my new project

[MattG]

i know you guys knew i was doing a v6 ..but i have now gone a completly different route to my first idea !
engine is a 2.5 litre v6 vauxhall , it bolts stright onto my gearbox i allready have.

ok had two full days this weekend to bit the bullet ..

DAY 1

so out comes the old 2 litre ECO-TEC lump :
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/38.jpg
then it took most of the day to get the v6 in and mounted properly :
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/40.jpg
found that the sump/oil pickup hits the subframe ..so the sump and oil pickup pipe needs modding :
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/49.jpg
Bugger found that the rear head hits the bulk head , so not sure what to do at the end of day 1 :
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/42.jpg

Day 2

Invited a good friend round with his disk cutter , after a beer or two .. we got on with it , and cut a hole in the bulk head to clear the head / cam pully .. in the end i dont think it was that big a hole. :
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/56.jpg
once the head sat correctly with cam clearance ,it was time to try the injection system :
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/46.jpg
looks good , all fits under the bonnet , and then a trail fit of the old front end :
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/60.jpg
again all fits ... end of day 2 and allot happier !!! , rear exhuast manifold is the next BIG problem .. but thats another day .. i am knackered.....

so what do people think ?

Matt[/img]

[Rob Hall]

Looks great Matt

Is there still room for a rad at the front?

Rob

[MattG]

Looks great Matt

Is there still room for a rad at the front?

Rob
yep :) may need to do a fbm-spec style rad :)

Matt

[Geehawk]

Good pub points, but should have left the V6 for the RWD one.
Should sound nice though 8)

I thought this was your daily driver ??

[MattG]

I thought this was your daily driver ??

it is/was ... got to get a good running v6 this week , and get it back on the road next week !!!

Matt

[Geehawk]

I thought this was your daily driver ??

it is/was ... got to get a good running v6 this week , and get it back on the road next week !!!

Matt

:shock:

[BassAddict]

Looking good Matt ! Love that ambition / optimism -
got to get a good running v6 this week , and get it back on the road next week !!!
:) :) :) :lol:

[MattG]

guess you guys dont even think its worth a sweepstake ? :)

Matt

[Geehawk]

guess you guys dont even think its worth a sweepstake ? :)

Matt

That depends on whether you are using :megasquirt: on it....

or is that a daft question :lol:

[MattG]

or is that a daft question :lol:

thats a daft question graham :) :lol: :lol:

[Geehawk]

Oh right. :lol:
And how do you define back on the road. :wink:

[Oz]

:o wayhey, well done Matt that look well cool !!! :D :twisted:

[evolotion]

sweet, that lump much heavier than the ecotec one?

[MattG]

i think its another 50 kgs .... :(

Matt

50 kg? that's quite a bit. where does the lump sit in relation to the old one?
is it a bit further forward? if so, the handling could take quite a hit.

steve

[MattG]

sits in the same place.

Matt

[DaveCoxon]

Invited a good friend round with his disk cutter , after a beer or two .. we got on with it

Fantastic Statement!

And what a great change of mind! So what made you decide to do this? Was the Ecotec goosed or were you just bored? :lol:

[MattG]

Invited a good friend round with his disk cutter , after a beer or two .. we got on with it

Fantastic Statement!

And what a great change of mind! So what made you decide to do this? Was the Ecotec goosed or were you just bored? :lol:

eco tec was very tied , low oil pressure so it had to come out , but i picked up a v6 the other month so thought i would try it for size..

Matt

[Clemi]

So by modding the AMT frame and sump, a V6 will fit in a mini, (extended front obviously). It sounds way too simple, I want one.

There was a nova that had a V6 in it, it was said to do 160mph, 175 on the rollers, in standard form! Be careful Matt!

[DaveCoxon]

Is there the same mounting on the engine for the Calibra quill shaft (equalish driveshaft assembly), or do you have to source one off a V6 (assuming they had one! :?

[Minimivic]

Ban him. :shock:

No longer a 16v mini :D but i like the thinking :D

[Spag]

Good man, there needs to be more V powered FWD Minis about !!!


:lol:

[MattG]

Is there the same mounting on the engine for the Calibra quill shaft (equalish driveshaft assembly), or do you have to source one off a V6 (assuming they had one! :?
they did have one , its the same length so will be using it.

Matt

[MattG]

Ban him. :shock:

i was worried about if you guys will let me stay in the club

Matt

[BassAddict]

We cant ban Matt - he's our leader remember !!!!! Just means we all have to look to 6 cylinders or more now !!! :)
Rich

[ChadH]

Yeah Matt,

Just change the name of the club and ban everyone else :lol:
After hearing the sound of that engine, I want one too!! Maybe I'll just stick with getting my original project sorted first though!!

You should post a link to that sound file on here.

[evolotion]

lol *subscribes to www.24vminiclub.com and buys a kv6*

[BassAddict]

What sound file ??! :) Post the link so we know what Chad is on about !!! :)
Rich

[MattG]

not my v6 , but this is the sound of a vauxhall v6 :

http://www.v6mini.com/downloads/v6soundbite.mp3

Matt

[Geehawk]

That should reverberate around the cabin nicely.

[BassAddict]

That does sound pretty tasty indeed ! I can see the appeal in that :)
Think Spag and the other V8 owners still get the best sounding engines of all though I'm afraid ! The V6 is very close though :) !
Rich

very very nice Matt. Looks like lots of fun :twisted:

[B20GT]

V Tecs sound like that when on cam :P a lot of induction noise, were you running the engine in neutral in the garage???? Big Props but :D Makes me wanna go H22 :twisted: :lol:

[MattG]

thats not my engine :( was someone elses ....

Matt

[ChadH]

V Tecs sound like that when on cam :P:

8) 8) 8)

I have no idea what one sounds like yet - I'm saving myself for when mine is finished :lol:

[MattG]

must just say thanks to wally for helping us on the first day

Matt

[wally]

hey no problem! even if i just stood there most of the time drinking your beer and laughing at your mig welder! which is actualy really good!
if you need any drills sharpened you know who to call :D

[wally]

blimey almost forgot, matt only mentioned :megasquirt: once! :shock: :shock: :shock:
i thought he was on the payroll when i first looked at this site :D

[MattG]

laughing at your mig welder! which is actualy really good!


my mate on sunday did not have so many kind words to say about my welder :)

Matt

[BassAddict]

I have no idea what one sounds like yet - I'm saving myself for when mine is finished
Me too !!!! :)

Matt - whats this welder you've got then since people dont seem too impressed with it ?!! Must say though - whatever it is you certainly seem to get the results you need with it !!! :)
Rich

[MattG]

its a SIP 150 , wally did like it , but he was only watching it , my other mate who came over has done allot of welding so knows whats good and bad ... but he said it was a bad welder because it was cheap ... he is used to using more $$$$ ones

Matt

[BassAddict]

My mate uses a SIP and says its pretty good - I've never really heard anything bad about 'em !
The only one I've had that as cr*p was a 90amp clarke one - bought it brand new and used it twice before buying an ancient 160amp cebora one off ebay for about the same price which is amazing in comparison ! :)
Rich

[Spag]

Of course you do realise that with a nice V engine there is this nice space for a blower between the heads...

Just lop the top off of the inlet manifold, weld on a flange etc :D

[BassAddict]

You can't argue with that way of thinking :) !
Rich

[MattG]

but will it fit under a stand round front ?

Matt

[Spag]

Ere's the dimensions for my M112 http://automotive.eaton.com/product/engine_controls/superchargers/M112.asp

But they list the other sizes too, just so you check :wink:

[Geehawk]

So Matt. Still going to be on the road this week :?:
:wink:

[MattG]

ok ,, maybe next week ! :

update guys , made a big hole in the sump , i dont think i will lose to much capacity ? :
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/81.jpg

chopped up the rear exhaust manifold , it is two layers of metal with a air pocket in the middle , to keep the hear down i guess .. but i only have room for the inner section :) not finished yet
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/75.jpg
spacer for the drive shaft when using a NON f25 gearbox :
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/76.jpg
and a jig i made up , lol :
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/72.jpg
trigger wheel which for the ignition/ECU :
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/77.jpg
the new engine arrives this week , so need to finish all the welding at the weekend as i want to get the good engine in ASAP !!

[fbm-spec]

nice toothed wheel Matt. Did it cost much ?? :wink:

Looks good Matt, i am still lookin

[MattG]

cost an arm and a leg .. bloody waiting on the supplier now for some exhaust flanges :lol:

[mick]

totally awsome matt, hope its running for the Xmas meet.

mick

[BassAddict]

Did you borrow the jig from P&L ?!! Think they held one side up with one of those didy cans you get on a plane though, and the other side with one of those big "pint" cans :lol: :lol: !!!!!!
Rich

[PaulC]

Hows is it going then Matt?

Is it all finished?

Paul C

[MattG]

update .. had a whole day off last thursday .. hoped to get the engine in .. but that never happend .. only really got the exhaust done .. just took time taking it on/off all the time :

got some flanges laser cut for the rear exhaust down pipe etc.. this allows the rear head to come out while the engine is in situ.
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/86.jpg

pic of the modified angle on the oil pickup pipe .. just needs welding up now :
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/85.jpg

bad picture of the rear exhaust manifold , made it out of thinish metal .. so will see how long it lasts :
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/83.jpg

Down pipe was modified , front is staying the same for the moment , but a small flexi joint has been welded on the back one .. and then upto a flange to bolt onto the exhaust manifold...:
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/84.jpg

and the nearly finished rear manifold , just needs welding up :
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/87.jpg

ok .. engine IS going in on sunday .. i cant have this car off the road for much longer... going to try and use all vauxhall ECU/loom now .. seems quite simple from what people have said :)

so more photos next week.

Matt

[BassAddict]

Getting there Matt :)
But whats this all about :
going to try and use all vauxhall ECU/loom now
:( :D
Rich

[wally]

:shock: no :megasquirt: :shock: :shock:

[mininut]

Getting there Matt :)
But whats this all about :
going to try and use all vauxhall ECU/loom now
:( :D
Rich
He's now seen the light! :P

[BassAddict]

After he;d led me to the dark side !!! :)

[ChadH]

bad picture of the rear exhaust manifold , made it out of thinish metal .. so will see how long it lasts :
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/85.jpg



Exhaust Manifold?!?

Is that a really small bore pipe, or do you have REALLY big hands?

:lol:

[MattG]

changed image now :)

Matt

[PaulC]

Getting there Matt :)
But whats this all about :
going to try and use all vauxhall ECU/loom now
:( :D
Rich
He's now seen the light! :P

If he'd seen the light he'd have gone :vtec:

:lol: :lol: :wink:

Paul C

[wally]

:vtec: and :megasquirt: !!!!!!!

[mininut]

I said he'd seen the light, not that he had sh1t in his eye :P

[FatKev]

:lol: bahahahahahha!

Kevin

[BassAddict]

Any more updates Matt ?!!! :) I thought you told me you'd posting a load soon ?!! :lol:
Rich

[MattG]

Rear manifold finished and all welded up :
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/88.jpg
pic showing it all bolted onto the new engine , also the rear engine mount is on , taken off the std v6 alternator (now 4 sale :))
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/90.jpg
rear engine mount is VERY close to he exhaust .. i am sure somthing will melt .. but we shall see :
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/91.jpg

new clutch fitted , and a new cambelt kit to go on , i have lost a clutch cover plate bolt , has anyone got one please ???
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/89.jpg

so basically the end of the day came ... we tried to drop the engine in but could not get the gearbox (which is left in the car) to lift up enough to mate to the engine , as the middle drive shaft that comes out the gearbox was hitting the subframe and would not allow then gearbox to tilt anymore.

I was planning on trying to drop it in again one evening this week.. but a cambelt slipping on my wifes car ... so 8 bent valves later and now need to put it back together !!!

roll on next week. i want this engine started !!

Matt

[mininut]

The mounting is a bit close!! putting some heat wrap round the downpipe should help (don't use cheap sh1tty stuff as it's crap!). You could also try and put a little bend in the downpipe to give some clearance.

How close is the half shaft in relation to the downpipe and mounting?

Also, the space created in the cross member for the corner of the head, have you allowed for engine movement??

M.

[BassAddict]

Coming along then Matt ! Not quite as straight forward as you first hope though it seems :) Hope you manage to sort out the drive shaft / s'frame prob :(
Good luck !
Rich

Matt that is great stuff, is the rear manifold just one big chamber now?

also what engine mount is that in the rear exhaust pic and where do i get em from, cheers :D

[MattG]

middle drive shaft cam out to allow gearbox to tile more , and it needed to be changed for the v6 middle drive shaft anyway :
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/94.jpg
next we got the engien bolted upto the f20 gearbox that was in there before :
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/95.jpg
engine sitting in on its mounts now, inlet manifold had to be taken off to allow more swinging room !:) :
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/96.jpg
v6 middle drive shaft went back on , and drive shaft connected back on :
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/97.jpg
sump welded up ,and also the modded oil pickup pipe :
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/100.jpg
end of the day , and we tried the front on to see how it looked , its tight but nothing we cant work around. :
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/101.jpg

can we get it started before xmas ????
more pics at www.v6mini.com

time for a bath

Matt

[mini-GSI]

Impressive! :D Who's gonna make a frame for this then? :wink:

[MattG]

Impressive! :D Who's gonna make a frame for this then? :wink:

well its using a AMT frame , and two new engine mounts of my own design ..

Matt

[Geehawk]

Impressive! :D Who's gonna make a frame for this then? :wink:

Given what Matts using, AMT already do :wink:

[FatKev]

Yeah but how come no one, Andy (AMT) included, havent thought of it before? Seems too good to be true! :D The install looks quite nice too. What kind of power (hp and torque) do these Vaux 6 pots produce?

Kevin

[MattG]

Yeah but how come no one, Andy (AMT) included, havent thought of it before? Seems too good to be true! :D The install looks quite nice too. What kind of power (hp and torque) do these Vaux 6 pots produce?

Kevin

its just not as easy as droping a 2litre lump in , we have ahad to mod the bulk head , and make a new rear exhaust manifold , which we dont know will work yet.

should make about 180bhp in std form.. i think

Matt

[BassAddict]

Are the exhausts for the front 3 cylinders and rear 3 cylinders goping to be totally different lengths then - and would this make much of a difference ? Just a thought - but its looking good Matt :) !

[MattG]

i am sure it will make some difference rich , but have not got a clue how much yet .... we shall see

Matt

[B20GT]

:? It must be more of an achievement thing than power thing, hatsa off to the work though :D

[BassAddict]

So did you get it started before xmas then Matt - or during , or is it still refusing to be your everday car ?! :)
Rich

[MattG]

Hi Guys , its getting there , had to make a new cross bar for the subframe .. orginal bolts stright accross , so it was quicker to make a new bar than a new manifold :
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/105.jpg
Also managed to fit a Metro radiator in there as well , people might say it wont be enough to cool it .. who knows :) ... i am assuming the heat of the engine is releated to a few things strain on engine, ventelation ... there is going to be ALOT less weight to pull around so should not strain the engine , also i dont have any inner wings .. which i hope will help ... we shall see :
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/119.jpg
and have even found a nice space for a k7n look a like airfilter using a short peice of hose and some parts from the old airbox :
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/118.jpg
just making the alternator mount at the moment .. which is quite hard as there is nothing to mount it on at the front !! :)
once thats on and the rad is plumbed in i can run it up properly ..as i have signs of it not picking up when pressing the throttle .. but untill i can run it for long periods of time i cant fix it.

and for anyone that missed it , this is what it sounds like :
http://www.v6mini.com/downloads/v6tickover.wav
soon .....

[mick]

looks great matt. have you driven it yet ?

mick

[MattG]

god ... had some busy weeks at work .. finally got back into the garage .. got MOT and insurance due this month !!!

Alternator mounted ... there is plenty of room to fit it .... well plenty of room to me means about 5mm :)
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/120.jpg

Got to find some pipe for this top hose ???? .. and i am also going to take a pipe off to the expansion tank releif thingy..its quite high at that point.:
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/121.jpg

and this is the dummy pully i have had to mount .. this will make the direction of the water pump the same as it was before .. as i dont have a PAS pump this does the job , just needs some counter sunks put on it and it can be fitted.(my hand wont be there in the finally thing :)):
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/123.jpg

things i did not take photo of :
Breaks ready for bleeding
Clutch connected
Gearlinkage working again.

things to do :

plumb rad
bleed brakes
go for test drive...

hope you like

Matt

[BassAddict]

Nearly there Matt :) !!!! Keep us updated on the MOt /road test !!!!
Rich

[MattG]

ok .. finally got the correct length belt .... and ... :
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/126.jpg

the dummy pully seems to work a treat .. just need to make up an adjuster braket for the bottom of the alternator.... the belt is only 4 tooth not 6 but should be ok for gripping the water pump drum.

once that was done i filled the water system up ... then it drained a few times by itself ! got all the leaks fixed in the end !

wally should be coming round tonight to help bleed the brakes ... once thats done we can take it for a spin down the road :)....
also have to run it to full temp tonight

Matt

[wally]

this is my pre emptive strike assuming matt doesnt post before me!
"fair cop,feel free to point and laugh etc......"
:imstupid:

[MattG]

lol , what wally is talking about is ... i asked him round to help bleed my brakes .....

after 1 1/2 hours and him saying the pedal still feels the same ... i saw the throttle moving ??? stange i thougt .... i said "you are pressing the brake arnt you ?" !!!!!! DOH !!!!!!!!!!!

he had been pressing the throttle pedal for the last hour !!!

Matt

[BassAddict]

:lol: Ah well - we all do silly things from time to time !!! Atleast it was a "safe" mistake - most of my moments of foolishness end up in fires or broken bones !! :)
Rich

[MarkLD]

Thats a classic Wally :lol: :lol: .

Good to see its coming together Matt

[wally]

im having a rubbish week.....
at this rate i reckon i could be on scrapheap challenge :lol:
the look on matts face said it all...... :roll:

[BassAddict]

I can just imagine the look of disbelief !!! At least it got sorted in the end though :) ! No one's said how the "spin down the road" went yet though !!! How was it ?!??
Rich

[wally]

well what with all the pouring perfectly good brake fluid into half empty beer bottles, there was no time to drive it :cry:
sorry matt :oops:

[BassAddict]

Sure I'll make just as many silly mistakes before finishing mine !!! :)

[MattG]

wow !!!! but first... got the cam cover back on , but needed a little triming to still allow the airfilter , also had to cut a hole to allow it to fit with the new pully setup. :
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/129.jpg
a few overall shots , still lots of little jobs to be done , but i ran it up to full temp today for the first time , just sat at 86/85 with the fan kicking in every so often... ok this is not motoway driving but its a start and looks good.
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/127.jpg
http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/128.jpg

so after tightening some mroe bolts up i thought it was time to take it for a spin !!! lucky i have some industrial estates near me so drove it with no front on.... the thing sounded so nice !! did not get out of second but it had loads of power (yes i know it should)

anyone want me to take some video tommorow ????
also the noisy lifter has gone , just a funny noise with the clutch still but it all seems to work fine !!!

happy man.

[BassAddict]

Excellent Matt ! That looks like one seriously cramped engine bay !!!
As for video clips - is there any need to ask - of course we want to see some !!!!! :)
Rich

[MarkLD]

Nice work Matt, get those video clips up :D

[mini-GSI]

:shock: bring on the videos!!!! :D :D :D

[Veit]

btw: What about video clips? :wink:

Nice Work!
But is it 16v?
or 12v or 24v http://www.mini-forum.de/images/smilies/madscream.gif

Greets
Veit

[cables]

i think its 24-valve

[MattG]

ok .. toadays progress . finished off alternator bracket and welded it up fully , made adjuster bracket for it as well. Its not nice and tight.
Wired up the alternator and is now charging .
Started on a mounting bracket for the ignition amp but ran out of time...

then ...... took it out again and got some videos !!!

http://www.v6mini.com/downloads/videos/mini%20001.avi (7mb)
http://www.v6mini.com/downloads/videos/mini%20002.avi (4mb)
http://www.v6mini.com/downloads/videos/mini%20003.avi (4mb)
http://www.v6mini.com/downloads/videos/mini%20005.avi (6mb)
http://www.v6mini.com/downloads/videos/mini%20006.avi (6mb)
http://www.v6mini.com/downloads/videos/mini%20007.avi (31mb)

need to turn the speakers up , but i still dont think it captures it to its best !!

i hope you like them

Matt

[PaulC]

I can't get the links to work.

It goes to media player but just says connecting? :?

Paul

[MattG]

its because they are avi's . it is downloading them ...

if you want ..right click them and do 'save as', then open them

Matt

[PaulC]

I'm just impatient then!!! :oops: Thanks

Looks and sounds great Matt well done :beer:


Paul

[wally]

:shock: spot on!!!! :D

[evolotion]

downloadign the now :) .. does the front fit!?

p.s. nice one !

[BassAddict]

Cool video's Matt !! Just hope I manage to make it to one of the shows you go to so I can have a proper peek !!!
Rich

[Spag]

Nice one Matt, isn't FWD V power just plain 'WRONG' !!! :-)

[Geehawk]

Just watched the big in-car one.....feeling travel sick now :(

[MattG]

i think it sounds 100% better in real life.
booked thursday off work to get an MOT on it ....

just need to get the brakes to work , and find a windscreen :)

Matt

[mick]

Good luck with the MOT.

[MattG]

ok MOT failed .. only on very minor points .. but he is the finished car ! :

http://www.v6mini.com/gallery/133.jpg

well as finished as they ever are !!!!

Matt

[BassAddict]

Looking very nice Matt ! I wondered where my spare drive shaft went - its holding up your bonet :wink: :lol: !!! Thats one seriously full looking engine bay :)
Hope you get the little bits done for the MOT soon !!
Rich

[MattG]

well even in the vauxhall you hace to remove the inlet manifold to change the rear plugs !! so removing the front to change a oil filter is not that bad :)

Matt

[evolotion]

holy-shit-a-brick, thats tight..

nicely done :)

[MarkLD]

Nice work Matt, will the engine cover fit?

[Geehawk]

Just beed reading v6mini.com

Congrats on the MOT :beer:

Cant wait to see it in the flesh.

[MattG]

cheers graham ! , thats right its MOT'ed now.
Somthing is not quite right with the clutch cable but will have a look at that at the weekend.. but still works just makes some funny noises :)

Matt

[BassAddict]

Coool ! Congratulations Matt !!! 8) :beer:
Hope its getting some miles put on it now !
Rich

[mini-GSI]

will it be at the mini v beetle shoot out?

great work matt

bet the MOT guys eyes popped out, what did the insurance company say?

[MattG]

400 quid for the insurance

Matt