smart1275gt
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| posted on 8/11/07 at 11:43 AM |
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1275cc A Series Smart Car!
Hi All,
This is my first post on this great site and more recently, my first car project.
I've bought a Smart car with a dead engine and had the idea of fitting a bike power unit or Ford Zetec. these are far too expensive for my puny
budget, so I'm gonna use my old MG Metro as the donor engine and transmission. I've been blogging on Myspace and there are a few videos on
Youtube.
Any comments?
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Paul TigerB6
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| posted on 8/11/07 at 11:55 AM |
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Take a modern car and fit a 1960's engine?? Why???
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JAG
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| posted on 8/11/07 at 11:58 AM |
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Plus if you want it to be road registered you'll have to get it thorugh an MOT every year and the A series will not pass the emmissions
requirements of a Smart car.
Justin
Who is this super hero? Sarge? ...No.
Rosemary, the telephone operator? ...No.
Penry, the mild-mannered janitor? ...Could be!
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smart1275gt
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| posted on 8/11/07 at 12:28 PM |
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The emissions are based on engine age, not the car.
Why an A Series? Well I've got a big soft spot for Mini's and Smarts and I thought, why not combine the two in a rust free shell. smart
engines and gearboxes are rubbish anyway and mega expensive if they fail, which they oftern do. My car had covered 46k miles before the piston rings
failed. some only get as far as 8k miles!! The MG lump has done 69k miles and still solid and pulls well.
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r1_pete
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| posted on 8/11/07 at 01:10 PM |
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MOT emissions check levels are against whichever is oldest, car or engine:-
http://www.motuk.co.uk/manual_730.htm
I agree though, why use an A Series, a heavy lump for the power output, a 750cc or so Bike engine would be awesome, and not too much money, most BEC
builders want 1000cc+
What about a VFR800 / 750, compact relliable and powerfull, very torquey too.
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Doug68
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| posted on 8/11/07 at 01:21 PM |
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I'm confused, the video shows a rotary motor, the title says series A but didn't MG Metros come with a K series engine?
Doug. 1TG
Sports Car Builders WA
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iank
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| posted on 8/11/07 at 01:23 PM |
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The problem with BEC installations mid engined is getting from the output to the wheels via a diff. Both in that there aren't any nice easy off
the shelf solutions for scrapyard money and the chain driven diffs all take up lots of room if you give the chain any reasonable amount of room.
Ideally some kind of transaxle diff would be available that bolted onto the engine casing somehow.
I would have thought the A series was the wrong size/shape to fit a smart from the engine pictures I've seen, but if you want to build it and it
makes sense to you go for it.
--
Never argue with an idiot. They drag you down to their level, then beat you with experience.
Anonymous
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iank
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| posted on 8/11/07 at 01:25 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by Doug68
I'm confused, the video shows a rotary motor, the title says series A but didn't MG Metros come with a K series engine?
No all MG metros are 1275cc A series. Rover Metros and Rover 100 used K series in the same body shape.
--
Never argue with an idiot. They drag you down to their level, then beat you with experience.
Anonymous
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iank
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| posted on 8/11/07 at 01:45 PM |
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Ah just found exactly what is required - a bolt on diff for superbike engines, even comes with reverse.
http://www.quaife.co.uk/Quaife-PowerTec-gear-drive-system
Though POA from Quaife sounds ominously unaffordable 
--
Never argue with an idiot. They drag you down to their level, then beat you with experience.
Anonymous
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smart1275gt
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| posted on 8/11/07 at 01:45 PM |
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I'd love a bike engine, but it's just down to cost. So far I've spent over £2k on donors and parts and wanted this to be as low as
possible. Yeah, it's still really cheap and I have been ebaying all the unwanted parts, but it's still gotta come in under £3k in the end.
If I sell my Metro, I could stretch to a bike lump.
I want to use the stock de dion axle and hubs off the Smart, to keep that stock look. what's the deal on chain diff's? I'm really
tempted about the bike engine now!!
[Edited on 8/11/07 by smart1275gt]
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kb58
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| posted on 8/11/07 at 02:10 PM |
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I think that a 3-cylinder turbo Suzuki engine would be way, way better. Much lighter, EFI, power can be increased easily. Then again, that's
just me.
Mid-engine Locost - http://www.midlana.com
And the book - http://www.lulu.com/shop/kurt-bilinski/midlana/paperback/product-21330662.html
Kimini - a tube-frame, carbon shell, Honda Prelude VTEC mid-engine Mini: http://www.kimini.com
And its book -
http://www.lulu.com/shop/kurt-bilinski/kimini-how-to-design-and-build-a-mid-engine-sports-car-from-scratch/paperback/product-4858803.html
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Peteff
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| posted on 8/11/07 at 02:46 PM |
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Stick a Kubota diesel engine in it, I wouldn't want to go over 50mph in a Smart car anyway . I really liked the old A series motors, they were
and still are very versatile and tunable while remaining reliable.
yours, Pete
I went into the RSPCA office the other day. It was so small you could hardly swing a cat in there.
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Benzine
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| posted on 8/11/07 at 02:50 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by kb58
I think that a 3-cylinder turbo Suzuki engine would be way, way better. Much lighter, EFI, power can be increased easily. Then again, that's
just me.
or 3 cylinder charade GTti engine ^__^
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Paul TigerB6
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| posted on 8/11/07 at 03:06 PM |
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I'm a little confused here about exactly what you want to do. So are you converting a Smart 4/2, or coupe, or roadster??? Is the plan to go mid
engined then and fit the engine as it would be in the metro complete with its gearbox and (shortened) driveshafts??
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smart1275gt
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| posted on 8/11/07 at 03:57 PM |
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It's a Smart ForTwo LHD 2001 Passion. It's already mid-engined and had a 599cc 3 cyl turbo engine which produced 54bhp. That has now been
removed and was going to put a Ford RS turbo lump in there, then a Renault 5 GT lump, then the rotary turbo lump, then cut my losses for something
realistic with the 1275cc MG Metro lump. Now I want the bike engine route!! I like the idea of a anothe rcar engine, but the space is so tight,
nothing else would fit without a custom rear subframe. I want to use what I've got to keep costs down.
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smart1275gt
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| posted on 17/11/07 at 06:20 PM |
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Offered Up Metro Engine Today
Well it fits - just! Offered up the A Series engine today after removing it from the donor car. Very close either side, but it will work with some
custom engine mounts.
 
Rescued attachment DSC02180.JPG
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akumabito
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| posted on 19/11/07 at 05:47 PM |
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*The choice of engine makes me cry*
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MikeRJ
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| posted on 19/11/07 at 06:12 PM |
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Any idea how much more the A series weighs over the the puny Smart lump?
Most people are putting modern engines into retro cars, nice to be different and do it the other way around 
Even better if you stick a Kent 286 in it with an ultralight flyweel to get a nice lumpy idle
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smart51
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| posted on 19/11/07 at 06:19 PM |
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The 700cc smart engine, with the roadster turbo, exhaust and tune makes 101 BHP. It is the right size and shape for a smart, if you fettle the
exhaust a little and is much lighter than the A series, not to mention easier to fit. After market companies can tune it further. Why would you want
to fit a wheezy 60 odd HP 1950s engine to it?
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MikeRJ
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| posted on 19/11/07 at 06:49 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by smart51
The 700cc smart engine, with the roadster turbo, exhaust and tune makes 101 BHP. It is the right size and shape for a smart, if you fettle the
exhaust a little and is much lighter than the A series, not to mention easier to fit. After market companies can tune it further. Why would you want
to fit a wheezy 60 odd HP 1950s engine to it?
How much would one of these 101bhp Smart engines cost? And I presume it still has the "slothmatic" gearbox?
The MG engine is 72bhp to start with, but 110bhp is fairly easy to extract from an A series, certainly it's one of the cheaper n/a engines to
tune.
[Edited on 19/11/07 by MikeRJ]
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smart1275gt
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| posted on 20/11/07 at 12:06 PM |
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To buy a used roadster Brabus engine and "sloth-matic" gearbox is around £2,5k. You can map a smart engine to 150bhp, but it's on
the edge of death. the A series car I'm building isn't for speed or handling (smart fortwo's don't handle well anyway),
it's really to have a cross over car for both Mini and Smart enthusiasts and as a promo tool for my band www.fbg-bom.com
I intend to get it running, then install a huge stereo system and funk it up with lights and graphics, but that might all go onto the next car if all
goes to plan.
Don't get me wrong, if I had the funding, I'd be building a Sylva R1ot right now, but I haven't got £10 lying about.
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Simon
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| posted on 21/11/07 at 12:58 AM |
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Smarts generally lose their engines early - they obviously aren't very good - look 'em up on ebay!
A series is a great engine, if a little antiquated.
Personally, if I was looking for something to do with a Smart car, I reckon it'd fit neatly in the bottom of a skip
ATB
Simon
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smart1275gt
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| posted on 22/11/07 at 05:46 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by Simon
Personally, if I was looking for something to do with a Smart car, I reckon it'd fit neatly in the bottom of a skip
ATB
Simon
Thanks for your encouragement Simon.
Ps, nice goggles mate.
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westcost1
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| posted on 12/12/07 at 03:46 PM |
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i read this as fu#k it up lol. "then install a huge stereo system and funk it up with lights and graphics"
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Benonymous
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| posted on 19/12/07 at 04:55 AM |
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A proud tradition
hey you're carrying on the proud tradition of the British car industry! Make a modern car and fit it with the most archaic engine available!
The best place for an A series is in an Austin A40 or a skip! You can't be serious about shoehorning one into a Smart  Imagine the
classified ad. "21st Century car fitted with post WW2 engine for sale" Gawd save us.....
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