New member with a 340 and some strange ideas

Post by **huskyracer** » 05 Dec 2004 06:23 pm

Hi everyone! Have just bought a very lovely 89 340 1.4, with the intention of fitting a 440 turbo engine I just happen to have in the shed.
Looking around the web, it would seem the transmission is a weak point, but nobody actualy identifies which bits break, or how to sort it so it wont break. If anyone has been daft enough to do somthing similar I

would love to hear from them

Post by **petefarrell360** » 05 Dec 2004 06:29 pm

Aha! The lovely Red 1.4 from that famous bidding site! You appear to have a rust free bargain there! Sorry I can't help with the transmission question, never had any problems to deal with yet! Welcome to the forum though and enjoy the 340!
Pete

Post by **5lab** » 05 Dec 2004 06:39 pm

i'd imagine the 440 turbo engine will fit quite easily as it is essentially the same engine as the 1.7. however i remember someone having problems - take a look at http://www.higgins340.fsnet.co.uk/home340.html

the transmission will be fine with the exception of the torque tube, which i'm guessing you will destroy. not sure what you can do about it, because the 360 uses a different one, but the bell housing is different.

Post by **huskyracer** » 05 Dec 2004 06:42 pm

You are very observant ! The car is so nice I felt guilty driving it away, was I bidding against you? I have a feeling this car will be with me for a long time

Post by **SteveP** » 05 Dec 2004 06:47 pm

Ahh we all know the goings on of the 300s on ebay

The plan you have is very feasable, the only weak link really would be the propshaft, which isn't as strong as on the 360s (surrounded by a torque tube). You shouldn't have problems with the gearbox/rear axle unless you plan on running silly power figures - I guess a 1.7 turbo would be around the 120-130bhp mark?

Beat me to it with that link Hugh..

Steve

Post by **huskyracer** » 05 Dec 2004 06:51 pm

Thanks 5lab, If The torque tube breaks does it cause damage to anything else, or worse will it send me spiraling out of control down the road? if it does then i will have to change/modify it first I think! I work on rice rockets (subarus and mitsubishi evo range mostly) and didnt even know the gearbox was in the back untill I got it home!

Post by **petefarrell360** » 05 Dec 2004 06:53 pm

No, I wasn't bidding on it, I have too many 300's as it is! Like Steve says we all know what's happening on Ebay with regards to the 300 series. It certainly looks nice and I wish you luck with your project.
Pete

Post by **huskyracer** » 05 Dec 2004 06:56 pm

The 440 engine I have has a ported cylinder head, a t3 garret turbo (ex montego) I think it will make around 150/160 bhp stock they are 120ish looks like im gonna break bits

Post by **huskyracer** » 05 Dec 2004 07:00 pm

Thanks Pete, I will post some photos as I go through the conversion if anyone is interested

Post by **SteveP** » 05 Dec 2004 07:03 pm

huskyracer wrote:If The torque tube breaks does it cause damage to anything else, or worse will it send me spiraling out of control down the road?

340s don't have torque tubes, only 360s do. The 340s have a propshaft without the torque tube surrounding it. I like the sound of the project.. should have a damn good power/weight ratio compared to the heavier 2 litre variants.

Steve

Post by **Fuse** » 05 Dec 2004 07:12 pm

Yeah the weak part in 340's with Renault engines is the aluminum propshaft. Unfortunately I have no info which would be best way to reinforce or replace it. 360's have stronger one but as said above it doesn't fit in because of the diffrent bellhousing.

Post by **huskyracer** » 05 Dec 2004 07:22 pm

Thanks to all for the info, does anyone have pictures of the bellhousing/torque tube assembly? I dont fancy finding the limitations of the standard bits by destruction testing, sounds like there's going to be a bit of fabrication work involved in making this area reliable, but it's going to make a great stealth wagon to frighten the boy racers with

Post by **5lab** » 05 Dec 2004 08:03 pm

i dont know if the torque tube is any stronger - i recon it simply stops twisting, and makes the cabin quieter. the weight wont be huge amounts better, but it will be an interesting project. what normally happens is the rubber in the middle of the torque tube dissintergrates, leaving you with little or no drive. result = a trailoring home..

Post by **huskyracer** » 05 Dec 2004 08:42 pm

Thanks 5lab, I work next door to poweflex (polyurethane suspension bushes etc) maybe i can get a stronger one made up. Couple of quick questions, do you have any U.K. meets? and can anyone tell me how to post pictures on the forum? sorry but im a bit useless when it comes to this sort of thing!

Post by **SteveP** » 05 Dec 2004 08:51 pm

We've had one UK meet so far, which was pretty good! Planning the next one for Easter '05 (hopefully better weather and an even bigger turnout). So check out the Events section. Strangely the October 2004 meet forum thread vanished... heres a couple of links to some pictures:

http://www.kinveredge.org.uk//volvosite ... s/ukmeet4/

http://homepages.nildram.co.uk/~drdoke/gaydon_2004/

To post pictures on the forum, you need to upload your images to a host, and then use the image function on the forum to display the hosted image. Geocities for example have a free hosting which would be adequate.

Steve