Thread: holden or not

Some would argue that the holden six is part of australian lr history. It comes down to what you want to do with the vehicle. You could probably restore all other bits before you needed to worry about a motor, you can always do it later after you have got the rest of it sorted.

An 80" is the most desirable LR model. They usually had to be substantially butchered to fit a holden 6. If you think you could return it to original condition, then go for it. Otherwise, a restored, converted 80" may still be of interest to some.

It is really up to you, of course - but if you can get hold of the 1.6 Rover engine and it is still doable to refit - I'd go for it. They are such a torquey little motor and part of the thrill, for me at least.

But the vehicle will still be a delight with the holden - so I wouldn't be too concerned either way.

Be good if you could put it back to original. My 50 model was converted during the late seventies and severely butchered
The gearbox and Xmember moved back, front Xmember cut out and replaced with 4" angle, radiator support panel modified to let the radiator forward. The butler head lights were removed and lost Sadly this one has been owned by my family since new and is way to far gone for me to restore to original

One of the things that usually happened with grey motor conversions were that the engine mounts for the 1.6 litre were removed as well as the cut out in the front cross member.

I have a 1951 that has been returned to the original 1.6 engine, but I also have a 1950 that was converted to a Holden grey and it will stay that way.

As for the 1.6 having a lot of torque, this is usually attributed to the early ones with the 4.88:1 diffs. If you have one of those vehicles, I'd be restoring it to original specs.

Diana

Both the Rover 1.6 and 2.0 motors and the Holden grey motor have (in good condition and tune) excellent low down torque compared to most modern engines. The Rover engines however do better than the Holden in that as well as good low down, they are happy to run at 4,000rpm.

This is a result of the low compression and long stroke, plus a flywheel that is relatively heavy for the engine size, and is emphasised by the low idling speed compared to modern engines.

This characteristic has been largely lost with the quest for increased efficiency and power as well as the requirement to reduce emissions.

(And many engines from earlier periods are even better!)

John

Originally Posted by Rangier Rover

Be good if you could put it back to original. My 50 model was converted during the late seventies and severely butchered
The gearbox and Xmember moved back, front Xmember cut out and replaced with 4" angle, radiator support panel modified to let the radiator forward. The butler head lights were removed and lost Sadly this one has been owned by my family since new and is way to far gone for me to restore to original

you could disown them and buy a morris 1000?

Originally Posted by hawequas

hi chasps

i have a 53 80" with a holden grey 138 on very poor welding it does start but i have not driven it, as i am about to do a total rebuild with new wiring, paint job etc should i replace the engine before i get to carried away with the rest of the job

ta garth

Yes