Mark Reichert writes (on the Lotus cars mailing list, but I can't seem
to respond to that, so I'll put it out here instead):
> The R16 ren-o engine in my recently acquired 1969 Europa S2 project car
> is, as expected, a real basket case (compression of 30/35/60/45 psi,
> scratched cams, sat for 10 years, ....) Does anyone out there know where
> I might find an upgrade engine for this critter? What I'd prefer is an
> R17 Gordini cross-flow, but I'm open to suggestions.
As the saying goes, how fast can you afford to go? Are you committed
to the quick and cheap route of finding a ready motor, or are you
willing to build up your own? Gordini heads aren't that hard to come
by -- I know someone who has three in stock. If your cam isn't
completely shot you can regrind it to Gordini specs. Your existing R16
block should work -- the R17 block has some extra mounting points on
the outside for an air pump and fuel injection, but you won't miss
those. You'll want to use your R16 crank, if possible -- the R17 crank
has a pulley mount on they front that needs to be cut off to clear the
S2's shift linkage. You'll need new pistons, of course, and they'll
have to be made up -- only 9:1 pistons were imported into the states,
and you'd want the Euro-spec 10.3:1. Lessee, if you use your current
R16 cast exhaust manifold, an R15 downdraft intake manifold and replace
your Solex with a downdraft Weber you get 107 (gross) hp or
thereabouts. If you want it all, the 130 hp Gordini motor (which would
be my personal choice, of course :) used the same setup with a tubular
header and dual Dellorto side drafts. You can get both of those (or
Webers in place of the Dellortos), but the side draft carbs need a new
intake manifold as well, and that's unobtanium. They never made many
of the factory part and now it's NLA. You could have it copied (I know
someone with a set who could do it) but it wouldn't be real cheap.
BTW, an "R17 Gordini" motor, as imported into the states, isn't all
that useful by itself. Gordini is a tuning firm long associated with
the Renault factory, and they've produced a lot of hot engines in
Europe, but when the name was used in the States it denoted little more
than a trim package. The US-spec R17 Gordini motor used fuel
injection, so for your Europa you'd either have to cobble up something
for that or change the intake manifold to use carbs, which is the
hardest part to come up with. And, as I mentioned above, the R17
crank has to be cut to fit in the Europa's engine bay, so you have to
take the engine apart before you can use it anyway.
Dave Van Horn davevh@microsoft.com
|