Pugs and their reputations

[davemcbean]

Ray Bell:
But at least the 4.4 (not 4.2... that's a Holden) engine didn't suffer from the same problem as the 2-litre and 1800 Peugeots... the block was raised to go with the longer stroke..

If you were to put nice short light pistons with a gudgeon to deck height of less than 30mm (common nowadays) then you could fit sufficently long conrods in an 1800 or 2 litre Pug without increasing the deck height of the block.

If a factory in Africa somewhere were to ask me what easy improvements they could make to a 504 engine, I'd say shorter lighter pistons, longer rods, 93mm bores and a closed deck block.

If money was no object I'd also suggest moving the valves a little farther apart so they could reliably fit 45mm inlets and 38mm exhaust valves and I'd get them to staighten out those outer two exhaust ports and make all the exhaust ports a little higher in the head to get a nicer curve in conjunction with making them a little larger to complement the 2.2 litres. It would be nice if they could allow enough room for a 0.5" lift cam in the block and get some bigger rocker ratios happening aswell, but I really don't think expensive valve train and head re-engineering would be OK'd by the accountants.

Dave

 

[Ray Bell]

Of course you're right, David... I wonder where we'll find some rods to fill this bill in an 'hot rodding' sense?

They'd have to be good ones, I think we might give these engines a good rev when that happens!

 

[Cal]

s16:
Cal got my mates email address its phtptyltd@hotmail.com. It's his home theatre business, practicle home theatre, for anyone thats interested in some high end stuff give him a buzz, good bloke he is too.

I know he is getting the clutch and the brakes done as we speak, he's getting ebc greens but i think he was paying way too much from the prices that i've heard in many topics.

Thanks Scott. i will send him a quick email.

Cheers,

Cal.

 

[Pugnut403]

I have no experience with new pugs on reliability, but I can speak for the old ones. My grandfather had a 203, several 403s, a 404, and a couple of 504s. He was a terror, and would kill a normal car in a VERY short time. Most of the Pugs he could only kill by seeing how quickly another car or a tree or a bus could assist the brakes. He killid a few Jap cars too, mostly by crashing them (he was shot down 3 times in WW2, so he said a car crash could'ny hurt him) but they were stuffed by the time he crashed them.

On the other hand, my father had 403s and 504s. His favourite 403 wagon was fitted with a roof rack with a seat on top, and he used it for a spotlighting vehicle in western NSW when he was a professional fox shooter. It had to take all kinds of terrain and the rough roads too, and it held out for a long time despite the occaisional 120mph rum (it had a WILD engine with twin carbs, hot cam, shaved head etc.).
The 504s were our transport when we lived west of Bourke on one of the roughest roads in the country. The 200km journey into town took at least 4 hours on a good day, and new cars were often retired after a year. The mailman bought a new truck and the insurance wrote it off after a year because of the metal fatigue, I kid you not!
Jap cars were hardly seen, you certainly didn't buy one twice. Most people got a Holden or Ford and it lasted 2 years maybe. Our 504s went and went and went, the only trouble being an eventual mild case of the "Wanaaring Wobbles", a local name for your front end getting a little loose. Out there the standard practice for a Holden or Ford is to rebuild the front end every year before the rego test, but the Pug got a couple of years before it got noticeable.
Since then we have had quite a few Jap cars as teh family outgrew a Pug, and although the Toyotas and Nissans were fairly reliable, we still had a few problems in them, and Toyota parts are not cheap.
I have had a few problems in my Pugs, but my Pugs are 41, 33, and 23 years old and cost $200, nothing, and $1,750 respectively. They have all been neglected for years, but they still go. My 403 was owned by a surfie, the engine, gearbox, and diff oils have not been changed for years, and it has been thrashed to within an inch of its life. The odometer has a very low reading, suggesting it has been around the clock at least once, but it still goes. I haveto change the gearbox and diff, and I must get around to rebuilding the engine one day, but it still slogs on. And it handles like a dream despite the worn out suspension bushes and exudes character unlke any Jap car I have known. 2_cents