Is it worth getting my P38 HSE fixed properly?

[KingRichard]

I bought a 1997 4.6 HSE just before christmas. It's been a royal pain in the arse.

On the face of it, the car is stunning - Everything is immaculate, perfect dark grey paint with absolutely unmarked black leather.

I've spent a not inconsiderable sum on the beast since I've bought it. It's needed a few electrical gremlins sorted out, the HK Stereo reprogramming, a gearbox rebuild, replacement cats and new head gaskets. That little lot came to an eye watering bill for £3k's worth of motor car!

Trouble is, it's still overheating and using water. It's destroyed the new cats so it looks like the poor blighter has a porous block, and if I get it properly rebuilt it's going to need a pair of cats as well to get through the emmissions test on the MOT.

What are my options? I would imagine a proper rebuild with a new block is going to be comfortably over £2k... I can't sell it without an MOT and wouldn't feel comfortable bodging it and selling it on.

I'd quite like to keep it anyway, if I can get it to be reliable. It's easily the most GANGSTER car I've ever owned, innit. I just wish it would work!

Am I right in thinking there is a chevy engine swap available? Is this for improved reliability or is it for more power? It's a wafty sort of motor, so I wouldn't want some ridiculous 400bhp motor in there... Erm, that's possibly the gheyest thing I've ever said!

[Skier]

Only you can decide whether it's worth it to you to spend the money and keep it. I have a 98 4.6 and experienced the porous block issue almost 3 years ago. I decided that I was going to make something positive out of having destroyed the engine. There was a company in Exeter (may have gone as their website is no longer available) that fitted LS1 engines but at a cost of almost £14k to drop it off and drive it away some weeks later. I looked into an LS7 option and decided that though I was assured the gearbox and drivetrain would take the torque is was just getting stupidly expensive.

In the end I gave it to V8 Developments and they fitted their 5.3ltr RV8 (top-hat lined block) tuned for torque - this engine has now done around 20k absolutely faultless miles. This cost me almost £9k and I then spent another £1.5k having new uprated injectors and Mark Adams do his stuff.

Have a look at:

http://www.v8developments.co.uk

and

http://www.chevroletls1.com

If you've got the funds and desire an LS7 Range Rover would be truly awesome!

Regards

Skier

[agent006]

KingRichard said:

wouldn't feel comfortable bodging it and selling it on.

This is what auctions are for. I sold my 98 HSE at auction with Porous block and HGF (to the point that it was hydrolocking the engine overnight), cracked flexplate, leaking heater matrix and stuck blend motors. Would be somewhere upwards of £6k to fix the lot. It'll no doubt spend its life being punted from auction to auction by smalltime traders until it either gets scrapped or fixed properly on warranty.

[KingRichard]

Skier said:

Only you can decide whether it's worth it to you to spend the money and keep it. I have a 98 4.6 and experienced the porous block issue almost 3 years ago. I decided that I was going to make something positive out of having destroyed the engine. There was a company in Exeter (may have gone as their website is no longer available) that fitted LS1 engines but at a cost of almost £14k to drop it off and drive it away some weeks later. I looked into an LS7 option and decided that though I was assured the gearbox and drivetrain would take the torque is was just getting stupidly expensive.

In the end I gave it to V8 Developments and they fitted their 5.3ltr RV8 (top-hat lined block) tuned for torque - this engine has now done around 20k absolutely faultless miles. This cost me almost £9k and I then spent another £1.5k having new uprated injectors and Mark Adams do his stuff.

Have a look at:

http://www.v8developments.co.uk

and

http://www.chevroletls1.com

If you've got the funds and desire an LS7 Range Rover would be truly awesome!

Regards

Skier

I'm not spending £9k on the fking thing

That's like a years contract hire on a Vantage

[KingRichard]

agent006 said:

KingRichard said:

wouldn't feel comfortable bodging it and selling it on.

This is what auctions are for. I sold my 98 HSE at auction with Porous block and HGF (to the point that it was hydrolocking the engine overnight), cracked flexplate, leaking heater matrix and stuck blend motors. Would be somewhere upwards of £6k to fix the lot. It'll no doubt spend its life being punted from auction to auction by smalltime traders until it either gets scrapped or fixed properly on warranty.

Aye... any tips for when to put it through? I'm guessing a prestige auction but not 4x4's only? Because the traders will be wise to the problems. Still seems a bit shifty, but I suppose someone sold it to me knowing it was about to go

[agent006]

Mine was through a specialist 4x4 sale. They tend to be 50% ex fleet LR90 pickups and L200s from what I saw. So long as whatever fault(s) isn't evident at startup or in the first 5 minutes of idle then you have no problems. I got away quite lightly in that I only lost 60% of the price I paid for the car 14 months before.