DJB350Z

Thanks for the 2500 manual find. We have a Haynes for the GT6.

My dad managed to clean the bores up and we're able to safely and smoothly turn the engine over by hand. The bores weren’t actually terrible in the end but look significantly better now. Of course as this engine is a 2.5 I’ve been reading some things about the oil sump. GT6 one needs hammering from the inside or if it’s the 2.5 sump then some modification to the cross member is required. Someone on another thread (I’ve forgotten where) said that mine looks like a GT6 oil sump. Well, here are some closer pictures. Of the 23 sump bolts that came out there were a few different lengths. Is that correct? We removed the oil sump to reveal the crank which looks like a standard item, perhaps the same as one from a GT6. The casting numbers are 311313, 17740J and JGSB. We took one of the big end caps off to check for wear. We think it looks ok, but wondered about your opinions. Another question - the bottom of each end cap has been scored 'E.g. IIII' to denote its position #1-6 like in the photo below. Is that a normal thing, or could it be a clue that PO had these replaced at some stage? That's it for today. I've now got the unfortunate job of cleaning up the oil sump!

I like to plan ahead!

So I just slithered underneath to read the differential stamp. Quite hard to make out as PO was generous with the black paint but I can see that it starts with KD.

My dad is but he never had to do it on his old Lotus Cortina. I will read that link and see if we can work it out. Thanks

Just checked and the stamp reads KF12292. Yes, I had the same warning to not dump the clutch at the lights! Are there any diff upgrades like Quaife etc. worth investigating?

During the cleaning of the engine block my dad and I spotted a couple of issues. One of the core plugs has a small hole in it: Another of the core plugs looks so damn shiny I'm guessing it's been replaced. Probably explains the big patch of surface rust in one of the above photos where it failed previously. I think in amongst the spare parts I have seen a set of new core plugs so I can only assume the PO fitted 1, but left the others. So, I will as due diligence replace all of them with new items. I read somewhere that even though they look ok from the outside, it's from the inside out that they fail. The other issue, is this bolt on the gearbox side is bent. No drama, but good to spot now: We're going to continue cleaning the block up as much as possible whilst we find out more about the engine and head combination and if they'll play nice together. I'm hoping we can get to a stage in the next day or 2 where the bores are clean enough to safely turn it over by hand / with spanner / with big bar.

I’ve moved the engine onto a bench to clean up and inspect. The engine block is a 2.5 from a Triumph 2500. It's number is MG18382HE, but the cylinder head has a number (516816) that I think didn't originally come with the block. When I look up 516816 it says: "Mk1 PI & Mk2 PI to MG50000 2000 low comp 7:1. TR6 to CR2845". I’m unsure if this engine block, cylinder head and gearbox was installed and running in the car at some stage all together. I want to try and make sure at least the block and head are compatible with an acceptable compression ratio before I start rebuilding it. If anybody knows about this please let me know. I should hopefully be hearing from a specialist later in the week about whether the head and block will work nicely together. Before pictures After/In progress pictures

I’ve got everything out of the car now and I will post some photos of the inside soon. The engine was big and heavy but I managed to safely pull it from inside the cabin. Also, the gearbox is out but unfortunately it looks like there’s a hole in the bell housing. I haven’t identified the box yet so it could be original GT6, 2500 or something else. All I know is that it has overdrive. Oh.. and 2 gear knobs.

The car was loaded up onto a transporter last week with ALL of the parts strategically stowed away inside the cabin. It’s amazing how much you can actually fit in there. I drove up and collected just a few pieces of glass from the doors and quarters. Now it’s time to unpack, decipher and catalogue. Yikes. There’s so many parts.. I recognise probably 70% of them but since I’ve never owned a classic, nor a Triumph this will be some lego project to reassemble them! There’s new bits, old bits etc. The PO seemed to keep everything just in case. There also seems to be some cases of having a part of a pair, and multiple spares of a part you only need one of. E.g. 3 headlights, 6 headlight bulbs and 2 glass sunroofs. But, 1 door handle. Some things I noticed that are missing include a steering rack (I possibly have gators), indicator stalks and a flywheel.

I started out driving and working on Japanese cars with my dad when I was first able to drive. I always liked the Datsun 240/60/80z and for a few years had been scouring the internet for a suitable one but even for a restoration the prices are out of my reach. When I saw a GT6 online for the first time I thought they looked really quite nice, with a similar kind of shape as the Datsuns. So last year I extended my garage to make some extra room for a project car, and since I’ve been looking out for something to fill the space. I looked at a few, and chickened out of 1 or 2 that I just realistically couldn’t deal with because of bad rust. Then, I saw one come up for sale at a company that restores TRs. The advert pictures didn't look great but as soon as I saw her I knew she was a good find. She was a stalled restoration project, bought for £450 in 1997 and worked on up until 2005 when I presume that she was stored away in a garage until this year. Everything was stripped off, not labelled and stored in boxes. The PO to that had the car for 10 years, and the one before that 4 years. There’s history/receipts going back to 1979, and as far as I can work out about 113k miles driven. However, the engine was swapped early on for a 2.5 from a 2500 so who know’s how many miles that’s done. There’s been many new panels fitted, chassis cleaned up and painted, new suspension and brakes overhaul so underneath looks spot on. New tyres all round and refurbished alloys too - I don't know if the alloys are factory originals or else? Overall, I’m super chuffed with my purchase and can’t wait to get started!

That link looks to be helpful! Will get out tomorrow to get a measurement of the head. Thanks all for the warm welcome. I'll create a separate project thread soon.

Hello, I'm Dom and after a long time of looking for a restoration project, last week I bought a Mk3 GT6. This is my first classic car, so I'm very much still learning! The car was bought as a restoration in 1997 from the previous owner of 10 years, and had a lot of bodywork carried out but things slowed down and now 25 years later I'm the new custodian. The car has been completely stripped, and parts mixed up in various boxes with almost no labelling. I spent the best part of 2 days going through all of the bits and actually it looks quite complete, but there are some missing items (steering rack, indicator stalks etc.) and things that need replacing. Body work wise it's really solid with lots of new panels welded in already but now it needs tidying, prepping and painting. Underneath is so clean. The hurdle for me at the moment is identifying the engine. A 2.5 PI engine from a Triumph 2500 is what I have in front of me, and is what is registered on the V5. But, the cylinder head number indicates it's possibly not the original matching head. I'm trying to find out if the 2 are compatible, with an acceptable compression ratio before starting a rebuild. Otherwise, I'll need to consider other options - maybe sourcing a 2.0 GT6 engine or finding another compatible head. Aside from that the differential looks like it's been overhauled (although no paperwork to back it up), and the gearbox bell housing looks like it's got a hole in it, D'oh. Anyway, look forward to posting progress on the forum.