Porsche 914 with 1UZFE 32 valve V8
Over the last five years, I have built a 1972 Porsche 914 with a 1991 Lexus LS 400 engine. The car is not "finished", but is completely driveable and I drive it to work regularly!
I also used a Kennedy engineering adapter and clutch but made my own motor mounts and shift linkage.
The shift linkage is the really hard part, but the SC 400 engine will be BETTER than the LS 400 engine.
I took everything I could off of the engine to make it as short as possible. I wanted to cut the car as little as I possibly could. I took off all the idler pulleys, the distributors, and even shortened the harmonic ballancer .900 inches which required grinding some material off of the block so it wouldnt interfere.
Instead of using the Lexus alternator (an expensive piece), I got a GM Camaro alternator from a local parts store for ~$45 and built my own bracket to hold it in line with the shortened Lexus harmonic ballancer.
The belt is a very short belt that only goes around the harmonic ballancer and the alternator. The alternator acts as the tensioner. The Camaro alternator fits the same type of belt as the Lexus.
If I was picking another alternator, I would use one that goes on a 1993 Eagle Vision (Chrysler product). It is a very nice compact Nippondenso model with simple mounting and the correct pulley.
My car weighs 1900 lbs and has almost 300 horsepower in current trim. I am using an electromotive Tec II fuel injection system, but I hope to convert to Megasquirt with Ford EDIS ignition soon.
The car is SO much fun to drive. It is everything I wanted it to be. It is very light because I took the window glass out, all the dashboard, and everything that wasnt absolutely needed. I wanted to build a hot rod, not a luxury vehicle.
Please note that the Lexus engine DOES NOT FIT in the engine bay of a Porsche 914. I had to change both the engine, transmission mounts, firewall, and many other things to get it to work. That really took some time with a cutter and welder.
Oh yes, I welded stainless steel tube to the stock Lexus exhaust manifolds, and then welded Magnaflow stainless mufflers to those. It sounds AWESOME.
The engine with aftermarket fuel injection, and completely free flow exhaust is just amazing. Everyone says that they LOVE the sound of it.
You can send me questions if you want at
[email protected]. I live in Atlanta, Georgia. Hopefully I can send some pictures soon. --Sterling Skinner