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MG parts spares and accessories are available for MG T Series (TA, MG TB, MG TC, MG TD, MG TF), Magnette, MGA, Twin cam, MGB, MGBGT, MGC, MGC GT, MG Midget, Sprite and other MG models from British car spares company LBCarCo.

MG MGA - Restart went pretty well, but some observations..

Six weeks into pulling , refreshing, and sealing my engine, and replacing my clutch assembly and associated parts, it was finally time for initial restart.....
Suprisingly, after NOT filling the spin on oil filter,
but filling the rear oil cooler hose, and the oil-pressure gauge hose, it took only three 30 second cranks, to get the oil pressure up to 70 lbs (with the plugs out, and the coil disconnected).
I was happy to see that the new radiator fan shroud, did not get nicked by the fan....It was a royal pain to install,(mainly due to having to pull out and re-install the vent hoses), but , hopefully will be worth the effort.
Was disappointed by the new radiator drain valve , from Moss....Looked beautiful, but began a slow drip from the lever spring, as soon as coolant hit it...My whole reason for replacing, was a slow drip from the old one.
Brand new battery cut-off switch (purchased locally), failed to produce any power....Removed, it was found to be defective...(How aggravating!)...
The first spigot bushing that I bought (from an MGA specialy house...you probably know), did not come close to fitting the input shaft...But the one from Moss was right on...Shipping eats you alive in these situations.
I had already mentioned , in another thread, that the "O" rings , supplied by Moss , do not allow any movement of the carb jets, so don't waste your money...I used the cork ones that come in the kit, and they work fine.
My first throwout-arm boot (from an MGA specialty house), tore itself to shreds, with the attempt to install it...The weak point is in the folds...very thin!...Even with heating the rubber, and using lots of vaseline, I could not get it on....The second one, from an ebay supplier, was much "stouter", and took the abuse....I would suggest installing with a screwdriver on each side of the "mouth", then stretching, and sliding it on.
One more thing...Cost of high quality synthetic gear oil for the transmission is RIDICULOUS!...Three quarts=$48 ! (AMSOIL)....
Anyway, the big test is tomorrow, when I restart the engine , and attempt to get it in tune...Wish me luck.
Edward

P.S.
Thanks Barney for your suggestion to pull the engine without the tranny....All went well, but took four of us to get everything lined up....(Looked like the three stooges, with a helper!)
Edward Wesson 60MGA

Ed, a couple comments:
RE: radiator valve...now you know why the MGB has NO valve. Put a plug in it...
RE: Synthetic Tranny oil...If you are running a stock transmission I would not recommend it. Use recommended 30 weight. Yeah, can be a pain in cold weather. A T9, yeah, its required.
Merry Christmas!
GTF
G T Foster

GT
It's hypoid gear oil....I have used it in three other MG's without problems....Shifts seem to be smoother, and tranny is less noisy.
Edward
Edward Wesson 60MGA

Ed,

Why not call out the "MGA specialty house" that provided bad parts...help the rest of us avoid the hassle.

Gene
Gene Gillam

My experience of hypoid oil in the gearbox is that it runs a great deal hotter than with standard oil. As the recommended oil works fine and runs cooler, I don't understand why a change to hypoid would be beneficial
dominic clancy

I thought hypoid wasn't compatible with the brass synchros in an MGA gearbox due to the sulpher content.
John DeWolf

Dominic
How do you know it runs hotter? I had never heard or read that....
I usually use Redline MT-90, but this time , I didn't want to pay the ridiculous shipping cost involved....
85-90 gear oil is actually equal to 30 wt motor oil in consistency...(At least according to information that I have gleaned on line)....

Gene
So many folks on this forum seem to be in love with that supplier, I didn't want to feel the wrath!
I purchased a bunch of other parts from them, that I wasn't impressed with, including a transmission drain plug that was obviously used, and the wrong size...
(Never got my money back from that one, even though I returned it).
With all four of my MG's, I had so many bad new parts, that I now expect them to be bad, and then I'm pleasantly surprised when they are not.

John
Hmmmm....never heard that one...Where is that information found?

Edward
Edward Wesson 60MGA

John
Just went to the Amsoil web site....One of the specific characteristics of the synthetic gear oil is :
"It protects brass synchonizers"....

Edward
Edward Wesson 60MGA

On the subject of bad replacement parts, I see in the first message here mention of five different parts with problems, but no mention of any effort or intention of contacting the supplier(s) for a resolution.

The first order of business for a bad part is to contact the supplier for a resolution of the issue. If the issue is then resolved, there is no reason to ever mention it in public, other than to grant kudos to the supplier for resolving the issue. If the supplier refuses to resolve the issue to your satisfaction, then it is appropriate to post it to a public forum to pursue the matter farther. If you don't care to contact the supplier about the parts issues, that means you like the part, so what are you complaining about? Contact this forum AFTER you have contacted the supplier, and let us know if there is still a problem. Don't expect anyone else to lift a finger in your behalf if you refuse to act in your own best interest.
Barney Gaylord

Barney
Ouch!
First, yes , I have contacted suppliers in all but the last case....
Moss has always been good about replacing or crediting
parts issues....
The "other" supplier, has not resolved two of the replacement issues....I plan on following up , again, to see if I can get it resolved.
What I am really complaining about is the lack of quality replacement parts, not necessarily the suppliers of those parts....
They are at the mercy of the manufacturers....I am basically venting about quality, and how aggravating it is to go through the effort of replacing parts , only to see that they are as bad or worse than the old, broken part.
I never just accept a bad part , without letting the supplier know.
Edward
Edward Wesson 60MGA

> So many folks on this forum seem to be in love with
> that supplier, I didn't want to feel the wrath!

So what? It isn't like they can actually do anything to you for speaking ill of God's Gift to the MGA, who has wasted your time, effort, and money with bad parts. You won't be getting any of that back, but you can maybe cost them a little future business in return, while saving somebody else the headache. And it doesn't really cost you anything other than your time.
Del Rawlins

Us guys in Australia want you to name names when you find bad parts and suppliers because in our case returning goods is not always an option due to freight costs.
Mike
Mike Ellsmore

The first step to stem the sale of faulty parts is to return the bad parts and see if the supplier has a suitable solution for the problem and/or will stop selling the faulty parts. If not, then report the problem and the supplier's name in public, so other people can avoid buying the bad parts. We can't boycott the bad parts if we don't know the source, so do tell.
Barney Gaylord

This thread was discussed between 18/12/2013 and 22/12/2013

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