Perkins Prima diesel engine conversion for Series land Rovers

Perkins Prima diesel engine conversion for Series Land Rovers

(All the things you need to know but are hard to find!)

		Fitting the Perkins Prima 2.0 litre turbo diesel engine will transform the fuel comsumption of your Land Rover. You can expect something in the region of 33/35 mpg on shortish runs and maybe 38/40 on longer trips using the over drive! The ecconomics make sense. Assuming an annual mileage of 4,000 then you can expect to save around £360 per year! Similar savings to using LPG, but the tax break on LPG fuel is under review by the government! Bio-diesel is also coming into play and there are possible saving there. Power output across the rev range will be very similar to that of a standard petrol engined Land Rover, and it is much more responsive than the standard diesel Land Rover engine. Acceleration may feel slightly more sluggish than with the petrol, but your driving style will soon adapt. Top speed will increase and you will have power to safely overtake other vehicles. You will still be able to start off in 2nd gear in a SWB model! Fitting an intercooler and adjusting the fueling will add another domension to the performance! Officialdom Once you have made the conversion there are some things to do. But, before you even start, you should notify your insurance company. Most will know about 'converted' Land Rovers and you may find yourself in the modified category, paying a slightly higher premium. Others will just charge you as for a standard vehicle. Shop around. The other thing you need to do is get the V5C (old V5) registration document altered. You need to change the fuel type from petrol to 'heavy oil' and enter the 'new' engine number. This conversion will not affect the Historic status of your Landy. Allow 4/5 weeks for DVLA to return the document, alternatively you could visit your local DVLA office. The last point to be aware of is that your MOT station correctly fills out your next MOT certificate, noting the fuel type. The engine is tested as for the age of the vehicle, and not on engine age. Therefore the emissions test is just a visual check for Series I & II Landys. DVLA - has lists of local DVLA officies These notes are designed to help you plan your conversion, get all the bits together ready to make the engine swap. This can be done in a weekend and the next few days would be spent tidying up loose ends. Needless to say, you make these changes/adjustments at your own risk. If you are uncertain about something, seek a second opinion.

Your first port of call should be Dudleigh Engineering who make the conversion plate for the engine, and from whom you can get new engine mounting brackets and lots of help. These notes are designed to supplement their fitting instructions, not replace them. There are other sources for the conversion plate, or you can even have a stab and make your own if you have the engineering skills & access to the equipement needed. Here is an excellent site and description of how to make your own...Rob_M

page updated 13th December 2007