1.2 Carb Merit - 1.4 Sr

[NovaLad]

Just been talking to iainel on msn about this as i am maby thinking of having a 1.4 SR engine dropped in if my nova can't keep up a bit with my mates NEW cars which are all 1.4's lol...

Before anybody says anything about racing i'm not after racing them just so i can keep up and not piss them off by them having to wait for me.

For a start... Does anybody have a 1.4SR engine lying about with low miles? and how much we talking?

What i am planning on doing is seeing how my 1.2 is on the road 1st then if it starts to do my head in with getting left everywhere then i will prob drop a 1.4SR in .

Any input on how hard it is to do etc... is good cheers.!

And how much to fit??

[craig green]

Straight swap, carb for carb pretty much.

You may find with a 1200 & the weight advantage you will likely have, that they arent as fast as you'd imagine.

However, if you have an SPi (1200) then you will want more power.

[NovaLad]

Well like i said i don't know how my nova will be power wise till i get it on the road it only has 44 thousand on clock so the engine hasn't been ragged that much.

It was owned by a lady for all it's life before me apart form 2 years of that was a youngish guy.

What power are we talking from a 1.4SR?

All i know about my car atm is that the prev owner had it off the clock once which i think is 120 ish ... but really it was prob going around 110.

[craig green]

About 75bhp. Its more than enough for an inexperienced/young driver tbh. Is your 1.2 a 4 or 5 speed gearbox?

Not to mention your insurance will go through the roof with an ebgine swap.

Btw this topic would be more suitable in the Mechanical forum.

[NovaLad]

About 75bhp. Its more than enough for an inexperienced/young driver tbh. Is your 1.2 a 4 or 5 speed gearbox?

Not to mention your insurance will go through the roof with an ebgine swap.

Btw this topic would be more suitable in the Mechanical forum.

Yer just noticed that hopefully admin will move it.
My gearbox is 4 speed.

And TBH the quotes i have been getting on the 1.2 are like 2 and a half grand so i doubt saying it's a 1.4 will make much difference aswell as the fact i'm in a crappy area so either way i'm going to be paying out more than enough for insurance.

[Jack]

Bear in mind its a conversion so will be considerably more expensive than a std fit 1.4SR.

The only insurance companies I can think of off hand who will even consider covering you are 19+

[Welsh Dan]

It'll be cheaper and more effective to change the wheels/tyres/brakes/suspension and strip the weight out, once you factor insurance in.

That said though, my 1.2 carb engine gets my fat ass around without any great problems, admittedly I can't overtake uphill, but thats about the only problem.

EDIT: Its easily as 'quick' as mum's 1.4SPI (X14SZ) Corsa B.

[craig green]

Tbh theres no shame in having a slow car. We all hve to start somewhere & the sooner younguns come to terms with that, the safer our roads will be.

I got my 1st car (B reg 1.2 Nova) on my 19th Birthday & after a year started uni & commuted 70 miles each way every weekend on B roads & it was a real hoot tbh. I'd put in Brown check SR seats & some 14" Cav steels with decent 185 tyres & it was a weapon (for a 1.2). Another year later (& lots of cash down the drain etc) I sold it for what I paid for it & bought my GSi. (8 yrs ago FECK!)

If you like your Novas that much, bide your time & do an engine conversion in the future or get a car with a 2.0 etc. Just put up with the 1.2 in the mean time & put your efforts into looking after it & not crashing it.

[NovaLad]

Nice 1 guys.