On Thu, 5 Jan 1995, Gary Winblad wrote:
> >performer like the Series I thru IV engine I think my
> >long term solution is to go with a 2300 pinto motor ala
>
> Why not a rotary Mazda? The classical Roto-rooter. Excellent
> motor, fits in an Alpine like it was made for it, lasts 200k,
> comes with a nice full syncro 5-speed, is LIGHT WEIGHT.
>
> The nicest thing about an early series car in Calif is it doesnt
> need smog... Series 5 1966 does...
> Gary
I suppose VT, or at least my part of it, will eventually have smog
testing, and I will have to worry about stuff like this. If you put a
different, later engine in your Alpine, what do you do when it comes time
to have it smogged? Does it come under the rules for when the Alpine was
manufactured, or those when the engine was?
If I were going to put in a different power plant, I would have to hear
some powerful arguments before I'd choose a Pinto engine. I once bought
my son a fairly low mileage Fairmont wagon with the 2300 cc Ford engine.
That engine was pretty much a piece of trash, and overstressed trash at
that when it tried to power (not really the right word) a Fairmont wagon.
The gear ratios in the 4 speed were bizarre, as well.
In that particular Fairmont, half the smog stuff had been removed by an
inept mechanic employed by the DPO, who thought that might make it run,
and neither Ford nor anyone else I could find could supply a diagram that
would help me reconstruct it. The basic problem was that this appeared to
be an engine that was intended to last only about 50 K miles, and mine had
60 K on it. I eventually discovered the timing belt had jumped two cogs.
I put it right, and the car ran much better for two days, then the belt
disintegrated, fortunately without engine damage. For no apparent reason,
the rocker arms would slip off the valves. I am afraid I would feel I was
wasting time and money if I rebuilt one of these. Now if you want to talk
about rebuilding a nice 1600 cc-1800 cc OHC Toyota, and stuffing it and
its 5 speed in, I maybe could groove on the idea. That would be a
Sunoyota Talpine, or a Sunota Coralpine, I guess.
I suppose part of the reason I can't appreciate the desirability of engine
swaps is that my car was a Series V, only 5 years old at the time, and I
thought the engine was a pretty good performer (unless the temp fell below
15 degrees).
Ray Gibbons
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