Jason,
Overdrive is very nice. I drive a 76 B Roadster and drive 150 miles
(round-trip) to my office about 3 times a week and otherwise am not shy about
taking this car on highways. I DO NOT have OD in this car and have no
problems in the 70 to 85 mph range - it hums along quite nicely and provides
plenty of torque. I change the oil every 3,000 miles and occasionally peek
under the hood to see what's happening there. So far, so good. I have been
lead to believe, by knowledgeable others, that the OD will not prolong engine
life or otherwise lessen wear on the engine (it will also not increase your
maximum speed). So I would not "worry" about damaging the engine by not
having an overdrive and I would especially NOT drive the car less - you're
being a worry wart and there are other things that are more important (good
oil, how's the suspension, bushings, brakes????).
Now in my 69 B Roadster and 69 C Roadster I have OD and as I said in the
beginning, OD is very nice. It provides for a much more relaxed highway
driving experience. But understand the reasons to get OD - driving enjoyment
- NOT engine protection. So perhaps you ought to rethink where an OD fits on
the priority list.
Of course, this is what I've been lead to believe and I could be wrong.
Perhaps some folks on the list who have first hand knowledge of these things
will correct or confirm these contentions.
Hope this helps
Dr. Doug
I think it was Jerry Garcia who once said something like "Someone has to do
something and it's incredibly pathetic that it has to be me!"
-----Original Message-----
From: owner-mgs@autox.team.net On Behalf Of Jason
Sent: Monday, January 26, 1998 9:34 AM
To: MG List
Subject: Re: Overdrive Conversion?
Sorry to resubmit, but I never got any answers. Hope I'm not being too much
of a pain, but this 4000 at highway speeds is worrying me. I'd like to
drive it more, but I'm worried that I'll damage the engine.
> Is it possible / plausible to convert my non-overdrive 79 MGB to
> overdrive? My tach reads 4000 at 70 mph. I'd like to get it down some.
> Is 4000 rpms for extended time a big deal? Could I replace the rear end
> gears for a better final ratio?
>
> Jason
> 79 MGB
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