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Slow XEs

4K views 110 replies 23 participants last post by  saabturbonova 
#1 ·
I have seen/been in a few coras and novas of late fitted with XE engines.
Most of which were no where near as fast as they ought to be,and I think a lot of the time ,lads come on mig asking about performance mods ect..havent even got standard power to start with.

I think this is an age issue as a lot of conversions are mix and match parts,maybe motronic 2.5/2.8 sensors mixed up...?Smokey engines destroying the lamda?

Anyway what I want to say is before any mods the engine should be tip top ie,new lamda,AFM,lifters....This will give more power than expensive cams on a high mileage engine..I know the more technical guys know this but I keep seeing cars being built with people missing this point.

I had a few of GTE 16Vs when they were a lot newer and they were razor sharp,I recall sitting on the boot of standard 3 door cozzys and scoobs,the cars ive been in recently arnet much faster than a corsa GSI!
 
#96 ·
i'm with andy L and m9opel
those new motors will become old too and who says they won't start to lose power in the next 10 15 years especially if they are driven like an xe(enthusasticly i mean) so what if the design is old. opel,gm,vauxhall no matter what u call it they got it right the first time.
sure, and i'll say it again they don't make surpassing power for today but they still go great for something built in the late 80's, and the only reason to keep em running is for the passion. the newer motors will get even cheaper and even more powerful but i bet u, all of you, if you storem dumpem or sell em, a few year after you'll miss it and want one again

but hey i'm just starting to get into these motors maybe i myself after a while will get bored of the power and will want something better from another motor.... i don't know but i'm pretty sure i'll still be into them for a long while
oh and its cheaper to turbo an xe becuase an let would have to be rebuilt anyway
 
#97 ·
The passion is a good reason joe,and heritage is another,I feel warm inside every time I see that XE rocker cover:rolleyes:.

But if you eat your favourite cake every day, there will come a time when you want to try somthing else for a while -but only for a while....Im already wanting to put my reliable trouble free easy to maintain XE engine back in and save all the hassle.
I did the v6 to xe swap for an easier life and now im making it hard again.

What to do...what to do...???????

I think saabturbonova will come round my house and stab me if I give up now.:eek:
 
#99 ·
Back on topic, a couple of other factors may be using the stock exhaust system (or restrictive sections) or, my particular bugbear, not getting full throttle as the twits have screwed up the linkages.
 
#102 ·
Necessity is the mother of creation.

The thing is, the XE was so good that the need to look elsewhere never necessitated itslef. If the XE wasnt up to the job we'd have turned to the saab engines or another alternative.

Also, Im yet to see a saab 4 pot turbo in a car, so talking about it being the far better option and questioning why most people arent doing it is totally premature. When there are a few kicking about then, and only then will it be in a position to be considered as a better option than fitting an XE.

XE has some great strengths even now, I paid £150 for mine, its got 200k miles and doesnt smoke, pulls fine with no flatspots and does everything I want. If it goes pop, Ive got another (if I ever get round to collecting it) that cost me £100. Beat useable, slot straight in power for that little money if you can. 20 years on, its still not an easy thing to do. Thats the testament to the XE, its a fantastic engine in 1988 and is still a great option in 2008.
 
#104 ·
@andy l

You can use the vauxhall gearbox/shafts as it bolts to any saab lump after 1993.
You will need a f28 clutch,or a late vectra one depending on the engine used.
As you will know 2 of the mounts are on the box which leaves an engine mount(your on your own with that)
You can use the saab loom and ecu which is mappable and map downloads are easily obtained.Havent done the loom yet but it looks fairly easy.

Or..if you have a cav/calibra/astra 3,buy a 900turbo and you can bolt on the complete subframe/eng/box/shafts/exhaust only changing the lower arms...This gives a strong box and saves money on a clutch,only leaving the eng mount...

Or if you have a vectra there is a rumour that the saab 95 subframe fits..
 
#106 ·
DONT WORRY SAABNOVATURBO :D - the future is the saab motor , the embers are only flickering at the mo ;) , They will ignite big time in time to come , i would put money on it at the bookies if i could do such a thing lmao ( i genuinely mean that ) , any thing scando , is where it is at ! , they will cotton on soon enough :rolleyes:
 
#107 ·
santaclaus, thnks man, your bang on the money. right, i bought a saab 900 2.0 fpt today, and a gt30, and a nice topmount manifold. all i need now is a cossie t5, and a volvo axle. easy. btw thw above parts cost;
saab 900: 300 mot fail.
gt30, 200 from a mate with a cossie saph.
mani, 169 ebay special.
plus a mate has said he'll make my zorst fer me, and map it on his rr at trade price, winner!:beer:
 
#108 ·
In a couple of yrs there will be as many vaux/saab cars as LETs.
After the first few (mine being one) a trickle will turn into a flood untill saab engine prices go up...:nod:

Why are you using a cozzy box? why not use the omega that bolts straight on and is cheap-doesn't realy matter if it breaks.
 
#109 ·
i cba with changing omega boxes every month. tbh the t5 is fit and forget, and i got an xe bellhousing for 40 on the bay. if the r28 wasnt as rare id fit that but theres also the mount and prop issue, there is a manta with a t5, so its a given. the omega box is quite big too. plus propsare easy to get made.
 
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