Irish Mini Owners Club

hi all i'm aftering coming across a 1.3 turbo engine for a mini and i was wondering are they a good reliable engine do they give much bother and what sort of bhp wood u be getting out of them, i think this would cost me alot less than building a v tec mini in the end up! Any thoughts people all comments are very much appricated?

turbominis.co.uk....... very good site you'll need to cut the bulkhead and fit a box.

Thats rite i saw a box welded into one on youtube all rite! i no a fella beside me had one years ago and it give him awful trouble so i,m not sure, wood they be a good engine lad or wood i be better to build a v tec?

their a good little engine and well worth getting because their getting very hard to source.... is it complete on subframe with the 4pots, disc's... if there the brakes your using you will need the split pipes to work on a mini.

alot of people are going for the t2 turbo with the mirage manifold but converting a n/a engine to turbo its a rebuild with 16cc dished pistons fitted but there are loads of options. the mirage manifold doesn't need a turbo box fitted!!

turbominis is a good start and im certain there is a bloke on there that fabricates alot of the items needed for the t2 conversion.
if the metro turbo engine is availabe though i would consider it....

Woody's black yoke is a turbo, he'd be the man to talk to.

it would be a very easy engine to fit into the engine bay..
i have thought about all sorts of engines, then one arose very cheaply and im going to go with that...
16v twincam 4efte engine from a starlet gt, i have the full car so will be handy for electrics and driveshafts and all other ancillaries needed

steven

In standard form the turbo won't match the V-tech for power or reliability but if your getting it at the right price its the cheapest way to get big power into a mini and personaly I find mine the best fun of all the minis I've had and I havn't done much with the engine yet. Powerfull and quiet.

I would go turbo (cant belive i just tsaid that), but if the other option is a different engine, turbo it is.
took my bros red top clubman for a brisk drive, the amount of work i had to do to hold the thing stright, i was like arnie after it...
the vtec puts extra weight further forward, upsets the whole car, if you like torque steer and under steer, go for the v-tec.
if you like minis, stick with the a series

see www.eraturbo.co.uk for the proper turbo mini.

You will need to fit a bulkhead box, and decent brakes, standard engine is just under 100HP and just under 100ib/ft of torque...

I prefer my ERA Turbo to the Vauxhall engined 165hp at wheels nutter rally machine I have here.

Paul

Could nt agree more about the v tec, however i think the swift conversion is the one to go for if u have the money, and if u dont wait and see what im buildin, holdin off on photos until i m a bit furthur on, the cheapest 100bhp ever

The maddest transplant would be the Rover V8 that TMG had a photo of

i remember that article in one of the mini magazines, i think i still have it somewhere

One of the first few mini worlds featured a van with a chevy V8 fitted.

Hi saw the van with the V8 in at IMM2004 with hugggeee wheels on the back, not really much mini in it more a ladder chassis with a van shell grafted over.

My friend Ian (SPAG) built what he called the roughest V8 mini deathtrap in the world, V8 transverse on princess gearbox in mini subframe, the engineering is errrr interesting. Well worth a read for entertainment at www.magicspanner.co.uk.

Paul

J666ERA wrote:see http://www.eraturbo.co.uk for the proper turbo mini.

You will need to fit a bulkhead box, and decent brakes, standard engine is just under 100HP and just under 100ib/ft of torque...

I prefer my ERA Turbo to the Vauxhall engined 165hp at wheels nutter rally machine I have here.

Paul

Is it a red top?

A red top is a twin cam vauxhall. An ERA is a turbo mini.

swalker wrote:A red top is a twin cam vauxhall. An ERA is a turbo mini.

Yes i'm very well aware of that.... but if you read paul says he has the ERA and a 165 BHP vauxhall nutter rally machine..... That i would imagine may be a red top......

Now you are contradicting yourself.
Yes a red top is vauxhall and yes an era is a mini turbo.
This is what paul is also saying as you point out????

gareth meant is the vauxhaull powered mini a red top ya dip.

ROTFL...

ha F-U

?
ROTFL = rolls on the floor laughing.

What did you think?

i know what it means, that would be you being smart! or did i miss something??

I was laughing at myself.