what engine could fit?

[Chucky]

Alright guys im wondering which engine I could swap in my 1985 2 door saloon, at the mo iv got the standard 1.0 and I was considering the x16xe. But im interested to know whether anything else would fit? Something non generic, maybe something totally original not done often.. There's alot of space under the bonnet, any ideas? Im looking for mad acceleration, reliability would be nice. How difficult would it be, rough cost, what else would need to be changed etc.. Any help and advice would be much appreciated, I want my nova to be unique and I'll do my best to make that happen. Cheers guys =)

[mowgli]

if you want unique, slap a turbo or supercharger on the 1.0...lol

seriously, what are your fabrication skills like??

you either choose a fwd engine, or a complete rwd drivetrain. or maybe cut a clibra 4x4 floorpan to make a 4x4...

most things have been done already..

get a tape measure & start looking at big engines....

as for cost, it would probably be cheaper to buy an old bmw m3

[maddogdaz666]

Cost = How longs a piece of string? It all depends how far you go with it could be £100 to £100,000!

In my opinion the best and easiest budget swap is x16xe.

[meritlover]

if you are not going to take the tried and tested methods of the GM family engines, and want unique the its going to cost a lot especially if you are having to ask " how difficult is it " and "what do i need to change" you have very little chance in pulling it off yourself and will probably need a forum to hold your hand for every single wire and bracket.

Basically any car/bike engine will fit in any car with the right amount of skill and effort.

[Chucky]

My fabrication skills are non existent, perhaps i should have mentioned that. My experience is in panel beating and accident repair, so of course i will be taking the car to a garage when i've got the money for the conversion. I was simply interested in knowing what the possibilities are, i do realise that the more adventurous i am the more it will cost me. The x16xe is my main choice, but i'm not skilled in mechanics at all so am keen to know if honda b-series engines, nissan sr20det or mazda rotary engines have ever been attempted, and what would be involved in the swap?

I've seen i can pick up a 1.6 for a few hundred but not sure how much i should be expecting to pay a mechanic for the labour, any idea's?

[mowgli]

well, with rudimentary tools, you should be able to fit a x16xe engine into a nova shell, as most stuff will line up straight away.

someone has fitted a b series, and it involved quite a bit of work, simply cos the engine & box are bigger, and also the other way round..

a mazda rotary would be interesting & probably not that difficult.