86" Engine options - thoughts/advice?

Continuing the investigation, and still yet to make a choice!

Having cleaned the mud and goop from the original motor it appears OK, no broken castings from storage and no rods poking through the block. As I said, it is not seized, and appears complete. It has been fitted with the wrong carb at some point, but I have what I suspect to be the original carb in a box of bits that came with it. As I also have the original bellhousing, it would seem that I have all the parts required to return to the factory spec. should I choose to do so.

So, the big question! I've never driven a 2L Series 1. Obviously power is less than a 2.25L, and quite significantly less than the Holden 186. But can it reasonably be driven on modern roads? With the overdrive engaged, and assuming everything is working well, can it produce a cruising speed that will avoid angering the truck drivers?

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Originally Posted by Warb

.......... As I said, I don't know how good or bad the 2L engine really is, but obviously a previous owner of this vehicle didn't think it was good enough!
.......

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The previous owner probably fitted a second hand Holden engine, which was cheap as they usually rusted into the ground long before the engine was badly worn, mainly because he was at that stage looking at a no longer new vehicle, and overhauling the engine was going to cost more than the vehicle was worth, where the Holden conversion probably cost a quarter of that.

It is a long time since I drove a 2.0 Landrover, but I would think that a lightly loaded 86, with the engine in good condition, and sensible tyres, would have satisfactory, if not good, performance. And an overdrive should not be necessary particularly if you use 7.50 tyres, although it does help to be able to split between 3 & 4 on hills. Remember that this engine is happy to run at quite high rpm and is smooth and quiet in good nick.

John

You can use a 2 litre with an overdrive when you have a tail wind on a flat road and going down hill! :D

It would be a better drive with the 2 1/4L

Many of the early Landies ended up with a Stromberg carby off a red or grey Holden engine, not necessarily because they were a better carby but because the kits were everywhere.

You will have to change the bottom port on the radiator if you go back to the 2 litre engine.

You say you've got a good 2 1/4 motor so get her restored and on the road with the working engine you have available. THEN worry about getting the original motor rebuilt, or just preserve it so you can sell it as part of the package. Taking time and money out now to rebuild a motor is just adding to the overall restoration/fix-up/whatever-you're-doing time. Get her legal, mobile and safe, then you can worry about the original motor. The only penalty to not having the original motor fitted is a few concours points at those concours competitions you probably don't enter anyway.

Just my thoughts. For what it's worth, we did this with my Hillman Minx back when I was in the the Hillman club. The original motor was stuffed but we were able to get a later one - same block, bigger displacement, but most importantly, it worked. Spent an afternoon changing motors, then drove her with that until it came time to sell her.

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Originally Posted by crackers

You say you've got a good 2 1/4 motor so get her restored and on the road with the working engine you have available. THEN worry about getting the original motor rebuilt, ...
...The only penalty to not having the original motor fitted is a few concours points at those concours competitions you probably don't enter anyway.

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Wot he said.

Except, IMHO, there is no such thing as a concours d'elegans, Land Rover, they were sold by the local stock feed and farm supplier so you could carry a few coils of barbed wore home to the station.

Nothing elegant about that!

(in fact most concours events wouldn't even accept an entry from a GM or Ford product let alone a old farm Land Rover. :D )

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Originally Posted by Lotz-A-Landies

Except, IMHO, there is no such thing as a concours d'elegans, Land Rover,

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concours d'grot? :D