So the weather has turned, the temperature is now back to the high teens and much more in line with a typical English summer. It's still reasonably dry so I still plan to take the car out at least a few more times. But I suspect it won't be long before the battery is disconnected and it settles in for the winter.
I remember when I was building the car that I could add a small heater, and in reality I still can, the plumbing supports it and it would only need a bit of wiring for a switch and motor. It's not near the top of my list though. I think the first thing to be added is a lockable glove box or similar, just to keep odds and ends in. I've got plenty of space in various locations, I think the simplest will be between the seats at the back of the transmission tunnel.
Over the last few months my mind has been drawn to an engine swap. It's something I had in mind almost from when I started but it's not going to go anywhere just yet. I have been thinking about a few options though;
1. Vauxhall V6.
This is partly because I know the engine fairly well, I used to have a Vectra V6 so I'm familiar with it's shape. Unfortunately it's also the most complex option purely because very few people consider it for an engine swap. It would need all sorts of work to get it to fit to a gearbox, then getting it running outside of the Vauxhall engine management would be a bit of a trial. Having said that, it's probably the cheapest engine.
2. Ford Cologne V6
The proven route, and one of the easiest. The engine came in lots of RWD configurations, even a quick Ebay search showed an engine plus gearbox labelled as 'kit car engine swap'. The only problem is that it was £1,600, and probably closer to 3K by the time I'd finished. Given that I'm not sure I spent that much on the whole car it's a difficult pill to swallow.
3. BMW inline 6
Now this is probably the most interesting. The Austin Healey was a straight six originally, so going for the BMW option keeps it comparable. They're also RWD by default, so I'd just have to get a donor car and take out everything from the engine back. Staying away from the M series cars I could get one pretty cheap. The only issue might be the physical size of it, the straight six is obviously 50% longer than the current engine. And if it's taller that could get even harder to work with.
4. Rover V6
This is a proven upgrade for MX5's, and it preserves the drivetrain. They're not particularly cheap but there's plenty of people who have done it for an MX5 so I'd be in good company. I'm not going to dismiss it yet but the BMW route still stays slightly ahead.
5. More exotic options (VW V5 anyone?)
Yeah I know, there are plenty of other engines with more than 4 cylinders, and some aren't that expensive. But it's the same thing, converting them to RWD. Still, there have been bellhousing suppliers at previous kit car shows such as RWD motorsport https://www.rwdmotorsport.com/product-category/bellhousings/.
6. Supercharging the current engine
Not really in the spirit of things, but it would get me extra power with the minimum of fuss. I don't necessarily want just extra power though, the car is plenty powerful just with the current 100BHP.
