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MG MGB Technical - Patriot short header

Has anyone had any experiece with the short Patriot headers that also fit the Nash Metropolitan? Moss sells them, but I bought mine On Ebay. First set had terrible welds, the seller contacted Patriot and had them replaced. These seem ok and are Jethot coated. I offered them up to my alloy head and they seem to fit very close(contact) to the oil pan/block interface. Any comments appreciated.

M.A. Barrera

Wow, dead silence...maybe this was not a good choice of header for my 'B'....
M.A. Barrera

I think they are just new and not many people have used them yet.

I just did a setup for a guy and we used this header in that build. I don't have any feed-back from him yet, but I did like the way the header was build and it seemed like a high quality piece. It had very satisfactory welds and seemed to fit just fine (no contact anywhere). I will say that the one I got seemed to be MUCH better in quality than any Peco header we've ever used, but I don't have performance results yet and that's the only one I've ever had experience with.

Sean
Sean Brown

I would be upset if 1) welds were poor and 2) contact with engine other than where it bolts to head...I haven't noticed or heard of problems with ally heads so I assume the manifold is wrong? Where can I see some piccies of the manifolds?

We have been using Maniflow manifolds and systems for a while, pricey but well made.

Peter
peter burgess

Peter, I think this is the exhaust Manifold in question:-

http://www.mossmotors.com/Shop/ViewProducts.aspx?PlateIndexID=44026&SortOrder=1

I'm no expert but have often read that the best exhaust manifold is the long center branch (LCB) design such as this:-

http://www.mossmotors.com/Shop/ViewProducts.aspx?PlateIndexID=29839&SortOrder=1

I've also read often, that it's not easy to improve on the standard cast iron manifold/tubular headpipe, which is very similar to an LCB manifold, other than the materials used.

IMHO

Derek Nicholson

Thanks Derek. Yes, this the same header and the set I have does have good welds. I will have to bolt up the header to the head to get a true idea of where and how close it comes to the engine. What would be a reasonable distance? Peter, after reading your book on MGB engine tuning, its a really pleasure to have contact with you through this medium. As far as I know, only APT in California sells Maniflow. Intake manifolds for sure, don't know about exhaust manifolds. Intake looks so simple in design but is very pricey--around $275.00.

Sean, did your customer have an alloy or stock head and did you have any clearance issues?
M.A. Barrera

I'd say that as far as clearance goes, any clearance is OK. There's not a whole lot of clearance between the stock cast iron manifold where it connects to the head pipe flanges. In fact, if there's too much clearance with the engine block, you might find you're fouling the chassis leg.

I'm guessing you bought from one of these guys:-

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/MGB-HEADER-WILL-FIT-ALL-YEARS_W0QQitemZ110072622728QQihZ001QQcategoryZ34203QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/MGB-EXHAUST-HEADER-KIT_W0QQitemZ110072306775QQihZ001QQcategoryZ33631QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Their prices are certainly better than Moss and it's encouraging that they supplied a replacement when you had a weld quality problem. Hopefully, if you have a clearance problem too, they'll be just as responsive.

Good luck.

Derek Nicholson

Hello,

I bought many years ago an ANSA header for my B, and it is a very good one.
Cheers,

JGC


http://www.britishcarpartsco.com/British%20car%20parts%20for%20sale.htm
Jean Guy Catford

I had no clearance problems, it was installed on an iron head, but that shouldn't be an issue. I was very impressed at the quality of the example we had. It seemed like they cared (doesn't mean they do?), which is more than you get with most companies these days.

Yes, I think APT is the Maniflow source in the US. I have not been disappointed with their products in times past, I think they do a very good job.

Sean
Sean Brown

Derek, I actually bought the headers from BRGparts, James Knight. His source is pertronix in Compton, Calif., they replaced the original set. Mine are JetHot coated. James is easy to work with.

Sean, yes APT is a great resource. I had them rebuild my engine--not installed yet after >1 year. They are very meticulous.

Issues with the body work have delayed installation:-( I just wish some creative fabricator could build a similar item at a more reasonable price. 2 steel pipes, 4 flanges and a crossover tube; about $30.00 worth of material, tops.
M.A. Barrera

Thanks for the links Derek....The short header seems similar to the MGA std set-up. Years ago I ranup an MGA on the rollers, fitted with an MGB engine and one of my heads. It made standard top end bhp but really good bhp at 3000rpm, much more than I would have expected. I thought maybe the header was doing this.

The standard CI B manifold does seem to work well and is difficult to improve upon. The Maniflow exhausts are made to suit...they ask what sort of cam, what head spec etc and where you want the grunt to be. Expensive but possibly good?

I know what you mean about prices though...as you say only a few dollars worth of parts!

Peter
peter burgess

I can say that I used one of those headers on an iron head, then later on an alloy head. It fit fine and offered good low end torque. I've since built my own for increased hp.
Jeff
Jeff Schlemmer

This thread was discussed between 29/12/2006 and 06/01/2007

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