7 replies to this topic

[Red1992V6Rs]

Let me first start off by introducing myself. My name is Ryan and I live in the United States. Well, Philadelphia to be exact.

But anyways, I love classic minis but they arent really seen over here. I'd really like to pick one up and drive it around for a while. But after a while I'd like to swap the engine and start to customize it. I'm a die-hard Chevrolet fan(who oddly enough loves minis, but who doesnt) and I couldn't see myself doing the average VTEC swap. VTEC is just not for me. So I was thinking about swapping an Ecotec engine, which are found in your Opel Vectras, Astras, ect. These engine are everywhere in the states and would make a great engine to swap. From what I hear they are durable and about the same size as a VTEC.

Has anyone thought of swapping a later generation Ecotec engine into a Mini?

Does anyone make a pre-fabbed subframe for these engines?

Or does anyone know if it will even fit? Or would I need to go to a non-standard length front?

Any information is greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Ryan

[hoggy]

Hi Ryan, the ecotec can be fitted, is it the 2.0L version? Alot of people have put the older version of this engine the c20xe in there mini. The ecotec is exactly the same dimensions, mountings etc but has less power.

You can even buy a ready built frame from a company called allspeed to fit this in your mini. Their website is http://members.aol.c...a/subframes.htm

Have a look on www.16vminiclub.com in the vauxhall builds, theres tons of info on there.

Edited by hoggy, 20 March 2008 - 09:49 AM.

[Red1992V6Rs]

Thanks for the info hoggy. There's a mini for sale in pittsburgh, pa for sale that i might take a look at. It looks to be a reasonably good deal at $5k or about 2500 GBP. I'd like to go with the Ecotec just because they are everywhere over here. Even though they lack some power over the c20xe, its not all that big of a deal to me. I'd like to do the swap because of reliability reasons and to have something a little more unique. Just because getting parts for the mini engine might be more of a hassle than anything. But anyways, the most common Ecotecs over here are the 2.2L which has 130HP, a 2.4L which has 170hp, and a 2.0L supercharged version which has 205 hp. I think the 2.2L version will be plenty of power for a mini. No? I'm not sure if the 2.0L SC will even fit anyways.

Again, thanks for the links to allspeed and v16miniclub.

[vally46]

Thanks for the info hoggy. There's a mini for sale in pittsburgh, pa for sale that i might take a look at. It looks to be a reasonably good deal at $5k or about 2500 GBP. I'd like to go with the Ecotec just because they are everywhere over here. Even though they lack some power over the c20xe, its not all that big of a deal to me. I'd like to do the swap because of reliability reasons and to have something a little more unique. Just because getting parts for the mini engine might be more of a hassle than anything. But anyways, the most common Ecotecs over here are the 2.2L which has 130HP, a 2.4L which has 170hp, and a 2.0L supercharged version which has 205 hp. I think the 2.2L version will be plenty of power for a mini. No? I'm not sure if the 2.0L SC will even fit anyways.

Again, thanks for the links to allspeed and v16miniclub.

Hi,ive had lots of ecotec engined vauxhalls,1.6,1.8,2.0,2.2, they do have problems,as does any engine,mostly sensors,camshaft,crankshaft etc.You may decide to dump the ecu and go down the throttle body or bike carb route? Anyhow my point is this,a 1.8 litre engine onwards will be a really quick car,so no worries there, also by going for a popular engine it means that should you have major probs you can whip the engine out and drop in a new one fairly cheaply.

you may want to considor upgrading your brakes and suspension too,goo luck buddy.

[TimS]

The engien I am using is a 1.6 litre ecotec engine. I am using indervidual throttle bodies and expect to produce around 160bhp. The engine I am using fits into whats known as a small block subframe. This is the same for the 1.4,1.6, and 1.8 engines. The 2 litre, is a larger block and requires a larger frame. Im not sure if the 2.2 is the same but I would expect it to be. The best place to ask that question would be on http://www.16vminicl...orums/index.php

[mincotec]

Good afternoon everyone.

Thought id register and chime in on this topic. As a fellow north american and gm devotee I am also considering this choice. I say considering because I have not actually laid out any cash to acquire the 2.2l ecotec, but all intentions are to go this route.

Here is a run down of my project.

In Feb 08 i travelled 5 hours each way to pick up a mini I conditionally bought off the internet. The ad only had two fairy poor pictures, but the price was the best id seen in all my searching. As a side note, i had been floating this idea around for at least the last 3 years and probably spent at least 1 year of serious searching. When we arrived to pick up the mini, I have to say that I was a little disappointed. The upper body was in excelent shape but the floor and nose were in really bad condition. The wheels hubs were rusted stiff and the only way to move it was to drag the little care alone with a ratchet winch. For all our trouble loading the darn thing I was able to cut the negotiated price in half and end up with a real bargin no matter how bad the floor was. Truth is, I didn't really want the floor and if it had of been good I'm not sure if I would have had the heart/courage to cut up the car and do the project that I had been dreaming of.

The plan is to build a totally custom tube frame racer/driver that still remains street legal. And oh yes, be powered by the North American Ecotec engine. Here is the scoop on the NA ecotec. It is not the same as the europe version found in many opel and vauxhall drive train. It shares some dna but they are not the same exact engine. I have a link to a thread on and ecotec forum that does a great job of explaining this issue. Its actually pretty neat to read. The basic difference is the intake and exhaust direction of the head. Look at a NA ecotec and it's a front breather and exhausts near the fire wall. Erou eco's are the opposite. They breath from the rear and exhaust from the front. Their exhaust tubing usually makes a 90 deg turn and runs under the engine towards the back of the car (like a honda engine). There is NA car that does not follow this trend with the eco and thats the new Saturn Astra, which is a restyled opel. If you do a google image search for astra engine and compare it to say a cobalt engine you will see that the cylinder head is actually backwards. Relativly speaking of course. The other huge difference that i forgot to mention is that the Astra/Opel has an iron block and im pretty sure alot of the other older eruo ecotecs are to. Another common vehicle to compare is the Saab 9-3 turbo. It has the same layout as the 08 cobalt ss.

As of right now I am still in the deconstruction phase of this build. I almost have the mini stripped of all its original bits and will be attending to the body work this winter.

So in the end I am building my own chassis and hence will not be able to say if a NA ecotec will fit in a mini. I hope you go ahead with this project, though I hope to beat you at being the first one to so it. I dont know for sure if anyone else has done it yet but I can tell you that in the last three years of searching I have yet to come up with an example.

Do a seach for minissan and you will get a feel for what Im planning. Granted his is rwd and mine will be fwd but the feeling is the same.

Regards

Roger

[mincotec]

Here is the link to a forum thread that will clear up and questions about comparing the NA ecotec with the european versions.

Ecotec Forum

Roger

[joakwin]

not to bring up a really old post, but does anyone know if the US 2.2 ecotec will fit into the front of a mini?

im looking into a 02 chevy cavalier engine/autobox down the road when i get my car into the US
from the UK

thanks