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MG Midget and Sprite Technical - Front radiator mounts and cooling woes!

Hello,
I have just finished rebuilding my MG midget 1500 engine to a fairly serious race spec, so the next issue I have is going to be cooling, having done away with the belt driven fan I now have an electric fan and controller.

The trouble is I feel like with that tiny standard radiator, the fan is going to be working flat out all the time to keep it cool?

I managed to get my hands on an MGB radiator that I could possibly shoe-horn in there, the trouble is the old narrow radiator mounts are in the way and they are looking fairly structural too...? anyone know what effect it would have if I were to shop these out and fit a wider radiator?

Cheers, mike. :)
Mike Banton

Hi,

When you say race spec what exactly do you mean?

What is the intended purpose for the car?

the fan only helps when stationary or under say about 15mph

more info needed!

Danny
d cusworth

Have you driven it ?

At anny speed above 30mph the fan is useless as the flow of air of the driving speed is higher than the fan can create.

first drive it see if you run in to trouble.
If you encounter trouble fix it.
As long as you keep a close eye on the temp gauge and stop when it nears boiling you will not wreck anny thing.
Onno Könemann

that's a good point about the above 30mph thing, hadn't considered that.

the engine has, lightened flywheel and balanced bottom end, head skim, twin webers, free-flow exhaust manifold, unleaded conversion, 123 ignition and a fast road cam.

i haven't driven him yet, still in a million pieces on my garage shelves, i just wanted to get the cooling sorted, as the thought of a radiator the size of an A4 bit of paper cooling my engine worries me a bit?!
Mike Banton

I wouldn't think that spec engine is going to give you any cooling problems in the UK. Well, not unless you are planning on spending hot summer days stationary for hours on the M25. Its not unduly uprated. For normal driving the standard rad with electric fan should be fine.

Just be aware that on the 1500, if the coolant level is low, the temperature gauge will suddenly drop as it is left "high and dry". Its rather the opposite of what you might expect from an overheating engine!
Guy

What you are proposing is a very nice fast road engine, not a race engine. if you are using it on the road, you will use full throttle for very short bursts, a standard cooling system in good condition will be fine. the electric fan, if well installed, will be a welcome upgrade. If you want to upgrade the rad for more cooling capacity you can have extra cores fitted to your standard rad, or fit a metro or early polo rad, both of which will fit after a lot of messing around. don't forget to fit an oil cooler with a thermostat (available from "think automotive") this will also help you shed heat.

as Guy said, just drive it and see and fix any problems you have, you can spend a lot of time and money solving problems you do not have!
d cusworth

sorry, my bad that was a slip of the tongue (keyboard?!)
I meant to say fast road specification.

interesting about fitting the extra cores and other rads though, something to definitely keep in mind for the future.
i have already purchased an oil filter with a thermostat, so hopefully it will all be wonderful.

thanks a lot guys, you have been really helpful, much appreciated :)

i have just about 1,000 other questions but I suppose that's a suject for another thread...
Mike Banton

Although most Midget racers have A series engines, a number of OEM radiators seem to be used successfully. These include MGF, VW Polo and Vauxhall Nova which should be easy to obtain.

HTH
Doug Plumb

For what it's worth, the radiator on US-spec 1500s is larger than that on home models. Mine, for example, extends for about three inches past the shroud on the RH side of the car.

Maybe you could fit a US rad instead for the additional capacity.

-:G:-
Gryf Ketcherside

This thread was discussed between 06/02/2011 and 09/02/2011

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