Daniel1312@aol.com wrote:
>
> In a message dated 13/5/1999 2:40:14PM, Ajhsys@aol.com writes:
>
> << The A series cars could get close... >>
>
> I think you have to put this comment in perspective. The A series engined
> cars were delibrately NOT fitted with the Cooper S head because they were
> embarrasingly quite compared to the MGB. In other words they made them SLOW
> on purpose.
And the perfect segue to the story of Eddie Maher and the Engine That
Never Was!
In the mid-Sixties -- about the time Spridges were getting 1275s instead
of 1098s -- Honda was making a first pass at a Grand Prix car, and
decided to try making some small sports cars. The S600 and S800 that
developed were roughly Spridget-sized, using jewel-like little
motorcycle engines that put out considerably more power than the 10CG
*or* the 1275 (or even the Triumph 1500 :-).
Geoff Healey, who tells the story, said that they were very worried
about the Honda taking sales away from Spridgets, so they got BMC to
throw a few pounds at them to see what they could come up with. They
borrowed Eddie Maher, one of the racing/rally team members, and had him
put together a new cylinder head which could be bolted onto the A
Series.
Apparently, Eddie did such a good job that the head he came up with not
only made the Spridget faster than the Honda, it also made it faster
than the MGB, and it would even have been easier to produce than the
12G940 head. Honda allegedly got wind of this special head and pulled
the S600 and S800 out of the UK market. With the threat disappearing
before it even arrived, BMC realized they couldn't make a cheap car that
went faster than an expensive one (a decision they'd make again with the
MGB-V8), so Eddie's project was shelved.
Geoff doesn't say anything else about that head, such as whether it was
the inspiration for the eight-port alloy heads used on the Le Mans
Sprites, or even whether it was a crossflow design. I can't imagine
that it was still a five-holer, but you never can tell.
And speaking of cylinder heads, has anyone here used one of the
al-yew-minnie-um heads that Moss (et al.) are advertising in the back of
the latest Spridget catalog? My soon-to-arrive roundarch is said to
have a freshened up motor, so I'm not planning to do anything major to
it for a year or so. But a 9-lb aluminum head (allegedly with 35%
better flow capability, no less) has me thinking of Rimflo valves,
high-ratio rockers, and all the usual tweaks. Many thanks to anyone who
has experiences to share...
--Scott Fisher
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