Hi all,

I currently have a series one EB V8 Fairmont as a daily driver, with a recent 5 speed conversion. Its in pretty good nick, but the current engine has done quite a few km's (370,000 actually) and is pretty disapointing in the performance area, although the five speed made a HUGE difference. I have the original engine tucked away for a rainy day, but i also have a long motor from a 2000 model AU sitting around that i would like to put in the EB. It is stock, and has about 160,000km on it and has GT40P's with pressed rockers.

I was toying with the idea of a turbo, but i've been there and done that to three other vehicles and i just don't have the time/money/patience for a project like that any more. There's also stuff all downtime if i'm just swapping out motors too as opposed to weeks spent doing a DIY turbo. I'm not interested in superchargers either - just incase someone was going to suggest it.

The car is dual fuel, and will run series 3 AU XR intake (MAF, TB, injectors, upper and lower manifolds) with the current Impco 225 mixer. I was hoping to get a dual tune J3 for it so i can have a map for LPG and petrol, and also straight petrol with a bypass pipe replacing the restricting gas mixer.

I've been given the below prices from a friend who works at an auto shop, although he did comment that some of the stuff could be bought cheaper elsewhere.

- Yella Terra roller rockers = $590 (adjustable = $690)
- E303 camshaft = $550
- Full Payen gasket set = $280
- RollMaster timing set (not 9 key) = $160
- New hydraulic lifters = $320
- Waiting for price on valve springs

All of the assembly work will be done by myself, and i'll send the heads and block down to a friend of mine to square up the two faces and cut the seats. Hopefully i'll get away with just new rings and a hone, and the bottom end will be checked as well (will get a crank balance too). I'll more than likely clean up and port match the heads and manifolds, and i'm yet to decide on extractors (car currently just has a 2.5" sports exhaust).

How do these prices stack up to what the "going rate" is, and as a whole, how do the parts look as a engine combo?

Thanks in advance,

Coxy

I don't know about the prices of the parts so much, I have 2 EB Xr8's but I'm fairly new to 5lt efi windsor land, but if i was you i would be removing that impco 225 and replacing it with an impco 425 if you wish to stay with impco gear, otherwise a conversion to a GRA tb & converter would be a good idea on the way to more power. Or go all out with gas injection, if the budget allowed for it.

A dual tune J3 would be a good way to go, to pick up power on both fuels.

From the short drives i have taken my EB Xr8 5spd on, with the impco 425 and a superchip (modchip) in the ecu, i can't tell the difference between petrol & gas, they both accelerate very hard. It has pacemaker extractors & a big exhaust, but i don't know what internal work the engine has had done, if any. Still has the HO manifold on it.

Cheers

ToranaGuy

I would suggest you look into a different cam profile. The E303 is very dated and has a narrow lobe seperation angle which is likely to cause idle surge. Go with a cam around 112-116 lobe seperation angle. I use re-profiled factory cams which are around NZ$200 and perform just the same as a new item.

I use Fel-Pro gasket sets. Start with a set to suit an early windsor (NZ$90) and purchase the one-piece rear main seal seperately (NZ$20).

Try a JP billet steel timing set for late model EFI (must be for EFI or severe engine damage will result). These are around NZ$110.

Unless the engine you're rebuilding has done > 250000k's you can re-use the old lifters

Get a matched set of springs, retainers, locks. I use a beehive spring and super-duty retainer with hardened locks but these were made by Crane who is no longer making them. They fit the heads without any machining. You maybe able to find some old stock in Australia.

Make sure you use the correct rings for the pistons. There are 3 different pistons used in the windsors from 1991-2002, each requiring a different ring set.

I'd recommend new lifters whilst the engine is apart. Some of my 130,000km old lifters fell apart as they were going back into the engine when I got all my work done. Maybe I just had some bad ones, but good insurance all the same.

For what it's worth I have rebuilt about 15 of these engines in the last 2 years and only used new lifters in 2 of them. Both times because the owner wanted them replaced rather than due to any issues. Many of those roller lifters had done over 250k's, some over 300k's. They just aren't a part in the engine that normally causes trouble, and this is backed up by the number of higher milage falcons still happily running around on their original lifters. I did one last month that had done 450k's and it died because the owner chose to drive it home after the head gasket failed, causing 2 pistons to nip up in the bores.

Of course you check a used part before it is put back into service. The roller wheel needs to rotate freely with any "notchy-ness" and the pushrod cup should not be worn. But the lifter gets a full-time oil bath which minimises any chance of wear. It sounds like your failure may be more of a mechanical interference type issue somehow causing the internal circlip to come out of it's groove. I've certainly never had a single one "fall apart" in the last 6 years.

The same replacement theory could be said of other parts in an engine that are "discretionary replacement components" eg pushrods, rod bolts, sensors & actuators etc. Of course it doesn't hurt (except the wallet) to replace them, but in my book that $300 could go towards a more worthwhile cause.

You could add under drive pulleys to that list, you can also pick yt rr 1.7 for around $300.

Id also recommend the rpm2 manifold as it gains 33rwkw with that change alone.

Where abouts are you getting the YT 1.7:1 RR's for $300? That sounds CHEAP!

Non-adjustable?

Non adjustable yella terra gear is a fair bit cheaper than adjustable stuff, no matter what engine your building. I was looking at the prices the other day, interested in some roller rockers for the torry's red 6.

Cheers

ToranaGuy

I bought mine second hand from eboost, but theres been a few in the for sale section you just have to scour it.

you should chuck up prices and parts for your V8 turbo build raptor-xr8- Would be great to see more turbo v8's getting around. And for $5.5k, sounds like it would be an affordable project for most.

Heres a question that popped up after talking to my father about the V8s. Im in the process of putting my EL 98 Windsor back together, and Ive noticed on the heads there are 2 water channels one at the front and rear of the head.

I noticed when I took my cylinder head gaskets off there was only one opening provided, and the same can be said for the new gaskets. So, should there be 2 ports in the gasket for both front and rear, or is just one standard, and if so, which one shouldnt be covered.

My father was telling me the Windsors had overheating issues if the gaskets were put on backwards.

Does anyone have any information/experiance with this?

Any engine will over heat when the head gaskets are put on backwards...that's why they usually say "front" on the front of the gaskets. The only reason the water ports are at both ends of the heads is that the heads can be used on either side of the engine.