To swap in a V8 that is...

I'm afraid a combination of low resale values and high repair costs are going to push some people in this direction in a few years. But that's what drove those Jaguar/Chevy swaps years ago. It still makes a lot of sense. Sexy, light, good handling euro body/chassis gets massive injection of cheap reliable DeeeTroit Horsepower/Torque !

Rebuilt 3.2 M-B longblocks are around $7,000.

That kind of change will sure buy a lot of crate motor power.

Wonder what would be the best fit into a Crossfire engine bay?

I'm guessing a small block Ford since they have a front sump and distributor and are narrow compared to Mopar or Chevy V-8s.

Mustang donor clutches and manual trannys are real easy to find. The stock M-B rear-end will probably be OK unless you go dragracing.

Hey, here's an Idea !

The Factory Five guys use Thunderbird/Cougar MN12 I.R.S. pumpkins in their Cobra replicas. Last I checked Ford Racing Parts will sell you a brand new one with posi and 3.73 gears for about $600 ! Heck rebuild/replace the M-B rear is twice that much.

Think I'm on to something here ?

Yea, I know, wait a few years and buy a used SRT6.

What happens when THAT breaks ?

M-B AMG SRT-6 shortblocks are about $12,000 !

I'm thinking 350 Hp/375 Ft.Lbs in a 94.5 inch wheelbase, 3,100 Lbs car could get pretty interesting real quick...

Cincinnati Slim

 

With a little homework you should be able to rebuild your own motor without problems. I wonder what other MBZs had our 6 speed tranny??

 

it would be cool to see, but you are looking at alot more costs than that. don't forget you need a tranny, the driveshaft from the ford most likely wont fit our car so you'll need a custom driveshaft, and your going to have to find someone to fabricate motor mounts for you. its not anywhere near plug and play and would cost ALOT more than $600 dollars, probably 6 thousand when all is said and done. don't forget about the wiring diagram. the cobra replicas are very easy to work on, there is nothing to them.

to me the most logical and most practical swap is a 4.3 liter v8 from the clk 430, s430, e430, etc. there are tons of them in junk yards and they can probably be had for less than 2k in those situations. it is the same exact engine we have with just two more cylinders, probably alot easier to do.

 

The only 6 speed trannys in current day MBz,

C230k sport sedan/coupe
C320 sportsedan/coupe
C230 sport sedan
C350 sport sedan/coupe


Slim,

try out some evosport pulleys. they'll push you 12 hp. ecu flash from speedinnovations. with that amg airbox you'll push out enough for street. if your craving for more, im sure a K-charger will work good with a W112 motor.

 

we'll see plenty of swaps ... ford small block is a winner for size ... i am sure if it fits there will be chevy ls swaps as well cause everyone loves those ... the more interesting will be people attempting things like SR20 and RB25 swaps from nissans.

when it comes to it, people will swap what they know ... like myself, i want to dump a 2.4 SRT-4 engine in there with a liberty 6 speed rear wheel drive trans ... why ? cause its different and i know it very well.

we'll see it 10 years ... cause these MB motors are very tough.

 

What junk yards do you hang out at that has late model mercedes cars laying around?? I have never seen a MBZ in any yards, but I have seen a lot of Jaguars.

 

there is a mercedes only junkyard in los angeles on lincoln, i ride over sometimes on the goldline train. there is at least 100 benz's there at all times.

 

if they put the srt-4 engine/tranny in here, they would sell 1,000,000 crossfires. stage 3 would mean 11 second crossfires, it would be game over. who would buy an s2k over that car? no one, that's who.

 

I don't think that's a very good idea Slim. Part of the NASA race schedule includes the Factory Five Challenge and they run in the event before mine. Here are the race times from the FF Challenge for the last race on Sunday.




And here are the times I ran in my event that took place 20 minutes after.


Sorry I cut off the rest of the TTD results when I captured it.

If you want to see all the times for the entire weekend for all race groups, go to http://www.mylaps.com and click on car racing, then scroll down to May 5 and look for the NASA event.

 

Slim:
I didn't mean to discount your idea, but some people think certain cars and engine combinations are really fast, but when it boils down to it they normally aren't... Trust me, I live this stuff almost every weekend...

We have some serious race cars in the NASA events... Consider this... NASA runs the Formula TR series which you would think are "wicked sick" fast formula cars when you look at the specs and see them on the track... Well, they are fast...



But now let's look at the times they ran at Willow Springs this weekend and compare them to my race group.




I think you'll see that modified street cars can surprise you...

 

I posted this thread to provoke a little discussion, looks like it's working!

That's why this forum is so cool. The members are very diverse and have strong opinions. Proves that Crossfire owners are by nature a pretty independent bunch.

First of I'll readily concede some things...

Engine swaps are always more complicated/expensive than they first appear. This is especially true with modern cars and their complex electronics.

Secondly, these 3.2 M-B motors are beautiful pieces of engineering. I've downloaded a service manual and the specs are impressive; metal chain cam drives, all forged internals, cross-bolted mains, windage tray and cool little oil jet spray nozzles on the rotating assembly. So yes these motors are tough and will probably last a good long time. I sure hope mine does! Most Benz motors are good for 200K with reasonable care.

But...there sure is a long history of sports car/hotrod hybrids. AC Ace /V8 Ford=Cobra, Sunbeam Alpine/V8 Ford=Tiger, Jensen Interceptor w/big block Mopar, De Tomaso Pantera w/Ford 351, and check our "Grass Roots Motorsports" two thousand dollar challenge cars; Datsun/Nissan "Z" cars w/V8s, Mazda RXers w/V8s. You name it, if it's small and cool looking, somebody will stuff a V8 into it! I went to a car show a couple of weeks ago and saw a '87 Porsche 944 with a Corvette LT1 under the hood. Turns out there's a shop in Vegas that specializes in stuffing v8s into Porsches, including 911s!

I bet that "rotates" pretty well...

Cheers,

Slim

 

If you thought a V8 in Crossfire was crazy, check this out !

http://www.renegadehybrids.com/indexx.html

Next time some pious Prius driver spouts off tell him about these "hybrids"...

Slim

 

don't forget startech put a 6.1 liter in our car, there is room.

 

The other thing to remember is the weight to horsepower ratio. Sometimes bigger is not better. A lot of 4 and 6 cylinder engines today outperform a lot of the old V-8s without the additional weight and the fuel systems are superior unless you spend BIG BUCKS.

 

Hey X'ed,

Good point about Startech.

I've seen the pictures and that M-B V8 looks like a factory installation.

But you are talking some big bucks for any Benz mill.

Wonder if one of the "new" Hemis could be wedged into place and made to "talk" to the Crossfire's computer and electrics. Of course there's no manual transmission option so I'm not crazy about that...

Slim

 

Yep, my wife's '06 300C AWD has the hemi and is built on a Mercedes chassis, and bolted to a Mercedes transmission, and has the Mercedes engine management system... Now with a good shoe horn, and a little luck, that 5.7 could fit right in... Could be a little interesting to say the least!

 

there will be a 6 speed hemi soon (challenger). that would be the sickest swap out there and there is eventually going to be a TON of them around considering how many cars it comes in (dodge ram, 300c, charger, challenger, magnum, grand cherokee, durango, on and on). if they just put the 5.7 in the crossfire it would sell like hotcakes. chrysler really messed up with this car, it could have done so much better with a better engine package or just a 6 speed srt-6.

 

who's gonna be the first slk55 swap, ferrari enzo killer, yeah!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ob-WyzALtKE

 

Realistically the biggest problem with swapping the engine, (a MOTOR is an electrically operated device) is finding one with a good power-to weight ratio. A lot of the engines you guys are proposing are substantially heavier than the 3.2. The X-fire is already somewhat unstable in the rear at speed, a few hundred pounds added up front will make this worse. The biggest problem with adding weight up there is that it will make your car push like a dump truck in the corners. Races are won or lost in the corners!

 

Amen Brother !!!