Gwagensteve wrote:
Depending on how much hassle you want to go through, you will want to know which model of GTi the motor came from. Type 1 GTi's can accept a right angle distributor drive, making the engine a bolt in. (no firewall mods)
Correct
Gwagensteve wrote:
I think the mark 2's can accept a Mazda Familia GT-X distributor cap, which does allow the engine to bolt in with no firewall mods, but I think it might be very difficult/ impossible to remove the cap with the engine in situ
Alot of people struggle so they loosen the engine mounts etc etc to get to the cap but you can remove the actual dizzy (with the cap in place) without moving the engine just by unbolting the top cover and lifting it up that way
Gwagensteve wrote:
I believe there is no alternative for mark 3 GTi engines - the firewall must be chopped (or the engine converted to coil packs/distributor moved etc) The problem isn't chopping the firewall, it's that you need to remove the blower fan for the interior as a result, because it's right behind where the firewall needs to be chopped. I believe this will result in your car being illegal everywhere in Australia because the windscreen demist function is lost.
You do not need to chope the firewall if you used the Mazda dizzy
Mark 2 and mark 3 engines are exactly the same (well.....the mark 2 engines use a 128k computer while mark 3 use a 256k but they are pretty much identical)
Gwagensteve wrote:
I'm sure the GTi experts will weigh in with more accurate tech, but in my opinion, if you don't have a mark 1 or mark 2 (or don't know which it is), and don't have the loom and computer, I think it could be more hassle than its worth.
Im not expert but it's a pretty simple conversion and if you get stuck i think i've got a couple of computers still at home somewhere
Gwagensteve wrote:
Just my 2C on whether that motor is a good candidate.
As for the performance - the #1 gain is that they are EFI. They do make lots of power - ~100hp vs ~67hp stock, but it's way up in the rev range, so if you have less-than-optimal gearing, you might find the car feels a bit soft down low, and you have to drive it harder to make it move. This can be fun and all, but it's low end torque that makes a 4WD motor work, not high end power. I think you need to gear the car with a GTi in mind. (as in, you'd gear a GTi car shorter for the same tyre size than say a 1.6litre car) Remember too that GTi motors are all getting very old now, and while they are tough, they have typically all been owned by young drivers and driven very hard. There's more than one tale of rebuild woe around too - a cheap motor than needs an expensive rebuild might not be as good a buy as a lower KM baleno/vitara/swift 1.6 thats been driven by a nanna.
As for the performance - the #1 gain is that they are EFI. They do make lots of power - ~100hp vs ~67hp stock, but it's way up in the rev range, so if you have less-than-optimal gearing, you might find the car feels a bit soft down low, and you have to drive it harder to make it move. This can be fun and all, but it's low end torque that makes a 4WD motor work, not high end power. I think you need to gear the car with a GTi in mind. (as in, you'd gear a GTi car shorter for the same tyre size than say a 1.6litre car) Remember too that GTi motors are all getting very old now, and while they are tough, they have typically all been owned by young drivers and driven very hard. There's more than one tale of rebuild woe around too - a cheap motor than needs an expensive rebuild might not be as good a buy as a lower KM baleno/vitara/swift 1.6 thats been driven by a nanna.
Totally agree with Steve on above
I had 4.9 gears in mine and found that it was FANTASTIC in the sand but for more technical work i needed more reduction and now i've got 6.5s
It all depends on the terrain you're going to drive and what you're going to use the car for
Also....have a read of this
viewtopic.php?f=5&t=36242&hilit=gti