More pictures

The triple Webers that were on the car caused were in my opinion responsible for at least one engine failure and damage to another. Being away from home for long periods the Webers did not seem like lack of use.
This time the engine had a problem with a valve seat so during the rebuild I decided to take the plunge and go injection. Seems I know a little more about a PC than I do webers.

All work was carried out by Damico race engines in the UK who are fast becoming very familiar with the MGC engine. The do like a challenge when you see what comes into the workshop.

This engine is pure race but the principles will be the same for a road car although the throttle bodies will be smaller say 42 or 45 rather than my 48.
Work involved.

The basic Weber DCOE inlet manifolds were used and fettled to match the bodies. ATpower (UK) supplied the throttle body kit specified by Damico it did come complete with the throttle linkage and trumpets, throttle position sensor and 440cc injectors.
These throttle bodies do not have shafts on the butterfly so creating less turbulence which is one of the reasons I liked them also they were able to put a set together for the MGC which would require minimal work lol!

ECU came from Specialized components (UK), it is a Typhoon ECU has its own STX program which requires a CAN to USB dongle which then gives you access to the program and a engine log. The wiring loom was made up in house to suit the setup I have. Also being a six cylinder the injectors/coils take up two aux outputs annoying but!
I do now have oil pressure, water temp logged along with a whole host of other ranges from times at different rpms engine hours all can be saved, even a live set of gauges for monitoring runs which can be recorded and saved.

On the engine we removed the distributer and machined a blank, welded in a temp sensor under the stat housing.Installed a extra crank case vent now the dizzy was out of the way and blanked the mechanical fuel pump vent off as this is a bit far down and could allow oil back up to the catch pot. A spin on KN filter which has a check valve to stop the oil from flowing out giving earlier oil to the engine, saving the pump from filling up nearly a litre before doing anymore work

The trigger sensor and wheel were mounted on the ATI race damper, we could have made a new flywheel and mounted the trigger in the bell housing, but using a standard wheel the SC components sensor mount fitted a treat making for easy maintenance.
One thing that may be a problem is that the engine does move about on the mounts and I had to move the radiator about 10mm further forward by drilling four new holes in the mounting brackets.


The fuel system

The EFI setup requires two pumps a low pressure and High pressure , the original facet red top was fine a new HP pump and back pressure regulator set to 5 bar we bought along with a EFI rated filter unit and swirl pot.
These have been mounted where the second 6v battery used to be, a return fuel line has been plumbed inside the car from the engine bay back to a new second connection on the original tank. The LP pump fills the swirl pot and the HP sends fuel to the rail at the end of the rail a line goes to the regulator which holds the pressure in the line at 5 bar (72.5psi).

The engine was run in on the dyno at basic settings as we had no base to go from, The ECU guy Andrew came over and mapped the car over the a number of runs upto 7000rpm.
The results were nice 284.9hp @ 7000 and 238 lbs at 5400. A dip in the curve at 3000 was due to the cam, a similar result with the Weber’s, however the lowdown torque is better and idle is 900rpm. On the track the rev range is 4500 to 7000 and the injection is a vast improvement on the webers. On the road slightly better manners but still from standstill it takes a bit of getting off the line without lots of revs or dipping the clutch.

I think a road setup car would be a joy to drive with a matched cam to give more low down power, all in all its been expensive as the development work has taken its toll.

WIth the suspected failure of one piston and the new Alloy race head nearly ready from Peter Burgess. The engine was sent to Damico Race engines nr Snetterton race cct for a rebuild. He found that one pistons had caught at one time and the second rebuild of the engine was not done in the most clean of areas.
SO to recap what he did , one new piston express made from CP in states £350, the cam and dizzy drive gears were worn badly I was shocked! so I had to track down a new cam which turned into a saga of what do i want.
In the end Vic Young came up with a new cam which I had Piper cams looked at at with Damico they reground it to a 641 @ 104' with just over 0.5 " lift with the 1:1.5 rollers.
The CP pistons are short skirt modern type and the Rods are longer than normal. The top of the piston reaches the top of the block. The original cutouts were found to be in the wrong place and too deep the top ring is very close to the cut out. So next time is s new block ouch! just to be safe.
Something else Damico did was to put a oil feed to the dizzy/cam gear so as not to rely on the original method. They also put in a ladder frame on the bottom of the block to stiffen up the crank case and shaft mounts.
Once the engine was built and dynoed we found the 123tune could not cope with the high revs (7200)and ran awful above 5800. The old illumintion was put back no problem. Run in and tested on the bed, it ran 247hp with a nice curve. With a new modified maniflow mainfold ready for the car I expect 250!!.
The car now runs as sweet as and idles would you believe at 1000 and starts a lot easier. I cannot recommend Darren at Damico Race Engines enough it was his first C engine , he has a number of B and twin cam A series engies under his belt, he mainly does ford race engines and also 600hp diesels!!!To get 247 first time out is no mean feat, his workshop is like a operating theatre , tools linesd up like surgens instruments.
Right now It will be on its third track day hope its dry this time. I have so much confidence in this engine having watched it thro build and test.I doubt much more can be done but a new block will allow me to get above 10.2:1 compression as at present, maybe larger bore but thats a risk in a track car. Also some playing with exhausts will gain me some more. I just have to get money stashed in the toy account !!

More machining of the block.

YPE stated life as 1969 Automatic MGCGT, when I purchased her in 1982 she looked good and was very solid, only one previous owner so I took the plunge and dad and I travelled to Bristol in his new Ford Cortina V6 which overheated when pushed above 90mph.
Well the deed done and an agreement that the owner would deliver her to Lowestoft I was the proud owner of a classic, I had owned MGB’s before but always fancied the MGC despite its bad press.
The day she arrived she did look good but the delivery was not without a hitch, the water pump failed and the engine bay looked like well best not describe the brown stains all over. So there the demise from running car to a car in ice cream tubs started. The bodywork was fair but I sent her to have new sills and inner and outer rear wings plus some other rust spots removed, the car was returned and covered up. Now a house move started to cause problems and the car was moved to a friend’s house nearby before being entombed in its new home from 1986 to November 2006 when it was moved again to MGMOTORSPORT for rebuilding to a track day car.
SNETTERTON TRACK DAY.

Driving the car to Snetterton for an open pit lane day was something I have not done before so father’s car was stocked up on fuel cans tools and anything else I could find that may come in handy. My oldest son who was to be the second driver and the youngest a passenger for the day and myself were slightly nervous of taking to the track with other cars with a brand new untested car. However the guys and girls at Snetterton could not have been more helpful. Checking, briefing and noise test all went well, the 102db at 3500rpm was just within the limit, phew!
The first sighting laps out of the way I started to remember the circuit, the last time I was here was when XR3i’s were the in car.
I had asked for an instructor to run me through the circuit with the car and I must admit without his help I would have struggled with the car, by to much steering input and the inability to heal toe to get the engine revs right to stop the engine acting as a brake at the wrong moment. The pedals need to be adjusted to allow the foot to roll over the accelerator, the gap and height being incorrect. Both Clint and I did manage to spin the car, no damage except to the ego!
The car ran for the next couple of hours track time with both of us getting used to the car and beginning to enjoy the day, with some quick cars running it did show up the cars older heritage against a BMW M3 running slicks and a few fast 7’s even a hot hatch gave me a fright down the straight, not on the corners though.
Initial tyre setup was as Doug had left it 26 rear 30 front, eventually I settled on 28.5 front and 26 rear, the spax front shocks were left as was but could have been one or two notches harder.
The engine was fine no oil or water leaks and the temperature remained fine. Brakes after our initial concern worked very well stopping the car with ease and no fade as yet. The gearbox though started to play up dropping out of third on deceleration on odd occasions so rather than destroy the box, which was a standard box we called it a day and came home.
Checking the car at home found some oil around the overdrive and at the bell housing however the gearbox level and engine were fine. A call to Doug and the gearbox was arranged to be changed for the SCCR one as originally ordered.

Brake failure happened the day Clint took the car out for a quick run, coming off the main road towards a roundabout he slowed and braked when something under the bonnet went with a bang or explosion, thinking the engine had failed he clutched in and braked, well tried no brakes. Fortunately the roundabout was clear and he managed to get the car to a stop. A tow truck took the car home, the possible cause was fuel vapours being drawn into the brake servo, by a passing plastic valve on the servo.
Update on the car

With the car sent back to Doug to have a new Girling brake servo, sccr gear set fitted and a few odds and ends the time came to go to Snetterton again.
This time the car ran like a dream the new gearbox being noisy but sounds like I’m driving a BTC, great! and the paddy Hopkirk paddle on the accelerator made heal toe no problem. With lap times of 1.27 to 1.30 ( Ithink around 1.26 for a race B, 1.14 for the top modified V8) via the hidden stop watch in my sons hand!! I was feeling very pleased with myself knowing in the hands of a racing driver this car was upto the mark.
Now the new problems, the brakes are standard apart from the pads with a few heart in mouth moments when the back of a Porsche came up oh! so rapid and the brakes juddering I thought now I need brakes. I have ordered from the states (Little British car co $161 a pair) of drilled and slotted discs to try before going down the road of upgrading the front callipers.
The tyres Dunlop R84D track tyres have started to roll on the treads that means I have to get a setup on tyre pressures again now the car is going harder into the corners.
In the engine bay the catch tank had oil sludge in it on looking around the dip stick and distributor had oil drips around them, it was obvious that the engine crankcase pressure was to much for the one breather line. Again a call to the man, he advised that I was over revving the engine and to keep it at 6000 max. He would also send me a adaptor to allow the old mechanical pump blank to be fitted with a pipe to the catch tank, also the rocker cover may have to have one fitted. I have also bought but not fitted yet a rev limiter to ensure that I keep the revs in check, as this engine will just rev and rev.

Funds allowing I will keep upgrading the engine, roller rockers of 1.50 (1.42 std) ratio have been again found in the states and will be arriving soon, the dream is steel crank, Rods and new Cosworth/Omega pistons to allow the engine to take more and rev higher.
I must thank Mgmotorsport for all there patience and they have shown that if you take a interest and want something a bit different the enthusiasm bubbles over.



Specifications
Engine:
Gas flowed, lead free Peter Burgess cylinder head, block re-bored with new pistons and valve cut-outs in top of block. Cam re-profiled to high lift long duration, with Vernier cam gear. Crankshaft re-ground and balanced with front damper, lightened flywheel and high performance clutch cover. New triple 45DCOE Weber carburettors with cast alloy inlet manifolds, Downton style exhaust manifold and twin pipe exhaust system. Power appx 220 + bhp (standard appx 100 bhp). All moving parts balanced.

Ignition:
Distributor MGM modified, 10 degrees mechanical advance plus Magnecor Blue HT leads and Lumenition Optronic ignition. Rev limiter set to 6000 rpm

Fuel System:
Facet Red top pump with pressure regulator (3psi).

Transmission:
SCCR gearbox with competition overdrive. Completely re-built rear axle and Quaife torque sensing differential. Wheels will be 8” X 15” bolt-on Compomotive Minilite replicas, with 205/60 X 15 Dunlop Formula R D84 tyres.


Brakes:
Standard discs/slotted drilled to be fitted (Mintex 1144 pads) /drums, with servo assistance. All new aeroquip hoses and pipelines.

Suspension & steering:
Suspension all as standard, except Polyurethane bushes all round, 2° negative camber, Spax adjustable dampers, uprated torsion bars and 3/4" anti-roll bar at the front.. High ratio steering rack & pinion fitted to reduce turns lock to lock to 2.9.
Quick release steering wheel F1 style.

Bodywork:
Wings as Sebring Works MGC but in steel with fibreglass arches, with hand rolled aluminium front valance, and flush rear valance. Sebring headlamp cowls covering 100/80w H4 bulbs are fitted. Monza 3½” fuel filler on rear quarter. New laminated windscreen with safety glass in other windows. Finished in British Racing Green (GN29) with Snowberry White roundels and white valance flashes.

Electrics:
New wiring harness, later multi use indicator stalk/headlamp dip/horn.

Interior:
Fixed Ridgard RS9 seats, vinyl trim panels, rear seating removed, and complete tufted carpeting with moulded tunnel and arches. Standard style dashboard,with re-calibrated speedo and new 0-8,000 rpm tacho. Special Moto-Lita 15” steering wheel. New switchgear as necessary. Front/Rear roll over cage. FIA type battery cut-off switch and external tee pull. Fire extinguisher plumbed in with external pull. Additional fuse box and cigar lighter.
No heater fitted.



General:
Willans Club 4X4, 3" race harnesses in Red. Most parts new or reconditioned

Latest update 2010

Ealry this year the clutch failed so in it went , while the engine was out I had fitted new CP forged piston (custm made) 84.5mm or 3.307"
and new forged rods , the rods are longer than org to accommodate the ne pistons , stroke remains the same.
The flywheel lightened again and crank cleaned and all reblanced.
New oil pump rotor fitted as the old was scored. (these are now scarce)
The Cam I found out is a MD315 Kent made for the C , it was a A series cam, race type.
The rollers rockers from goodparst have been fitted but need to be shimmed and new pushrods made i think as they do not look right.
The car has been run in and due to work and getting married again I have not had time on track , next outing 9th sept I hope.
I did rolling road it to set up the cards again, got 190hp on a calibrated RR, however as with all RR's they differ a great deal.
Its for set up!!

After that its mod time again, new race head and exhaust/manifold plus a 123 Tune dizzy to allow tuning.I have fitted a 123TUNE dizzy, which is very flexible for tuning and above 3000rpm its a bit improvement. PLEASE read instructions a few times otherwise you will be getting confused, Time it at TDC not 10' and you can move it CCW quite a bit to allow the USB and cables to clear the filter and block.

I'm chasing a Alloy head at present but is so very expensive but its rare and maybe a interesting addition.
Have now found a alloy head and Peter Burgess is preparing it to race spec also a new maniflow manifold which has straighter outlets than previous. This should be fitted in the coming weeks and then Dyno's on a fixed rig, and be set up by Damico race engine's based near to Snetterton Race circuit UK. So fingers crossed all will be ready for Nov 14th the next track day.
Well that was the plan a few weeks ago, having taken the engine apart we found no3 piston had siezed at some time, also the cam gear had some damage. With all the bits sitting in the pickup of the pump. So we needed a new race cam, try finding one lol! after much chasing around I found Vic Young had two new cams which could be reground by Piper RS to what ever I wanted. Now what do I get a MD315 the same as i had or different it all too confusing for a mear mortal. So will have a good chat with Piper to see what I need. Although I have been told I need a lift of 0.5". The other item I have is a ladder beam to fit across the block between the block and sump, this is attached to the crank bearing blocks. Its supposed to stop the block walking nad cracking the sump at high rpm Oh an dthe piston a single one off and que jumped is half the price of a new set! £350 for one piston from CP delivery 16days another £100 for ten days.Right now its a waitig game to see when I return to the UK if all is well. I have three track days booked two at Snetterton and one at Cadwell Park. Then if the car is still not to my likeing back and have the cam changed again.
Have some pictures of Block being cleaned and prepared for rebuild.