously the head was then scrap but it saved the block intact. Less drastic. Cut a slot across the top of the bolt. Now use a hammer and an old screw driver or a blunt cold chisel in one side to turn the thing. Hopefully the shock should start it as most of the force holding it is friction. After a turn or so it will probably only be finger tight. Think about where you cut the slot so that if the screwdriver slips it won't damage anything else. Iain