Sorry Rick, I did not keep your original post, so do not have the engine
number you are trying to check. Following is some general information about
the US Fed spec Marina engine.
This may be pertinent, and clear up some confusion.
In the US the most likely replacement, non-MGB 5 main block or engine is
going to be the Marina. (There are a few gold seal factory rebuilt engines
around, and there are also a few rebuilt units of dubious heritage that came
from other vendors in the UK.)
The Marina engine was readily available, as the cars were not very well
received. Many ended up in scrap yards due to lack of spares, or repairs.
In many cases the only part salvaged was the engine which usually could be
refurbished with rings and rod bearings. The federal spec Marina engine was
identical to the 73-74 18V MGB engine except that the crankshaft had a
smaller id pilot hole. In some cases the crank had the large MGB id pilot
with a steel bushing fitted. It is my understanding that all 18V cranks
were pressure cast in the new production facility, but I am open to
contradiction. (I'm not certain about cam specs, and don't have parts books
readily to hand. The distributor was different, as the advance curves were
specific to the carburation and vehicle weight).
I'm not aware of any casting differences between the US supplied 18V blocks.
Perhaps "Telewest" is thinking about the Marina oil pan, which had an
extension welded on the bottom which bolted to two bosses on the
transmission bell housing.
The UK spec 1800cc Marina engines were available in a variety of
specifications including Low Comp, High Comp and Twin Carb and were a very
different beast. The 1275cc A series engine was the more popular option in
the UK, so you can imagine the 1800 B series was classed as a hot rod.
I cut my teeth on US Austin Marinas, owning 6 of them and agree with Howard
about their shortcomings, especially the part about the axles wandering out.
Fully built up, the cars were entertaining, but not competitive against the
early Datsun 510s.
ps. Just to let you know what abortions are out there. I was asked to
check on an MGB available for sale by one of the local yards. They had
stuffed a Marina engine into a late model MGB, but could not get the
transmission to fit. They solved the problem by installing an early 3 main,
3 synch transmission behind the motor. The small early pilot shaft solved
the crank id problem. I just about ^(^&% when I figured out what they had
done. The big giveaway was the gear shift lever.
Kelvin. (shaking head at the memory)
> The Marina had two
> > extra lugs cast on the
> > back of the block to mate up with the stronger
> > gearbox, and had a cast crank
> > instead of the forged of the MGB, so certainly would
> > have had different
> > numbers to the MGB. The TC had the same cam as the
> > MGB.
> Greetings,
> I am just wondering which Marina we are referring
> to here. I owned a Marina TC from new in England,1971
> model. This one had the 1800cc engine,twin carb(TC in
> England). The car, TC, was the two door coupe, 13 in
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