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Re-powering a 1500 Midget

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J

JoeV

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Hi

Has anyone had any experience with different motors and trans combos in R/B midgets? I am thinking GM V6 (4.3?) I saw a post here about such a swap in a "B" and it got me thinking.WOW would my Midget go with that kind of motor and a 5 speed. I have actually seen an early Midget with a 327 Vette engine with 2/4bbl carbs and a 671 blower sticking out of the hood and a turbo400 trans,but it was a sloppy job i.e. the tail of the trans and driveshaft was actually exposed on the tunnel. Yikes!!
 
I gotta agree with the smaller lighter thing. I know a guy who has a 130 hp 1275 and it goes like a scalded cat. The v6 will be too heavy unless all you want to do is go straight
 
the 4.3 is a HEAVY motor. A Chev 60 degree V6 (2.8/3.1/3.4L) with a T5 would be much better although it might be too tall. I look for a 1.6L DOHC 4 cylinder out of the AE86 Toyota Corrolla that would brake the rear end but gives 140hp.
 
Ditto the Toyota thing. A good friend of mine had a Toyota Corolla ITB SCCA race car.

Lots of parts available aftermaket for Toyota.

grin.gif


Chris
 
Joe: I think I may have seen the same V-8 Midget you saw...sounds like it,'cause the one I saw was terrible.

Sprites/Midgets have small,structural trans tunnels...if you chop them out for clearance, you'd have major frame work to deal with. Look for engines that have small transmissions, such as early 16V rwd Corrollas and certain Datsun/Nissan cars. A few years ago, I saw a Miata powered Bugeye that was pretty nice.

[ 01-05-2003: Message edited by: aeronca65t ]</p>
 
I've always wondered about using small pickup engines like the Nissan 2.4L or a comparable Toyota engine/trans. combo. I have no idea about height, but personal experience with the 2.4L tells me even older examples ('84 or thereabouts) can be made quite powerful without much hassle. Anyone ever looked into that kind of swap? The OHC may cause clearance issues.
 
lawguy - from what I understand the use of most truck engine/transmissions ends up the shifter in the wrong location.
 
<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by 78Z:
lawguy - from what I understand the use of most truck engine/transmissions ends up the shifter in the wrong location.<hr></blockquote>

OK- how about the 2.4L from a 240sx
 
I suppose it'd be really hard to get one here, but the Rover K-series fits, apparently. The Miata engine swap is also something I've seen (I'd go for an earlier Mazda engine, meself).
-Wm.
 
I wonder if you could put a 2.0 litre engine from a '90s Mitsubishi Eclipse/Talon/Laser. The normally aspirated engines can put out a decent amount of power and the turbocharged engines can crank out 225HP with just a little tweaking. Another factor is that these "DSM" (Diamond Star Motors) engines are pretty cheap, readily available, and have an abundance of aftermarket performance parts on the market. I think it would be easier to fit a 2.0 litre in a Midget than a small V-6. Just my .02.
 
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