Originally Posted by Brian Hjelm
I'm not quite as big, but still not small. But to improve the space in a vehicle does not mean you have to make it bigger - I am struck every time I go from my County into the 2a how much roomier the 2a is, largely due to the smaller transmission tunnel and thinner doors. And the big slow revving engines of a generation ago produced a power weight ratio that would be simply unacceptable today, together with fuel consumption that would also be unacceptable. And the major reason for the economics of American rather European cars for mail contracts was that they were designed for the sort of conditions they experienced - which the European cars were not. The engine was only a small part of this. I am afraid that we will not see big, slow revving engines again, but there is no inherent reason why modern light weight engines cannot be both reliable and fixable, even if not big or slow revving, or even simple (for example, there is NO reason why a test book cannot be incorporated in every vehicle together with a display that tells you exactly what is wrong).
As to what will happen if the ownership changes - as you say - nobody knows, but it is a reasonable guess that any new engines will not be specifically designed for Landrovers, and that their design will be dictated by the same factors that influence the current engines - emissions rules, EU requirements for an ECU, fuel economy requirements, competition with other engines for size, weight, vibration, noise, driveability and manufacturing cost. But a return to the style of engine of a generation ago is not going to happen.
John
