SD1 engine

[dukespencer]

I have been offered a complete SD1 Vitesse for very little money. I really only want it for the engine (or just the heads) and gearbox to fit to my P6. Are there major differences between the SD1 block and the P6 block. I have already purchased for the P6 a Real steel "hurricane" cam, a Mallory twin points distributor and an Edelbrock carb. Would I be better fitting all the above to my P6 engine along with the Vitesse heads, which I believe have bigger valves, or should I build up the Vitesse engine with the dizzy, cam carb etc - I intend to junk the fuel injection by the way - is it a straight swap????

Dave

 

[SydneyRoverP6B]

Hello Dave,

The Vitesse block would be what Rover called a "stiff" block. The webs that run across the lifter gallery are thicker, hence making the block stiffer. The main bearing caps and block registers were changed very slightly over those fitted to the P6. It will all boil down to the condion of the bores really. The Vitesse runs a 9.75 : 1 CR care of the pistons. In either case, new camshaft bearings would also be an excellent idea to have fitted.

The Vitesse heads feature waisted stem inlet valves and improved flows behind the valves, making them better than standard SD1 heads from a performance viewpoint. The valves are the same size as those in standard SD1 heads.

To maintain the compression ratio, you will need to fit tin gaskets. In such a case a tin valley gasket must also be used. If you are not bothered by a 0.6 drop in compression, then composite gaskets will offer a significiant improvement over tins from a sealing perspective. If you decide to go with composites, then you will also need a composite valley gasket.

Ron.

 

[chrisyork]

Whether twin or single throttle plenum you'd probably get a much better result from retianing the injection! There are all sorts of stunts you can pull with the throttle size, trumpet configuration in the plenum etc, which should give you any necessary access to power while retaining good low speed tractability. Something downdraught carbs do either one or the other of but not both!

Chris