MG-Cars.net

Welcome to our resource for MG Car Information.

Recommendations

Parts

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 - Soliciting Educated Guesses

MGA 1500 Coupe with recently rebuilt 1600 engine. Suddenly exhibiting poor acceleration/power in 3rd and 4th gear at and above 2200rpm's. Particularly noticeable when driveing up-hill. Ideas?

Thanks in advance,
M.D.
'57 Coupe
M. D.

Electrical, associated with the distributor: not clamped tight (timing slipped), Points closed up, or vacuum pipe disconnected.

Lateral thinking from a similar thread last year with a Renault 4, or 5: newspaper loose in the engine compartment enveloping the airfilters as RPM increases!

Steve
Steve Gyles

You have no power under load. Assuming that the engine is the culprit, this could be a number of things, from poor fuel deliveryto bad spark plugs to incorrect timing/vacuum advance. If your engine seems to accelerate but the car doesn't you are looking at a clutch problem. I would first do a complete tune-up, and go from there. Good luck.
mike parker

search the mgb tech archives using uphill and engine as keywords. there are several long threads concerning this problem.
Fred H

SU carbs show notoriously poor acceleration when the dampers run out of oil, but generally have good power once the revs are up. Probably not this, but really easy to check and correct if necessary.

Cheers - - Alec

.
Alec Darnall

Did the engine run well at any time after the rebuild? How long did it sit during the rebuild process? You might check the carbs to determine if they are gummed up from a long lay-up.
Otherwise, start with the basics, check compression, ignition timing and advance, carb settings and cleanliness.
How old is the fuel in the tank?
Good luck,
Pete
Pete W.

All:

I had the same thought as Alec, and checked the carb dampers last night. The damper oil seemed a bit low, so I topped-up both. I took the car for a quick spin this morning before work and there was a huge improvement in accelleration on the flats. I didn't have an opportunity to drive uphill yet, but I suspect that the low damper oil was either the sole problem or a contributing factor.

It's funny because I'm pretty good about checking the damper oil. When the damper oil is appropriately filled, how far into the dashpot should you feel "resistance" against the damper?

Thanks for all your input.

M.D.
'57 Coupe
M. D.

Pete:

Our posts must have crossed in cyberspace. I have about 650 miles on the rebuilt engine and have not had a significant problem until now. The engine had been running very strong. My only issue has been the carb jet getting stuck and reducing idle speed (to the point of stalling at idle). I have oiled the jet with graphite oil to resolve that problem, but I have only had intermittent luck with that.
M. D.

A clogged fuel filter is a good first place to look for loss of power under load.
Tom

This thread was discussed between 24/07/2006 and 27/07/2006

MG MGA index

This thread is from the archive. The Live MG MGA BBS is active now.