sierra sapphire "pinto" 2.0 engine

dj jarvis

hi
looking for some advice/help.. i have a 1972 vauhxhall viva hc with a "pinto" motor in it (sierra sapphipe 2.0) mine overheated and now im getting water in the oil , i done the head gasket and used all lotions and potions to seal it but none worked... im looking for a new motor to pop into my viva... has to be above spec or better... (i.e no 1.4/1.6) 2.0 or better,
does any one know of a good place to start looking for this motor,
basicly im looking for names of people with a good rep because buying a 20 year old motor from some scrapyards is like pissing into the wind...
i would be able to collect anywhere in the country
so if you know some one or have some advice please reply to this thread because the car is waiting for paint and im not going to paint until im sure it will move
many thanks in advance :pac:

Sids Not

Why not just fix the motor you have...at least you'll then know its a good one..;)

dj jarvis

could do a rebuild but time and space are a problem... for the price of a rebuild you could get a nice low mileage and just pop it in....only problem is finding the right one.... enough people follow this site , might get lucky or get some leads.... if push comes to shove i might get a rover v8 3.5 put in but again time and money

MercMad

Did you get the head skimmed after you removed it, or did you just fit a new gasket ?

gn3dr

MercMad wrote: »

Did you get the head skimmed after you removed it, or did you just fit a new gasket ?

Just stick a 2.0 Zetec from a mondeo into it for a cheap replacement. Will bolt onto the gearbox straight. Or better again go for a Duratec from a newer Ford - wou'll have to buy a bellhousing to fit that though.

Redrocket

gn3dr wrote: »

Just stick a 2.0 Zetec from a mondeo into it for a cheap replacement. Will bolt onto the gearbox straight. Or better again go for a Duratec from a newer Ford - wou'll have to buy a bellhousing to fit that though.

you dont even know what gearbox he has, how do you know it's a straight fit?

pinto's are generally not cheap, some fetching up to 500 quid at the moment.

zetecs are about 1,000 average for the conversion into a ford, never mind a vauxhaul. there's a lot of custom parts needed for the rwd conversion.

if it were me i'd be going back to the opel/vaux route as it's bound to be a better documented swap than a ford engine. probably easier sourced conversion parts also.

ianobrien

What about a Vauxhall Red-top? Fitting may be easy (I'm not a vauxhall man) by the fact that it's a Manta engine block, so Manta sump & Gearbox would fit easy. 200hp can be easily got from the engines

As you're running a Pinto, I assume you've a T9 'box. To keep the 'box with a Red-top, a different bellhousing is needed. The T9 has better ratios than the Manta box

I'd forget the notion of getting a nice low mileage Pinto from a scrapyards. They're all gone! The Pinto's a VERY popular engine for motorsport, and all the ones that you want (Cheap low mileage) are gone. I'd get your one rebuilt. Have a look at Burton Power to get engine stuff for the rebuild.

Just another mad notion. As the Cosworth YB is based on a Pinto, it'll fit in easy on your engine mounts (as long as you find room for the turbo and the massive T5 box you'll need to handle the power)

dj jarvis

ok another route... getting a new barrel and head fitted to my pinto block
could solve all my problems but going down that far you would really need timing chain .. poss crank bearings... and a few other bits done... but if some one knows of a place/site that has after market parts for this model engine then i would look into it.... love the little car and want to get it back on the road asap.... again thanks for the feed back...

S.I.R

dj jarvis wrote: »

hi
looking for some advice/help.. i have a 1972 vauhxhall viva hc with a "pinto" motor in it (sierra sapphipe 2.0) mine overheated and now im getting water in the oil , i done the head gasket and used all lotions and potions to seal it but none worked... im looking for a new motor to pop into my viva... has to be above spec or better... (i.e no 1.4/1.6) 2.0 or better,
does any one know of a good place to start looking for this motor,
basicly im looking for names of people with a good rep because buying a 20 year old motor from some scrapyards is like pissing into the wind...
i would be able to collect anywhere in the country
so if you know some one or have some advice please reply to this thread because the car is waiting for paint and im not going to paint until im sure it will move
many thanks in advance :pac:

2.0 XE vuazhall lump or a turbo pinto ??

Redrocket

turbo pinto, no point, just buy a cossie, but your talkin 1500 - 2000 for this + ancilleries on the basis it will need lots of mods to go into a viva.
vauxhall xe, 200bhp fairly easy, maybe 250-450 for engine + 600 quid for 200bhp upgrades

id go redtop all day long, they are such a class engine (cosworth designed) and i'd say the fit into the viva would be much easier than a pinto and the bhp would be better per $$$$

carchaeologist

Red top turbo is 200 BHP out of the tin..:)

Kevin_Herron

Lads, can we get back down to earth here...

If you've done the head gasket on your Pinto and its still mixing the oil and water theres obviously a crack somewhere, throw the engine away.
It must have been roasted. Unless there was a mistake made? Gasket fitted incorrectly?
Pintos have a timing belt not chain.

Are you guys for real? This guy wants to get this car back on the road asap and you're suggesting putting a 200bhp engine into a Vauxhall Viva?
The diff was made to take what? 50bhp originally?
A cossie engine? Has anyone thought of brakes?

Redrocket

If he doesnt care about power, and wants some thing to slot in, i cant imagine a 1600 pinto going for much more than 1-200 quid

keev100

hi,i have a 1988 sierra sapphire for sale on gumtree.ie,it has a 2.0 pinto,running well,have a look,price neg.thanks

MercMad

I am confused about the fact that the OP is prepared to fit a new head and "barrel" but seems loath to fit a new timing belt and crank bearings. Those parts would cost buttons compared to a new head !!

Also isn't the Opel red top a Lotus design, not a Cosworth !!

Anyway any engine taken from a scrap yeard is likely to need work. I'd set my budget a bit higher and build the engine myself, or but it buolt and ready to bolt in. Someone mentioned Burton and there was some other guy up near Ballymoney who used to build them too !

A Pinto is a piece of cake to work on !

The red top engines can have porous cylinder heads so buying second hand can be dodgey !

carchaeologist

Kevin_Herron wrote: »

Lads, can we get back down to earth here...
Are you guys for real? This guy wants to get this car back on the road asap and you're suggesting putting a 200bhp engine into a Vauxhall Viva?
The diff was made to take what? 50bhp originally?
A cossie engine? Has anyone thought of brakes?

Yes,it was getting out of hand wasnt it!!He'll be doing the quarter mile in the 11s if we had anything to do with it!!
Pintos cant be hard to find in good order,capris, cortinas, sierras all had them!

ianobrien

Didn't the OP say that he wanted a 2 litre and not a 1600?

If he wants power from a Ford engine, look up Burton Power. I realise that with a tuned Pinto he'll need a stronger axle and may need to seam weld some of the car to take the strain. Next would be big brakes. Power is expensive.

I was looking for a 2.0 Pinto and good ones were expensive. Cheap ones needed a rebuild. 1.6 one's were cheap as chips though...

dj jarvis

ok kevin is right i just want to get the motor i have and get it fixed or replaced... speed and bhp not a motive.. if i can get it fixed i will .... i dont know anyone that can do it... names would be nice... as for me forgetting to list all the work i know needs doing ... im sorry i was keeping it short... im looking for leads on a person that can fix or replace the motor.. i just want to get the car back on the road...i know how to do the work but dont have the place to do it or the time.... im thinking a new head might solve my problem but where to find it and who to fit it?
thanks for ALL help and keep it rolling :pac:

BeardyGit

http://www.adverts.ie/showproduct.php?product=91779&cat=26

Trixie666's comment might be of interest to you....

Cheers,

Gil

S.I.R

Redrocket wrote: »

turbo pinto, no point, just buy a cossie, but your talkin 1500 - 2000 for this + ancilleries on the basis it will need lots of mods to go into a viva.
vauxhall xe, 200bhp fairly easy, maybe 250-450 for engine + 600 quid for 200bhp upgrades

id go redtop all day long, they are such a class engine (cosworth designed) and i'd say the fit into the viva would be much easier than a pinto and the bhp would be better per $$$$

i agree 100% sticking to a pure breed ( vauxhall & Vauxhall parts ) but pinto's are a nice engine, if you could cheaply repair the stock engine, by all means but if you cant... sell it on and get the xe