Specifically, the AJ-V8. I haven't really paid much attention to it, but it's supposedly a really nice little engine. I don't know if that qualifies as grassroots - I mean, what are the rebuild/maint. costs? - but they're starting to appear in worn Jags. Is it flatplane or crossplane? So what's its performance potential?
I saw one in the pick n pull last week so I'd say it qualifies as grassroots :)
Wish I could find an Esprit that needs an engine and tranny, and an Aston Martin AJ-V8 that needs a car...
I prefer the chevy conversions. Lots of fun
Yeah, ditch the jag V8 and drop in a LSx or ford V8 and call it a day.
Andrew
The early ones in the V8 XJ-Rs seem to have a reputation for eating their camchain tensioners IIRC.
Up to mid 1999 or so they had Nikasil liners that went bad iirc. Later ones seem to be OK.
My father in law bought a used '98 vert for his wife, then about went nuts when he found out about the nikasil issue. She drives it every day and three years later they haven't had a single issue with the engine, but he still swears he should have done more research first.
How much of an issue really are the Nikasil blocks? Porsche and others have been using nikasil for years. Is it really a high %? or is it like other internet lore:
Every Boxster is going to have an leaking RMS and core shift.
Every WRX is going to blow it's transmission.
Every DSM is going to have crank walk.
Adrian_Thompson wrote: How much of an issue really are the Nikasil blocks? Porsche and others have been using nikasil for years. Is it really a high %? or is it like other internet lore: Every Boxster is going to have an leaking RMS and core shift. Every WRX is going to blow it's transmission. Every DSM is going to have crank walk.
I work at a Jag store. It isn't as regular as it used to be. Maybe they've all failed by now.
Infant mortality then? If it survived this long it's got a good chance of lasting forever? Wasn't it also linked to fuel quality / standards? Which means again, if it's lasted until now with better quality gas it will be OK?
Adrian_Thompson wrote: Infant mortality then? If it survived this long it's got a good chance of lasting forever? Wasn't it also linked to fuel quality / standards? Which means again, if it's lasted until now with better quality gas it will be OK?
Yup. Same with the BMW nikasil V8s. With the high sulfur content fuel of the early-mid '90s, they went bad with alarming regularity. After teh sulfur content in teh fuels dropped to Euro standards, that problem went away. Any nikasil blocks that were still doing good, continued to do good, and any other nikasil blocks from that point out didnt' have the issue. Yes, the Alusil V8s in BMWs were better (though much of that was due to the increase in displacement from 4 liters to 4.4 liters), but Nikasil isn't the problem it was before, and I wouldn't hesitate to use one now.
I love the LSx, but if every car in my dream garage had its own mill yanked out to make room for one, I'd get pretty tired pretty quickly, especially if it's a good engine in its own right.
If you want to use a 90s small displacement DOHC 32V V-8 why use anything other than the unstoppable Toyota 1UZ-FE. These things are common, bulletproof and can be had dirt cheap.
Different is fun. I say drop one in something. I vote a Chevy just to confuse people that is what I would do. 
Ok, forget a LSx, drop in a twin turbo V6 then...
Andrew
TreoWayne wrote: If you want to use a 90s small displacement DOHC 32V V-8 why use anything other than the unstoppable Toyota 1UZ-FE. These things are common, bulletproof and can be had dirt cheap.
and I'm sure they'll accelerate incredibly well...
digdug18 wrote: Ok, forget a LSx, drop in a twin turbo V6 then... Andrew
The only question is: What V6?
The Jaguar V8s sound sweet when you get rid of the mufflers:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tkc3N_4TELQ
The Lincoln LS' V8 is based on/related to the Jaguar V8, and they can probably be found for a lot cheaper. They have a 1mm shorter stroke but the same bore, giving it 3.9L of displacement instead of 4L for the Jag engines, along with quite a few other differences (Lincoln had no VVT until 2003). They only make 250-280hp though, versus 280-290hp for the Jaguar V8. There's a guy with a Lincoln LS who adapted a supercharger from a Thunderbird SuperCoupe (an Eaton M90) for his V8 and is claiming 408RWHP. You can see some details here:
http://www.lincolnvscadillac.com/showthread.php?t=13357&page=1
(The lincolnvscadillac forum is incredibly slow for me, like 1 to 2 minutes to load a page so give it some time even if it looks like it's not doing anything).
Bob
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