tonysierra4x4

hello all,
could someone please tell me if there is any difference between 2.8 heads and 2.9 heads and are they interchangeable.
would there be any benefit for fitting them. possibly have a cracked head on mine.
need to decide the direction i am going on this as need it sorted asap.
any advice greatly appreciated.
thanks all.

costina

iTrader: (1)

No you cannot change them. The 2.9 is a better engine imo

lee2cossies

iTrader: (2)

2.8 heads are twin port and 2.9 triple port, big improvment to fit them but unfortunately although they will just about bolt on it's not as easy as that. The 2.8 cam is gear driven and the 2.9 chain driven so a special cam would have to be mad up, then if u got around that you would have to get your turbo manifold modified to suit the extra exhaust port.

tonysierra4x4

thanks for the replies. thought i wouldn't be that lucky. i suppose the same applies to fitting efi system aswell then.

YOREVOL

why do you think you have a cracked head?
if you use stretch bolts for bolting the head down they stretch under boost causing head gasket failure. go to your local bolt supplier and buy 12.9 bolts and hardened washers, torque them down to the earlier torque settings. cant remember what the settings are.
you can fit efi from an early mk3 2.8 granada if you can find one.

costina

iTrader: (1)

Thanks Lee saved me writing it all lol

tonysierra4x4

thanks, the man doing the head gaskets, and which i know one has definately gone on off side thinks the head may be cracked but is unsure. they will both be sent in for pressure testing and any remedial work they may need but he suggested the 2.9 is a better system anyway. he certainly gave the impression it would be a straighforward upgrade. i know nothing of them although i have had sierra's with both engines fitted, but tend not to perform any repairs myself. any suggestions on how i could increase the performance fairly easily would be most welcome.

YOREVOL

traditional tuning gives ok results, turbo 2.8 doesnt like a wild cam, so air filter, exhaust and a mild cam. after that you can up the boost but the bottom end wont hold together too long without forged pistons, h section rods, a v6 cosworth crank and bob type block which will require machining to fit. all in all stick with the std 200bhp and you will have a reliable engine with great driving characteristics.

tonysierra4x4

thanks. to be fair to the engine currently fitted, it does make the car fun to drive, has plenty of power and is quite torquey. i would prefer a reliable set up so probably just get what i have sorted. the car will be used for driving, classic runs etc, as i already have another classic car for "playing" with.
all replies are appreciated as i realise time for everyone is in short supply.

Silver Zetec Turbo

I had an XR4i Turbo Technics many moons ago which split a rad hose / overheated and blew one of the head gaskets . Seemed to be a bit of a weak point of an otherwise good turbo setup which looks like it has been remedied these days with the use of high tensile bolts .

lee2cossies

iTrader: (2)

You could up the boost a little to about 9 psi but u need to lower the compression ideally. I machined the pistons on mine rather than open the combustion chambers up like tt did. My dad runs 2 turbo technics capris and have been pretty reliable over the 10 years he's had them, only the odd problem from the injection system.

tonysierra4x4

the boost is around 9psi now but possibly stretch bolts used instead on rebuild which would explain the problem. the engine is a low compression as i have checked on this. happy with the performance on this just don't want to be rebuilding constantly. reliability is now main priority. thanks for all info so far. realy appreciate it.

lee2cossies

iTrader: (2)

Sounds like u have the 230hp conversion then. Never had any problem with over heating unless poor quality head gaskets. Use victor reinz ones which are what ford used, and a decent after market fan like a kenlowe or twin fan set up off a mondeo, the front mount intercooler sits in front of the rad which makes them run a bit warmer.

tonysierra4x4

thanks lee,
victor reinz head set already here. the centrifugal fan was useless and the standard pusher fan a waste of time. intercooler will need replacing and already looking looking for twin electric fan. sounds like you know your stuff on these. it's like you're describing my car. think main problem is car wasn't used for years after rebuild and gave up at weakest point when under strain. it will be sorted correctly now.

tony66

iTrader: (7)

i"ve had most of the v6 t/t conversions-best i had was a 240bhp kit on 2.8i 4x4 it seemed much smoother than the kits fitted with twin airflow meters on later cars...weak point for me was rear piston on passenger side blowing rings/cracking ringlands-yes i have also had headgasket issues with them too

fastest i had was a tt280 kit[bought from mv turbos in dunfermeline-it was the owners friends car and had loads of grunt

well sorted 2.8 single turbo kit is brilliant keep fuel system clean and boost as intended-smooth and fast

they all seemed to bell out the intercoolers too-for all the boost they actually ran...

tonysierra4x4

any reason for the same piston to cause problems or just one of those coincidences.

tony66

iTrader: (7)

lack of airflow and position relevant to heat etc i reckon..

tonysierra4x4

makes sense realy. directly behind turbo so airflow would be restricted. mine has a turbo heat shield which makes the problem worse.