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Beaver · 08-20-2008, 07:34 PM

The old BMC engineering had a far-reaching influence. Many years ago I bought an old 1967 Datsun pickup with a 1300 pushrod engine. It so happened that I was, at the time, rebuilding the engine of a friend's MGB. I couldn't help but notice the profound similarities between the MGB engine and the 1300 in my pickup. Through some research I found that blueprints for the Datsun 12- and 1300's was bought from Austin of England, and they had very many features (and parts) in common. Through the years my Datsun pickup ended up with dual SU carbs, then an MGA 1600 single cam engine, then a hopped-up MGB 1800 with dual SU's and a MG 4-speed with Leycock de Normanville electric overdrive. I had to build a new transmission tunnel out of chicken wire and fiberglass in order to fit that trans in there, but it was worth the trouble, since I had more time than sense back then.
So please understand, I love the old British iron, even while recognizing the funny twists and turns in their engineering, and even being acquainted with Lucas, the Prince of Darkness... :-)

TTFN,
Beaver

08-20-2008, 07:34 PM	#16 (permalink)
Beaver Chronologically Gifted Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Corvallis, Oregon Posts: 42 Base Metro - '96 Geo Metro 90 day: 54.24 mpg (US) Neon ACR - '98 Dodge Neon ACR Banana Slug - '64 Volkswagen Bug Spirit - '92 Toyota Class C Motorhome Winnebago Itasca 90 day: 17.26 mpg (US) Thanks: 8 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post	Stodgy but lovable British iron... The old BMC engineering had a far-reaching influence. Many years ago I bought an old 1967 Datsun pickup with a 1300 pushrod engine. It so happened that I was, at the time, rebuilding the engine of a friend's MGB. I couldn't help but notice the profound similarities between the MGB engine and the 1300 in my pickup. Through some research I found that blueprints for the Datsun 12- and 1300's was bought from Austin of England, and they had very many features (and parts) in common. Through the years my Datsun pickup ended up with dual SU carbs, then an MGA 1600 single cam engine, then a hopped-up MGB 1800 with dual SU's and a MG 4-speed with Leycock de Normanville electric overdrive. I had to build a new transmission tunnel out of chicken wire and fiberglass in order to fit that trans in there, but it was worth the trouble, since I had more time than sense back then. So please understand, I love the old British iron, even while recognizing the funny twists and turns in their engineering, and even being acquainted with Lucas, the Prince of Darkness... :-) TTFN, Beaver __________________ "Life is like a 10-speed bike. Most of us have gears we never use." -- Linus