Sell 4.3l and buy a 5l, or just put a bigger engine in???

[Paul430]

What do you think?

How big a job is it to get hold of a decend 5l engine and get it fitted and maybe fit the later gearbox at the same time?

Or shall I just sell it (try) and put in another couple of grand and look for a 500, there seem to be plenty around at a good price?

[2 Smokin Barrels]

It'd be far easier to shop around & buy a 500. (I reckon anyway)

When you start changing stuff, where do you finish?

[Hughesie2]

Paul430 said:

Or shall I just sell it (try) and put in another couple of grand and look for a 500, there seem to be plenty around at a good price?

That would save you some grief i bet...

[2 Smokin Barrels]

I expect, it you ever wanted to sell it, a messed about hybrid might put folk off.

[GreenV8S]

If you want the experience of doing it, then go ahead. If you just want the faster car then trade up, it's a no-brainer for many reasons: you get a car which has been built and set up to suit that extra power, it's cheaper, quicker, it'll be more reliable, easier to insure, easier to sell.

[raw-sewedge]

Buy a Griff it will look faster too

[phlap]

I thought about updating my nice 400 with a 5.0 lump. However I found I could buy a newer Chim 500 with half the mileage, more spec and generally less tired for less than the cost of the conversion. The other benefits plus better resale opportunities meant it was an easy decision
The 500 is lovely!

[Roobarb]

Blimey after reading all those rules I forgot what I was going to say... urrm, oh yeah. I upped my 4 to a 5 primarily because the 4's block split so I had to put something in it ! Wasn't particularly painful, and not as expensive as I thought. However if I had a choice I think I would just get a 5L car. It all depends on how much money you have to spend. Certainly for me the cheaoest route to a 5L was getting an engine installed.

[marshtvr05]

Hi there
just been reading the posts,and i have a 4.0 1997 (p) serp engined chimaera. I have only had the car for a couple of months and is great.
If i wanted to go the 5.0 transplant route what parts apart from the engine would be different from an original 5.0?
Hope you can help,
Many thanks
Russell

[GreenV8S]

Clutch, gearbox, diff, brakes, springs/dampers, antiroll bars, I expect there have been minor chassis changes too but don't know whether any of these matter. Really, it isn't sensible unless you want to do it for the hell of it.

[jonnyb]

GreenV8S said:

Clutch, gearbox, diff, brakes, springs/dampers, antiroll bars, I expect there have been minor chassis changes too but don't know whether any of these matter. Really, it isn't sensible unless you want to do it for the hell of it.

If your 97 P has the 500 chassis then there are no differences except the clutch! I have a 96 N and it has the 500 chassis, the change over was mid 1996 so I would be surprised if you had the old chassis. But for the 4.3 to 5.0 change then the above list is pretty definitive.

The one thing I would say is to change from a 4.0 to a 5.0 is all about the crankshaft, these cars were stroked for bigger capacity not bored. SO you could change the crankshaft and have the cylinders honed, change the cam, have the heads breathed on and hey presto you have a 5.0, you have kept the same block and heads (no change of engine numbers and who would know!) You would of course need a re-chip, and the whole lot would cost in the region of 2-3K.

[GreenV8S]

jonnyb said:

SO you could change the crankshaft ... the whole lot would cost in the region of 2-3K.

That figures feels rather optimistic to me. The 500 also has different rods and pistons doesn't it, different heads and presumably a different cam? Even assuming you avoid changing from pre-serp to serp and assuming you have the stiffer block to start with, I think you're looking at a pretty radical overhaul to bring an engine up to 500 spec.

[marshtvr05]

I wanted a 5.0 until i drove one! I have to say i tested about 10 cars when i bought my car and picked the best condition car regardless of engine size.
Out of the 10 cars only one was a 5.0 so its fair to say it may have been a poor engine in that car but seemed to be a "hassle" to drive and within minutes i was turning back to the sellers house.
The car i did get was a 4.0 serp and i have to say i cant fault it, only thing to get away from me was a black lambo. This includes a couple of 5.0!
If anyone wants a helcon rose 5.0 on a 1999 (s) there is one for sale in ipswich and has been for sale for some time started at £16750 and last time i looked it was at £15000.
Just my opinion and maybe when im ready to change i will try a few more but dont be put off by the smaller engines.

[GreenV8S]

marshtvr05 said:

The car i did get was a 4.0 serp and i have to say i cant fault it, only thing to get away from me was a black lambo. This includes a couple of 5.0!

They're all fast cars, and in straight line terms the difference between them may be less than the effect of fluffing a gear change or being in the wrong gear. But other things being equal, a 500 ought to be a lot faster than the equivalent 400. Mid-range the 500 has dramatically more torque (roughly 300 lb-ft versus 240 or so for the 4.0) and it is the torque that you really notice. From the sound of it, the one you tested wasn't going very well at the time.