28/11/04
Time to stop and think (there's a first time for everything). Before finalising the instrument position, I need to get the layout of the wiring loom, fuse/relay box and fusible links box sorted. Before I can do that, I need to decide which engine and injection system I'm going to use.
The plan is to use the Metro cylinder block. This is clearly marked as being made in 1990 and the engine number corresponds with that on the V5. Using a cylinder block from 1990 means that I wont need a catalytic converter. Cats aren't expensive nowadays, but there's very little room for one on the Firefox. Plus, it adds weight and complexity and robs me of a couple of horsepower. Also, if the car has a cat, the fuel tank will need a restrictor which only allows the unleaded nozzle to fit in it at the filling station - more expense and work.
I intend to use the entire injection system, all sensors and the MEMS ECU from the 414 engine. The MPi system needs an extra relay, so I'll need to provide the space and wiring for that. The head gasket on the Metro is suspect, so the head will need to come off. I'll also take the head of the 414 engine and fit whichever one is the best to the Metro block after a decoke and clean. Are you with me so far? The 414 bottom end can be rebuilt at a later date and kept as a spare.
I'll do the work with the Metro engine still in the subframe. The whole subframe/chassis is up on axle stands, so it's at a nice working height for me. The 414 engine is still bolted to my engine stand, so it can be wheeled close to the Metro engine. The whole engine and gearbox assembly will need to come out in the near future, so that I can remove the gearbox to check the condition of the clutch. I'll also be able to give the subframe a bit of a clean and tidy up.
Right, let's get dirty...
First of all, the entire O/S engine mounting and support have to be changed, as they're too high to fit under the Firefox bonnet/nosecone. I thought this would be a quick and easy job, but the inner front bolt had other ideas..
The inner bolt (pictured at the rear) was seized solid inside its supporting tube in the subframe. What I didn't want to happen was for the tube to come loose from the subframe. That would be a real pig to repair.
After lots of heating, hundreds of gentle hammer blows to the top and bottom of the bolt and carefully trying to turn the bolt head in both directions, it finally came free from the tube. Shortly afterwards, there was a loud crack as the bolt snapped. The captive nut was chiselled off the subframe and removed with the remainder of the bolt. Access to the bottom of the subframe is easy on the Firefox, so I'll replace the captive nut with a new nyloc.
The original inner part of the engine mounting has to be modified and is then used as a spacer.
The bosses holding the studs have to be cut off..
..then after some grinding and shaping, it's bolted back onto the block with a new outer plate supplied in the kit. The new engine mount is actually one of the old Metro front subframe mountings.
After a bit of grinding on the upper outer edge of the support tube, the job's done. Not much to show for a whole morning's work. This new mounting holds the engine about one inch lower than the original, to give extra clearance under the bonnet. I now need to take it all off again to remove the cylinder head...
05/12/04
Timing belt, covers and crankshaft pulleys removed.
The waterways and oil galleries were surprisingly clean. The crankshaft cannot be turned with the cylinder head off, so I used some sharpened wooden dowels and a vacuum cleaner to remove the carbon from the piston tops.
Inlet manifold and engine loom removed.
12/12/04
The Metro head and cams on the workbench. The followers are in the plastic cups behind the head. Before I strip this any further, I want to remove the head from the 414 engine, just to make sure they are the same (I also need to buy or borrow a valve spring compressor).
The 414 engine block. Without the cylinder heads and manifolds, these engines are tiny!
It's getting a bit crowded in here.
After removing and comparing both heads, I've found some differences. The inlet ports on the Metro head are slightly smaller in diameter and lower down on the casting. This means that I can't fit the MPi manifold to the Metro head. Everything else appears to be identical, so I can fit the 414 head to the Metro bottom end, along with the engine loom and all sensors.
Before fitting, the head needed stripping and cleaning. I've bought a valve spring compressor, enabling me to remove all the valves. The valve spring lengths, head deck height, valve installed height and cylinder head bolt lengths were all checked as per the Haynes manual and deemed fit for further (ab)use. The gasket surfaces were checked using a straight edge and found to be nice and flat.
All valve seats were reground, the ports and combustion chambers were carefully cleaned with a brass wire brush then the head, cams and cam carrier were cleaned with some rather nasty degreasing solvent. After rinsing, I took the parts to my local garage and used their high-pressure air line to dry them thoroughly. None of this was particularly difficult, just time-consuming and fiddly. I've ordered a new head gasket set and hope to reassemble the head and fit it next weekend.
I didn't take many pictures of all this work as my hands and/or gloves were always filthy. These jobs are well covered in the Haynes manual.
Grinding begins on the 414 head.
19/12/04
The 414 head rebuilt and fitted, along with the MPi injection system.