As Jesse pointed out in Feburary, bargain Stags usually are not bargains at all. The $2,595 Stag he found looked great until you saw the collision damage on the far side. This one listed here on craigslist for $1,495 looks pretty nice, but the engine is in pieces. The former owner had started restoration and purchased a lot of new parts as well as had a lot of machine shop work done. The seller suggests a converting over to a Land Rover V8 rather than building the original engine. As Jesse pointed out, these Triumph 3.0L V8s have their problems, but it’s not a bad engine and lots of mechanics have figured out how to keep them running. So perhaps, the first step would be to haul the engine down to a machine shop for an assessment. There was a Ford powered Stag featured here recently, so perhaps that’s an option. The interior looks OK and my old eyes see no rust, so the floors are the only questionable bit. I would love to see this one rebuilt, but for only $1,495 wouldn’t this be worthwhile, even for parts? It would especially be nice in this case to have a look and see how much of a bargain this Stag might really be. Scranton is on the other side of the country, so I won’t be able to look at it, but as always I look forward to your comments and all the knowledge you generously share!
I’ll pass but I’d like to know the story on the Renault in the background.
If you’re gonna swap out the engine, why bother with the Land Rover v8 (unless it just bolts right in, I’m not sure on that) when you could go to a small block Ford with some speed equipment or a Cadillac North Star v8 should fit nicely, and 5 speed conversions are easy to find
I’m kind of in shock. A Cadillac North Star engine will fit in there? I’m better off not thinking that that kind of thing is possible…a guy can get in trouble that way….
Id drop a warmed up small block Mopar / 727 there and keep the interior & exterior stock
Cadillac North Star is a great motor as long as you know about their little quirks. There are some definite procedures that must be followed when rebuilding them or they won’t last. Don’t try to use a 2000 or later as the engine is interwoven into the car’s electronics too much to make it run as a stand alone unit. There are a few websites that deal especially with this motor and have a lot of info.
I was told the problem with the Stag motor was not all the head studs are parallel requiring the angled ones to be unscrewed using a screw driver before one can remove the head. Over time, the aluminum heads corrode around these studs and are all but impossible to remove. Maybe a Stag expert can confirm this?
Soooo glad this is on the other side of the country. I know nothing about these but a stylish convertible with a back seat certainly scores some points in my book. That said, I remember my dad’s TR6 and the frequent repairs it required and question whether I really am ready to take something like this on. Fortunately, the distance keeps the question at bay. Looks like fun.
Sacrilege.. I know.. but were these cars ever desireable?