• Hi Guest!
    You can help ensure that British Car Forum (BCF) continues to provide a great place to engage in the British car hobby! If you find BCF a beneficial community, please consider supporting our efforts with a subscription.
    There are some perks with a member upgrade!
    **Upgrade Now**
    (PS: Subscribers don't see this gawd-aweful banner
Tips
Tips

drive train conversion

Share this page

A

agdavid

Freshman Member
Offline
I'm considering resurrecting my 1959 bugeye. It occurs to me that all my newer cars are more reliable, have more power and get better gas mileage than my bugeye did. I'm considering putting a modern economy car drive train in it. Has anyone done anything like this? Any tips? Any conversion kits?
 
First let me welcome you to this fine forum. The important thing to my thinking is to get the bugeye on the road and enjoyed. If it is expedient to do it with a more modern engine so be it. I'm certain the question put to this forum will yield many helpful responses. I have heard of many such conversions to just about any LBC you can name. Have personally seen an Oldsmobile 4 cylinder designed to be mounted sideways and FWD, converted to inline and mounted in MGAs and Bs. Nice reliable engine, DOHC and 4 valve. Nearly all of these new engines are all aluminum and available on the salvage marke. Upgrades to brakes and running gear seem to be doable as well. It's easy for me to say so I'll say it. Just do it! And be sure and post as to your progress here!
 
So why do you have a 1959 Bugeye? What's wrong with experiencing the original feel of the car? (and how economical do you want? isn't 40mpg enough?!)
Emma
 
I never got 40 mpg. Perhaps I need to work on the engine I have. However it would be fun to have a little more power.

Have you seen any kits for conversions to, say a modern Honda or Nissan drive train?
 
Herre's my thought. Sell the bugeye to some one who would love to have an original. Take the proceeds. buy an engineless spridget AND a modern Japanese power train. Put them together put the left over money into gasoline, etc. and have a ball.

/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/driving.gif

Mike

Results of following this plan;

1 A Bugeye is saved for future generations
2. a Spridget is saved for future generations
3. You should be able to do the whole project for "Free"
4. Note 3. you likely will have $$$ left over.

BTW, it is unlikely you will find a "Kit" for a bugeye, maybe a little more likely for the spridget. But more likely you will have to "roll your own". However, as has already been shown, there are several web sites with "Recipes" to help you along.

Whatever you choose, keep us updated, it will be an interesting project regardless of which course you choose.

M
 
Back
Top