[absynthguzzler]

Need suggestions on engine and transmission upgrades for a Contessa.


After a few reviews and threads and page forwards and page backwards and refreshes and searches and u get the point ....... i've decided to go for a contessa instead of a w124 and opel astra. so now its time to decide on performance upgrades for the conti as ive saved a ton by not goin for a w124. (budget was 4 lacs and only spent 45grand!! ) . and just for information, this conti has already got upgraded shocks(some German make, ill get the names when i have a second look at the car). vehicle genuineness is not in question as its owned by close family friend for past 10yrs.

so if anyone has done mods in a conti and have experiences of a few hiccups, please do let me know. it'll be much appreciated and look forward to showing everyone the beginning of the end to this project.As i was always told by my friend in school(wonder where he is ) ..... dont walk before you learn to crawl,so any advice will greatly help my learning experience in changing my modding mentality from a novice to a "i did it". thank you all once again .

[NOS Power]

Congrats absynth on getting that car. It's the definitive Indian version of the muscle car.

First of all let us know which version of the Isuzu engine do you have, the 87 BHP carburated one or the 75 BHP MPFI version. The type of engine mods will have to be decided based on this factor.

Secondly what exactly do you want to do with your car.
Do you want to make the car much more powerful and also improve its looks or keep the classic shape and just boost the car.

[shuvc]

@absynth - reach out to @psycho. He had a modded conti at bangalore.

[Elito11]

Congrats absynth. Great choice there with the contessa. Its a personal favorite.

There are a few threads about contessa modding on tbhp..do search

Best of luck with the COnti!

Elito

[shuvd]

Absynth, you are a lucky guy!! I've had this kind of a project at the back of my mind for a long time. Can't find the time and finance. I'll be following this thread eagerly!
Congrats and happy mod-ding.

[Team Fiat]

Hey mant now thats wild a conti crazy mant that is one ofmy fav old school cars man i would love get my hands on one what mod s would i do , man in pune its tough to find one ive asked around if u guys come acroos a good conti pls mail me

[absynthguzzler]

to everyone , cheers for the replies and keep them coming. was on the road past 2 days (dont ask where) and for a seconf i was mighty suprised seeing a "hm contessa upgrade" thread on here ................. took a while for it to sink in that this is flipperty my own!!!!!! ... so anyways , the replies are as follows


@NOS Power :

cheers , with regards to the engine ....... im defo looking for a complete upgrade . im contemplating two options however i have not got technical wizardry to know if it works .

1: im looking at gettin a 1.9PD from the octavia family including transmission. and then slowly going through the modding stages . i was planning to source an engine from a defunct accident vehicle which is beyond repair and then get it repaired. im hoping the skoda dealers are friendly in letting go of a repairable engine at a price . but ...... the question is am i dreaming ?? can i make changes in the engine mounting bay (including transmission) and fix the above in a conti ?

2:Is to get a petrol engine swapped with the one already in there but with better oomph and quieter as well.basically a newer engine . once again either sourced from outside or from a defunct vehicle.

in terms of looks , im gonna keep that zipped until i get the tinkers and denters at work coz its a "process". ive got something in mind , but im still working on a 3d model to be done on sketchup to see if it matches the conti's countours.need to get the dimensions and balance right b4 i get the metal on and then go " ***.... i musta been drugged". not even bothered bout colour n stuff coz im going for a matte finish, so its gotta look good in sheet metal for that to work .


@shuvc :

cheers for the link up . but theres one slight problem ...... and thats coz im stuck in ARUNACHAL PRADESH for the time being(u didnt have to ask where) !!!! god do i miss zippin on the ring road in b'lore and then stoppin at a junction for a bifta and try n get some inspiration from the frickin lorries!!. ill try n get in touch with Psycho as soon as i can actualy make concrete progress and i'm able to interact with him . else its sad that considerign my work right now , it'll be a case of " wat happened to that arunachal bloke".

cheers everyone ..... until the next time i get to a place that has gprs at the least! keep them coming .

[JayD]

Hey! congrats on the new ride! But, just mt 2 cents,
1) The skoda octi does not have a PD engine! And even if u manage to get an octi engine, it'll cost as much as the car!!

2) Regarding your body mods, Pls pls pls don't even DREAM of making her into a convertible!!

[hell boy]

Hey bro if you know even i have got a new conti this month on the 8th and also looking for the same as you are and i have a diesel and looking forward at the looks of the car and trying to make it the best conti in mumbai .I have hooked up with a very good mech for the job. As had done all my past cars from him itself so this thread will help me as well. So good luck will share some ideas as well as i'm also doing some RnD here so all the best and lets rock ....two conti'es been done up at the same time in team bhp both different versions one petrol and one diesel? cool .....

[NOS Power]

Originally Posted by absynthguzzler

@NOS Power :

1: im looking at gettin a 1.9PD from the octavia family including transmission. and then slowly going through the modding stages . i was planning to source an engine from a defunct accident vehicle which is beyond repair and then get it repaired. im hoping the skoda dealers are friendly in letting go of a repairable engine at a price . but ...... the question is am i dreaming ?? can i make changes in the engine mounting bay (including transmission) and fix the above in a conti ?

2:Is to get a petrol engine swapped with the one already in there but with better oomph and quieter as well.basically a newer engine . once again either sourced from outside or from a defunct vehicle.

What is wrong with the present engine?
It is known to be a modders fav, and can be modded wel. just PM Psycho, he knows about Conti mods a lot.

With your budget i guess you can go ahead with an engine swap but you'll have to make sure you get it from a car which is rear wheel driven. The skoda diesels are meant for FWD. The extent of modifications required will leave you with no more paperbacks to think of anything more.

[GTO]

1: im looking at gettin a 1.9PD from the octavia family including transmission. and then slowly going through the modding stages .

Won't be a match. The Skoda 1.9 TDi is a front wheel drive, while the layout of your existing setup is a rear wheel drive. The Isuzu 1.8 engine is what made the Contessa a favorite with enthusiasts, why change it? There is a LOT that can be done to that engine itself.

This article (ARTICLE: How to Modify / Tune your car) would be a great starting point.

[absynthguzzler]

@JayD:

wouldnt dream of a convertible in india with all the dust n stuff and besides ...... never in my wildest of drugged up dreams(only a pun--- hmm wonder how strict the modders are)would i think of a 4-door convertible and last but not least , the shivers of looking at a bhaarath gaadi in my driveway!!! ...i'll pass but cheers and appreciate the warning coz it'll help in anybody else who's looking at this thread.

@hell Boy:

Cheers on your purchase dude , aha!!! I've got competition ........... im liking this , lol ..... one things for sure and that is ur gonna race ahead in getting ur project completed coz im still shuffling with dual personalities . one for settling down at work traveling all around and deciding where to start this project- b'lore , hyd or guwahati.(car is in hyd), house in b'lore and office in north-east .......

@NOS Power and GTO :

nothings wrong with the present engine i guess...... apart from the fact that its a pussycat in a tigers skin.i dont want a car with all the stripes on the outside and find a NANO under the hood!!!... the conti deserves better if im planning to make it do the talkin n just from the look department . however ...... i must admit ,this is only my opinion and will take your comment seriously when it comes down to discussing the pros and cons . i know that the 1.8 gives bout 75 horses and close to 88horses at max . so im guessing extensive mods can bring this up by another 10%.

problem is the conti is such a heavy car coz the sheet metal on these HM cars is bout 2-3mm thicker(blame maruti for bringing costs and safety down with the invent of the 800---- actually I blame Sanjay Gandhi)and hence they are quite deceptively heavy.
if i want this thing to move n just just roll ....... i was of the opinion that an engine upgrade is critical . all these new cars , u try n have 5 paint jobs over the course of its life and thats it , u'll end up with only paint and no metal with all the grinding n sanding, lol .the other point is that with extensive dynamats all over the car to make this feel like a lexus(quieter than a RR believe it or not) and the other comfort n technical mods in mind,it is gonna make this beast even more heavier.

appreciate the link GTO .


p:s : i meant being drugged up on vicks . infact ..... vicks is my design inspiration coz its curvy and straight ....... ill stop blabbering

[absynthguzzler]

if anyone has got a conti ..... could they plz post some pics of the interiors in different angles in this thread. this would be greatly appreciated as im away from my vehicle but would love to continue the thinking process. i've googled a lot and not found large size images of good clarity.


im working on a list of rear wheel donor cars for the engine purpose and will post that asap

[Psycho]

Frankly speaking if one looks out of the Indian swap market there may be more than what every one could ask for in this car. Personally I would like to still see a 4 pot in the car more than any V's or I6's.

Personally my fav series of engines for the upgrade would have been

SR20DET Specs

Tons of mod opportunities and a great drive train to handle the cars weight and enough space in the bay. Just atke a close look at the pic below and you might understand why I would reccomend something like this:



Seems to match the conti's engine bay the best and enough power to lug the weight even in a stock form. (PS: I didnt mention anything about cost so dont blame me for giving out this plan.)

[hell boy]

Hey thats great ideals which you have shared Psycho as mentioned i too have a conti diesel and my car will go for the tin work soon to the mech in mumbai most probly on the 24th of this month. I wont be puting alloys for my machine this time will do that later but planing to put some cool crome plating alloys later, what i'm concern is with the tin work and the paint job at the moment i'm planing to keep the look of my ride simple as it is (stock look) no heavy changes. But one shade darker than the R.T.O approver shade of my glass flim, As i have the fiber bumpers planing to put the crome plating steel bumpers; Custom made but fake air in take on the hood and racing stripes from the front bonet to hood to the dicky and some stripes on the doors as well like the one on the (2007 MUSTANG Shelby GT 500) and now i am very confiused with the colour what colour to paint the car the car is (t.i grey) at the movment and i'm confisued between some colours live (the grey on the civic) ,(the blue on zen estelo) (the bottle green on the type 2 esteem) and (the silver on the indica v2) but no black colour as have seen many conti in black look commom to me so pls can all help me with which colour to do the car so it look like a real indian muscle car pls help.........