Holden or Rover engine?

[scubabob]

i have a S2 short wheel base which had a Holden 202 in it until one of the piston crowns decided to seperate itself from the rest of the piston. Fair bit of damage to the bore and way past ressurection. I have a few old red motors laying around but with the trouble and effort it is to get one in ( i dont have a shed or garage) im not too keen on putting in a donk without knowing how good it is.

thing is, do i spend a grand, which i have been told is what it will cost to rebuild it, or do i find an origonal 4cyl and put that in instead? Either way its going to cost me but i dont want to have to do it again.

Any suggestions?

[djam1]

The Rover 4 Cylinder motor is greatly underestimated it has a Diesel block and crank it will last for ever.
For an 88 Inch I would go for a 4 get a good one and run some sort of upper cylinder lubricant and you will be fine.

[Sleepy]

G'day Scubabob.

What's your plan for the vehicle? Just to get it running, do some off road work, farm hack, or restoration project?

I think most here will favour the Land Rover donk.
I think it would probably end up costing you around a grand or more anyway to revert back to the Land Rover 4cyl (unless you have one lined up).
The cheapest option may be to try one of your 186 motors.

Oh, and welcome to the forum. :)
Love to see some pics of your beasty.

[Newbs-IIA]

Yea mate as said the rover 4cyl is a great donk, near indestructable. The big factor for me when selecting an old landy was to make sure it was 4cyl as i couldn't justify registering two 6cyl cars. So the rover engine will save you in the long run too with lower rego costs.

[Sleepy]

.... i couldn't justify registering two 6cyl cars. So the rover engine will save you in the long run too with lower rego costs.

Depends on your location Newbs - I dont think there is a difference in Vic.

[rofosixone]

haveing had both in my ex series 3 swb which is still mostly almost same as series 2 bar updated gear box,brakes,lights ect (see above photo) if its already fitted with all the add ons and conections ,cheapest thing to do is stay with holden,also parts wise once drove into a workshop and told them my starter had it ,need new one .they laughed at me and said sorry mate can not help you,told him has holden didnt laugh and got fixed instantly,never forget that .if you dont mind spending extra to make it back to original choice is yours.

[Rangier Rover]

The 186 is the pick of Holden's in the Rovers as can sustain 4000 rpm over time and not smash pistons.

[miky]

I had a 186 in a S2 LWB and it went great, especially in sand. Good power option if you don't want to convert back to make the unit standard LR.

Parts are easy to get and v. cheap too.

[frantic]

Yup go for the 186 as it does not overheat like the 202 or the old 4cyl, it has a lot more power than the original and is far easier for parts. If you want to put an overdrive unit on in the future the 186 will give you enough power to actually use it! The rego issue is non existant in most states as the 4cyl block was common to the diesel(overweight strong block but weakened head) so the weight difference (nsw rego)between a 186 and a rover 4 was very little.
Also it is very easy to go down to your local wreckers/trading post/ markets and "pick" a few power up goodies(carb's extractors, heads,etc) for a 186 off a P platers wrecked holden.:D

[scubabob]

Thanks guys. unfortunately all the donks i have laying around are 202's so there's no real room for boring out. Popular concensus seems to be to stick with what i have. I don't thrash my Landie and dont' plan to do a 'round australia" trip in her, just go to a few out.-of-the-way places, little camping so power and the like isnt really an issue (until im stuck in the mud somewhere - alone).

Anyone in Vic know where i can get an engine rebuilt?

[Phoenix]

I'd go the LR engine myself, but any mechanic should be able to rebuild a holden for next to nothing (parts are cheap)

[Bigbjorn]

The 186 is the pick of Holden's in the Rovers as can sustain 4000 rpm over time and not smash pistons.

I take it you have not heard of the GTR Toranas with option XU1 than ran 202's. Won Bathurst against Falcon GT's with engines almost twice the size. They ran most of the time at Bathurst between 5000 and 7500rpm. All a matter of preparation and using the right bits.

[BMKal]

If the only Holden engines that you have access to are all 202's, then I'd go the Rover 4 cyl.

The Holden 202 was generally recognized as being one of the worst engines ever built by Holden - they are notorious for No. 5 piston letting go, and have always been well known for overheating when under any sort of load. They may survive pottering around in capital cities, but if you ever want to get out and do any work with them or any long distance touring in hot weather, they're a dud.

I once had a HQ with a 202 fitted as original - after going through two of these engines, I eventually fitted a 173 - a big drop in power but a far more reliable engine. I also used to build up Holden engines for speedway - even though we could lay our hands on as many of them as we wanted, there was no way that we would even consider a 202 due to the frequency of piston failures.

For what you're looking for, I'd be hunting around the wreckers and looking for a 186 or 179 - they're the pick of the bunch, and both have enough meat left to allow for a re-bore and a bit of work if you want to go that way. A 179 with a 149 head is a pretty spritely option, but does need a decent battery to crank it over. Unfortunately, it's getting harder to find any of these still in reasonable nick, but they are out there.

[olmate]

Spot on BMKal ;)

If I remember correctly .. wasnt the 202 a 186 with a longer stroke ? I may be wrong with that but I do know that the 202 were very weak. I have had both number 5 and number 2 let go (5 being the worst).

A 186 or 179 every time hey :thumbsup: I haven't heard of a 179 with a 149 head for a very long time :D ... memories :)

[lro11]

Shame you are in Vic I have a 202 engine in my series 1 I want gone

[Rangier Rover]

I take it you have not heard of the GTR Toranas with option XU1 than ran 202's. Won Bathurst against Falcon GT's with engines almost twice the size. They ran most of the time at Bathurst between 5000 and 7500rpm. All a matter of preparation and using the right bits.

We have crossed this topic before..... I do mean in standard trim;)

I grew up with XU1s and GT fords:D May I mention the alloy down draft head on a 202 in the last hill climb we had here. It hosed the lot including V8 s and Turbo inter cooled Rotisseries. I know where you are coming from here but a stock 202 is still a boat anchor around series Rovers in my opinion:p


Cheers Tony

[Bigbjorn]

We have crossed this topic before..... I do mean in standard trim;)

I grew up with XU1s and GT fords:D May I mention the alloy down draft head on a 202 in the last hill climb we had here. It hosed the lot including V8 s and Turbo inter cooled Rotisseries. I know where you are coming from here but a stock 202 is still a boat anchor around series Rovers in my opinion:p


Cheers Tony

That was the Phil. Irving design made by Hughes Engineering of Brookvale. Matt Philip, one of Harry Firth's merry men had it on an autocross Torana. It used to chew up drivelines. They experienced a lot of difficulty in the foundry with this item. Voids and porosity. Matt told me he sent it back to Hughes Eng. I was told some time ago that Dyno Dave Bennett had acquired the rights but gave up after striking the same foundry problems.

[Rangier Rover]

That was the Phil. Irving design made by Hughes Engineering of Brookvale. Matt Philip, one of Harry Firth's merry men had it on an autocross Torana. It used to chew up drivelines. They experienced a lot of difficulty in the foundry with this item. Voids and porosity. Matt told me he sent it back to Hughes Eng. I was told some time ago that Dyno Dave Bennett had acquired the rights but gave up after striking the same foundry problems.
Yep that's the one. I have it on video here. I must find it. It ran very well on this occasion as my video shows. I did hear a mention of unreliability but not why. The bottom end held up well as it was sustaining some serious RPM.

In those days a lot blew head gaskets including me with over compressed engines, change of altitude and the hot day.
Pity about the Irving head as had a lot of potential:(

I'm not up with it now days but I would think some one has come up with an alternative head design other than working the stocky.


Sorry for thread hi jack...But is on topic of Holden's. May mince the series drive line though:D

[Fusion]

If you have a black 202 then you'll be right ;) . Best of the 202's (3.3). I have flogged the pants off a black 202 and couldn't break it . Did a similar thing to a red 202 and i was picking bits off the road for a while :eek::p . And with a small mod to the firewall you could fit the black 3.3 EFI system . will work on any climb then :D .

Now a motor you don't hear much of now is the old 161 ..... good old donk that one ;) .

[Rangier Rover]

If you have a black 202 then you'll be right ;) . Best of the 202's (3.3). I have flogged the pants off a black 202 and couldn't break it . Did a similar thing to a red 202 and i was picking bits off the road for a while :eek::p . And with a small mod to the firewall you could fit the black 3.3 EFI system . will work on any climb then :D .

Now a motor you don't hear much of now is the old 161 ..... good old donk that one ;) .

Had a HR here with 161 low compression. It was bullet proof till it dropped a valve:twisted:

[B92 8NW]

Now a motor you don't hear much of now is the old 161 ..... good old donk that one ;) .

I've got a 161 in my IIA. Proven to be a very good engine and I've not managed to damage the drivetrain.