Mk1 Astra 1.3 engine

[Pulsar_stu]

What sort of money should I be paying for an Astra mk1 1.3 engine?
The guy said its freely turning by hand but he hasn't heard it running.

Will my mk1 1.3sr gearbox fit the Astra engine?

Thanks for any advice.

[Novasport]

£150-200 and yes.

[Pulsar_stu]

Thanks, I wasn't sure because its an unknown engine that I will have to pull apart and check.

If I buy a 1.2 mk1 engine could I put a 1.3 head on the 1.2 bottom end? And would my sr gearbox fit?

One day I will learn what's what with these engines lol

[kent14sr]

^ No advantage to putting a 1300 head on a 1200 as they as virtually identical in my opinion.

13S engines (early 1.3/mk1 astra type usually) and 13SBs are in great demand as you probably know due to the motorsport interest in them.

All F10 gearboxes are interchangable on 1.2/1.3/1.4 or you could fit an F13 as fitted to the GTE/GSI

[Pulsar_stu]

Great info there! Thankyou.

So if I bought a 1.2 engine and put twin 40s on it with a 1.3 performance manifold and exhaust it would be pretty much the same as a 1.3sr proberbly a couple of bhp less.

I know the two routes I have to choose from now then thankyou.

So the 1.3sr mk1 gearbox won't fit on a 1.6 Gsi nova engine?
It's the later 1.3sr gearbox I have if that makes any difference?

[jimbob-mcgrew]

the 1.3's f10 gearbox is too small for the 1.6 engine, the 1.6's run the larger bellhousing type f13. (however you can switch them the other way, larger box onto smaller engine)

twin 40's aren't really worth it on a 1.2 - you'd probably only gain a couple horse for the £400 and hassle it would cost, plus your petrol fee's would be higher.

if your insurance is low enough, your best bang for buck is to upgrade engine size.

[Pulsar_stu]

I'm 40 so insurance is cheap :-) its going on a classic policy.
I was thinking of the lines of the 1.2 with twin 40s because its close to standard and I'm thinking of doing a full standard resto on the sr I just bought.

My mate does the 2ltr conversions so I can get that done very cheap.

I just didnt want to spend £400 on a bare 1.3sr engine. (Being tight) lol

1.2 engines with all ancils are plenty and cheap but look the same as a 1.3sr engine so it wouldn't affect the look of the standard restoration.

At the moment I'm just gathering info so it's a good data base I'm building in my head :-)
I have a few months of body work and paint to do so maybe a sr engine will land in my lap :-)

Thanks again for the info...

[kent14sr]

If you keep looking around, you should get a 13SB for £200 ready to fit in running order I would say.

[Pulsar_stu]

I'm gonna keep looking while I get the body sorted but if nothing turns up I will prob just c20xe it.
The power would be nice to have!

[kent14sr]

True and its not irreversible!

[mowgli]

if you want some old school, get the 13s rebored to take the 1200 pistons & you have a hi-compression 1400 that fits all the twin 40 stuff etc. it would look pretty standard, need no bodyshell work. the one i had used to show 115mph on the speedo & do it all day... (1992 autobahn trip to dusseldorf)

[Pulsar_stu]

I really am unsure of what to do.
When I got the shell I wanted to so a full standard resto!
Speaking to friends and family I then fancied the c20xe conversion.
Then I got to thinking 1.6 on twin 40s or maybe 1.3 on twin 40s
Then I've seen grass track engines that have been bored and decked with twin 40s
Now you say high compression it with twin 40s which I guess is the same as the grass track engines I've seen?
Plus I was told to get a 1.2 bottom and put a 1.3 head on lol

Think I need to get the car sorted and then when it's sitting pretty ready for its heart go to a show and see what takes my fancy :-)
Thanks again for the info and ideas guys.

[mowgli]

no. you get a 1.3 bottom end & rebore it to take the 1200st pistons. the 1.2 & 1.3 heads are pretty much identical, but the 1.3 has a better camshaft as std.

an engine built with this bottom end, a std head & carb will give about 90-100hp. put on a decent cam, twin 40's & a 1600 head (might need it skimming quite a bit) and you should have nearer 120-130 hp.

[Pulsar_stu]

Something else to think about then.
I'm wondering wether 100hp will be enough power for me.
I won't use it often, but when I do use it I will be around pulsars running over 300hp and a couple of Clio running over 200hp
Will I be wishing I had more power? I think I might lol

[meritlover]

you'd be surprised. on the right trackback road it could be very close against the Pulsars. clio might be a challenge, very light but they take so much work to keep in the power, by the time its worked up to 200hp, you've been pulling out the corners singing along for 5 seconds more at 120hp.