My L.E. 'O' series Project (LEO)
I have just managed to pick up a complete 'Monty' turbo engine :D:D so once collected (so far I've got a wing in Doncaster,a gearbox in Norwich,the sd1 'O' series in Cardiff and this latest purchase in Wokingham-the joys of eBay) I can start to see which bits will go together
Only one thing to say really.......your mad:D Will it be ready for Abingdon then:D
Definitely but you didn't say which year or century for that matter;);)
Am I right in thinking the O Series was an evolution of the B series with the top end reworked? Not sure where I picked up that nugget.
Yep...The block for the O series was derived from the B hence things like bolt holes,crank dimension (inc location) etc are all the same and as such should all bolt together with the engine back plate from a sherpa van. The sherpa had, in its early days, a version of the B series OD gearbox mated to the O series engine. This was latterly changed to the LT77 as per the SD1 2000 by simply changing the engine backplate.
Nice one Colin, going another step braver with an not so common conversion.
You going to be fully re-building the block before it goes in, or get it in, running and then see what the future holds?
Any other upgrades for the gearbox?
Hi Pete
It's natural progression and following what the MG factory would have done in 1982.
Once I've trial fitted it then it will all be rebuilt-hopefully with oversize pistons to 2100cc. As the montego block is handed the opposite way to the SD1 I may well be using a mixture of both to achieve the end result.
As far as the gearbox goes I am hoping that if I follow suit with the V8 box (e.g let it thoroughly warm up, be gentle in 1st and second plus avoid hitting overdrive 3rd on full throttle) that it will last well-if not then it will be easy to replace
O Series?
Can distinctly remember someone in the MG Owners Club magazine putting one of these lumps into a B, thinking it was a 2 litre EFI. Think he had some problems with clearance with the bottom crank pulley on the front crossmember if I remember righty.
Can't see any other clearance problems, plenty of room either side of the engine for the carbs etc, just whether there is enough room downwards for all the turbo manifold etc. Are all the carbs and turbo moutned like a B, all on the same side of the head (right in saying that is a cross-flow design?!)
Suppose you wont really know until its suspended in the bay off a engine crane!
And is this lump going into theat Pewter Grey GT you bought?
Oh and there is a brand new T Series Lump on E-Bay for sale....... put a few crazy ideas in my head for some strange reason?!
Yes It will be going into the L.E. as it is fitting that it should go into the last of the cars to leave Abingdon, especially as the O series (inc turbo) would have been fitted to cars in 1982.
The biggest problem is that the O2 (montego/maestro) version's head is opposite handed to that of the B. Plus the distributor is on the end of the cam. The Sherpa/Sd1 above is the same as the B's plus the distributor is in a better location.
The other issue with the later engine is that the oil pump is designed with the filter pionting downwards (which fouls the crossmember) wheras the earlier pump has the filter at 90 degrees. It is possible to swap some of these over although at some stage the crank diameter was increased so this is not possible-won't know if this is the case til I get both lumps though. Also the turbo has larger diameter pump vanes than any other O series so I am hoping that the standard early pump can be machined to suit the turbos internals.
As far as the rest of the fitting goes it should be a lot simpler to fit (once I have designed/fabricated the engine mounts) with good clearance for the the turbo-although the overall height of the engine is more than a B plus the carb is set at more of an angle resulting in it being closer to the bonnet (it may well be possible to drop the engine lower into the bay though. The biggest challange is fitting a decent size intercooler in an unseen location, along with the relevent pipework.
A lot of people have used the T series as it does breathe better/is more readily available (the monty lump is difficult to find and expensive when you do) but my objective is to produce (like the V8 in the Jube) what should/would have been also by having different engines in each car will, hopefully, have its own unique feel. I am also doing this as a tribute to Don Hayter (don't worry he's fine) who was heavily involved with the project back in the 1970's and who I see regularly at MGCC meetings and hopefully when finished we'll do an article together.
Here's a photo of the turbo
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I'm impressed with how tidy your bench is! Presently mine has developed woodworm......however there is so much stuff on it you wouldn't know. Maybe I should start a thread called "How Bad is your Bench" 🙂