Z20LET into a Haynes Roadster

[Ben_Copeland]

Its time i posted up my build diary for fitting my Astra turbo engine into my Haynes Roadster, seems to be one of the next upgrades people might start doing.

Firstly it started out with a NA 2.0 16V Vauxhall Engine C20XE so the conversion is a little easier for me. The Z20LET is a 2.0 16V Turbo engine, very similar to the C20LET which is the Turbo verson of the C20XE. This all means that the existing bellhousing and engine mounts all fit straight on, although the passenger side mount needs modifying for the boost pipe to go through.

Picked up a running engine and started stripping it all of bits i wont need anymore....




Its very busy this end and i dont like it !


Thats better.

[Ben_Copeland]

Next i need to replace the throttle body, the TB on the Z20LET is fly-by-wire and i cant run that on MS2 (or cant be bothered to work out how)


I've bought a throttle body of a X20XEV which is effectively a NA version of my engine (2.0L 16v from a vectra/astra etc)
Its fits straight on and converts to cable throttle, its slightly larger which cant be a bad thing.

I actually ended up turning this round 180 degrees so it fits better.

[Ben_Copeland]

Next is to remove the sump which is massive and isnt going to fit, also i removed the balance shafts that are mounted over the crank. These sap power and also add a massive weight to the bottom of the engine. Unfortunately they are oil feed from the crank bearing caps, so they need tapping and filling so the oil doesnt come out !


Tapped and grub screwed.



Caps back in.
The downside of removing the balance shafts is they also act as crank girdle so you either need to find a X20XEV crank girdle that doesnt have balance shafts (early one maybe) or make your own.

[Ben_Copeland]

Friend of mine sent me this to play with as it didnt fit with his sump....


Unfortunately i ended up having to cut it up as it didnt fit with my sump either, but strips are better than nothing.

I used the XE windage tray just cutting holes where the girdle stuck through.

I'm fitting a Caterham Alloy Sump from my XE engine, which just fits but ive had to modify the pickup pipe, using the head of the XE one with the oil pump end from the ZLET engine. Its a bit of a faff to sort and unfortunately i didnt take a picture, but just make sure its got no leaks! I also had to drill out the sump bolt holes because they are m8 instead of m6 like the XE, but easy enough to do.

I then started checking over the turbo. It had been fitted with a VXR turbo and wastegate which is a popular power upgrade, pretty much a direct swap and good for about 300bhp.

I had noticed the oil feed pipe was oily and one of the connections was at an angle..

Dumb Arse!!!

Took it apart and luckily i rescued it with a small file and a bit of patience....

Better.

[Ben_Copeland]

I took the exhaust manifold off to replace the gasket and found 2 stripped threads in the head and rusted studs/nuts
They'll all need replacing before the turbo manifold can go back on... BALLS.


I helicoiled the 2 threads in the head and replaced all the studs. While the exhaust manifold was off i painted the block black to get rid of the Red as it didnt match which my cars colours.


Also the turbo return pipe was held in with a bolt and self tapping screw and glue. WTF, how difficult would it of been to find another bolt for it. Again, luckily! i managed to remove the glue and cleaned up the bolt hole. Replaced the gaskets and bolted it all back up.


I also binned the dump valve bits and fitted a nice alloy recirculation valve, back to standard...ish.

[Ben_Copeland]

Moved back over to the inlet side and decided to check the injectors. As i thought standard, and not suitable for VXR turbo power.

I had some Rover 800 Turbo injectors lurking in the garage which are a direct swap, a lot more cc's. So i sent them off to Mr Injector to get them cleaned and check etc.
380cc i believe @ 3 bar



Refitted the rail. Done

Got a bit of a painting bug from doing the engine block so decided to do the camcover.

Rubbed down


Primed with a etch primer


Undercoated white