daimler 250 v8 1967 recomissioning

[lhubbard]

dear Harvy

I thought as much as long as i get the bulk out i weill then flush and change the ATF in the car. Head rebuilding this afternoon.

best regards

lee

[lhubbard]

hi guys

with the heads now stripped of valves and cleaned it is time to start installing new valves and springs. All the valve seats look it excellent condition with no pitting or significant wear. I also cleaned out the valve guides and now using an old valve all move smoothly up and down the guides with limited resistance.

I have never lapped in valves before so I thought before getting stuck in it would be advisable to seek advise on the procedure. I have the required sucker tool and both fine and course grinding paste.

The thing I am concerned about its the duration of the process especially at the seats are in excellent condition.

all advise greatly received.
best regards

lee

[harvey]

If the valves and the seats are in good condition they don't need a lot of lapping in at all, and with 16 to do I'm sure you're pleased to hear that......

Think of it this way, when the cars were being assembled on the line, do you think there was a little old man somewhere along the line that had to lap all the valves in as the heads went past.....

Still a PITA job though....

[lhubbard]

hi there Harvey

well I got new valves and strings to go with the heads. I may need new tappets to as ends are worn. also got to order new big end shells then I can start the rebuild of the engine. I am going to remove the crank to check for wear and also to replace the rope seals. I looked at the piston rings and these look fine and there was no evidence of oil in the bores.

best regards

lee

[harvey]

I think I'd fit new rings if you can get them.

[lhubbard]

hi there Harvey

it would be simple to do. I measured the bores and the size is piston A first over size so I could get +10. I did have a note in the documentation with the car that the rings where changed approximately 20 K previous but they have sat for ages.

When I measured them I got 76.5 mm bores and this corresponds to the first over size range which is plus 10.

cheers

lee

[DaveB]

Harvey, I have just run in my V8 250 saloon engine after a rebuild. In the process of pre-planning what to do I found a number of enhancements available that help the engine last longer after the rebuild. The most noticeable that I implemented were (a) replacing the oil pump relief valve with a valve without a drilled hole, and (b) installing a screw-in oil filter kit to replace the clunky original.

I know others who have added a spacer washer behind the pressure relief spring to increase the relief pressure.

The oil pressure relief mod that I have gives, typically, a 10 to 15 psi improvement. Running at 3000 revs with a hot engine I now get between 50 and 60 psi on long runs: not bad for an engine that has a reputation for low oil pressure.

Oil changes are quicker and easier with the screw-in kit and the filters are readily available and cheap.

The rebuild involved a rebore with plus 40 pistons, crank regrind with plus 20 bearings, loaded crankshaft dynamic balance (managed to get 2 extra con rods so that all 8 are within 1 gram of each other). Also a bit of welding on one of the heads (corrosion almost rotted into one of the cooling channels) and then flattening both heads.

Pardon me if I am reaching you to suck eggs: it’s essential to ensure that the sludge traps are clear, otherwise oil flow to the main bearings is reduced and all the rebuild effort is compromised. I had to drill mine out, the previous owner rebuilt the engine but didn’t know about clearing the sludge traps, so there was 42 years of rock hard sludge blocking the traps and jammed into the channels!

If you need any parts etc or need to speak to people that have rebuilt these engines before, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Best wishes, Dave B

[lhubbard]

hi there dave

many thanks for the info the rebuild went very well and I encountered limited problems. I also suffered from water way damage to my original heads, on eof which was beyond repair. I did however obtain a pair of replacement good quality heads from Mathew at the daimler and lancaster club (thanks mathew!!) and also a full low milage donor engine from James at the same club. armed with this I had no problems building a good quality replacement unit. I was thinking of replacing the oil filter with a screw on number where can this be obtained from?

here is a picture of the finished engine awaiting transport and its dynamo to be installed.


cheers

lee

[DaveB]

As you can see, I have the later version engine (with marginal differences such as air filters and oil filler tube). Plus, of course, an alternator instead of a dynamo.

You can get the oil filter conversion kit from Flexolite on 01722 712829. Be sure to mention that the kit is for a Daimler V8 2.5 engine in order to get the correct engine adapter. My kit takes a Mann W719/15 screw in filter; I can pick up the filters for around £7 or so.

Here's a pic of the engine back in the car. You'll also see that I've fitted electronic ignition (the bundle of red wires on the bulkhead!).



Best wishes, Dave B

[lhubbard]

Hi there dave

Engine looks great in your engine bay. At the moment I have fitted the engine back into the car. Had a bit of an issue with fitting the manifolds but I had anticipated doing the head gaskets once the engine was refitted as I only dry fitted all components prior to fitting. Bolting the manifolds to each head it was easy to fit new head gaskets and refit the heads wiggling the exhaust into place down the side of the engine before placing head on the block. Next stage is to refit the power steering pump and belts and then fan and cooling system. Replaced all coolant hoses and steel pipes with aluminium pipes.

Lee