• Hello Guest, welcome to the initial stages of our new platform!
    You can find some additional information about where we are in the process of migrating the board and setting up our new software here

    Thank you for being a part of our community!

Engine Modification Question

Cheddar

New member
Joined
Jun 20, 2018
Location
Ontario Canada
Hello everyone,

So I have run into a problem with my 1974 Volvo 142. I had several oil leaks so I decided to pull the engine out and regasket it. During this repair I found some metal flakes in the oil pan. After disassembly I found my camshaft lobes are worn out as well as the lifters. Also the cam sprocket broke, which was kind of expected.

Now my dilemma, I have a 2.3 turbo redblock, 740 block, 2.1L 240 head, marine camshaft, mostly built engine. Do I rebuilt the B20F that is out of the car and put it back in or do I gather the necessary parts to put the redblock engine in? I plan on putting the 2.3L turbo in eventually but wasn?t really ready yet. Also, does anyone know how much a rebuilt B20F with a mild performance camshaft would be worth? Would it at least be worth the value of parts and machine work that I put into it?

Looking for some input, I am really torn on what I should do. I was planning on rebuilding the B20 after I put the 2.3L in anyway I just was hoping to be driving the car while gathering parts and saving money.

Regards.
 
I just went through all this a year and a half ago. I tore down a spare B20 to build for my 142, but while it was in pieces I stumbled into a B23et from a 760. Sold the B20 for next to nothing, but hopefully your built one is worth a bit more?

I ended up doing the B23 swap. It took a long time, was much more difficult than I expected, and I had to come up with solutions for problems I hadn't thought of. I still think it was absolutely worth it. These cars are a lot more fun with a bit of torque.

But really, it depends on your goals and whether or not those goals are a moving target. I had planned on just dropping in a resealed B23et and leaving it stock for a nice 180 hp. I ended up fully rebuilding the motor, drilling it for squirters, and now I'm thinking about the best way to make 300 whp with it. If you just want to do a quick and dirty swap, I'd think about mounting the engine slanted, as it was meant to be, and using all the stock stuff.
 
It's all up to your goals and time and money.

But slapping a cam and lifters into a B20 is not a big deal. I don't think it counts as a 'rebuild'. Cams can get a little pricier if you go to the various tuning places offerings, but a stock OEM D grind is pretty nice on an otherwise largely stock B20. Get it back up and running in an afternoon, instead of a month.
 
I guess as a personal preference I would like to do crank and rod bearings, piston rings, at least cleaning the valves. I would hate to put a new cam and not at least freshen up the rest of the engine. Also, there is a camshaft kit from iPd that includes the sprocket that I need, lifters, double valve springs and gaskets for around $1000.

Maybe I could push myself to replaced the cam and limit the other repairs.
 
I also just realized I have a K cam that I never used. Not sure if that interests you, but I'd get rid of it for a lot less than some aftermarket cam.
 
If you want to be back on the road fast can't you find a used cam, lifters and a gear set?
You know you need to number the lifters, they pair with their corresponding lobes.
You can do the full rebuild later as planned.
 
I guess as a personal preference I would like to do crank and rod bearings, piston rings, at least cleaning the valves. I would hate to put a new cam and not at least freshen up the rest of the engine. Also, there is a camshaft kit from iPd that includes the sprocket that I need, lifters, double valve springs and gaskets for around $1000.

Maybe I could push myself to replaced the cam and limit the other repairs.

Piston rings and no new pistons and bore is not really a rebuild..It is at absolute best a "freshen up"..

rebuild what you have and chose better parts..More compression, more camshaft, more carburetion.. easier and cheaper in the end.
 
I wouldn't recommend getting any machining done on the engine you wish to re-sell when you go to do your big swap. Machine time is very expensive and cost only goes up exponentially depending on how much you want done. At the end of the day your old engine will probably sell for $100 max and you could have easily spent $1000 getting it machined.

Edit: just saw you were also talking about $1000 parts kit. So there you could put $1-2k into an engine that you will never be able to sell for the amount of money you have in it. Honestly though, after all that you'd have a bitchin B20 that you could run forever and have a great time driving without any hassle of an engine swap, so you might consider doing that and keeping the B20.
 
If you want to save some money, don't get the IPD kit. It comes with a fiber cam gear that won't last long with double valve springs. Besides, I have way better pricing as well as a copy of the Volvo D grind made by Isky instead of the VV71 that their kit comes with.

You should consider milling the head for more compression while it's off. A '74 F engine will be 8.7:1. Get it up to at least 9.5:1 for more powerz. 10.5:1 would be even better if you have high octane fuel available.
 
Back
Top