Dantheman
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| posted on 16/11/07 at 09:13 PM |
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Building an engine
I've been wondering for a while now whether it would be practical, or even possible to build an engine from scratch. Maybe I'm being a bit
niave but its all quite established technology these days and its not rocket science when you think about it. You could probably equip yourself with
the tools needed to machine the parts for less than buying a new engine or buy parts off the shelf and use them as you wish.
Just a crazy thought anyway!
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D Beddows
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| posted on 16/11/07 at 09:23 PM |
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Actualy the theory behind designing one isn't that mind bending if you've got a decent automotive engineering background - it's the
cost of actualy building just one or two (or even three  ) that make it a seriously impractical idea!
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mookaloid
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| posted on 16/11/07 at 09:26 PM |
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Yep totally crazy 
No way could you equip yourself with everything you need for less than the price of a new engine.
It is possible to build your own engine but it would be a huge task and it's unlikely to be as good as one you can buy whch has cost millions to
design and develop.
Cheers
Mark
"That thing you're thinking - it wont be that."
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balidey
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| posted on 16/11/07 at 09:28 PM |
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So many variables. What type? Capacity? Configuration? Materials? Running parameters? End use?
But, you would be looking at many thousands. Would almost certainly be cheaper to buy a new CAR and get the brand new engine out of that that to make
one.
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BenB
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| posted on 16/11/07 at 09:36 PM |
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If you look at how much Cyclone spent trying to combine two motorbike top-ends you'll realise how expensive it would be to get anywhere near a
car engine....
It's do-able but you'll be paying yourself £0.001 per hour in the process. Quicker to work in McDOs for a few hours and go from there...
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tegwin
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| posted on 16/11/07 at 10:14 PM |
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As said...building an engine would be costly and complicated, but if its what you want to do, then its possible....
This man has done it...
http://www.conleyprecision.com/
There are loads of sites showing how people have made small engines like those...I have never seen anyone design and build a full size car
engine....the dangers and complexity is scary!
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RazMan
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| posted on 16/11/07 at 10:34 PM |
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The thing is that you will be re-inventing the wheel (almost literally) Someone has already spent millions designing and prototyping so why not
capitalise on their investment? Stick a couple of bike engines together and make a V8 - at least the top ends are already done for you so its just the
crank to make, crankcases etc .......... piece of cake really 
Cheers,
Raz
When thinking outside the box doesn't work any more, it's time to build a new box
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Confused but excited.
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| posted on 16/11/07 at 10:58 PM |
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A guy made a V8 suzuki bike engine years ago and several outfits now produce V8s using off the shelf bike engine parts.
We built a V4 two-stroke in the training centre when I was an apprentice, in the early 60s. All made from billet, with the cylinders sleeved.. It was
used to power a go-kart.
A car engine from scratch is as stated, unlikely to be a viable prospect.
Tell them about the bent treacle edges!
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Ivan
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| posted on 17/11/07 at 07:47 AM |
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I would think the cylinder head and valve train would be the biggest problem but assuming you use an exising one the block shouldn't be too big
a problem. Don't TVR make some of their blocks out of welded plate. You could then mix and match cranks, rods and pistons to suit.
In the 60's one of our local tuners in Cape Town (Willy Meisner) built a reliable and very fast 2 litre championship winning Escort out of a
1600 BDA motor by cutting the block in half lengthways and welding in a plate to fit bigger bores. At the time it was claimed to be the fastest Escort
in the world.
Willy also made and marketed a bolt on SOHC conversion for 1600 crossflows that worked pretty well and made good power. If memory serves it made a
very streetable 130hp but I may be wrong.
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speedyxjs
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| posted on 17/11/07 at 09:22 AM |
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What about that bloke that made that mini ferrari replica with all working parts that keeps getting posted on here?
How long can i resist the temptation to drop a V8 in?
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Dantheman
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| posted on 17/11/07 at 11:03 AM |
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You've pretty much confirmed what I was thinking, making an engine totally from scratch is just daft. But perhaps building a new case and crank
and using existing heads etc could be done. The comment about TVR making cases from welded sheet is interesting because I had thought of that and
wondered if it was possible. One question I have though, is if you used off the shelf heads to make a V8 say, wouldn't there be a problem with
the exhaust/intake manifolds being on the wrong sides of one of the heads. Hope you know what I mean!
Dan.
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