Rear wheel drive discussion.. Ideas etc

[Danb1987]

I'm sure at some point most people on here have thought about the idea of a rwd nova, just thought I'd post this up to get everyones 2p worth on the best way to go about things...

Front engined with prop rear axle etc

Engine over the rear wheel?

What axle would be the best, where to get the bellhousing from....

I think the idea of a front engined rwd saloon would be awesome however im guessing it would be pretty hard to do successfully.

Fire away with anything you like but keep things clean and no bitching lol

[bazil]

See the simps, and SOD 2 was it not RWD aswell?

[mowgli]

the main issue with a front engine rwd setup on a nova is simple.. enough room to fit the engine in

the bulkhead will need some serious reworking, and the heater & steering rack need to find a new home.
there are loads of omegas for little money and they would make decent donors.

the mid engine idea is good, but you will need to widen the rear out to fit it, and is probably more suited to a hatch than a loon.

[jonn]

i am building mine with engine in the back. to build a front engine rwd their is a lot of work involved.

[bazil]

There is a running mid engine nova on here iirc, White, from Wales iirc

[mowgli]

the main issue is that it takes an awful lot of work to make a rwd nova that will outperform a fwd nova with the same engine.

[Southie]

Here's some old adverts I found for you ;)

CLICKY1 (http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:rA92eGh9iDoJ:www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/2746584.htm+rwd+vauxhall+nova&cd=7&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=uk&client=firefox-a&source=www.google.co.uk) CLICKY2 (http://www.pngclub.com/forum/showthread.php?105681-Mid-Engined-RWD-Vauxhall-Nova-Project)

[Mike]

Cut the entire bulkhead & trans tunnel out. Decide/figure out/fit what ever engine, box & prop you require & THEN build the bulkhead & tunnel around it.

Basic theory, easist way to execute it. Although a lot easier said then done.

[steviegsi]

What happened to the rear drive saloon project on here (c20xe/LET iirc). Was over a year ago I think,possibly White, and was only up for a few days before the guy through the toys out of the pram and left.

[Danb1987]

I saw the thread about sod2 and that looked an epic build... I don't have the skills etc to do the work on my own but I have friends that do lol

Going mid engined seems to be the easiest (although not easy) and most common route people seem to go for, iv not seen a mid engined loon however.

[Danb1987]

I saw the thread about sod2 and that looked an epic build... I don't have the skills etc to do the work on my own but I have friends that do lol

Going mid engined seems to be the easiest (although not easy) and most common route people seem to go for, iv not seen a mid engined loon however.

DOUBLE POST FAIL......

[_Jake]

Im building a 4wd nova using sierra 4x4 gear. going with a Ford v6 engine as theyre not miles long so it is possible to get it in there

[bazil]

What engine mate? 2.8, 2.9 or BOA?

[Jack]

Mid engine would be pretty crap on a saloon tbh, as you'd have a hard time accessing the engine. Unless you modified it so the rear window opened as well, in which case you may as well do it to a hatch!

I'd say it all depends why you want to do it. It won't reeeaaallly be practical - as said, FF would be better and simpler. MR would probably be easier to make/fit, but again not very practical in a saloon. If its to be different, well RWD conversions have been done a few times now so there's nothing new there - 4WD seems to be more the challenging thing these days. If its to make a cheap drift car, just buy an S13 and when it blows up... buy another one. Repeat ad inifitum lol

[mk1nova_rich]

Put the money into a well-spec'd FWD Nova

[_Jake]

What engine mate? 2.8, 2.9 or BOA?
2.9 tauras is what i have in the sierra im knicking bits off for it, but im eventually going to go BOA with BOB cams & maybe twin turbo conversion ;)


Put the money into a well-spec'd FWD Nova
Fwd cars are pants in the wet, just spin like hell! plus its harder to fit a bigger engine in transverse rather than longditudinal like you would going 4wd/rwd

[mk1nova_rich]

I'd rather have a wide track diff'd 1.6 16v than a V6 RWD Nova...please don't take that as a dig at your engine choice, because I admire anyone with the skills to carry out such conversions :d just wouldn't be my personal choice thats all

[Danb1987]

How does the sierra track compare in wideness of a nova? Is there anything that would fit at retain the standard track?

[_Jake]

Fairplay, but im doing 4wd because there are a few rwd ones about now & i think the power will be distributed alot better through 4 wheels rather than two

[_Jake]

Sierras are 6inches wider, so its a widearch jobby to do one unless you get the drive shafts shortened

[Longdogcharlie]

why not use the rear suspension arms from the cav/calibra with an LSD rear diff, keep the nova track, It can be done!!! then you just have to mess about with the front longditudinal engine mount

[_Jake]

Not sure if its directly aimed at me buti didnt want to do standard track as i wanted a a 250hp+ engine so i thought it would make the car very unstable while cornering at speed, whether this is true or not i do not know.

[Longdogcharlie]

I would say your right, mine with the locked box doesnt really want to turn corners. should be ok if its only rear drive tho. it should be a lot less of a handful without the torque steer