Car with Motorcycle Engine Conversion (Need Help)

[TimJimJames]

Hey Guys, I'm new to the forum but I'd found it whilst trying to find information about the Subject above.

Basically I'm trying to find out if anyone knows any small RWD cars (less than £1k preferably, mileage isn't really an issue as I want to change the engine). I also want to know if anyone could recommend a good engine to put into a car, I have been looking at perhaps a Yamaha R6 engine and such but i'm unsure.

I'm only 18 years old, I've got 1 years no claims bonus on a YBR125cc bike and I'm finally trying to get a car for the practicality and the fact that i can customize it in different ways and all of that money spending stuff. I'm a motoring fan and i've always had the wish of doing up my car and customizing it the way I want to do, love mechanics and such. My father has over 35 years of mechanic experience and has done several experiments and crazy builds but nothing like this, but he says he could do a conversion like this (I know it involves changing the differential, clutch, gearbox and connecting it all and such)

As I'm 18 and I haven't driven yet but want a car, if I do this engine conversion am I unlikely to get an Insurance quote due to the fact that it's powerful and modded? If it is, let me know!

Thanks,
Tim

[Clutchy]

[1cyl]

Seen a few Busa engined cars.

Can someone please put a Busa Turbo lump in a smart roadster then sell it to me cheap.

Or I'd consider a supercharged triumph rocket3 lump'd spitfire if the Busa wasn't an option.
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Chase my Witch up, Catch my Snitch up.
The SMC | The Pit | Stable

[Ste]

https://i.ebayimg.com/t/1991-ROVER-MINI-1000-CITY-E-AUTO-RED-/00/s/MTIwMFgxNjAw/z/11YAAOxypNtSlOXt/$_12.JPG

I don't think an R6 engine would be suitable, you'll need an R1 engine.

[misscrabstick]

I think it's a lot of money but Mr Crabstick is very into the old minis, at a show last year I saw a company making and selling a front subframe kit that lets you fit a Busa engine into a classic mini, it even had a intermediate gearbox allowing reverse gear, completely pant soilingly scarey no doubt.

[charlie74]

might sound daft but have you looked at the & style kit cars? tiger and great british sports cars both offer motorcycle engine based kits

if you didnt want to go that route it should at least help with sorting the drive train using their parts

as to car shells to use.. what about an MX-5.. nice size engine bay

[bladerunner]

I'd also say an R6 motor is not going to work well in a car conversion as with most 600's they have very little in the way of midrange torque. A 900 blade motor at minimum for a light car and as said gsxr1300 or zzr1400 motor for added scare factor!
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Current bikes...cbr929, KDX200's, Rd125lc mk2, RGV250's

[misscrabstick]

Guy on UTube called Dwerke has a old Goggomobil with a fz1000 lump in, seems to go really well, same bloke also has another Goggomobil with some massive radial plane engine in!

[dydey90]

I once saw a guy enter a Fiat Cinquecento in an autograss race that was battered and bruised and didn't stand out from the other cars at all.

Then the flag went down and this bastard tore off doing a wheelie, only to have to slow right down for the corners due to oversteer.

Turns out he'd not been happy with one bike engine and had stuck two 900 'blade engines in the boot. 300bhp~ in a car the size of a rollerskate.
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This post is probably not serious and shouldn't be taken literally.
Past: CBR125,ER6f NINJA 650, ZZR600 Current: VFR750

[mudcow007]

reliant robin?

dont they already have a bike engine anyways?

do the old "switcheroo" an bobs your uncles mother brother

[Fisty]

Dad and I fitted a busa engine to a hillman imp. Whole project was less than £2k. It went well but took a week to stop.
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Quietly and consistently taking the piss.
TL1000R | Hayabusa | ZXR400 | TL1000S | Bandit 400 V
Fatter and faster than Fret

[skatefreak]

+ 1 for a kit car!
They are going to be a lot easier as some have bike engines in mind + more likely to get insured as they are far more common than Frankenstein fabs.

[MarJay]

You'll never get insurance in a million years.
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British beauty: Triumph Street Triple R; Loony stroker: KR1S; Track fun: GSXR750 L1; Commuter Missile: GSX-S1000F
Remember kids, bikes aren't like lego. You can't easily take a part from one bike and then fit it to another.

[CaNsA]

[weasley]

Someone on here was going to drop a Ducati engine into a Fiat 500 weren't they?
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Yamaha XJ600 | Yamaha YZF600R Thundercat | KTM 990 SMT | BMW F900XR TE

[G]

[Pete.]

[G]

Twin bike engines in autograss cars are pretty common as far as I know - seen TL1000 as well.

[c_dug]

If you can get a reasonable insurance quote I'll eat my penis.
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I am a bellend, I am a man of constant sorrow, I am a gummy bear, I am a rock.

[MarJay]

I'm not really sure of the point to be honest...

Motorcycle engines are different from car engines for a reason. If they were somehow better than car engines, then manufacturers who make both bikes and cars would undoubtedly use them in their four wheeled offerings. The advantages bike engines have are low weight and high specific output. However, they also have low torque, weak dog engagement gearboxes and small clutches. These things are not ideal for a car.

In order to take advantage of a bike engine one would need a car that weighs significantly less than other cars, IE a kit car type vehicle. The performance of such a vehicle will mean that insurance will be prohibitive, and it's not exactly practical compared to a motorcycle (ask G about how practical his MNR is).

I think that if you were given a complete bike engine, or you already had a car which was suitable for conversion, then I could see why you'd want to, but choosing to go out and build a bike engined car without even knowing what sort of engine or what sort of car is suitable seems very much like putting the cart before the horse.

Also, as I've said before on the subjects of projects, hybrid bikes and home builds... you're not likely to end up with something significantly better than you could have bought off the shelf. Certainly not for the same money. The point about a project such as this is for the doing, not for the end result. If you want to do it because you want a fast practical car at the end then I'm afraid you're doing it for the wrong reasons.
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British beauty: Triumph Street Triple R; Loony stroker: KR1S; Track fun: GSXR750 L1; Commuter Missile: GSX-S1000F
Remember kids, bikes aren't like lego. You can't easily take a part from one bike and then fit it to another.

[stevo as b4]

Your ambition outweighs your means and probably skills too!

Your 18 mate, and lets be honest your first car will never be anything really special, or capable, but whatever it is it will be your first car and you will have a lot of fun and laughs with it.

I'm showing my age now, but before I had started taking car lessons, I wanted to buy, do up and tune a Mini 1275GT and fit wide wheels, a tuned 1380cc A+ and have a straight cut box and a roll cage/bucket seats etc, just because I though it would look cool.

When I got a car, it wasn't what I wanted, but I was happy with it.

You will almost certainely not get insurance that is worth considering for such a project as your first car. personally though it's not what you want to hear, id be looking for a cheap tidy second hand small hatch, maybe something like a special edition or a cosmetically modified car, but that's a cheap and cheerful low insurance group car to start with.

I think you'd have a blast with something ordinary like a Fiesta zetec, or Corsa Sxi or similar.

Modified performance car's are just not worth getting into these days until your probably late 20's at the soonest, as premiums are crazy high these days for everything.

I'd much rather enjoy 5-6years progressing up through bigger and better bikes until you get to the point where you have owned the biggest bike you need or want, and then do the whole car thing later.

You can bugger about with slammed 200SX's with big turbo's, tuned MX5's or fast convertibles like BMW M3's etc when your in your 30's. The same time would be good to think about kit car's and doing your bike engine'd car build etc.

[G]

Also, if you want a fast vehicle, a bike will win in every way - faster, more agile, cheaper and easier to use fast.
If you want a mechanical challenge, go and do something genuinly innovative and unique.
If you want a few people to think you're cool and a load more think you're a cock while impressing a sub-set of women; go and read 'the game' and become a PUA groupie.

[TimJimJames]

Damn so many responses, thank you all for your quick replies and hefty information.
Yeah I kind of mixed up my words a bit, I want to do this as a practical build because I love innovation and creating my own kind of things, of course i'd love the end result, take the car out for meets and such to show it off a bit, I have been looking at doing up a Nissan Micra as that car is seen as awful and I love being different, I may start this project after I get a car, so that I get it ready for a year after when i get 1 year NCB, Busa engine would kinda scare me if im honest, maybe stick with the R1 lol.

[0l0dom0l0]

Getting insurance on a 1.2 polo with one years NCB at 18 was over a grand. You aint going to get insured on something with an R1 engine at 18

Sorry to burst your bubble, I'm 20 and I can only just start insuring half decent cars for around the £1000 figure.
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CBT Passed: 30/08/2009, Theory Passed: 31/08/2010, Mod 1 Passed: 6/9/2010, Mod 2 Passed: 13/09/2010. Restriction ended 13/09/2012.

Bikes: 2007 Derbi GPR 50, 1998 Yamaha Fazer 600 (written off), 2002 Yamaha Fazer 600, 1994 CBR 600F, 2003 Triumph Daytona 600, Kawasaki ZX6R J1.....Current: 2006 Yamaha FZ6, 1998 Suzuki TL1000R and a Honda VFR 400 NC30.

[TimJimJames]

Naa, I'd rather the truth be told than be bullshitted just because it's what I want to hear