Other engine/transmission considerations/questions

["captain_hydrogen" <captainhydrogen@xxxx>]

Has anyone on the DML considered or tried any higher horsepower 
import four or six cylinder engines for a DeLorean engine mod?

I would think that a lower purchase price, higher reliability, and 
readily available performance mods could be expected from Japanese 
engines. German engines should work very well and be reliable with 
only slightly more maintenance issues than Japanese engines.

I firmly believe that you can improve engine performance while 
reducing engine weight and improving fuel economy.

Some engines to consider would be.
Audi/VW 1.8T single turbo inline 4 - 180hp upgradeable to 235hp
Audi 2.7T twin turbo V6 - 250hp
Audi aluminum 3.0 liter V6 - 220hp
VW 2.8 VR6 - 200hp
VW 4.0 W8 [eight cylinder] - 270hp
BMW 3.2 inline 6 - 333hp
Honda 3.0 VTEC V-6 - 240hp
Mitsubishi 2.0 single turbo inline 4 - Lancer Evolution 271
Nissan 3.5 VQ V6 - Altima 245hp - Maxima 265hp - 350Z 287hp
Subaru 2.0 H-4 single turbo - 227hp upgradeable to 280hp-450+hp 
Subaru 2.5 H-4 single turbo - 300hp

Though the BMW and Subaru engines might have dimensional conflicts, 
most of these engines would fit quite nicely in the DeLorean engine 
bay, and work splendidly, especially when mated to the ZF 
(www.zf.com) S5-39 or S6-53 transmissions, the Getrag (www.getrag.de) 
448 or 450 + Allrad transmissions, or the Quaife (www.quaife.co.uk) 
Porsche 6 Speed 996 Transaxle Gearbox $$$$$. Also see Unicap 
Transmission Adaptors (http://www.pnc.com.au/~bill/Transmission.html).

When you save a lot of money on the engine by getting one that is as 
common as a Honda or Nissan (just go to a junk yard and look for a 
new 350Z that has been wrapped around a telephone pole), then you can 
afford the best transmission and possibly loose enough weight to 
improve the DeLorean's 35/65 f/r weight distribution.

If weight distribution, and fuel economy is not an object, another 
option is to contact The Engine Factory and get a 465hp 350 Chevy 
Engine (www.enginefactory.com/465hp.htm) for $20 less than DMC's 
new "crate" performance engine (be sure to remove the stock 
transmission and replace it with something a lot stronger).

Has anyone "cut" a Chevy 350 in half to make a large displacement 
(2.867736 liter) V4 that would weigh about 310 lbs., use half the gas 
of a V8, and could produce 233hp (and possibly 280+hp) without forced 
induction?

Now that we know that the PRV-6 weighs 375lbs. Does anyone know how 
much the Renault R30 transmission weighs?

Ben Ferguson
Member of the Board of Directors - American Hydrogen Association 
(www.clean-air.org)
Member - Arizona DeLorean Club (www.az-d.org) 
captainhydrogen@xxxx