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MG MGB GT V8 Factory Originals Technical - 1995 Rover 4.2

Hi All,
I have acquired a 1995 4.2L rover V8 engine. I understand the water pump is mounted "higher" than on the SD1's due to a different shaped front cover. Will it fit in the MG as is or will I need to change the front cover to an SD1 type, if so what else will I need to change?
Regards
Tony
Tony Bates

im not sure if you need to change it but if you want to, to get more room between the front of the engine and the radiator, youll have to get a different timing cover, and water pump, and get a spacer made to put the front pulley back as well. i know D+D has these spacers. the front cover can come from a buick/olds 215, rover SD1, or early buick v6 231. same goes for the waterpump. youd probably have to relocate the alternator as well, but also might be able to run a cooling fan with the increased space. just a couple of thoughts to throw out there.
jake

Jake-

I run a 4.2 in a 1974 1/2 GT. I used a 215 front cover, Buick harmonic balancer & Buick lower pulley. The water pump is a Buick V6, water pump pulley is a chrome aftermarket Chevy with the bolt holes re-drilled. I got the pulley from either Glenn Towery or D & D, don't remember which. No spacers were required. I use a GM alternator on a home made bracket, but both Towery & D & D should have brackets.

If you use a T-5 tranny, you will need a spacer for the transmission, as the 4.2 crank is longer at the rear, & the input shaft of the tranny will put enough pressure on the crank to lock up the engine. Talk to D & D about a spacer between the bell housing & tranny, make a spacer between the block & bell housing, or have 3/8" cut off the input shaft.

The Rover 5-speed & Rover bell housing need no mods to bolt up.
Jim Stuart

for some reason i thought the front of the later crank was longer too. oh well, should probably know what im talking about before i try and answer questions. thanks for the clarifications, jim.
jake
jake

Hi Jim and Jake,
Jim, what was the reason for all the changes to the front cover? My car is a 74 chrome roadster so I know I have to move the radiator forwards but are you saying that even then I will need your changes to provide "space" between the front of the engine and the rear of the radiator? Do you have an engine mounted fan as well as electric pusher fans?
BTW, yes I am using a GM T-5, I didn't know about the longer crank issues, is it easier to put a spacer in or chop the end of the shaft down?
Regds
Tony
Tony Bates

Tony,
The others haven't answered and I get the impression that you're at the very begining stage. I wouldn't pretend to be an expert on MG V8 conversions but I've managed to get to the finishing stages. The motor, gearbox, radiator & fan are all in and I can actualy close the Hood!. May I suggest waiting until you get to the point of trial fitting the motor before going out and buying lots of front cover type parts. You can then see how much (or how little) room you've got and what you're going to do about it. With a chrome bumper you're going to have to reshape/cut back that panel in front of the main (water) radiator that the oil radiator attaches to (I don't know its official name, "front tray?"). Since you are doing this anyway,(as well as a little bulkhead reshaping) you might conceivably be able to cut enough room for your existing front cover/water pump pully etc. , it's going to depend on your final engine location etc. Since your steering box is on the LHS you might be able to get the oil filter to fit. With RHS steering (England/Australia) there is no way and you need the earlier front cover so that you may fit the RV8 style pump and remote oil filter. If you have to use the earlier front you can't have the oil pump on the front of the crank, hence you have to either shorten the crank (as you suggested) or use a spacer to make up for the absence of said pump because otherwise the crank stands proud of the pully.
See if you can get hold of Roger Williams book on V8 conversions, and also Roger Parkers excellent artical is at least as necessary. (could some one provide a link?, I don't know how to do this)

Good luck with this.
Peter

The 4.2 Rover & later Rover engines had a much different front cover than the SDI & GM engines. It has a serpentine drive system, gerator oil pump driven by the crank, reverse rotation water pump.

While it is possible to fit an engine with this cover, it is much more difficult than using the traditional old style cover. Mods include relocating the steering rack about 2", modifying the front cross member, dealing with a horrible amount of plumbing.

It can be done, I have done it, but not recommended as an easy project.
Jim Stuart

Hi All,
Is all the crossmember work/relocating the steering rack because of the oil pump? Would a remote oil filter solve the problem or am I just being naiive?
Regards
Tony
Tony Bates

Tony,
Where the Oil filter screws on in RHD cars lines up exactly with the most protruding bolt on the highest point of the steering box, it's almost as if they did it deliberatly!. In LHD cars you might be just be able to fit the oil filter over the steering rack (maybe), which will save you some expence.
Because of bonnet (hood) clearance you are going to need to get the motor as low as you can go. You've got three main problems doing this;
There is the physical limitation of the 'V" of the motor fitting between the mounts. Next the steering rack and the oil filter want to occupy the same space (possibly less of a problem for Americans, I'm guessing here, never having seen a LHD MGB V8). Lastly for serpentine belt systems the bottom pully and your chrome bumper steering rack also wish to coenside. I looked at fitting a late serpentine cover etc..(motor came with) and concluded that it was possible to do if you really really really wanted to, how ever as Jim says, not the easiest aproach. Also to my eyes the serpentine belt and its tensioner looks messy compared to the usual arrangment.It really is much easier to get an earlier front cover. Also in America you have all those options with various GM front covers.
You realy should try to get hold of that book (or rather books, there's a second). Lots of photographs and diagrams. "How to give your MG V8 power" by Roger Williams. Failing that, trawl through the achives of this site which frequently have links to similiar or sometimes even better.
Peter

This thread was discussed between 15/11/2002 and 21/11/2002

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