Took the plunge - got some pics now

testrider said:
That's some engine they built there, bet it sounds pretty good through those headers too.

What are the Rossini disc like? They sound like a good idea but I've heard mixed reports of grabby feel, increased noise and even cracking around the holes. I'm planning a trip to the Alps next year and was thinking of fitting some to help disperse some heat on the long descents.

Cheers,
Click to expand...

It does sound nice :D

I haven't really had a good look at the discs, but do wonder why someone would want to pay that sort of money, (around £285.00 for discs and pads) to improve the brakes on a P6 which are very good in the first place. They certainly do not give me the confidence that I had in the standard set-up on my old car.

When they need replacing, I will go back to the original brakes.
 
quattro said:
I haven't really had a good look at the discs, but do wonder why someone would want to pay that sort of money, (around £285.00 for discs and pads) to improve the brakes on a P6 which are very good in the first place. They certainly do not give me the confidence that I had in the standard set-up on my old car.

When they need replacing, I will go back to the original brakes.
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That's good enough for me then, thanks. I shall just rebuild the calipers and put fresh brake fluid in there.

Cheers,
 
How did you get on at the Rolling road ? Noticed it was a bit tricky to start at the chippy the other night.
 
webmaster said:
How did you get on at the Rolling road ? Noticed it was a bit tricky to start at the chippy the other night.
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The carb isn't set up right so it won't start too well when warm.

It doesn't help that the old owner fitted a high torque gear reduction starter motor for some reason and this thing howls like a dragster starting up. So not only does it not start but it shouts to everyone in a 500 yards area that it is not starting. :oops:

The rolling road was a waste of time, so I am going to see the people who built the engine on Monday. They are going to set it up properly from scratch.

Should be fun. :D
 
quattro said:
The rolling road was a waste of time, so I am going to see the people who built the engine on Monday. They are going to set it up properly from scratch.

Should be fun. :D
Click to expand...

The bloke at the rolling road basically told me that it was a complete waste of time running a 4 barrel Weber as you could not get the needles for it and it would be set up for a 5.3L engine? It would be far better to get a fuel injection system for it and as luck would have it, he had just scrapped a car with one on it - :roll:

Anyhoo - went off to See RPI Engineeering in Norwich which was a fun day out.

He showed me round the engine building room, (engine building wallah was on a day off :D ) with various V8 Rover engines from different times and in various stages of build. From very early P6 engines to the very latest brand new 4L variants, like mine, with the cross bolted design. Also LPG systems fitted and running to various Rover V8s too. Very interesting 8)

We decided after a chat that the Mallory Dual Point system was not quite up to the spec of the engine so took it out and put the standard SD1 contactless one in instead. This made a difference straight away, as it was already running a power amp which was kept.

He then set the carb up correctly, which funnily enough was correctly jetted for the 4L unit, set the timing and away I went like a bat out of hell. It did move very well I have to say, but still has a 'roughness' which doesn't feel right somehow. Also the front offside cylinder is blacking up the plug a bit?

I got the chance, while there, to have a good look around underneath and was impressed at the soundess of the underside of the vehicle. But! if you stand at the front of the car, and look down underneath it, the engine is sitting at a slight angle, leaning towards the offside.

New set of engine mounts going in this week :shock: Wish I had a garage :x
 
Interesting with the blacking up plug and roughness, which are probably linked.
I would start by replacing the plug and ht lead to that cylinder, see if it makes any diference.

Personally I still say injection is the way to go, not necessarily the old rover system, but those big 4 barrels can be a bit big for the rover, especially on light throttle. Still, sounds like it's running a lot better now, see how it goes !
 
webmaster said:
Interesting with the blacking up plug and roughness, which are probably linked.
I would start by replacing the plug and ht lead to that cylinder, see if it makes any diference.

Personally I still say injection is the way to go, not necessarily the old rover system, but those big 4 barrels can be a bit big for the rover, especially on light throttle. Still, sounds like it's running a lot better now, see how it goes !
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We put a new plug in at RPI, and a new plug lead.

Compression tested the engine and all was fine there too.

New dizzy as well.

Al I can imagine is that I have a valve seal gone and it is pulling in a bit of oil into the cylinder.

Will keep an eye on it.
 
Hello quattro,

Wow, very nice indeed 8)

That engine will certainly have some poke!! I have a three row radiator in mine too, and they certainly need them, especially on warmer days.
What temperature thermostat are you running?

The new engine mounts should make things right.

Once you have the new exhaust system fitted, you will be amazed. :D Music to the ears.

When I had mine first installed, I thought that I may have gone too far, as everywhere I went, people would turn and look even before I passed them, so I new that they could hear that wonderful V8 coming.
Over the next 12,000 miles, the exhaust has settled in and is not quite so loud at low speeds, inside the car at crusing speeds the exhaust note is ever present and I love it. You will be like me, never stop smiling. Your wife will say...where are you going now? it's 2 o'clock in the morning...."just going for a drive dear" :D :D :D

Ron.
 
SydneyRoverP6B said:
Hello quattro,

Wow, very nice indeed 8)

That engine will certainly have some poke!! I have a three row radiator in mine too, and they certainly need them, especially on warmer days.
What temperature thermostat are you running?

The new engine mounts should make things right.

Once you have the new exhaust system fitted, you will be amazed. :D Music to the ears.

When I had mine first installed, I thought that I may have gone too far, as everywhere I went, people would turn and look even before I passed them, so I new that they could hear that wonderful V8 coming.
Over the next 12,000 miles, the exhaust has settled in and is not quite so loud at low speeds, inside the car at crusing speeds the exhaust note is ever present and I love it. You will be like me, never stop smiling. Your wife will say...where are you going now? it's 2 o'clock in the morning...."just going for a drive dear" :D :D :D

Ron.
Click to expand...

The thermostat is 88C

Problem is over here, we have too many jobsworth policemen who are so busy ignoring real crime and need to make up there 'nick' rate. So they will be pulling me over for a pass time to talk to me about my exhaust.

Will have to keep it as quiet as possible 8)

I know what you mean about driving it at a drop of a hat though. My missus is entertaining this morning and needed to go to the co-op at 9.00pm last night. Guess who volunteered? 8)

Funny how it took me longer than it takes her when she walks there?

Well its 1/2 a mile walking and 15 miles by car. :oops:
 
Hello Richard,

I run a 74 degree C thermostat in mine, along with a transmission oil cooler and a 13 row engine oil cooler. On days when the temperature is 24 degrees C or warmer, in traffic I'll have 82 to 85 degrees C on the gauge. Days over 30 degrees C, most of Summer...friends say....why is your car like an oven?

Does your block have the flanged (top hat) liners fitted?

Ron.
 
SydneyRoverP6B said:
I run a 74 degree C thermostat in mine, along with a transmission oil cooler and a 13 row engine oil cooler.
Click to expand...

I couldn't help noticing the position of the transmission dipstick, is all that extra grunt still running through a 35 box?
 
SydneyRoverP6B said:
Hello Richard,

I run a 74 degree C thermostat in mine, along with a transmission oil cooler and a 13 row engine oil cooler. On days when the temperature is 24 degrees C or warmer, in traffic I'll have 82 to 85 degrees C on the gauge. Days over 30 degrees C, most of Summer...friends say....why is your car like an oven?

Does your block have the flanged (top hat) liners fitted?

Ron.
Click to expand...

Hi Ron

My original P6 ran at 85C on the gauge but I am told that the 88C one is correct for this country in the stage one engine.

Days over 30 degrees C? We don't get them any more, since global warming was taxed so heavily 8)

When sitting in traffic the other day for over 20 minutes, it didn't get above 90C, so the rad and the kenlowe seem to be doing their job ok.

I do remember feeling an anxious dread when coming up to a traffic jam in the past (old P6), as I knew my car would start to play up. I did fit an electric fan from an old cortina, but still felt a state of mild panic. I am sure it used to cough when passing a jam on the other side of the road :shock:

I will be making many checks on it as soon as I have a garage to work in, but that seems a little while away yet. :twisted:

And no, there are no top hat liners in mine. This is a recently manufactured engine which does not suffer from all the old problems with liners. The top hat scenario was explained to me the other day as a solution to a problem, but I amust admit I wasn't taking a lot of notice as I had my face in a 4L cross bolted engine, having a good look around its innards.

I was surprised to see that the Rover V8 engine is still being made! and not only being made, but being made a lot better than it used to be. I saw the effect of £1.5M of new tooling and the difference in quality.

I see that you still have SU carbs? How do they handle the 4.6L lump?

Regards

Richard
 
Hello Richard,

Yes it is amazing that at 40 years young, the Rover V8 is still being produced. The new blocks are made under lisence by Cosworth I understand?

The Rover inlet manifold is a 180 degree dual plane low rise design, where each SU carburettor feeds two cyclinders on the adjacent bank and two on the opposite bank. Their combined flow rate meets the requirements of the 4.6 in standard form, which is what mine is, save for the custom ground high torque camshaft.

Modifications to the carburettors include running increased float levels, a change in butterflies and substantially richer needles which were then custom polished to ensure that the air/fuel ratio across the rev range when under load delivered maximum power and torque at all points. This was all done on a rolling road. I provided a new Lucas distributor too, which was regraphed to meet the requirements of advance rate and maximum of the 4.6.

On the dyno, the 4.6 delivered 60% more :shock: power to the rear wheels compared to my 3.5. I was expecting fuel economy to suffer compared to the 3.5, but I was to be very pleasantly surprised.
My 4.6 delivers on average 34% better fuel economy. Country running sees a worst of 25mpg and a best so far of 29mpg. Both were run off at 60 to 70mph average.

With the 3.5, I always had to use lots of choke when first started, and it would often have to remain out for quite some miles, else the engine would cough and splutter. No such problem with the 4.6. I only use the choke to start the engine when cold. Once started, the choke is pushed nearly home, and within 5 to 10 seconds at most is closed completely. I can then drive without any issues at all. The 4.6 and the way it has been set up have totally transformed my Rover making it an infinitely better car.

Does your 4.0 litre Rover still run the standard differential?

Ron.
 
Looks like a standard differential, and the revs per mile certainly seem to point to a V8 diff, so I would presume it to be a normal 3500 diff as originally fitted.

The revs are around 2,300 at 70mph, which is actually a little low, but then the tyres are 185/90 14's which do up the gearing quite a bit.
 
Hello harveyp6,

harveyp6 said:
I couldn't help noticing the position of the transmission dipstick, is all that extra grunt still running through a 35 box?
Click to expand...

I have written a reply over at my posting "Hello from Sydney, Australia" in the "Welcome" section.

Ron.
 
Doggy has a new kennel.



It has taken me nearly 6 months to get this far and it is very frustrating! :evil:

But it is now nearly finished - shame the builders didn't bother ordering the door a bit earlier.

So very soon I will be fitting the new uprated anti-roll bar (when it arrives), sorting out the engine lean, changing the anti-freeze, have the front wings off for a good look, take those fog lamps off and dewire them, fit the overriders, and generally have a good sort out on the front end.



Sparky peeking out 8)
 

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