What about the ford fiesta 1.25 ltr engine?

Trent · Initiate Jedi Joined: 25 Feb 2007 Posts: 34

Just sat here avoiding work and pondering which will be the cheapest way of getting reliability into my 71 bay. Don't want blistering speed. Just want reliability and the posibility of getting down a motorway at 65-70 without overheating my slightly underpowered AC 1.6 engine. oh and slightly better than 20 miles to the gallon. it will be easy to cool, cheap to buy and is a cracking little engine. This is following the same lines as the brazillian 1.4 engine. I havent found a massive amount about them online so far but can imagine i'll find at least one in every scrapyard in town.

72panelvan · Posted: Mon May 18, 2009 8:13 pm Post subject:

I think the torque levels would rule it a no go in a bay. My fiesta has no torque and to be fair to the old flat engines they have reasonable torque for the capacity.

Perhaps a suitable choice for a beetle but it would really be lacking in a bay.

Trent · Initiate Jedi Joined: 25 Feb 2007 Posts: 34

i have driven it once also, whilst i remember it to be nippy your right it didnt have much torque. well probably more on paper than the 1.6. hmmm back to the drawing board. I just want a nice small engine that i can buy cheap run cheap and not worry about to much. that i can get easy replacements for if it goes wrong.

ElusiveStranger · Posted: Tue May 19, 2009 3:21 pm Post subject:

What's your budget?
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'78 Bay, 2 litre 091 box, EJ20 NA & the ashtray's on the 'right' side.
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Trent · Initiate Jedi Joined: 25 Feb 2007 Posts: 34

lol nowt.

I don't know. i'm self employed and the last couple of years have been horrendous but are picking up now. My ideal set up would be 1.8 scooby with the rjes bell housing. but realistically dont want to have to buy a car to strip as i'm renting space in a chicken shed about 10 miles away from my house to work on the bus. I've already got a list of replacement metal work as long as my arm but having read a thread on here today that looks like every piece of metal has been replaced on their bus i feel ashamed at myself for not getting my finger out of my rear and working hard.

I really think that the scooby route is my best option, but might run on my old engine for now, until i can secure more cash for a conversion.

jp · Posted: Tue May 19, 2009 3:53 pm Post subject:

I thought I replied to this thread last night

must have got distracted and forgot to hit submit

Agreed about lack of Torque from the 1.25.. but simple, cheap, reliable and MPGness a Ford 1.8 diesel is not a bad option. Agreed if you got a few more pennies handy then Scooby is the best option but if you can get yer hands on a ford adapter plate (they do seem to crop up 2nd hand for cheap every now and then) you could conceivably do it very cheap a whole car will cost you less than £100 probably.
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ElusiveStranger · Posted: Tue May 19, 2009 5:06 pm Post subject:

If you went scooby don't bother with an 18.
EJ20's do come up for around £200 or so. Normally miles away though! (spares availability is good)
The expensive bit is Rich's BH - well worth it though
What ever watercooled you go for you'll still have the grief of plumbing it.

You running an lawn mower ATM? Why not stick with it until you have the cash?

I did read on Vzi (I think) about you can get a genuine VW adaptor plate to take a golf/polo lump from Heritage (I'm sure of this but double check)
or do as JP & Alex have done
or maybe as Illzlee, Pug Diesel Turbo

To answer one of your first statements, if I don't cane my van ie 60ish I get around 30mpg on a cruise (EJ20, 2 litre box)
Doesn't overheat, fan rarely comes on - except for the M25 carpark. She'll happily cruise at 80 all day long.
_________________
The advice you receive on here is worth the paper it's written on.
Your experiences are worth shed loads to others, including the f'ups - live and learn.
Wouldn't YOU rather learn by someone else's mistakes? So would they.

'78 Bay, 2 litre 091 box, EJ20 NA & the ashtray's on the 'right' side.
I don't lean forward for hills any more Grin

Bugger, missed out on "Live fast, die young"

Trent · Initiate Jedi Joined: 25 Feb 2007 Posts: 34

I know that this has now entered into a conversation beyond what should be in this part of the forum, i am really stumped on what to do. I would prefer the economy of a diesel to keep costs down long run but will have to stick with my existing 1.6 box. which means a petrol would have a little more top end with out having to rev the nuts off it. I always think of ford diesels being a little to aggricultural for my likeing perhaps to much time spent trying to do 50 mph in the Comet transit delivery van. but i do like the idea of being able to just almost stick it in do a little tinkerin and have it work. The earlier bays have a little more room in them to take a taller engine? (71 round grills but disk brakes). The heritage adapter plate might be a good idea as i think i know of a e reg jetta GTi with 26000 miles on the clock sat in a garage somewhere in darlington. i also know of a subaru brat with a 1.8 engine in it that starts like a dream that i could probably get for next to nowt but rich's bell end doesn't fit.

Trent · Initiate Jedi Joined: 25 Feb 2007 Posts: 34

http://www.vwheritage.com/vwh/VW-Camper-Van-Parts/Brazilian-Kombi-96-Onwards/Engines-Components/?templateID=vwh

Alex (FTS) · Posted: Tue May 19, 2009 7:04 pm Post subject:

Yer The Ford 1.8D is definatly very cheap to run and fit-like jp said it could be a good stop gap, at least then if and when you up grade you'll have all your plumbing in place and the exhaust will be easy to modify. I run a 1.8D and its fine it is on a 2L box but I ran it for a few years on the 16L box and it still worked just not as efficiantly as on the 2L. And the bonus id that the wirering is simple and they are cheap, or even free some times, (cheers JP

) and you can run on veg fat!
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72panelvan · Posted: Tue May 19, 2009 8:08 pm Post subject:

richbaker78 · Teacher of Padawans Joined: 31 Jan 2006 Posts: 1298

Agree with the above ford and pug as cheap derv options but if you go with the golf option you would leave options open for future upgrades as £ allows. Either using the t25 derv bellhousing or an adaptor plate you can work yourt way from basic engines both petrol and derv. If you know of a GTI then bonus...butif not the the early carbed versions of the same engine (as fitted to old passats might be worth getting started with) then you can upgrade your way through early and late 1.8 and 2.0GTis until you reach the ultimate 20v Turbo....all on the same adaptor - alternatively you could use the same adaptor for the VW TD range 1zs, AAZs and later TDis if your brave.