[Bmcu] Spridget info

[adamant at xmission.com]

Well the answer (if anyone cared to look 8^) ) was 1974!

If anyone is planning any casual fall drives, let us all know. As for
me, well I can't drive too slow or my intercooler gets too hot (well
thats my excuse anyway).
Cheers All,
Adam.

Quoting "Mark J. Bradakis" <mark at bradakis.com>|

> Boy, you'd think I'd know when British Leyland started putting the Spit
> motor in the Midget, but off hand I don't know which year, whether or
> not it coincided with rubber bumpers.
>
> Anyway, the 1500 wasn't the best Spitfire motor, but it wasn't bad.
> There were some crank oiling issues and localized hot spots in that
> block casting but nothing serious.  The 1500 did share the problem
> of having the thrust washers fall out if folks didn't pay attention to
> wear, just like like the other Spitfire, Herald, GT6, TR6 motors.
>
> The general consensus seems to be that the failure rate of these motors
> was higher in the Midgets than the Spitfires for two reasons.  First off,
> they didn't like having to serve time in an inferior car ;-)  But more
> important was the basic design difference.  In the seperate frame and
> body of the Spitfire, there was plenty of breathing room in the engine
> bay for the motor.
>
> In the closer confines of the unibody Midgets, keeping cool air flowing
> around the block was difficult, so the motors tended to run hotter and
> trash more rod bearings, thrust washers and such.
>
> But in general the long stroke of the  1500 motor lends itself to low
> and midrange torque better than the other three Spitfire motors ( the
> 1147, the 1296 and the 1296) and makes a decent street motor, and
> as the Killer Spit has demonstrated in the past a decent autocross
> engine.  But for racing, the small journal 1296 is still the best bet.
>
> Gee, most folks are nodding off, I better shut up now and move on
> to other topics.
>
> mjb.
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