ROVER V8: STRIP AND REBUILD
Rover’s all-aluminium overhead valve V8 first appeared in the P5 in 1967, but it originated from Buick – see our RV8 feature on p104 for full details. Initially displacing 3528cc, it powered many a Rover, Land Rover and MGB GT, plus TR8s and more. The MG RV8 used a 195Ps fuel-injected 3950cc version of the engine, and TVR went further with a 4278cc (Land Rover also used this in their classic Range Rover) and 4554cc in the Chimaera and Griffith along with a 4988cc version in a limited production run of the Griffith. In all its sizes, the Rover V8 has been a hit for the British motor industry, helping to prove the ability of many sports car manufacturers including Westfield and Morgan.
Whilst there was a time when secondhand Rover V8s could be found in many a rotting Rover SD1 or Range Rover, often left to be picked over in a scrapyard, nowadays they are not so readily available and also not so cheap to rebuild. RPi Engineering have a realistic attitude to rebuilding these engines and include a rebore of the engine block, new pistons, ARP studs and a regrind of the crankshaft as a matter of course, so their starting price for a 3.5-litre rebuild is £2800+VAT.
Rebuilding a Rover V8 is certainly a DIY prospect, but it can be an expensive and unfolding nightmare. The main trouble with these engines is that they are so forgiving – they can be running on six of their eight cylinders and still be producing seemingly sufficient performance. Typical problems associated with the Rover V8 concern oil pressure, the camshaft and the two cylinder heads. The oil pressure should be around 25-30psi at tickover with a maximum of 35-40psi at high revs. An engine that produces as little as 10psi may survive for
