In a message dated 2/15/98 9:24:25 AM PST, mikesl@tartan.sapc.edu writes:
<< Wasn't the 1800 engine used in the 'B originally intended to see use in a
truck? Or
am I dreaming? >>
The 'B' series engine was an early postwar design derived from a prewar engine
used in trucks and sedans. It was in 1200 cc form to begin with, in Austin
sedans and lorries from 1947, and in the early fifties grew, with a fair bit
of redesign, to 1489 cc as used in the Magnette and again, miscellaneous
Austins. The first car it made it into was the ZA Maggot in 1953, while the
Wolseley 4/44 with the same body had to continue with the old XPAG engine
(with the result that most of them are long dead - their engines removed by
'T' series owners).
This engine was tuned for the MGA and went through various incarnations as
1588 pushrod and Twincam, 1622, and the 3-main MGB with larger main bearing
diameter, before reaching it's final form in 1965 as a 5 main bearing version.
>From there it was all down hill, with the final rubber bumper MGB (more
appropriately these could be called Marina Sports!) having less horsepower and
performance than the MGA 20 years before.
The engines always continued to be used in commercial and farm vehicles, and
the 1622 version, for instance, was used in tractors long after they were
discontinued even in the cars made in India (eg the Hindustan). Just about any
version of the engines, with the exception of the 1588 size, which was only
used in the MGA pushrod and Twincam, could be found in some more mundane use,
although I don't think that I have seen any 3-main MGB commercials - perhaps
because it was short-lived and they waited and went directly to the 5-main.
Anyone else seen a 3 main in anything other than the sports cars?
The stroke was not, as far as I know ever varied, and all of the variants had
89 mm cranks in them, but the blocks were recast to allow bigger bores and,
later, larger and more main saddles. If it's of any interest, the 'C' series
engines also had 89 (really 88.9) mm stroke, but the 'A' series had many
different shorter strokes, and the little seen 'D' series a longer stroke.
Better stop now - could go on for ages on details probably of interest to 6
people on earth, of which only one (me) is on this group.
Bill S.
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