bx on piston heads

[Mike E (uk)]

The story goes that the E-type jag could only hit 150mph because it had been blue-printed specially for the press.

Mike

[johnbird]

27 years ago i had a mk3 triumph spitfire.it ran the main bearing and crank on the m5.was beyond redemption. i had bought a gearbox from a chap who worked for triumph research and development before it shut.i phoned him looking for an engine and he said he had just the thing i was looking for.under a tarpaulin in his workshop was a triumph 1300cc engine removed from his recently accident damaged herald.this engine had been used for testing an american spec engine for the spitfire.it had wet liners fitted i think,the whole point of this long tale is that it had been balanced and blueprinted by the factory in order to ensure they had a good engine and base point to test different radiators amounts of coolant ,size of grill etc.he whipped the sump off it changed the main bearings in less than an hour and into the trailer it went.we got it into the car next day and it fired instantly.
it was very smooth.acceleration was better,it would go through the red line comfortably and drove the car way past the 100mph mark on the speedo-although old triumph speedo needles did bounce and wobble a bit.
it was quicker than xr3is and quick renault 5s.i guess the balancing is the important factor.it remains to this day the only hand built/balanced engine i ever owned and i still smile remembering how good it was. it too did more mpg than the old engine.tickover was smooth as smooth.
it would spin in an instant if you lifted a wheel on a roundabout with the transverse leaf spring but thats a whole different issue............

[KevR]

Ah yes, Spitfires... had a few of those back in the day, and all mine ended up running big ends too... Happy days. Oh, actually they weren't, really... Rubbish engines, rubbish handling, rubbish build quality... I drove one all winter 100 miles a day across the fens when I had a broken arm and couldn't ride a bike. Heater never worked and hood was frozen in the 'down' position. I stuck a hot water bottle up my jacket every day and wore most of my bike kit...
By comparison, the MX-5's bloody luxury!

As for the E type, the original press one was certainly specially prepared, and it also had non-standard aluminium body panels.

[Mickey taker]

I know 26 years ago is a long time but I had a lightened, balanced and blueprinted engine built for me by an engineering firm for a mk2 1600E cortina . ( I had put a conrod through the side of the old lump )

It was a 711m block bored out to 1760 cc fitted with a vulcan stage 3 head ,

balanced and lightened crank , flywheel etc , uprated oil pump, duplex timing chain , alloy rocker shaft posts

total cost £830 including all New parts ( except the block and flywheel) and labour .

[johnbird]

that was a good sum of money back then.i think i paid a hundred for mine and that hurt.you must have been able to buy two 1600es for that much then?

[ste s]

hi all the 16 v is my car .i have just spoken to mark who i bought the car off and he has said the reciept is fake ,why anyone would do that is beyond me.i paid £1295 for the car but have put a new bonnet on it and had some body work done which cost me £400 so now is pretty good.

[docchevron]

why anyone would do that is beyond me.

I'd guess because it makes it seem more saleable?

Aside from the eild BHP claims though, it does still look a tidy motor.
Bx prices do seem to be on the up and up, so you may well get a fair price for it regardless.
I certainly like the look of the car, but I need another BX like a hole on the head!

[Defender110]

hi all the 16 v is my car .i have just spoken to mark who i bought the car off and he has said the reciept is fake ,why anyone would do that is beyond me.i paid £1295 for the car but have put a new bonnet on it and had some body work done which cost me £400 so now is pretty good.

Welcome Ste, Well done for clarifying that, good luck with the sale or why not keep it and join us merry bunch of nutters?

[ste s]

to be honest,i dont really want to sell it,i love these cars,but it rarely gets used but i know if i do sell it i will regret it.

[johnbird]

maybe you should strike out the fake rebuild/receipt/bhp claim and just sell the car on its merits?
its a terrific looking car,a lovely colour.its not stratospherically expensive and bxs appear to be going up rather than down in price currently.
what bhp would the motor make if it was the standard bx gti? probably still quite brisk compared to todays overweight/sized body shells strangulated with emmission control gizmos.

[JayW]

what bhp would the motor make if it was the standard bx gti?

By the book 160bhp, realistically 150bhp is what most of the stock motors put out these days (including mine). Only 10 horses lost in 20 years is a bloody good result though, that assuming they ever had them in the first place!

That puts to at around the 140bhp/tonne which is comparable to a Clio 172 (although the Clio is quicker through the bends ).

The BX16V really can hold it's own alongside the modern hot hatches, it always has!

[ste s]

if you check pistonheads you will see i have already amended the ad,i only got intouch with the previous owner last night.

[Defender110]

Well done again.

[toddao]

I think this car is good as it is. Why would anyone tinker with the 16v engine anyway? It does the job pretty well in my opinion - especially compared with the n/a diesels that I'm used to!

Welcome along Ste. If you hang around here long enough your enthusiasm will be re-kindled and you won't want to part with it!