Same here. I think it crosses my mind everyday. As a teen, back in the early 90s, I was given a 1977 Pinto with the obligatory blown head. They were notorious for that, due to oiling issues to the overhead cam, but when addressed properly, they were awesome engines. I pulled a good head from the junkyard, as they were amazingly plentiful in those days, and got it back on the road. I did spend many hours daydreaming about stuffing an FE Big Block in there though, like a 390 or 428. Unfortunately, I never made it happen in my youth, and have regretted it ever since. My Pinto was the less common one, with an actual trunk too, which I thought looked much slicker than the big goofy hatchbacks. Man, I wish I still had that car. Over the years, I've seen many do solid low 10s in the quarter mile. Love those "ugly" bastards. The interior felt like a proper cockpit too.
😊 had one with Opel 2000 Made in Canada. Header Distributor kit Walker turbo exhaust.....my hot rod. Aviation school on LI. * KILLED a 240Z from toll booth at White Stone bridge .... Went to two lines Backed out of it... Ahh my Uth 😆
I did a German 2 liter full up back in the 70's. Delorto side draft with Offy manifold and custom exhaust. Kept busting timing belts, till I discovered Ford Racing kevlar reinforced.
Brilliant again. Properly explained in Layman's terms. How do you fancy running a test for pro's and con's on a crank scraper to see how it stands up on The Dog? Can sort you with this. Keep the bids coming 👍
im happy to try a crank scraper but in all honesty Dog doesnt rev hard enough to show any benefit, you would need to go to 7500rpm plus to see any real difference, i cant remember if it was Dave walker who told me a scraper was worth 2bhp @7700 or it was something David Vizard wrote. But to make it a viable test you need a motor which will safely go to 8K and make power that high up the rev range. i do have an engine here that will fit that bill but its already dry sumped.
Amazing the circle of mechanics re:carbs now worth money,although when trying to buy ford escort mk2 related parts it’s a pain with the current ford tax,nice to see honesty when a mistake is made👍 really enjoying this content thank you
I got a Pinto in 1970. Curb price was $1997.00. That's it. The German 2.0 ltr. engine was the best choice along with the four speed transmission. The other option was the English Lister 1.5 ltr. four. It was WAY under powered. The EPA required the German engine to have all kinds of emission controls on it reducing the output. Still though, this combo performed nicely. I later got a '73 wagon with an automatic tranny. BIG mistake. It couldn't get out of its own way. Who knew!
I have an American 1993 Ford 2.3L in a Ranger. It has the 8 plug head and fuel injection. The block still has the hole for the distributor and I am thinking of taking it old school for a rat project. It came factory with a tri-y header but I also wonder about a custom zoomie set up. Thoughts?
This American 2,3 looks similar but is actually totally different. Tri y header should be good unless your building a blown nitro motor zoomies would be a backward step
Hello Graham, well done..great engine. I have same engine in my escort mk1 whit big inlet valves, kent cam fr32, rework ports, 45's on it, skiming block, and check in the rolling dyno and he get my 125HP...are you thinking its enough or not whit standar bottom end??? Many thanks for your tech tips.
125bhp seems a bit low to me, i would of expected around 10bhp more, lets put it this way, if i put a standard cam back in that head i would expect to get120bhp, so your big valve and cam are only worth 5bhp, the big valves alone should give that.
no, but if all is well, you can turn the crank over with just a finger and thumb on the nose of the crank, obviously its a bit harder to turn once the pistons and rods are installed, but it should still turn easily with just finger pressure on a crank web
This is the Cologne-built "Lima" 4-cyl, right? Although at no point did I hear the displacement of the engine stated, I'm guessing it's the 2L version and that more power can be expected with such a combination--or better--when applied to the 2.3L version... and even more so with the 2.5L! =;)
I have one of these in the garage with forged wiseco custom pistons Racer Walsh forged connecting rods knife edged crank balanced to a tenth of a gram with a fully ported max milled head with over size 1.94/1.50 titanium valves with a Crane 298° .530/.545 Cam with adjustable cam gear and full worked 500cfm Weber carb on its a 9800rpm 12-5:1 screamer my dad built for a mini stocker back in the early 90's
You say that the oil pump is the best lubricated part of the engine and I would be tempted to agree given that it runs full of oil at all times. However W.O Bentley thinking in the same way, had repeated oil pump failures on an engine he designed, due to lack of lubrication of the oil pump bearings. Turns out you can run pressurised oil into the bearings in the pump, but you have to let oil out at the other side, else you are trying to lube a dead end and that doesn't work.
true but the pinto oil pump doesnt have a dead end, oil will bleed out the drive end, but its kinda irrelevant as wear from lubrication or teh lack of isnt really an issue, more the fact the oil going to the pump is basically unfiltered
Great videos Graham my last two rally escorts had pintos , some questions if ok, what head gasket would you use on a 11-1 compression , oil what would recommended as pintos don't seam to like new types of oils ,on your rebuild did you fit new conrod bolts, on the all steel 2.2 race build you mentioned it originally had a 1600 head , is there a difference between the 2ltr and the 1600 head I was always told you couldn't switchthem over ., keep up the videos coming especially the pinto ones
road use i would probably use a victor rineze and ARP studs, competition provided the head and block faces are correctly machined a cometic. Oil, comma classic 20w 50 works well, but valvoline VR1 is probably ultimate. ARP big end bolts are reusable as they are not torque to yeld, i tend to use them a couple of times then replace them.
Hello great video.just a quick question the bearing cap for the piston must the cuts line up or be in the opposite direction for a pinto engine and a Essex v6.thanks
Thank you.i am refreshing an Essex v6 I have removed the pistons and the bores have no ridges it's smooth must I put on new rings or hone/deglaze the bore first.
Question Graham, I’ve read that when building/modifying these engines to cut the crank 10thou for more bearing which is good for high revs, what is your opinion on this & is that applicable to the younger engines i.e. Zetec, Duratec??
for high rpm stuff, you might want to run bigger crank bearing clearances, so yes grind the crank slightly under the tolerance, but you wouldn't go 10 thou, maybe a couple of ten-thousandths
Hi Mr Penguin, how should the piston ring gaps be orientated on a pinto?. Haynes say expander gap at the back of the piston and compression rings 150 deg each side..expander rails 1 inch either side of expander ring. Is it okay for ring gaps to be at the upper end of the tolerance on new hepolite cast 0.5mm oversize pistons?
Don’t get too hung up on spacing ring gaps you just don’t want them lining up on the oil control. Compression rings rotate in use so spacing them is a bit academic but I usually install the compression rings with gaps 180 degrees apart. Ring gaps at upper end of tolerance is absolutely fine
Thanks👍, 180 degrees apart on compression rings 👍...Haynes are calling for them 60 degrees apart doesnt make any sense to me or the oil rails 2 inch apart?. Do you mean the gap in the compression ring shouldnt line up with the gaps in the oil rails?. Or should the oil control rail gaps also be 180 degree to each other?
@@stevenwhitfield8540 in an ideal world you wouldnt want any gaps lined up, but in reality it makes no real difference where the gaps are, but i do make sure the ends of the oil control are no where near each other
@@PenguinMotors The money came in the tin, we didn't get to keep the tins, and were brought round in a large truck thing - normally used for bobbins and spools of yarn. It was the princely sum of £7.42 per week - that's £8 less deductions.
Im thinking the spacer plate under the carb and the extra off the head will create more power at a lower rpm and boost the midrange also the fuel should atomize better ...
I avoid ring gaps lining up but it’s actually unimportant the rings are free to rotate as they wish as the engine runs, and in any case with the engine upto temperature the ring gaps should close up to practically nothing
@@PenguinMotors have you gents considered ceramic coating on the piston tops? That gives you a nice margin of safety from burning a hole in a piston. I am planning to build a 2.3 turbo engine that i rescued from a 1985 merkur/ Sierra XR4TI. These turbo 2.3 engines have a forged crank and pistons. I will remove the turbo setup. Here in the states, the original D port heads are not only aged out and failing but are also not available as a bare service replacement part. It's becoming a real chore for the hobby racer to put an engine together anymore.
@@scottbrown7415 cant say i have, but at the same time ive never melted a piston crown either. if you dont run them lean , detonate or overheat them you wont hurt a piston.
"When the engine is assembled, there are no bits left in the bucket"
Love it.
Oh ohhhh. 🤦♂️🤦♂️🤣🤣👍👍👍
I love the 2300 pinto ! My first time Rebuild at 16yo that was about 40years ago 🤔🧐🏁🔧🏁🔧I wish I had it back
Same here. I think it crosses my mind everyday. As a teen, back in the early 90s, I was given a 1977 Pinto with the obligatory blown head. They were notorious for that, due to oiling issues to the overhead cam, but when addressed properly, they were awesome engines. I pulled a good head from the junkyard, as they were amazingly plentiful in those days, and got it back on the road. I did spend many hours daydreaming about stuffing an FE Big Block in there though, like a 390 or 428. Unfortunately, I never made it happen in my youth, and have regretted it ever since. My Pinto was the less common one, with an actual trunk too, which I thought looked much slicker than the big goofy hatchbacks. Man, I wish I still had that car. Over the years, I've seen many do solid low 10s in the quarter mile. Love those "ugly" bastards. The interior felt like a proper cockpit too.
😊 had one with Opel 2000
Made in Canada. Header
Distributor kit Walker turbo exhaust.....my hot rod.
Aviation school on LI.
* KILLED a 240Z from
toll booth at White Stone bridge .... Went to two lines
Backed out of it... Ahh my
Uth 😆
Another excellent pinto video Graham 👍 Top man, your knowledge has helped countless people over the years on turbosport 👍
Thanks 👍
I have two 1972 pinto one runs 990, the other is a stock 4 spd l find this interesting
I did a German 2 liter full up back in the 70's. Delorto side draft with Offy manifold and custom exhaust. Kept busting timing belts, till I discovered Ford Racing kevlar reinforced.
I love it when I see stuff like this so we'll put together.
Very nice, looking forward to seeing what it does with the spacer and twinchoke 👍
that will appear first in classic ford mag, once they go to press with it i can turn it into a video fairly soon after.
Brilliant video, tons of useful info. Thanks. Long live Dyno Dog!
Good video format mate, no bullshit and shiny parts. Thanks
Brilliant again.
Properly explained in Layman's terms.
How do you fancy running a test for pro's and con's on a crank scraper to see how it stands up on The Dog?
Can sort you with this.
Keep the bids coming 👍
im happy to try a crank scraper but in all honesty Dog doesnt rev hard enough to show any benefit, you would need to go to 7500rpm plus to see any real difference, i cant remember if it was Dave walker who told me a scraper was worth 2bhp @7700 or it was something David Vizard wrote. But to make it a viable test you need a motor which will safely go to 8K and make power that high up the rev range. i do have an engine here that will fit that bill but its already dry sumped.
@@PenguinMotors, I'll inbox you at Turbosport 👍
Yes excellent video
Amazing the circle of mechanics re:carbs now worth money,although when trying to buy ford escort mk2 related parts it’s a pain with the current ford tax,nice to see honesty when a mistake is made👍 really enjoying this content thank you
Another great vid, easy as to understand. Cheers!
Glad you liked it!
Last time I built a 2.3 pinto engine it was 1984-85!
I got a Pinto in 1970. Curb price was $1997.00. That's it. The German 2.0 ltr. engine was the best choice along with the four speed transmission. The other option was the English Lister 1.5 ltr. four. It was WAY under powered. The EPA required the German engine to have all kinds of emission controls on it reducing the output. Still though, this combo performed nicely. I later got a '73 wagon with an automatic tranny. BIG mistake. It couldn't get out of its own way. Who knew!
I have an American 1993 Ford 2.3L in a Ranger. It has the 8 plug head and fuel injection. The block still has the hole for the distributor and I am thinking of taking it old school for a rat project. It came factory with a tri-y header but I also wonder about a custom zoomie set up. Thoughts?
This American 2,3 looks similar but is actually totally different. Tri y header should be good unless your building a blown nitro motor zoomies would be a backward step
Sometimes manufacturing inconsistencies add up just right.
Hello Graham, well done..great engine.
I have same engine in my escort mk1 whit big inlet valves, kent cam fr32, rework ports, 45's on it, skiming block, and check in the rolling dyno and he get my 125HP...are you thinking its enough or not whit standar bottom end???
Many thanks for your tech tips.
125bhp seems a bit low to me, i would of expected around 10bhp more, lets put it this way, if i put a standard cam back in that head i would expect to get120bhp, so your big valve and cam are only worth 5bhp, the big valves alone should give that.
150bhp min at flywheel, mine makes 140bhp fr32, 40's stock valves DIY ported
Oh my, who said it first? "In the bin!" (Any MCM fans here?) 20:56
Graham do you pop a torque wrench on the end of the crank to see how many Nm it takes to turn once the mains are torqued up ...
no, but if all is well, you can turn the crank over with just a finger and thumb on the nose of the crank, obviously its a bit harder to turn once the pistons and rods are installed, but it should still turn easily with just finger pressure on a crank web
This is the Cologne-built "Lima" 4-cyl, right? Although at no point did I hear the displacement of the engine stated, I'm guessing it's the 2L version and that more power can be expected with such a combination--or better--when applied to the 2.3L version... and even more so with the 2.5L! =;)
The European pinto shares nothing in common with the Lima engine. The biggest production size was 2.0
I have one of these in the garage with forged wiseco custom pistons Racer Walsh forged connecting rods knife edged crank balanced to a tenth of a gram with a fully ported max milled head with over size 1.94/1.50 titanium valves with a Crane 298° .530/.545
Cam with adjustable cam gear and full worked 500cfm Weber carb on its a 9800rpm 12-5:1 screamer my dad built for a mini stocker back in the early 90's
Hi Graham
I am from South Africa was wondering if you could help with a few answers to a Kent motor we build and the new one we building
You say that the oil pump is the best lubricated part of the engine and I would be tempted to agree given that it runs full of oil at all times. However W.O Bentley thinking in the same way, had repeated oil pump failures on an engine he designed, due to lack of lubrication of the oil pump bearings. Turns out you can run pressurised oil into the bearings in the pump, but you have to let oil out at the other side, else you are trying to lube a dead end and that doesn't work.
true but the pinto oil pump doesnt have a dead end, oil will bleed out the drive end, but its kinda irrelevant as wear from lubrication or teh lack of isnt really an issue, more the fact the oil going to the pump is basically unfiltered
thumbs up
Awesome love it 👍
Thank you! Cheers!
Great videos Graham my last two rally escorts had pintos , some questions if ok, what head gasket would you use on a 11-1 compression , oil what would recommended as pintos don't seam to like new types of oils ,on your rebuild did you fit new conrod bolts, on the all steel 2.2 race build you mentioned it originally had a 1600 head , is there a difference between the 2ltr and the 1600 head I was always told you couldn't switchthem over ., keep up the videos coming especially the pinto ones
road use i would probably use a victor rineze and ARP studs, competition provided the head and block faces are correctly machined a cometic. Oil, comma classic 20w 50 works well, but valvoline VR1 is probably ultimate. ARP big end bolts are reusable as they are not torque to yeld, i tend to use them a couple of times then replace them.
@@PenguinMotors thank you for speedy reply Graham 👍
Thought it was just me,, I love pintos
Thanks great info new subscriber !
Hello great video.just a quick question the bearing cap for the piston must the cuts line up or be in the opposite direction for a pinto engine and a Essex v6.thanks
both pinto and essex have the bearing notches on same side side of the rod
Thank you.i am refreshing an Essex v6 I have removed the pistons and the bores have no ridges it's smooth must I put on new rings or hone/deglaze the bore first.
Question Graham, I’ve read that when building/modifying these engines to cut the crank 10thou for more bearing which is good for high revs, what is your opinion on this & is that applicable to the younger engines i.e. Zetec, Duratec??
for high rpm stuff, you might want to run bigger crank bearing clearances, so yes grind the crank slightly under the tolerance, but you wouldn't go 10 thou, maybe a couple of ten-thousandths
Hi Mr Penguin, how should the piston ring gaps be orientated on a pinto?.
Haynes say expander gap at the back of the piston and compression rings 150 deg each side..expander rails 1 inch either side of expander ring.
Is it okay for ring gaps to be at the upper end of the tolerance on new hepolite cast 0.5mm oversize pistons?
Don’t get too hung up on spacing ring gaps you just don’t want them lining up on the oil control. Compression rings rotate in use so spacing them is a bit academic but I usually install the compression rings with gaps 180 degrees apart. Ring gaps at upper end of tolerance is absolutely fine
Thanks👍, 180 degrees apart on compression rings 👍...Haynes are calling for them 60 degrees apart doesnt make any sense to me or the oil rails 2 inch apart?. Do you mean the gap in the compression ring shouldnt line up with the gaps in the oil rails?. Or should the oil control rail gaps also be 180 degree to each other?
@@stevenwhitfield8540 in an ideal world you wouldnt want any gaps lined up, but in reality it makes no real difference where the gaps are, but i do make sure the ends of the oil control are no where near each other
When I first went to work, over fifty years ago, we got our wages in a tobacco tin.
What you were paid with tobacco tins or your pay was on them ! Mine came in little brown envelopes, a whole £28 but £28 went a long way back then
@@PenguinMotors The money came in the tin, we didn't get to keep the tins, and were brought round in a large truck thing - normally used for bobbins and spools of yarn. It was the princely sum of £7.42 per week - that's £8 less deductions.
Im thinking the spacer plate under the carb and the extra off the head will create more power at a lower rpm and boost the midrange also the fuel should atomize better ...
the spacers did something, but it wasn't turn it into a fire breathing monster
These little 2 l are really good motors using a multiple spark discharge MSD box the ignition on these cars with subpar from the factory
These little 2 l are really good motors using a multiple spark discharge MSD box the ignition on these cars with subpar from the factory
American viewers will think this is about rebuilding a car, not an engine!
Oh well they will soon work it out
Shame i didn't see ring position e.g. gaps not in the same place i think
I avoid ring gaps lining up but it’s actually unimportant the rings are free to rotate as they wish as the engine runs, and in any case with the engine upto temperature the ring gaps should close up to practically nothing
@@PenguinMotors Ah i did wonder i always used to have them in different places lol
Curious about what oil grade and brand you guys use for the test engine?
most of the time its comma classic 20w50
@@PenguinMotors have you gents considered ceramic coating on the piston tops? That gives you a nice
margin of safety from burning a hole in a piston.
I am planning to build a 2.3 turbo engine that i rescued from a 1985 merkur/ Sierra XR4TI. These turbo 2.3 engines have a forged crank and pistons. I will remove the turbo setup. Here in the states, the original D port heads are not only aged out and failing but are also not available as a bare service replacement part. It's becoming a real chore for the hobby racer to put an engine together anymore.
@@scottbrown7415 cant say i have, but at the same time ive never melted a piston crown either. if you dont run them lean , detonate or overheat them you wont hurt a piston.
@@PenguinMotors those are very consequential "if's"! We had alot of high rpm lean condition occurrances when we ran a weber 2 v carb.
This the bottom end my head was on?
yes Ross
No compressed air
yes we have compressed air
Pinto motor Limo motor