Black EFI head onto Red 186. 4 new water jacket holes?

[Damon]

Hey guys, just about to fit a black 202 EFI head to my 186 red.   Woooo-Hoooo! Cant wait!  Power and economy (I hope) 

I am about to drill the 4 water jacket holes in the block, but I have a couple of questions. Hope you guys can help?

1. The  4 new holes are pretty well documented in previous posts but I am wondering why is there no hole required between Cylinder 1 and cylinder 2.   My black head has 5 cast holes in it. Why do I drill only 4 holes in the block?

2. Do I really need to block off the 4 original 'red motor' holes?  I have read sammy's old holden work guide, and it says that "some people do, and some don't".  What have you guys done? Pros and cons?

Can anybody help please?   

Cheers, Damon.

[smithy]

hi damon, i have done this swap myself and the easist way to check the hole location is to lay the 202 black head gasket onto the block and use this as a template for your holes. the hole between 1st and 2nd cylinder only appears on the gasket, (plug side of head) and sits outside the head area. you can still see this hole and gasket when the head is on. this had me confused for a while also, i had tried the gasket in every position just to double check.
it may have something to do with the way the 202 block is set up, maybe someone could confirm this for us?
i assume your are using the 12 port head?

i actually just looked at the pic again and it never really occured to me.
i was told that you only need the 4 holes and to use the gasket as template, didnt even look for the other one

i take it you have seen this photo


as far as blocking the old holes off, i have spoken with a couple of people over this including a ex racer and they assured me that the head gasket would be sufficient in blocking the holes off, but if you really wanted to be safe just tap the old holes and insert a grub screw.

let me know how you go.

what sort of ECU are you going to run, as i said i have done this swap but am yet to start the car, but i can help with setup advice or suggestions

good luck
dean

[Damon]

Hiya Smithy,
                 yep, I'm using a Black 12 port head from a VK crummydore.  The reason I was asking about the need for a hole between pot 1 and 2, is that I have heard so many different stories. I even read somewhere on the net that you only have to drill 3 holes.  I guess that 3 holes may also work, but wanted to  use the most common meathod just to be sure.

I pulled the head from an old red motor lat night and did the gasket comparison thing that you suggested, and worked out that the 4 outer holes in the block,(the ones that get blocked off), don't have the material on the head to support the full hole.  I am going to drill and tap 3/8 BSPT threads and use a socket head water plug (tapered).  This will sit just slightly below the surface of the block, so that the water pressure from the block doesent even get to the gasket.

As far as the ECU goes, I will just be using the standard Bosh unit.  Maybe later I will play with a more advanced tunable unit, but for now I just want to get the conversion done with minimum hassles as I drive the car daily.  (luckily I have a borrowed car for next week).

The most difficult thing about the whole conversion will be hooking up a cable to operate my 2 Speed powerglide transmission. (you may have seen my post). 

Should have some news in a week or so, I'll let you know how it all goes.

Cheers, Damon.