Best engine to rebuild?

[BliarOut]

My niece has just got back from nerd camp in Canada and she's well into engineering. She's just informed me that she wants to rebuild an engine when she comes over next year.

What's a good (cheap) engine that we could rebuild? I'm thinking the C50 as it's four stroke, has a gearbox plus it doesn't need anything more special than a flywheel puller to get it apart.

Has anyone got any better suggestions? We won't be replacing anything and it might not even need to run when we've done, she just wants to get her hands mucky so to speak

[davepoth]

what car do you have?

Something like an A-series would be pretty good.

[theironduke]

Rover V8?

Simple and will sound awesome when bench tested

[maniac0796]

I'd go with a carb'd A series if you can get your hands on one.

The CG engine from a Nissan Micra is easy to work with, but the hardest bit will be the timing chain and getting it re-timed.

[Mr Dave]

Get a wee cheap CG125 bike or similar? very very easy to work on and wont cost much, parts are pennies, you can do up the whole bike, get some small knobblie tyres and take it to some field/beach etc afterwards?

[Frik]

Mr Dave said:

Get a wee cheap CG125 bike or similar? very very easy to work on and wont cost much, parts are pennies, you can do up the whole bike, get some small knobblie tyres and take it to some field/beach etc afterwards?

I'd definitely go for a bike engine. Much easier to manoeuvre.

[BliarOut]

Frik said:

Mr Dave said:

Get a wee cheap CG125 bike or similar? very very easy to work on and wont cost much, parts are pennies, you can do up the whole bike, get some small knobblie tyres and take it to some field/beach etc afterwards?

I'd definitely go for a bike engine. Much easier to manoeuvre.

Yup, and the integrated gearbox lets me show her how the whole thing works. It needs to be KISS and need no special tools. Rings will have to go back in with feeler gauges etc...

The other option would be to strip it down and make it into a cutaway but I'd be making all the cuts with a hacksaw and file!

[Mr Dave]

Frik said:

Mr Dave said:

Get a wee cheap CG125 bike or similar? very very easy to work on and wont cost much, parts are pennies, you can do up the whole bike, get some small knobblie tyres and take it to some field/beach etc afterwards?

I'd definitely go for a bike engine. Much easier to manoeuvre.

Two people can easily lift a CG125 whole let alone the engine....

[BliarOut]

I should probably mention that no spanners will be going anywhere near my Griff

[anonymous-user]

pinto or even a xflow would be a good bet. should find something from a capri, fiesta or escort around.

[BliarOut]

Ah yes, a four cylinder cast iron block, just what I need

[Rotary Madness]

Go grab an old N/A rx7 engine, should be cheap, especially if its blown, and they are way more interesting then a piston engine

Besides theyre not THAT big, just slightly heavy

[CraigyMc]

I'd recommend a honda GX single cylinder 4-stroke generator engine.

They can be bought for well under £200 brand new, and all the bits are very cheap and readily available from pattern makers and honda directly.

Same sort of engine powers small generators (2Kw?), lawnmowers, karts etc.

Good place to start, I think.

C

[neiljohnson]

I trained on a Ford 1600cc cvh the first engine i built was a vauxhall 1300cc ohc engine both very easy to work on in ant capacity & still related to much more modern engines

[Si_steve]

A series or if you want to try something more modern then a ford zetec E from the first mondeos. I used to pick them up for £50 and are nice and simple.

[Dr.Doofenshmirtz]

I would start with a lawnmower engine first...I stripped down a Suffolk Punch engine when I was 10. Or why not restore an old Lister stationary engine.

[GC8]

CraigyMc said:

I'd recommend a honda GX single cylinder 4-stroke generator engine.

They can be bought for well under £200 brand new, and all the bits are very cheap and readily available from pattern makers and honda directly.

Same sort of engine powers small generators (2Kw?), lawnmowers, karts etc.

Good place to start, I think.

C

She can service my Honda GX engine if she likes: Ive even got the service manual...

[Zad]

PH is clearly slipping up here. Is she over 18? Tall, slim etc?. I won't ask if she's fit, there is no possible way an uncle can answer that correctly.

Seriously though, I would go for a Ford Pinto or CVH. Mini engines in ok nick can tend to be in demand from Mini owners, and anything newer than 1988 or so is likely to have fuel injection with a fancy engine management. That means it needs an electric fuel pump and lots of wires. Pintos are very moddable, and sell pretty well to the kit car community.

[petrolsniffer]

Peugeot tu engine