My 79 Westy Bus to Ford 2.3 Conversion Log

regis101 · Post by **regis101** » Thu Oct 01, 2009 5:30 pm

Hey WestyPop. Remember that the jeep radiator is 11 x 32. A person could get real creative with something that size. Be it between the frame rails to a tube type front bumper to frenching it in the front below the OE bumper to...

chazz79 · Post by **chazz79** » Fri Oct 02, 2009 5:25 pm

I'm preparing to build a engine support subframe. I'm guessing the best way to go about this is to place everything where is fits then snake a framework around it. Ultimately I want something that will drop out without a whole lot of hassle and rest nicely on the ground. I've got the muffler mocked in place but i'm open to suggestions on anything else I should leave attached to the powertrain> So far it's looking like a few hours staring at pictures and scratching my head.

^^^^^^^^^^Muffler location-exhaust will probobly just be this muffler and a u bent pipe from the manifold

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^second view of mount areas with exhaust interference. The stock mount bar and frame brackets won't be used so I have a clean slate to do whatever I want with.

^^^^^^^^^^^there's still good ground clearance here. 11" to the pan and that'll increase @2" when I reset the rear tosion bars to correct the major but sag I've got going on. Anyone know how many splines I'll need to get 2"?

^^^^^^^^This one just shows the access the mustang valve cover gives for oil fill. Carb access will be pretty good too.

fastmc25 · Post by **fastmc25** » Fri Oct 02, 2009 6:09 pm

on the 2300 you should have no problems setting up the exhaust....... if you run a shorty manifold and supply a 'U" Bend pie the muffler should workout..... don't go too big on the muffler though..... use space wisely and it wll all fit..... I have a small 19" muffler on mine and it's very quiet..... I was surprised...

Just keep good clearance from the axles........

fastmc25 · Post by **fastmc25** » Fri Oct 02, 2009 6:11 pm

What i would do is get the engine in mounted like it's going to be with mounts and all........ then route your exhaust... then you know there won't be any interference on anything...

fastmc25 · Post by **fastmc25** » Fri Oct 02, 2009 6:39 pm

regis101 wrote:Hey WestyPop. Remember that the jeep radiator is 11 x 32. A person could get real creative with something that size. Be it between the frame rails to a tube type front bumper to frenching it in the front below the OE bumper to...

Hey Regis......... do you remember which model Jeep had that rad.... all i keep finding iJeep CJ rads @ 20" high and 27" wide.... ?

I need to upgrade my radiator this winter..... love to find a direct fit without much adjustment......... but really not ready to dole out green for a custom built one...

regis101 · Post by **regis101** » Fri Oct 02, 2009 8:46 pm

Jeep Cherokee. They had revisions throughout the years. Some don't have a filler neck, blah blah. Good for cooling their six cylinder. Will be plenty for four. It's just about the size of the rear engine cover.

As for the spline on the torsion bars, generally, one outer spline will yield 2"
but your results may vary due to the extra weight.

Here's a UK site that I browse around on for ideas

http://vwkd.co.uk/bb/index.php

WestyPop · Post by **WestyPop** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 1:30 am

regis101 wrote:Hey WestyPop. Remember that the jeep radiator is 11 x 32. A person could get real creative with something that size. Be it between the frame rails to a tube type front bumper to frenching it in the front below the OE bumper to...

That sounds good, however, I'm going to make an attempt to actually minimize the airflow under the Westy, in hopes of picking up a few mpg savings on fuel. At this point... I am favoring the 'fake spare tire' treatment up front to somewhat disguise the radiator & A/C condenser. I've got an 15" alloy space-saver spare wheel that I'll find a skinny tire for, and fab an under-the-front mount to fit it.

I'll also install a 4-6" deep chin spoiler under the front bumper, again, to try & keep the air from turbulating under the camper. I know, kinda like trying to make my barn more aerodynamic, but I understand that it all does help. Who knows what the fuel prices will be in 4-5 years? I'd like to be able to afford to drive this baby camping & cruising around for as long as possible.

One of my ex-employees used to regularly get 36-38mpg on the highway in his '73 Capri with its 2.6L engine. This Westy weighs a bunch more & has a comparatively huge frontal area, but I've known a couple of people who just stuck a German Ford 2.8L in their bays and drove, with no 'aero-mods', and were getting 24-26mpg highway. I figure I should be able to beat that, at least by a little, if I work at cleaning up the top & bottom airflow tendencies. Guess we'll see, eventually!

Those Jeep radiator measurements don't sound too far off those of my Jeep FC170 pickup (another stubby-fronted 'resto-mod' project sitting in my shop!). It will be my work mule for dirty jobs, hauling a tractor on a trailer when the need arises, or even pulling a bus out of a tough spot!

chazz79 · Post by **chazz79** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 5:36 am

I know, my muffler is huge but the price was right. I've also done a lot of sound deadening and I want this to be really quiet when I'm done. I'd be able to just use my support bar like fastmc if I had the rear sump pan. I don't mind the front sump but it requires me to start from scratch on the crossmember. Paul, have you had any oil starvation problems on take-off with your set up?

fastmc25 · Post by **fastmc25** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 7:45 am

chazz79 wrote: Paul, have you had any oil starvation problems on take-off with your set up?

No problems at all........ i pull 65-70 psi all the time..... there are a lot of cars with forward and rear sumps alike.... you're not going to do a 4 "G" launch in your bus.... so your oil sump location is really no problem either way...

chazz79 · Post by **chazz79** » Wed Oct 07, 2009 3:08 pm

I'm routing the exhaust using a tight u-bend. Including the muffler the exhaust is setting me back $30.00.

One odd body interference so far is the waterpump pulley bolts. I had to switch to button heads becaust the 1/2 headed bolts were scratching the engine lid when it was shut.

chazz79 · Post by **chazz79** » Mon Oct 12, 2009 8:01 pm

I finished the exhaust and it came out pretty professional looking. I thought about welding the whole thing up but clamps make more sense as I may need to pop this back apart before I'm done.

It's pretty self supporting but I'm going to add a support hanger off the engine so it all drops as a unit.

chazz79 · Post by **chazz79** » Sat Oct 17, 2009 4:24 pm

I've found that the radiator from 93+ ford rangers fit between the frame rails perfectly. Currently I'm having the crossmember epoxy coated inside in case my welds have any seepage issues. I have a pipe running next to each frame rail towards the mid section and connecting to the radiator on both sides of the bus. The engine has both pressure and return popping out the drivers side so I'm using the engine support as a coolant transfer tube to get things routed down the passenger side too. I should have this back next week with pics. This should be a pretty unitized package that takes no more time to drop than the old type-4 did.

chazz79 · Post by **chazz79** » Sun Oct 25, 2009 4:05 pm

Well there's not really anyone I've found that guarantee the coatings not to end up plugging my radiator, so scrap that Idea.

Heres some mock up pics to give an Idea of where I'm going with this.

that's the routing so far and it snakes safely around important parts pretty nicely

This should be plenty strong enough to support the engine

fastmc25 · Post by **fastmc25** » Sun Oct 25, 2009 5:02 pm

Is that your engine support or coolant plumbing? If you put a later Mustang oil pan (rear sump) and pickup tube on it you can run the stock bus support bar and install the factory mustang motor mounts........ Every 82 - on Mustang (Fox Body) is rear sump... they swap right out.... you just gotta change the pickup tube and screen...

I'm getting ready to do a 2300 in a bus soon.... i'll also be relocating the oil filler in the Valve cover depending on which valve cover i end up with..... so it lines up under the rear hatch.............. I'll start a new thread for that conversion.........

chazz79 · Post by **chazz79** » Sun Oct 25, 2009 7:26 pm

Yeah that's going to be the cradle for the engine. You'll see more of what's going on in my head later. I'm a mechanical engineer so I'm not always game for doing things the easy way. I really want everything from the engine to stay completely 78 mustang so I know what I need parts for later. The pan swap would involve a new pick-up tube and pan and I'm not ready for all that yet. I'd rather go my route even if it's reinventing the wheel. This also keeps all of the hoses routed nicely and adds a bit of polish to the whole hack. If you decide to do one of these 2.3l swaps don't start a new thread!

I'll just run to wherever that thread starts and hijack the crap out of it

Really I'd like to see one of these done so I can get ideas of what worked, what didn't, what you'd change. Everywhere you search "2.3 bus" points you to this dead thread so I'd like to finish one just to be able to give an oppinion of how it works.

Besides when I'm wheely'in this beast I want all that oil where it's doing it's job, the front sump (now rear) gives me a false security that I'm comfortable with. Even if I can't pull the front wheels, I could starve the motor out on those 2g launches I've got envisioned in my head.

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My 79 Westy Bus to Ford 2.3 Conversion Log

Re: My 79 Westy Bus to Ford 2.3 Conversion Log

Re: My 79 Westy Bus to Ford 2.3 Conversion Log

Re: My 79 Westy Bus to Ford 2.3 Conversion Log

Re: My 79 Westy Bus to Ford 2.3 Conversion Log