Michael Graziano <mgrazian@ltcm.com> wrote:
>OK my curiosity's been aroused. My midget is a '78 with the tr@#$@#ph
>1500 engine. When I looked at John Gottstein's '75 (formerly Carl
>Elliotts), it had loads of emissions crap on it including an air pump.
>My engine not only doesn't have all that crap, but it doesn't have the
>access points for the crap. My engine serial number is located just
>below the No. 4 cylinder on the driver's side (Don't remember the No
>offhand, but will look tonight).
>Is this the original MG engine, or had someone swapped in an older
>tr@@$@#$ph engine? My original thought was that John's was a
>California car.
All rubber bumper Midgets have a "Triumph" engine in them. The 1498cc
"1500" is derived from the earlier Spit engine, and used in the later
Spitfires and Midgets. British Leyland considered it a wise move
to only smog one under 1.5 litre 4 banger. One paper, the 1500 is
a better engine than the 1275 A series. It has an aluminium head,
one port per cylinder, etc, but it began life around 800cc's. Nearly
double that displacement, reliability is a concern. 1500's are well
known for barfing up the #3 con-rod. This isn't to say that they can't
be made to run. There's a fellow here in San Diego who autocrosses
a 1500 Spit in DSP and routinely turns times as fast as the AS cars.
I'll be he inspects the lower end every season though.
As far as the emission stuff is concerced, a lot of folks pull it
off. We've got two 1500 Midgets on the Team, a '75 and a '79 and
neither was acquired with much smog gear.
-Keith Wheeler
Team Sanctuary http://www.teamsanctuary.com/
with much in the way
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