Hi all,

First post so please forgive me. I'm about 80% through my chassis build (to the book) and have been offered a free sierra (sounded good to me), the only catch is it's the DOHC 2l.

I have search the forums and found loads of people talking about this, but no really answers.

Can I fit this into the book chassis?
Is there anyting I need to alter?
I read that the alot of the external parts (manifolds etc) are on the left side and the steering column should run there (surly in the uk my column should be in the right)......help?
Anything else I should be aware off?

It would be a shame to turn down a sunning sierra with MOT, Tax & V5 for the sake of one extra cam shaft.

Thanks in advance for all the help.

Regards

Simon

generally speaking the dohc is tall, heavy and not very tunable, though some people do use it. generally the 2ltr pinto is favoured for ease of build. do you already have a donor? as with a book chassis you'd need to modify the rear end to accomodate the sierra IRS etc if youplan on using it. if you already have an escort with a crossflow that might be the easier route to start with then look at an engine swap later on ie when on the road. sierra's are 2 a penny, so i wouldn't worry about turning one down even if it is free.

just my tuppence worth...

Ned.

Ned,

Thanks, No I do not yet have a donor, I wanted a 2l engine (would like the 2.8 V6, but had already started the chassis before thinking about that, just got existed when steel arrived I guess )

I do not plan to have IRS, was planning on the de-dion axle as I foundon for £135 that fits the book chassis.

Due to the large quantity of sierra parts I can utilise this maid most sense. I personally would like to fit a 2l Vauxhall 16V block at some point, but the gearbox and bell houseing costs are a bit too much at the moment.

I'm not sure a agree with the 2 a penny, I have looked for a couple of weeks and cant find any SOHC 2L's in fact come to think of it, I cant actually remember when I last saw a sierra on the roads around me.

Sould really read my posts before submitting, can anyone see the spelling, grammer & just plain stupid errors

Simon

yes you sould.

we are just being polite as you're new

Ned.

doch is best avoided,go pinto or vx like ned,just my 2p for what its worth

Ned, did you make any changes to the chassis to fit the vx engine, as this is my ultimate, maybe I should be looking at this from the word go.

PioneerX,

no changes to my chassis to accomodate the vauxhall engine. I am buiilding it for sierra independant rear suspension (IRS) but thats seperate!

the only difference will be engine mounts which are simple enough to make up.

i have made some other modifications to my chassis, but again, nothing to do with the engine choice.

See my website (link below) for details of engine and chassis, including pics.

u2u/post any more questions you have.

Ned.

I am planning to use a DOHC engine because that is what my donor came with. OK it may not be easily tunable but it comes with 125bhp to start with so it is better than any standard pinto.

Whilst taller there is not a vast difference to a pinto and with GTS offering taller bodywork this should help make it fit.

I myself would wholeheartedly say use what you have, worry about power when its finished which is surely the biggest hurdle. Hence my 1600. I fear that if i loose my momentum then i will never finish, which would be a shame after so much time.

sorry if this appears twice, I think I hit new topic rather than post reply.

Andy,

thanks for the info in GTS, did notknow about them.

Just a couple more questions if nobody minds.

I had planed to use the lolocost pinto exhaust & manifold will this fit the DOHC?
Will the MT75 fit the tranny tunnel?
Andy, have you made the chassis different to the book to take this engine & gearbox?

I want to build a car that will beat the 0-60 of my Jaguar V8 (6.4), while keeping as close to book chassis as possible. I thinght in my extramly limited knowledge about these car that anything above 100BPH should do it, so I would be more than happy with 125BPH and not really looking to tune it (replace with VX later, but not tune).

Opinions welcome.

Thanks

Simon.

Hi Simon

I haven't started building my chassis yet - my intention was to make the chassis taller to accomodate the engine but now GTS have the new bodywork I may go that way instead. There is a thread on the chassis section at the moment about fitting the gearbox - opinion seems to be divided but many think it will fit the book chassis.

You won't be able to use the pinto manifold and exhaust though because it fits the wrong side of the engine and probably totally different anyway - I haven't decided on this yet. The standard DOHC exhaust manifold should be OK but is a bit heavy and points in the wrong direction for a nice looking exhaust exit through the bodywork I suspect, but will review this when I can place it in a chassis.

Hi,

I am also "using what I have - the DOHC 2 litre that came in my donor car.

Don't know how tall the GTS fibreglass is, but I do have a Luego nosecone and it gives approx 245mm clearance above the top chassis rail. They advise that the scuttle is approx. 280mm above the top chassis rail.

However, I'm still building my chassis 381mm deep (+2 inches over book) as the DOHC engine is approx 650mm top to bottom

JohnN

Hi Simon
I would use the DOHC if its what u have,
i'm using one, & it will fit in a book chassis.
i know what others on here think of this engine, but most of the problems are surmountable.
As i've said before on here the torque of the dohc is far greater than the pinto on standard engines.
I also plan to fit twin webbers(DIY manifold)& tubular mainfold.( again diy)
As im also into electronics, I like the idea of making a programable ign. unit as well.
With a mild amount of port matching- gas flowing, I would like to think that the engine will put out 140ish BHP
(thoughts anyone?)
With a chopped sump its the same height as a pinto;.....yes it weighs a little more put remember greater torque.
Above all, the above can all be done by myself for a very modest outlay in comparison to ,for example, a Vulcan 2.1 pinto.
See my photo archive to see engine in chassis
ATB
Paul

Paul,

Thanks for the insights. The offer of the DOHC fell through, shame. But since I have been offered a Cossie back end with LSD and I'm planning to put a Vx engine in, something I'm far more familier with (having owned three, plus my wife drives the 2lt 8v and my step son the 2lt 16v) than the Pinto which I have never worked on.

Just got to find myself a suitable greatbox now. Only same is I'm goign to end with a Q plate at the engine gear box and axles will be from differing cars. But as my wife pointed out 'am I building the car to look at or drive' I said DRIVE, she said you cant see the number plate when you drive, whats the problem. I had to agree.

PioneerX,

You might get away with an age related plate if the gearbox, front and rear axles, steering and transmission are all from a single donor (ie sierra). You'd have to try and prove it to the sva man, but it works on a points bassis. you can get away with the vauxhall engine, either that or register the vauxhall engine no on the v5 and say it was fitted to the donor vehicle before you broke it! they can't disprove it!

Ned.