Thread: V8 rebuild - cam + lifters - genuine or not?

Originally Posted by MacMan

Hello folks.

I'm surprised there aren't any replies to my other query on lifters and cam choice


I'll probably be ordering through Rimmers in the UK.

In some respects, It's actually a tough Q to answer .... A link to PhillipA lifter saga ......

Another 3.9 RRC tale of frustration.

BTW Mods .... The pictures that Phillip put up of the cam, is missing due to the thread being moved?


Cheers
Mike

Sobering reading!

Starting to make genuine look like a cheap investment.

Originally Posted by MacMan

Starting to make genuine look like a cheap investment.

Price won't guarantee quality either .... If no response from others, I'ld take the initiative and PM JC

I have installed Britpart lifters on my original 3.9 V8 CAM a bunch of years ago and all is still sweet. BUT that was then,

Personally I would go for a name brand American cam manufacturer like Crane, as there seems to be some problems with cam suppliers locally, imperitave that you get the cam as a kit with lifters, I've heard there are some cheap crap lifters out there. Be sure to use cam lube and follow instructions to run cam and lifters in, regards Frank.

Hi I have used Crow cam many time's with no prob's, I think they can supply lifter's as well and I think they may be same as Holden/Chev and as frank said cam lube and run in correctly

oh I forgot there is a good book (Power tuning Rover V8's) very helpful

Yes, those photos in Philip's thread were great reference. If I remember right, he took a chance on a cam that he was told was good quality, but turned out not to be. Very ouch.

I'm just looking at cams and lifters as well as I'm about to buy one for a new engine. I'm thinking of buying from Turner Engineering as the parts they sell are what they use in their rebuilt engines, and they've always been top quality.

They do have an "H180 Sports" cam, though this just seems to be a Kent camshaft. According to Des Hammill, this has just a bit too much lift for a standard Rover engine, so I'm wondering why Turners are selling it. So I'll probably get the standard cam.

There's a lot of choice out there, however it's mostly aimed at horsepower, and you want torque. And a common opinion is that the factory cams have the torque nice and low and that they are a good choice.

I did like the look of the Piper V8BP255, but it's very hard to get. They are hopeless at sales. Two weeks after I emailed them, I got a reply quoting about 300GBP for a cam and shipping, which is ridiculous.

And I've found Genuine Parts to be pretty dicey at times. You never know if you're getting the Genuine article or something cheaper in a Land Rover box that you pay an awful lot for.

So, to answer your question, go with a good quality aftermarket company as mentioned in the posts above, and go for something close to the factory cam. They'll supply the lifters as well and that way you should get the best quality.

Crane do very good (what they call) RV cams for 4WD's which are big on torque and most importantly they supply their own quality lifters, not the crap holden/chev bits you get with most cam suppliers, regards Frank.