Rebuilding: Diesel vs Petrol?

[LC_rover]

Okay, I am planning an engine rebuild on a 1972 Series III LHD, currently fitted with a 2.25 Petrol.

I was considering getting a used block and head and building this up with new parts, while driving on the existing engine. Then swapping the engine when I am ready. I was also contemplating the differences between a diesel and petrol engine replacement. These two should be interchangeable, correct? As far as the fit and connections to the drive train, right? Obviously there will be a fair amount of other parts that will have to be changed... i.e. fuel pump, etc.

I have owned a diesel in the past (a Chevy) and liked it. I don't have any experience with the LR diesel however. Is it going to be a headache to convert? Does anyone have any experience maintaining both of the engines? Does anyone have any biodiesel experience with LR Series?

Currently this truck is my daily driver, about 12 miles each way to work. I use it for fishing and hunting, but not really any rock crawling or serious mudding. I don't tow anything with it yet, but if I did, it would not be anything more than a small chuck wagon/gear trailer for the local boy scout troop.

All opinions and insight welcome.

[LaneRover]

Though I do not have personal experience with LR diesels I understand that it has even less power than the petrol version. Do a bit of a search within the forum and you should be able to find a thread or two about diesels in general and the Rover diesel too.

Whatever you do, keep us updated and we all love pics!

Brent

[superstator]

Yeah, it seems to come up pretty regularly. They're great little engines, but they also give a whole new meaning to SLOW. Try to find somebody near you with one if at all possible so you can experience it firsthand - with a longish commute like you described, and if you're spending part of that on the highway, it could get old real fast.

[LC_rover]

From my research, the picture that I am getting is that the Series diesel is a rugged engine, designed for environments with slow roads and a difficulty in obtaining petrol.

Its probably in my best interest to stick with a gas engine, all things considered at this time I suppose.

[Jim-ME]

FWIW my conversion from a 2.25 petrol to a 2.5 NAD was the best thing I ever did. The power is better and the top speed that I want to drive is exactly the same. It moves right along. I have absolutely no complaints and simply love the 25 to 27 mpg that I get with the diesel. The best I ever got with my gas engine was 16. I will state that 55 mph is as fast as I want to drive my Rover and I actually like that speed. Even when I add an OD I won't use it to increase speed. Just my 2 cents.
Jim

[LRMAN]

I was considering getting a used block and head and building this up with new parts, while driving on the existing engine. Then swapping the engine when I am ready.

Where are you located? I may be interested in your old engine.

[LC_rover]

LRman, I am in Mount Pleasant, SC

Jim,
Wow. That is really a big boost in MPG. How difficult was the swap? Did you keep any notes?

[SafeAirOne]

I swapped a 2.6 Petrol for a 2.5 NAD in my 109. Simplicity, rock solid reliabiliaty and 20mpg are my primary reasons for going diesel. In 5 years of driving this rover, the ENGINE has only let me down once, and even that was a minor issue--the line from the injector pump to the #1 injector cracked. As a matter of fact, If I didn't mind spilling diesel all over southern California, I could have limped home. A $10/10 minute fix was all that was required--just the kind of breaks I like!

The only things I had to do was relocate the engine mounts on the chassis, add a fuel return line to the fuel tank, adapt my accelerator linkage (mine was easy since I have a RHD 109) and raise the battery tray to clear the engine timing cover/accelerator pump. I don't think I had to modify my raidiator, since the 6-cyl radiator already had the ports in the right place, but I can't recall for sure.

The 65-horsepower engine is definitely underpowered for a 109, though folks with 88s don't seem to complain much. That being said, with no headwind, I can do 55mph indicated (that's about 65mph true speed with my NATO wheels and 235/85-16 tires).

I would have a hard time putting a petrol engine back in here. If I had another series rover, the first thing I'd consider is putting a rover diesel in--Probably a 200Tdi, wich is a bit more of a task to fit that the old 2.5 NA diesel.

[martindktm]

Would an old Volkswagen Jetta or Rabbit diesel engine make a good engine in a series?

[LRMAN]

Would an old Volkswagen Jetta or Rabbit diesel engine make a good engine in a series?

I would think not as those engine were transverse mounted and probably do not have a suitable way to mate up a RWD tranny setup.

[superstator]

This guy did it with a VW 1.9l diesel.

http://www.66rover.com/VW%20TD/VW%20TD.html

So it's definitely possible. But for that kind of effort if I were going to put a different make in I'd rather do something like Mercedesrover did...

[Jim-ME]

LC rover,
My conversion was really simple for me because I had Matt Browne at Overland Engineering do it. If you didn't know that my Rover did not originally come with this engine you would swear that it was factory. Matt is that good. He built one motor mount and modified the battery box so that my battery stayed under the bonnet. IIRC he did tweak the motor mounts on my frame slightly. If you get a 2.5 with a viscous fan, it will not fit in a Series because the fan will not clear the radiator. You need to replace the water pump with a non-viscous unit and do a little cutting on the radiator cowling as well or use an electric cooling fan. I still use my oil bath air cleaner but use 2 petrol air hoses connected by a piece a SS tubing because I needed to have the engine breather hooked up to it. My glow plug relay is wired to the cold start light from my choke cable. So I pull the choke to start it just like I did when it was gas but now I count to 20 before I turn the key. Like I said I am super pleased with with the engine itself and the quality of Matt's work has no rival.
Jim

[SalemRover]

Someone did put an old VW Diesel in an 88 and it worked out nicely for him. I believe I heard of it, saw vids posted on the LRO list.

I went from a turner 2.25 to a haggard 2.5 NAD and the fuel efficiency difference is amazing. Right now I have excessive blow by (piston rings) on my 2.5 and it will still do 55mph on the highway in a 109. If you were going to change I would spend my money on a complete engine. You will lose your shirt buying the ancillaries to convert your lump.

-Jason

[LC_rover]

Any ideas on where to source whole engines? Either diesel or petrol.
Is importing them directly from Turner possible? Or is there an easier way?
Is there any place known for used engines that I can use as a platform?

Thanks in advance.

[Jim-ME]

jac04 who posts regularly on this forum is probably the best one to speak about getting engines from Turner since IIRC that is what he has in his lightweight as part of his restoration. From the Turner website, I do know that Turner has a core charge and does not sell complete engines. My 2.5 NAD came from a gentleman in Vermont who bought several complete vehicles and a bunch of other stuff to fill the container. I went with an exMOD engine hoping that it had had better maintenance and would be in better shape than a civilian one. I was fairly lucky and am very pleased with my choice. I found him thru the Land Rover Exchange (http://www.landroverexchange.com). I have seen 2.5s for sale in Canada but unfortunately do not remember where. In this case although some may shudder at the thought Ebay or an internet search is your friend. If my current engine dies before I do I will probably replace it with a rebuilt from Turner because I feel that in the long run it will be the most cost effective route as compared to a complete rebuild by a stateside shop and believe me I'm not by any stretch imaginable intending to dump on any stateside shops.
Jim