Finally! After almost two months of down time, my MGB is back on the
road again. Despite my best efforts to get it done in time for
Saturday's Dayton British Car day, it wasn't until 6 o'clock yesterday
that I got it going. For TNITK (those not in the know) this is the
'74 MGB I was planning to drive from Dayton to Myrtle Beach back in
June, when not two days before leaving I discovered it was going
through a lot of oil. Further inspection revealed metal on a spark
plug. I turns out I had a broken piston/ring.
Anyway after several weeks of setbacks such as thinking I had the
wrong sized rings, finding out I did have the wrong size rod bearings,
and then getting the correct sized bearings that were pitted; I
finally got everything straightened out. Last Thursday I got pistons
and bearings in, the big ends bolted on, and the &^$*ing pain in the
butt oil pan bolted on (the engine was in the car). Friday I got the
head back on and the new engine mounts in, but by about 9 o'clock
I was just too worn out to continue, so I gave up until yesterday,
spending Saturday at the car show. Yesterday I got the carbs &
exhaust hooked up, flushed out the oil cooler to remove any bits of
piston that might be hiding in there, and put the alternator back in.
After getting everything hooked up, refilled, and the valves adjusted,
it was do-or-die time. I disconnected the coil and started cranking.
After 10 secs. there was no oil pressure. None after twenty. Still
ZERO after about a minute. "Oh God," I thought, "what did I screw
up?" A quick check under the hood revealed nothing, so I went back to
cranking. Finally, to my releif, pressure started coming up. Time
for the moment of truth, I hooked up the coil and turned it over.
Chugg-chugga-vrrRROOOMMM! Second turn of the key! I sat there and
revved it for a while, but then I couldn't contain myself any longer
and backed out of the garage and drove around the neighborhood. It
runs great! Possibly better than it ever has (though I always think
that after it runs after not running for a while :-)
I guess I have essentially rebuilt the engine, last summer I had the
head reworked and replaced the timing chain, this summer I did the
rings and bearings. I just hope it lasts for a while. I did learn a
lot from this -- gravity still works (I managed to wack myself in the
face with a torque wrench while underneath.) I also managed to fry my
alternator when I hooked it up wrong. Oops. Luckily I have a spare.
I must say the battery in there is pretty damn strong, it sat for
almost two months, had no problem cranking the engine for a couple
minutes, and then I drove the car about 25 miles without a working
alternator and it is still going strong. Of course after over a month
of beautiful sunny skies while I had no roadster, it is now pouring out :-(
Anyway, this has gotten long enough. I'd like to thank everyone for
their electroinic help and encouragement. For those who think that
lbc's are unreliable because you see posts like mine talking about
broken cars, I am convinced that this entire episode is a PO's fault.
I think the rings were replaced without getting rid of the ridge in
the cylinder, as three out of the four pistons had a broken top ring.
See ya on the road,
Bob
p.s. Saturday I mentioned to Alison that if I got it running we could
go up the MG summer party in Michigan. Sunday after I got the B
running she asked if I still want to go. Is it too late to register?
Am I really foolish enough to drive 7 hours with an untested recent sudo
rebuild? Who else is going and what is the itinery?
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