Fury Silvertop -> Blacktop Zetec Swap

[Fizzer]

I thought I'd post some details of how my engine swap is progressing, in case anyone finds it interesting.
And perhaps I may just need some advice at some point too, I have never done this to a car before after all

This weekend was going to be engine change time. The plan was to get the old engine out, swap the flywheel and clutch, and bolt in the blacktop. Things haven't gone quite to plan however.

I started this morning by collecting an angine hoist from the hire centre (Dicot Plant) for £24 for the weekend. It's a bit bloody big though so it sat in the car until Al came round to lend a hand. In the mean time I stripped all the ancilliaries out, labelled and disconnected all the wires and put all the bolts in seperately labeled bags. I don't think I've ever been this organised for anything before.

By lunchtime (tea + cheese on toast) I had got to the point where the LH sidepod needed removing so I could take the exhaust off, a great time for Al to turn up (so we had another cup of tea). With the tea drunk, we set about the sidepod and exhaust, both of which are currently in the kitchen. I'm yet to find how that's going to go down.

We then wheeled the engine hoist in, trussed up the engine and unbolted it. I'm amazed at how easily it slid out (after some emergency propping up of the sagging bellhousing). The only thing that could prevent the new engine swap this weekend is the only thing you can't get to once it's in place, the clutch and flywheel.

Typically that's what's gone slightly awry. They are both pretty sexy looking items though, I haven't weighed the flywheel but it's [i]tiny[i] compared to the blacktop one and the clutch is an ap racing one to suit. Needless to say, I'm very keen to keep these However the engine builder had decided to use the wrong bolts for it (hex head) These bolts actually touch the curved face of the flywheel and don't even sit flush, it's a wonder it hasn't all exploded.

I guess that getting the cap head flywheel bolts I need on a sunday is going to be impossible which means no flywheel and no clutch until tuesday or wednesday at least.

Still, I'm happy, I'll spend tomorrow prepping the blacktop and I'm amazed how far we got in just a day. If I knew where I'd put the tax disc I could sorn the car and use the saved money to get the bolts!

[jeffw]

Sounds good. Fingers crossed

[petercoll]

I'm interested to hear how you get on. Pics are good !
I am thinking about putting a Zetec in my Striker.

Pete

[Fizzer]

Sorry no pics yet, I have managed to get a little bit more work done on the engines though.
They are currently sitting on the floor of the garage next to each other, the silvertop distinguishable by its red (ahem) top and and skinny flywheel - the newer focus engine by it's black top with a hole in it and the train wheel it uses for a flywheel.

I'm probably going to get confused from now on because both of these items have been swapped (although my flywheel bolts still haven't turned up from Burtons yet) The rocker covers are completely interchangeable it seems. I have aquired a large bump om my forehead in the process - I managed to headbutt one of the engines whilst straining to undo one of the flywheel bolts - clever me.

I've had a look at the sumps and it looks like they are completely different. What's sad is that I won't be able to use the shallow tiger racing baffled sump on the new engine.

I had tremendous ground clearance issues with the original silvertop standard sump, I tried removing it on a raised manhole cover It does look as if the standard blacktop sump is at least no lower than the bottom of the bellhousing so it may make little difference overall.

I have yet to work out are whether to run a serpantine belt for the alternator or change the waterpump impellor for a reverse one to use just 3 pulleys. More news as it comes...

[Fizzer]

The company in the states has quoted $95 for the reverse water pump impeller and $80 delivery.
I think I'm going to do the cheap option, I'll need to make a bracket for an idler pulley.

[Fizzer]

I managed to squeeze the BT in yesterday. The biggest problem it seems was the enormous two part sump interfering with the front shocks. It might have gone in (just) at an angle but I decided to whip the sump off anyway as I'm replacing it with my toger racing (era) sump from the silvertop.

The cap head flywheel bolts arrived a week after ordering (not Burtons fault - Royal Snail, although they don't send emails to let you know when stuff is dispatched)

I called Tiger Racing about their sump to check if it would fit. It seems that it will, all I need is another modified pickup and four spacers to bolt the windage tray on (you need to rob the windage tray bolts from the ST but they are too long for the BT, hence the spacers)

Although the engine is nominally in place there are still a few things to sort out. The engine mounting bolts don't seem keen to go in, I think the holes in the mounts are a little 'inaccurate' to say the least. However I can support the engine from below and modify them one at a time. Also I think the holes aren't threaded as far as on the ST. I may need to cut the bolts down slightly.

The starter motor from the Focus has left a large gap at the top of the engine, this means that yet another bellhousing bolt has gone and there's another hole to plug to stop cr4p getting in. It's a bit worrying as the BT sump is really substantial and now it all looks a little flimsy in the car.

[Fizzer]

I got the engine mounts sorted out properly today. All it took was for me to spot that the water pump fouled on one of them (ground off the corner) and that all seven holes needed a tap running through to clear the thread. I guess the engine has been sitting around for a while and has collected a lot of crap. I really hope it runs...

I took the opportunity to give the mounts a quick blast of black paint to tidy them up. I've also been cleaning up the chaassis as I go and have noticed several areas of flaking powder coating, this will need some attention soon before the rust fairies visit.

On to alternator mounting, I've been poking around with the focus alternator, it looks like an 'intelligent' one designed to talk to the standard ecu, which I obviously don't have. Internet chatter seems to suggest that without an ecu to talk to it will go into panic mode and chuck out a healthy dose of current regardless of demand. It's heavier than the lucas one I have but that has a very poor connector which has suffered from meltdown problems (and bizarrly enough, fried a weber ecu in the process). The Focus device has an attractively sturdy looking bolt on top for charging, I'll just have to live without a charge warning light. I guess I need to fit a voltmeter on the dash instead.

I have made up an idler puller out of the bearing from a smooth pulley and one of the original focus idler pulleys mixed together. I now have a grooved pulley on a bolt. This will need attaching to a bracket which attaches to the engine just above the water pump - there's a lot of cheap 6mm aluminium plate on ebay, that'll probably do the job.

On the other side of the engine I have found that the lower alternator mount should work OK with a fresh hole in it (the bolt pattern on the blacktop isn't quite the same) but the bracket I have for the upper mount, which shares the two right hand bolts of the inlet manifold, fouls the larger cam belt cover of the blacktop. Time for some more creative bracketry with the ally plate...


Shopping list for monday:

6mm plate
dunnel spacers for silvertop bolts & windage tray

P.S. sorry there are still no pics...

[Fizzer]

I had a good day in the Garage yesterday and now I have a few more bits and bobs to porchase.

I made the small plate to cover the gaping hole in the bellhousing - I cut a piece of cardboard as a template then made an ally plate to cover it. Tidy.

I then attacked the Alternatopr mounting bracket, the blacktop holes are further apart so I slotted the bracket, this helped get the Focus alternator pulley to line up too. I couldn't use the top bracket so made a new one out of angle ally, this occupies the same spot as the last one. The Focus alternator is larger and has four lugs so it has much less adjustment than before, compounded by the new location of the oil filter. I'll have to make the idler pulley bracket with an adjuster.

The mini heater is now in place, joined up by hose, T's, reducing connecters and a cable operated valve, all from CBS it's all looking quite tidy now. The new location of the water pump makes the plumbing slightly different, the pulley almost hits the long water pipe so I bent that a bit more. This also means that the U pipe needs to bend slightly differently, oh, and the pump inlet diameter is smaller!

Exhaust is in place, it *just* misses the dipstick - phew