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MG TD TF 1500 - Engine Assessment

I'd appreciate your suggestions on how I should proceed in assessing the engine in my recently purchased MG TD.

When I purchased the car last November, I knew the car had been off the road since before 1983. The previous owner, a mechanical engineer, who had been restoring the car died in 2005 with the car about 80 percent complete. His son who sold me the car, started the engine when I inspected the car. He ran it about 30 seconds or to demonstrate it would run. However, the oil pressure gauge showed about 40 lbs oil pressure. There are no receipts for engine parts, but the few gaskets of a complete engine set with the spares indicate an effort to seal the engine.

Since then, I located and talked to the gentleman who owned this TD from 1960 to 1983. He told me the car was taken off the road shortly after he purchased it in 1960 due to a rod knock at about 35,000 miles. He took the car apart, had the crankshaft reground, and reassembled the engine with new bearings. However, he never reassembled the car and sold it in 1983 to his neighbor, the mechanical engineer who restored the chassis and body. As for the engine, he said he believes it has not been run more then a few minutes since he hat the car on the road in 1960.

I've been thinking of starting by pulling the pan and taking a look at a rod and main bearing. Then perhaps raising the engine enough to take out the oil pump for inspection. Should I restart to again check oil pressure? Would it be better for me to pull the engine and begin a tear down and inspection. What are your thoughts?

Charlie


CMA Adams

Drain the oil, re-fill with a high ZDDP 20w/50w oil (Valvoline VR-1 is one) and then drive and enjoy. 40psi is enough pressure. IF you then notice problems, then pull the engine.
Gene Gillam

Gene,

Okay, I can appreciate that plan. I'd love to have it on the road this spring.

Charlie
CMA Adams

Charlie, Gene has you on the right track. That 40 psi is a good number to have seen. You will probably want to treat the engine as if it's a new car ready to be broken in. If you don't have already I'd suggest getting a copy of the Workshop Manual. Bud
Bud Krueger

twin fuel pumps, is it a TDC?
Ian Bowers

Ian,
Yes it is. TD/C7254 with its original engine No. 7427.
Charlie
CMA Adams

Bud,
A workshop manuel was included with the car and I now have restoration manuals by Horst Schach and Malcolm Green.
Thanks, Charlie
CMA Adams

Before you go anywhere get that battery fastened down. It that moves around and shorts out you will have a disaster on your hands and potentially one lost TD.
Chris Couper

I agree with above comments and I'm sure you checked the valve clearance etc.

Please don't be offended, but can you please remove the dashpot covers? In my opinion they look out of place on an otherwise nice engine?
Willem van der Veer

Chris and Willem,
I'm going to the garage to look through the TD spares for the battery hold down and to remove those dashpot covers, which I had noticed not give much thought. I think they are loose on the carbs. I'll will check those valve clearances before I start it. Thanks! Charlie
CMA Adams

I think the above information is good. Sounds like you have enough information from the PO to have a better picture of the vehicles background. I would also not give it a second thought to pull the pan and check things out.

I would also recommend re-torquing the head. I always have a more comfortable feeling about something someone else has built after I have gone over these things.

Since this is a TDC and with the original engine, a bit more precaution may not be a bad thing.
Bruce Cunha

Is he able to have a straight radiator brace with dry air filters because his TD/C has 1-1/2 SU carbs? On my TD/s with 1-1/4 SUs requires that the radiator brace be bent.

Jud
J K Chapin

Bruce, As you suggest, to be cautious, I will then drop the pan for a look and re-torque the head before starting. Will do next week and post pictures of what I see.

Jud, The brace runs behind the pancake filter with no room to spare and is bent a very little bit at the radiator brace. The radiator brace is also pushed inward about 3/8 inch.

Charlie
CMA Adams



Welcome Charlie.

On each carb/float bowl, there is 1 Overflow tube/pipe
which needs to be directed down and toward the front
of the engine, near the belt/radiator, and placed into
the slot. Necessary to avoid fires.

Your MG TD does not need to be fried.


Do enjoy MG and this BBS.


DrRx. TD 823
drcrougeux

another little detail, the rocker cover doesn't seem to have a vertical and then 90deg turn to the air cleaner type TD vent, has it been removed or has it got a TF over with a horizontal vent facing away from the carbs?
Ian Bowers

Ian, I think it does have the vent.

It seems to be top off by a chrome cap?


Willem van der Veer

When I got my TD the vent was topped of with a cork. Thinking that the cork was perhaps inhibiting the venting function, I replaced it with my purple Xmas tree.

Jud


J K Chapin

Willem

That looks like a vent that Moss sells/used to sell. If you pull it out it may be tapered and has a hole from the bottom up through one of the sides

I had one on my TD prior to finding an original air cleaner.
Bruce Cunha

When I got my TD back in 1977 it was a basket case except for the engine which had supposedly been rebuilt. Just for safety I dropped the sump, fitted new big end bearings and rod bolts and put it back together. Been running nicely for 22,000 miles ever since. As the compression was OK never did take the head off.
John Quilter (TD8986)

Thanks for the enhanced image, Willem. Looking at the original picture it looked like a very extended dip stick head!

So it is either a butchered TD rocker cover or from another XPAG variant.

Incidentally, either I have been asleep for some time and not noticed the 'view vehicle profile ' option which you and a few others have used', is this, in fact, new?
Ian Bowers

Ian,

The rocker cover doesn't look butchered to me. Bruce explains that it could be a 'push in' vent that Moss sold?

You can select the 'view vehicle profile' under 'customise'. I don't know if it is new, I tend to be asleep on such things too.
There I also discovered that you can select a handy option with which you can view the photos immediately in the thread. Before that I had to click the view option and then the photo came up in another pop up screen.
Willem van der Veer

Willem, the comment 'butchered' came from the vent looking to be vertical for its entire length, having lost the horizontal return to connect with the air cleaner, and then with something stuck in it (what to me looked like the top of a dip stick). However that may just be my interpretation.
Ian Bowers

Ian and Willem,
Here is a better photo of the valve cover vent feature you have commented about. I'm quite interested in your observations and suggestions.
Charlie


CMA Adams

Wow...looks like a chimney pipe! Very nice!
JL Nederhoed

Willem is right on- that is one of the VC vents Moss sold in the late '80s. George
George Butz

Close, but it's Abingdon Spares Page 65 Item #55, Breather Plug, Valve Cover, $42.72. It's for use if use individual air cleaners. I put one on when I first fired up Lazarus and didn't yet have the OEM air cleaner. Haven't used it for 18'ish years. Bud


Bud Krueger

The horizontal section of the vent which carried the connecting pipe to the oil bath cleaner has clearly been cut off, leaving just a vertical stub into which the breather plug has been fitted.

Incidentally, I do like the 'wind up key' on the redundant (for the T types) tapped stubs which are used to attach the air cleaner in the Y (?) type.
Ian Bowers

Ian, there is no horizontal section of the vent, just the vertical stub. Bud


Bud Krueger

Ian,

I agree with Bud; nothing was cut off.

The 'horizontal section' towards the airfilter is 90 degree rubber hose. See picture that I found on the internet.


Willem van der Veer

I would like to fine a correct and complete air cleaner for my car. I'll be looking. Also, I'll put a bolt in place of that key on the valve cover.
CMA Adams

Lan, I believe your your talking about the TF valve cover with the horizontal vent, I might be wrong but, I believe all the TDs had the vertical vent. Here's a TF valve cover on my car. PJ




Paul S Jennings

Charlie, contact me off line if you are interested in an intake manifold and air cleaner to fit your TD. markrstrang at yahoo dot com. Mark
Mark Strang

D***it, you are, of course right.

That is what comes of having the car 300 miles away, and, having done a nut and bolt restoration, you get to think you know every fine detail of the car, and I didn't.

By way of compensation, I have a spare TF valve cover (with horizontal vent, naturally), unfortunately it is chromed. If it is of interest to anyone, please make me a reasonable offer.
Ian Bowers

This thread was discussed between 06/02/2014 and 11/02/2014

MG TD TF 1500 index

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