Thread: 186 in a 109?

whats wrong with the Landy motor as the Holden conversion has it's issues

Lots of people have had Holden powered Land Rovers, they are good, but it depends what you want to do with it. Many people see it as immoral to fit a different engine, but you have to live with it not them. The road performance is greatly improved, but if you use this improvement too much it can break gearboxes or axles. There is plenty of advice on the forum about engines and kits, search away.

Jeff

Originally Posted by pop058

whats wrong with the Landy motor as the Holden conversion has it's issues

What's wrong with a Holden engine as a Landy engine has different issues!

I guess it comes down to personal choice.

Diana

(I own Land Rovers with Landy engines and other Landies with Holden engines)

The landy motor hasn't got enough bottom end to power 35 inch tyres. I've already upgraded the axles. I just want to be able to drive with 35s rather than tow them. Id rather keep the landy engine but I don't think it's gonna do.

Originally Posted by army2a

Has any one here had a landy with a Holden six? Is it worth doing? I have a 109 ute with a 2.25 petrol. Does any one have a conversion kit they want to sell?

Holden engines have been fitted to Landrovers for at least fifty years, with conversions varying from "professional" to "awful".

The reasons for the conversion vary, although the usual reasons are to replace a worn out engine with a cheaper one that parts are easy to find for, or to provide additional power, or both.

There are distinct problems with fitting a Holden engine as a replacement for a 2.25, quite apart from the point Diana makes about the quality of some adapters. Whether these outweigh the advantages is up to your individual priorities and circumstances. The major issues are.

1. Engine/gear ratio matching. Most (but not all) Holden engines are less than happy with the top gear ratio of the Series transfer case/final drive. It has been general practice to solve this by either fitting an overdrive or high ratio transfer gears, and this should be factored in to your plans.

2. Neither the carburetter nor the lubrication system on the Holden engine are designed to cope with steep slopes, and these may cause rough running or cutting out and loss of oil pressure (running the oil level a bit higher will help). If used only on the highway or on flat ground, this is, of course, not a problem.

3. The conversion from the four cylinder engine almost always involves cutting away at least part of the front crossmember. Since this carries the steering relay, plans for this should be checked with the engineer who is going to approve the conversion.

4. Care needs to be taken in planning the cooling - the Holden fan is not situated suitably for the radiator, so most conversions use an electric fan.

5. Some sort of non-standard clutch arrangements will have to be made. You should document exactly what parts are used, and keep this somewhere in the vehicle - you will certainly have forgotten what was used when you need parts!

Whether this conversion is a good idea is up to you, and I suggest you think carefully about what your priorities are before going ahead.

I do have a Holden adapter on a derelict vehicle, but it will be some time before I could dismantle it.

John

Originally Posted by army2a

The landy motor hasn't got enough bottom end to power 35 inch tyres. I've already upgraded the axles. I just want to be able to drive with 35s rather than tow them. Id rather keep the landy engine but I don't think it's gonna do.

If you're committed to changing the engine, had you considered fitting a 200TDi instead of the Holden? The 200Tdi is loosely based on the 2.25 engine and are frequently fitted to the SIIa and SIII boxes in the UK.

At least it's Landy in Landy

Diana

Originally Posted by army2a

Has any one here had a landy with a Holden six? Is it worth doing? I have a 109 ute with a 2.25 petrol. Does any one have a conversion kit they want to sell?

Like everybody says, it's really up to driver preferences, what the vehicle is used for and any number of personal considerations.

My two bob's worth is that I had a Holden six in my car when I bought it, and used it for ten years. In 2001, I exchanged it for a 2.25 diesel and would never go back to the Holden motor. The vehicle is slower on the road now, but uses much less fuel and is much more tractable. I also like just having everything in the car genuine Land Rover again.

I have a Holden adapter plate in Kal, I will be passing through next week. I can grab it then if you are interested.