Pete,
Could not agree more, it is sad to have to convert a vehicle as the engine is the heart of it. We can all recognise a Ford, Austin, Bedford, what ever, by the sound without even seeing it, and the noise is part of the attraction to them. I have often enjoyed the moment when driving along in my Bedford QL (with their distinctive sound) and seeing some old gent with his back to me and seeing his reaction at hearing the QL, must bring back memories as I get a lot of people who tell you how they loved driving them.
If conversions have to be done, (and sometimes if long distances are to be done then its logical, our friend Tom from Scotland is one in mind with his Ford LAA) then it should be done without any structural changes, so that the original unit could be refitted at anytime. A good substitute for a Chev 216 would be a late Bedford 214, which should slot straight in, I put one in a Bedford MW for a customer who intended doing long continental journeys, sometimes towing another vehicle on a trailer. The old Bedford 28hp developes about 72 bhp and the 214, same capacity is 100 bhp, still sounds the same and the old engine can be fitted straight back with out altering anything.
Richard
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11-11-03, 00:59
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