Hanslow Posted June 25, 2003 Share Posted June 25, 2003 Done to death (probably) but, I've been keeping my eye out for a nice straight 4 westy (vx or zetec) but have come across a very nice looking V8 (not Alex's in the for sale, it's unfortunately too pricey for me ). Anyway, what are the pros and cons (in your opinion, no flame wars please ) of a V8 over a straight 4? Are they a maintenance nightmare? The car in question (like Alex's) has a 3.5 Rover V8. Thank you Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gadrego Posted June 25, 2003 Share Posted June 25, 2003 Well, without wishing to state the obvious the biggest difference is weight. The Rover V8 is pretty light as V8's go but it is still a V8 and you'd struggle to find a seight weighing less than 700kgs. VX is also quite a heavy engine but still a fair bit lighter than a V8. Maintenance wise, I hear that the rover engines are very reliable, probably even more so in a Westfield where they are less stressed than other applications. Obviously there is more to go wrong as there are twice as many cylinders so rebuilds etc.. would costly but find a good one and it should be ok. Both the zetec and vx should be pretty reliable with a bit of care. One thing that might swing in v8's favour is the noise and tuning potential, and the flames of course Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbo Tommo Posted June 25, 2003 Share Posted June 25, 2003 Pros Sound great Loads of torque No need for a close ratio box One is leading the Speed series One would be second aswell if he could do more events Fast as f*** straight out of the box Cons 2 exhaust systems Fuel consumption Weight Engine bay accessibility It's the way I'd go other than a BEC. JT Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fordy Posted June 25, 2003 Share Posted June 25, 2003 If your working on the car yourself, then just look in the engine bay of a seight - tighter than a nuns...... working on any straight 4 is much much easier. i was speaking to a guy who had a V8 westy and he said it took him nearly a day to do an oil change as the filter is very inaccessable - admitidly it wasnt a standard seight, but you get the picture. And if you using it for track days and stuff, a well tuned 4 cylinder can be quicker than a v8, as they can go round corners quicker due to less weight. cheers chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SEiGHT Posted June 25, 2003 Share Posted June 25, 2003 If you have to ask the question, then probably a 4 cyl is the way to go Buying a V8 is not necessarily a "sensible" decision. It's more of an emotional one. Once you've heard the rumble and felt the torque you forget everything else ! Before Blatters arrives advising you to search, here are some of the things I've found out from driving my SEiGHT for the past 3 years: The V8 engine is actually very light being all-ali, the problem though is the gearbox which weighs a ton. On the plus side, the gearbox/engine is designed to haul 2 tons of Landrover and a Horsebox (including horse) up the side of a mountain every day without the owner ever changing the oil, so they are very very difficult to break. The overall car comes out at about 740kg when fuelled up. If you stripped down a V8 car you'd get to 650-700kg but you'll never get near a stripped out VX or BEC car. Due to the power of the engine you can get very good acceleration performance even with 2 up and a car full of leather interior, comfy seats, plush carpet etc. The V8 car is the least affected by adding extra weight (BEC will suffer the most). You can find some very comfortable SEiGHTS out there if you have the cash. Maintenance can be a pain due to limited access in engine area. You'll go through 10 sets of knuckles in about 5 minutes, but you get used to it eventually Fuel economy can be anything from 15-30MPG depending on how you drive. Insurance doesn't seem to be any more expensive really if you go through one of the recognised kit car insurers. It is actually one of the quietest cars at full power, especially if you have the underslung exhausts. You should have no problem getting past noise tests at any track venues. You can have great fun watching people drop stuff as you say"no, it's a 4 litre V8" to people when they ask if you have an Escort engine in there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hanslow Posted June 25, 2003 Author Share Posted June 25, 2003 Thanks. I've heard them (and love them), I've heard the stories about watching the fuel needle drop in real time and the weight issues. Not going to rush into anything, but head still says stick with a straight four as I like the idea of room in the engine bay Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilwillis Posted June 25, 2003 Share Posted June 25, 2003 One small matter - have you got a car, or are you about to order one? If you have one, you may find V8 is not possible. The chassis is different on those beasts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hanslow Posted June 25, 2003 Author Share Posted June 25, 2003 Nope, still looking for the right car at the right price. Hoping to get something that I can live with as is for a while before tweaking and modding takes over Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S8ight Posted June 25, 2003 Share Posted June 25, 2003 V8 200bhp (ish) bags of torque from a standard engine. something that you could drive almost flat out all day long and the engine will take it. there is no substitute fo CC's. all comes down to if you want a plodding engine or one you can scream the nuts off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GaryFoster Posted June 25, 2003 Share Posted June 25, 2003 Are they easy to fit a dry sump too for track use ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S8ight Posted June 25, 2003 Share Posted June 25, 2003 anything's possible i suppose Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Posted June 26, 2003 Share Posted June 26, 2003 Dry sumps on V8's in Westfields has certainly been done, most of us use a good baffled / trap door sump though, with no complaints. I don't think they are particularly hard to work on, they look tight but everything is accessible, much easier than a Mini for example. I cannot believe anybody can take more than ten minutes to change the oil on a standard car, most of that would be waiting for the oil to drain! On the maintainence thing, yes twice the number of pistons but only one cam and only 16 valves. Absolutely nothing complicated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S8ight Posted June 26, 2003 Share Posted June 26, 2003 just remembered, cant recall where i saw it, might be kit car mag ? but someones developed a V8 from two motorbike engines Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hilux Posted June 26, 2003 Share Posted June 26, 2003 watching the fuel needle drop in real time My Vx on full chat does that already Rover V8`s are bomb proof if maintained, I owned this for 10 years . Imperative oil is changed regularly (1/2 the normal recommendations as the oil galleries to the head are v v small and designed for 3500 rpm on a boat Rover/British Leyland got them to rev to 5500 reliably but unlike VX they can be expensive to tune them for more power apart from Holleys and Offenhauser manifold. IMHO cheapest power gains per pound spent are on a VX Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Seabrook Posted June 27, 2003 Share Posted June 27, 2003 You could do what a mate of mine did and fit a TVR Griff 5000cc lump, which is basically a Rover V8. over 300bhp and I think with engine gearbox and engine management it cost him £3500 aprox. That is good value £ per bhp and no 4 pot non-turbo will come close to this on price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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