Aren't they always :D

And the fact that the vehicles are 10 miles apart doesn't help. Can't get them together either.

How easy is it to refit the propshaft? Might see if the missus will let me source one

Why was the original propshaft removed? Often it's because the VCU has stiffened up. This is bad as it trashes the IRD and rear diff.
Fitting the propshaft is an easy 30 minute job.
 
Why was the original propshaft removed? Often it's because the VCU has stiffened up. This is bad as it trashes the IRD and rear diff.
Fitting the propshaft is an easy 30 minute job.

The missus brother managed to punch a whole In the original gearbox knackering the propshaft. Her Dad fitted the new gearbox without one and has said recently that the rear diff is in really good condition.
 
Seems a whole lot of hassle for not a lot of extra power...

In a way i actually agree, i wont see much gains in terms of performance, but as a first conversion i though i'd give this a go. I have both vehicles, a replacement engine for the freelander would cost more than fitting the vvc unit. In retrospect i'm going to get the engine fitted up and running, which is just a case of vvc engine in with freelander box, clutch, flywheel and fuel rail and then once its all running i can refurb the engine to make it reliable. By getting the vvc ECU decoded it removes the 27vt immobiilzer so the vvc engine loom can be spliced in to the body loom, by the looks of things that seems the only difficult part as i know nothing about wiring diagrams :eek:.

It'll be a 1.8 freelander with a tiny bit more go most of the time and a better ability to overtake.

As long as it runs without fault, i'll feel the project is a success, the power increase is just the by product.
 
Seems a whole lot of hassle for not a lot of extra power...

While I agree that it will be a lot of hassle, I don't agree there's little extra power. The VVC engine has a lot going for it. It doesn't have masses more torque than the standard 1.8 but it does lots more power. Upwards of 3000 Rpm the VVC is well ahead of the standard 1.8. This will make the Freelander much faster than standard if you use the higher end of the rev range. Lower down in the rev range, performance will be much the same as standard though.
 
People fit upgrades to the standard 1.8 engine trying to get a bit more out of the engine, this vvc has had various parts upgraded so should be running around 150-155 Bhp and a little bit more torque. The mg zr 160 isn't much quicker than the standard vi 143 and would be more complicated to fit with mems 3 being completely different to mems1.9 & 2.

I also own a 307cc 180. To use as a comparison, This uses variable valves, has 174bhp, 149 ft/lb and a kerb weight of just under 1500kg. The lower spec engine is 134bhp and 140 ft/lb which I test drove before the 180. I easily noticed the difference in power delivery between these 2 engines, nothing really In at low revs but acceleration is miles apart using the whole rev range.
 
Good luck with this, I like the VVC engine and the limiter at 7,500 is addictive, but its not something I would do in a Freelander

You are better keeping the 1.8i and giving lotus cams and engine ports worked etc something with lots of grunt low down

You'll be guzzling fuel like no tomorrow to get any noticeable speed plus vibrational issues through the FL1 transmission at higher rpm
 
Does anyone have, or know where I can get the wiring diagram so I can decipher the loom?

VVC loom MEMS 2J (from an MGF should be the same in Vi)
 

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you could just lob the vvc engine in with vvc blanking plates. itll have more go than the standard engine. and get you up and running. then get around to getting the vvc unit working later.
 
you could just lob the vvc engine in with vvc blanking plates. itll have more go than the standard engine. and get you up and running. then get around to getting the vvc unit working later.

Not worth the cost of blanking plates. The inlet cam needs changing to a special non VVC version too. Both items cost lots of cash and loose the torque of the VVC system.
 
set of cams from the mgtf 135 go straight it and have a similar profile to that of the vvc. and they go cheap!
 
set of cams from the mgtf 135 go straight it and have a similar profile to that of the vvc. and they go cheap!

Sorry but that is incorrect ;)
The 135 exhaust cam fits the VVC head no problem. Fitting it is pointless as the standard VVC exhaust cam is basically the same cam anyway.
The inlet cam is completely different. The bearing bores in the VVC head are much larger than the 135 inlet cam. This means the inlet cam needs to be made up from a special blank.
The 135 cam timing is completely wrong for the heavy Freelander body too.
 
Sorry but that is incorrect ;)
The 135 exhaust cam fits the VVC head no problem. Fitting it is pointless as the standard VVC exhaust cam is basically the same cam anyway.
.

sorry you are right. its been a while since i had my mgtf!

Its putting the 135 cam in the normal 120 that makes a good difference on the tf

might be ok on the freelander, depends on personal preference, if you want a peaky engine or not i guess.
 
sorry you are right. its been a while since i had my mgtf!

Its putting the 135 cam in the normal 120 that makes a good difference on the tf

might be ok on the freelander, depends on personal preference, if you want a peaky engine or not i guess.

No need to apologise Vilguy ;)
It's impossible to remember all engine configurations!!.
It's a personal thing, engine tuning and it's effects on the torque curve.
 
on my 1.8 freelander i put the vvc inlet manifold on instead of the plastic "small" one that is standard. Seemed to pep it up a little as air flow seemed to be increased a little.


might be the "in my head" dyno doing that though of course :) But the VVC manifold is considerably larger.
 
on my 1.8 freelander i put the vvc inlet manifold on instead of the plastic "small" one that is standard. Seemed to pep it up a little as air flow seemed to be increased a little.


might be the "in my head" dyno doing that though of course :) But the VVC manifold is considerably larger.

The improvement you felt was likely real. Not because the VVC inlet is better for the non VVC head, because it's not as it doesn't line up correctly with the ports. However the plastic standard manifold is so incredibly bad. It has molding flash almost all the way down the inlet runners.
This makes plastic manifold worse than the VVC alloy jobby even off the ports are slightly out of alignment.
 

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