How many Sprint 16v are out there..

[300bhpton]

Just wondering how many of you guys run the Sprint engine in your TR7?

Kinda curious why you guys opted for this rather than a V8? I know the conversion kits for the V8's are a tad pricey but is there any other reason you guys went down this route?

I know I looked at it once and decided a V8 was what I wanted. I couldn't afford a V8 at the time so went recon 8v instead.

Ta. [:)]

TR7 V8

[TR Tony]

Well I don't have a Sprint engined car but I would guess that the main reasons for Sprint vs V8 are:

1) Often cheaper to get a Sprint engine in the first place & even if it needs a recon you only need 4 of everything, not 8!
2) Simpler conversion with no need to change subframe, gearbox bellhousing etc,
3) Tuned Sprint can give as much BHP as a standard V8, although delivered in an entirely different way,
4) Better fuel economy (depending on your right foot!) so cheaper to run long term.

Im sure other reasons will be forthcoming ........

Tony

<font size="1">1981 2L FHC Cavalry Blue - very original & not rusty!
1980 3.5L V8 DHC Regency Red - on the road again.</font id="size1">

[gslittle]

Hi

My dhc has a tuned Sprint engine, having been built from a bare shell imported from California. The choice was there to build it with anything from a standard 2-litre to a tuned V8.

In my experience with various configurations, for me (and I stress for me) the Sprint gives the most useable (and legal) performance on today's crowded roads more of the time. It also makes a great noise via the Rimmers' exhaust manifold and sports system.

It's horses for courses which is one of the attractions of these cars. I think that the car feels, probably due to the small number of component changes, really "right" and factory-like. It's a car in and of itself, if you see what I mean and would feel "right" even if neither the 2-litre nor the V8 variants existed for comparison. It retains a great deal of the smoothness of the 2-litre and is pretty much as economical.

I also like opening the bonnet and seeing "Triumph" writ large on the rocker cover!

I'll stop now. Suffice to say it makes a really good car even if the V8s are quicker/sound better etc.

Cheers

Graham

[omichaelshar]

It's hard to describe the joy of experiencing a high revving 4 cyl 16 valve motor to someone wedded to the low end torque delivered from a V8. There is a certain vibration above 6.5k that the RV8 cannot reach but which has a profound affect.

At its simplest it is like dancing the peak of the polka, or some other high energy dance. One's feet fly in time with making the engine sing. The rhythm is high energy, less sloth like in my view than driving any larger engine.

To be crude, the Sprint can give you the equivalent of the best **** of your life, rather than the lazy variety.

That is not to say that the same peaks cannot be achieved from the V8.

Simply, to make the most of the Sprint you must be an attentive lover to her needs...

Owen

[gslittle]

Beautifully and poetically put, Owen.

Involving, there's a good word to use when describing the Sprint experience. Rewarding, another one.

Graham

[billy006]

Owen!
You have converted me.
I've seen the light I want a 16v Sprint.[:)]

[300bhpton]

Cool. I was just wondering because although I'm a big time Dolly sprint fan I've never actually driven one.

I have a friend who wants to get into TR's but possible not a V8 due to cost of building/buying. So I was thinking of trying to head him in the 16v option instead.

Has anyone ever done anything along the lines of a turbo 2.0 TR7? I know Saab used the Dolly block didn't they?

Not sure what changes they made to the 99 Turbo but I believe it was in essence still a Triumph engine.

TR7 V8

[davesopener]

hi,
I have a sprint engined car.
Im not sure that a comparison with the v8 conversion is fair having driven both v8 and sprint cars.
V8 is so much more engaging an experience.
I always think that if a v8 is a sports car then the sprint cars are
the hot hatch brothers or sisters!
my main reason was i didnt want a standard car but my lady who must be feared was against a v8 " youll kill yourself"!!!!
So sprint was a compromise for me.
Good fun but not the XXXXX of your life
also people you bump into are always wanting to ask about the engine
ty
dave

[emwmarine]

Ok - I am sure it is posted somewhere else, but what is involved in converting an 8v to a Sprint engined car. Is it straightforward??

I had discounted the V8 route as too expensive and was just going to lightly breath on the original engine but if you can convert to sprint engine fairly easily I might go that route.

[John Clancy]

You just need the 16 valve engine. Don't think about converting the 8 valve engine as there's a lot more to it than you'd think.

Jaguar Rover Triumph in America arranged a turbocharged 8 valve TR7. Apparently it went like sh!t off a shovel... i.e. bloody quick!

<center><b>[url="http://www.triumphtr7.com/documents/sales/codenamebullet.asp"]Buy the story of the Triumph TR7/8 on DVD here[/url]</b></center>

[300bhpton]

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Century Gothic, Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by emwmarine</i>

Ok - I am sure it is posted somewhere else, but what is involved in converting an 8v to a Sprint engined car. Is it straightforward??

I had discounted the V8 route as too expensive and was just going to lightly breath on the original engine but if you can convert to sprint engine fairly easily I might go that route.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></font id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
what country are you in?

I guess the easiest way is just buy a new, recon or 2nd hand Sprint engine and fit it. I'm pretty sure it should just fit straight in.

You could convert but when I looked tI remeber there being a heck of a lot of parts and not a 5 min job. Hence why I went V8 [:D]

But in this modern day and age there are plenty of other options it you are willing to look.

1. Tune the 8v, its still a capable engine and should be able to produce fairly decent performance all things considering.

2. Add nitrous oxide if it's just an occasional want for more HP.

3. Looking into running a turbo setup, as per a Saab 99 turbo (I know nothing about this, but it must be possible). Or look at running a remote/rear mount turbo as is popular in the muscle car world at the moment. Like this but on a smaller scale: http://www.ststurbo.com/

4. Look at a different engine swap. The engine bay on the TR7 is massive so there are plenty of other engines. I know there's a fad of fitting Ford 2.0 DOHC engines to cars like Lotus Elan +2's. I can't see why something similar couldn't be done to the TR7. There are plenty of engines that should just bolt up to a Rover LT77 or R380 gearbox to help keep it simple. Also technologies like Megasquirt allow EFI without the need for the original ECU. Over 200hp is pretty easy from most modern DOHC 2.0 litre engines.

There are probably many other options out there, just depends on £££ or $$$$ and how far past the Triumph badge you are preparred to look. [:)]

TR7 V8

[Clay]

I just read an article the other day about a man who opened a Triumph shop on the shore and had a Turbo kit for TR7s. Then he went into rallying SD1s. Now lives in Spain. Never could find out any more about the kit.

Also, here is a link to the story of the Le Mans TR7 Turbo: http://mytr7.blogspot.com/2005/08/triumph-tr7-turbo-at-le-mans.html

[trrobbie]

Hey All, Janspeed had a turbo kit for the tr-7 at one time.[;)] I found a reference and a picture of it in a book on turbocharging.[^] It was on an 8v.[?] Nice packaging but the turbo(and carb) were right on the ex. manifold.[:(!](with no heat sheld[xx(]) Dosn`t say much about performance of the car though.[?] Robbie in Wyoming

[FI Spyder]

Don't think any Sprints were imported over here as they couldn't pass emissions of the time. A club member bought a Dolomite Sprint from New York that was imported (much later) from Switzerland. Talk about the lengths some people go to get something different.... but then a Humber showed up a couple of years ago at our car show that was bought in Cincinnati I believe and was owned by the Queen Mother.

TR7 Spider - 1978 Spifire - 1976 Spitfire - 1988 Tercel 4X4 - Kali on Integra - 1991 Integra

[emwmarine]

The options I am focussing on are 1) a secondhand sprint engine (my preference at the moment) which I would rebuild if necessary, which it sounds like is pretty nearly a straight drop in, other than inlet and exhaust manifold and presumably needles for the carbs, or 2) supertune stage 2 or 3 kit from S&S preparations to fettle the existing 8v motor.

I have to say I do like the idea of having something a bit different with the sprint engine.