sparkytph Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 Hi Thinking about engine swaps has any one fitted a mazda mx 5 engine and gearbox to a spitfire any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thescrapman Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 You need to start with the thread about fitting a Tr7 engine into a spitfire... Sorry , link no longer available Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Velocita Rosso Posted November 5, 2015 Share Posted November 5, 2015 Quoted from sparkytph Hi Thinking about engine swaps has any one fitted a mazda mx 5 engine and gearbox to a spitfire any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated Personally..... with no malice/animosity ....I dont understand the reasoning for fitting `modern` engines to such cars(sorry to mates)Then the question will come back "Why does my diff keep blowing" eg putting greater torque on an older unit from a modern engineorI need better brakes because of increased power/torque/speed etcI can understand exchanging Triumph for Triumph or similar You may as well just buy a modern eg MazdaJust have the best of both worlds ...we have MX5 and Subaru.....but two out of three Triumphs are as near as original (think)(dizzy) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paudman Posted November 5, 2015 Share Posted November 5, 2015 +1... although in my case the comment reads: "then the question will come back: why?"I can understand people doing it to see if it can be done, or as an oddity, but too many are advocating it as the only way to make Triumphs last into the future and keep up with modern traffic... it's a bit like putting a petrol engine into a steam engine and then asking "Do you like my steam engine?" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Jones Posted November 5, 2015 Share Posted November 5, 2015 Mk3 and onwards keep up with modern traffic as standard.However, if you have a Spitfire with a broken or worn engine, it's pretty easy really - costs at least £ 800 to rebuild a 4 pot Triumph engine to a decent standard, more if you want a bit of extra go. MX5 lump complete with the rest of car attached (including a nice 5 speed gearbox) can be had for alot less, so you can have a better result for less money - though more effort for sure. The MX 5 engine (for example) is not so power as to cause huge problems with the diff etc.Does probably limit the resale value of the car down the line, but should be possible to do the conversion in a reversible manner.Your car your choice.....Nick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nang Posted November 6, 2015 Share Posted November 6, 2015 Got a Mk4 Spitfire and two 2500's. All standard (pardon the pun) I love them all, they go well for what they are. If I feel like a bit more spirited driving I take out my BMW 318 ti. Nothing too expensive in my fleet and a lot cheaper and probably better than repowering.(dance)Tony. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marktheherald Posted November 6, 2015 Share Posted November 6, 2015 it's a bit like putting a petrol engine into a steam engine and then asking "Do you like my steam engine?" 1.13 mins in....Ugly thing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=genH-wi5JmM Sorry, thread drift. Would always keep Triumph engines now but back in the day I fancied a Fiat twin-cam.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ferny Posted November 6, 2015 Share Posted November 6, 2015 I've got more power, reliability and fuel economy than I could dream of from a Triumph lump for less money. It even sounds luck a Triumph and is faster than an MX5. If people don't like it then that's their problem, not mine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shed 1969 Posted November 6, 2015 Share Posted November 6, 2015 I like the "feel" of an old car if the engine swap doesn't detract from your enjoyment and the feel of the car then crack on! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Velocita Rosso Posted November 6, 2015 Share Posted November 6, 2015 Quoted from Nick Jones Does probably limit the resale value of the car down the line, but should be possible to do the conversion in a reversible manner.Your car your choice.....Nick Do agree everyone to their ownHowever, Nick....thats the pointIf you get a young un wanting to buy a cheap deal and maybe insurance, then change engines etc then that detracts people from buying the car when they have got fed up of it(unless the old engine is kept when reselling)So you either get a classic buyer deterred from buying the said car, and eventually it could be scrapped if no interest in a saleLots of hidden agendas in people buying Triumphs and wanting to convertSome like to do engineering challenges like this Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BiTurbo228 Posted November 6, 2015 Share Posted November 6, 2015 I'm all for engine swaps (and general modification). I do like a nice original car, but it's the engineering and ingenuity that interests me. Whether that's fitting a non-standard engine or improving upon a standard one.Personally, I rather like the notion of 'keeping it in the family' engine-swap-wise, and will go out of my way to do that. For instance, I've passed by a BMW M52, a Ford Zetec and an MX-5 engine to put a Triumph 2.5 PI into my Spit. I've also got plans to put an 1850 Slant 4 into a Spitfire and a Rover 2600 I6 into a TR6 (creating the OHC TR6 they should have made to fight the 240Z in the US). If I want a modern I4, I'd probably go the hard way and get a K-Series (or try and fit the Saab slant-4 which is a development upon the Triumph slant 4).But, it's your car and you're absolutely free to do with it as you wish MX-5 engined Spits can be bloody quick, economical and reliable (just like Triumph OHC ones). Just make sure you sell your original engine to someone who needs one. It is a limited supply after all...Swap-wise, MX-5 engines can be made to run nicely on carbs if you want to go that way which might be simpler than plumbing in the whole injection system. I expect you'll need a different exhaust manifold although I'm not 100% sure. You might be able to use the original one. The 1600 MX-5 engine weighs 123kg which is 2kg lighter than the Triumph OHC if you care about weight distribution, but I'd anticipate more of the weight being higher up with the DOHC layout. The 1800s weigh 131kg.If you're going carbs then you'll need an electric fuel pump. Facet Redtops I've heard are good. If you're going injection then you'll probably need a swirl pot so you don't get fuel starvation in corners (stock injected cars tend to have one built into the tank but Spitfires don't).With the added power of an MX-5 engine it's probably a good idea to upgrade to GT6 brakes, although I've heard standard Spitfire brakes with uprated pads are rather good so maybe not necessary.Other considerations from the top of my head would be getting the right pipes to plumb the engine to the radiator, sorting out a throttle linkage, getting a propshaft made up to connect the MX-5 'box to the Triumph diff, sorting engine and gearbox mounts, sorting an electric fan as MX-5s don't have a crank-mounted one, connecting the Triumph clutch master to the Mazda clutch slave, mating whatever exhaust manifold you need to the rest of the exhaust system and if it's a Mk3 or earlier probably getting a swing spring at least to sort the rear end. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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