Vin #4454

[Reinsch]

Hello and welcome restoration nation !! 

After roughly 15 years, I've managed to do it.
I'm new owner of #4454. It's 1981, manual with something that once looked grey interior. Looking on title first sold in 1983. 1 owner since 1985. Based on California plate, decommissioned in 1990, unless that 90 in top right corner means something else (?). Odometer showing 25k miles.
Basically, it is a project car that I always wanted. 
Engine is possibly sized as does not turn. My plan was always to put 3.0 V6 with EFI and that is what I will do. Any links to topics or contact to people that did it, will be appreciated.
As interior is properly cooked by Californian sun, I will go for brown/cream leather like proto1 or American Express Gold car. At the moment I am making my wall of inspirations.
Frame is generally in OK condition, however plate under tank is heavily corroded, but I will possibly do frame off anyway - sand blast the frame, galvanize and recoat.

Currently car is being towed to port in LA. I should have it in 6-8weeks in Felixstowe. I now need to organise transportation to Bedford.

Cheerios!
Marek

[Dan Willis]

Exellent news, and welcome.

You won't find much in the way of engine swap threads here I'm afraid; you'll need to read up on the US sites like DMCTALK; more interestingly you'll be seing more on the 3.0 Eagle variants than what we have here; I've never seen a European 3.0 (i.e. recent history lumps). Perhaps read up on the VW/Straight six and LS1 swaps. They're pretty nice.

Good luck with it!

[Chris Williams]

Well done, another local owner as Dan mentioned not a lot on engine swaps in Europe most are done in the US and some very good conversions also. Claire Wright is looking to do a modern conversion on her car soon that looks like a good option so may be worth a look.
Chris

[Chris P]

Congratulations on your purchase.

I'd think very long and hard about an engine swap. There is nothing wrong with the PRV unit as such and looking way down the line...It will greatly devalue the car and take away so much of the original character.

I speak from my experience when I restored one of my first cars in the early 70's. A 1935 Morris 10.4.  I removed the engine and gearbox and fitted one from a 1960's Morris Oxford A60 unit. I ran the car for several years before selling it.  I even eventually bought it back again about 10 years ago..then discovered that my body was too old and fat to thread into the drivers seat!

 I always regretted my hasty decision to swap the engine and box. But at least it made it cheap for me to buy back all those years later!

Of course it's your car and you can do what you like with it.  Good luck with whatever you do.

[Future]

Congratulations on my behalf as well,

I must agree with Chris P.
Just this summer a manager of a restaurant steps up to me in Tirol (Austria).

He starts talking about the car to his personel and knows a deal about the car. I show him the engine. For some reason he thinks the Original engine is a GM.
He said: "It's a pitty then it isn't a GM so it's no longer Original, nevertheless it's a nice car, give me your price if you are interested in selling".
Funny thing is the man had a French passport and didn't know it had a French engine in it.  

If I where to have sold the car for any price the Original engine would have been a issue. Offcourse I wasn't.

Don't swap that engine unless you are really sure.

[Reinsch]

I will swap it for more recent PRV with EFI from Laguna mk1 Z7X 3.0 V6 12V.
Goal is to keep it really reliable and problem-free as I will use it daily and will do some long distance trips.
On beginning I will possibly use stock ECM and later change it to some custom one. Currently on hunt for engine or rather whole car (Laguna/Safrane/Espace).

I don't really care about decreasing price by doing it. I will not sell this car and I'm doing it for myself to enjoy. It was my plan for last 10 years. Whole swap will be also way of expanding my automotive knowledge and will generate lot of benefits in future as I'm automotive engineer.

I own also a vintage bike from 1961 that I use for commuting when weather is nice. Fully restored or I should say restomoded. I'm running it on different carb (modern) and on fully electronic voltage regulator. Just need to replace ignition for contactless and my work is done.

Btw. My D is after US customs and waiting to be loaded on ship! It takes a while to get it!

[Chris P]

I believe Claire is going down a similar route (because of Block Rot). I'd be very interested to see pictures of your progress and the final outcome. (I'd keep all the original stuff.......just incase).

Good luck with your project.

Funnily enough I have been seriously thinking of changing my "Midsomer Murder" Rover 75's  2.0 V6 engine for the superior 2.5, but after lengthly deliberation I've decided to leave it standard.
(It is a well-known Ex TV car. Google  BU03 AHA or look at  https://www.the75andztclub.co.uk/forum/s...p?t=121141 )

[Chris Williams]

Quote:I will swap it for more recent PRV with EFI from Laguna mk1 Z7X 3.0 V6 12V.

As ChrisP wrote I would really consider getting in touch either with Claire or Phill Wright as they have already looked into this and do have info on doing it. If nothing else it would help with lowering costs on the expensive engine/gearbox conversion.
Chris

[Guinney1971]

Hiya, I'm about to update my own thread, a donor car has been found and we are picking it up on Saturday

[Reinsch]

Hi Clair,
What engine are you planning to put? 3.0 V6 24V or 12V? Or something different?

[Guinney1971]

Hiya

going for the 3.0 24v (L7X in Renault, ES9 as PSA), its the engine that replaced the PRV.

Ideally, you want the 'D9' version, which was when Porsche reworked the engine, it was uprated to 210hp from 194hp, and it had separate coils, etc.

In a De, with the cat removed, and a nice freeflow exhaust, that should up the power a bit more too

The later D9's had multiplex wiring, so its not as 'plug n play' as the earlier ones. Ideally you are looking for a 1999-2001 model (early 2001 at latest), so in manual form, not the easiest thing to track down, plenty of autos out there (especially in Renault and Citroen flavour), but they are about, its just getting one at the right money......

---

Marek, when we do finally source a donor car, you are most welcome to come up and visit and have a look, and maybe put heads together about how to do stuff.

We are in Nottinghamshire, so we're about 90 miles up the M1 from Bedford.

[Reinsch]

L7X engine is easier to find then Z7X. I guess you going for variable timing one as they generate more HP. I was thinking about the same. However I read that stock transmission doesn't fit? Are you planing on making adaptor housing or you know something that I don't? Unless you replacing it with something modern?

Regards,
Marek

[Guinney1971]

yes, it will need an adaptor plate, and we're going for the reworked version of the L7X, which is 210hp.

Phill has been doing loads of research on this project, and once a solution to adapting the engine to the UN1 box is found, then we will of course make sure other club members who want to do this engine swap, have access to the information.

[Reinsch]

Hi Claire,

In this case I will join you in this adventure as I'm about to buy Laguna 2 with L7X, variable timing so also 210HP.
Car is auto, but I don't think there is any issue to make it back to manual.

Looking forward for you adapter plate. Keep me posted.

If I will be ahead of you, I will pull out engine from my D and 3D scan block to have perfect image of fixings points. I will have to do the same with UN1 transmission and L7X. Making CAD model should be easy based on that accurate data. Currently I'm waiting on delivery data from my shipping company as car is still in LA.
I will be doing CNC machining in Poland as it should be cheaper and I have good supplier.
I will keep you posted.

regards,
Marek

[Guinney1971]

Really!! ooh that is very interesting.  I'm not sure on the differences on the L7X between the auto and manual, I got my donor car yesterday, its a shed, but engine is sweet, gonna be stripping it in the next few weeks (pics on my thread).

Keep in touch on this 'joint project' ?

---

Just spoken to Phill, he said the Laguna wont have a flywheel as its automatic, so you'll need to get one if you cant fit the DeLorean one - this is why we went the Peugeot route as they come with a manual gearbox, the Renaults and Citroens don't (unless you can find a V6 manual Avantime, but a donor car will cost you thousands, as opposed to a couple of hundred).