Fast Marina Magazine

It’s always disappointing when that sort of thing occurs. I have been involved in a number of different car ‘scenes’ over the years and I have had many great experiences and met many great folks. No matter what car it is or what ‘scene’ it is you do always seem to get the occasional partisan ...

What year do you reckon your block is? I have done a bit of trawling and can find pictures of different MG blocks, some with no mounting, some with mounting but not drilled and some with blanking plate. I can’t nail down any specific information like a year it changed or anything like that.

The ...

I’ll keep an eye on the auction. Fuel pump can be sorted out easily with the fuelflo. I would still be a little worried that the block might be hiding some other surprise differences though that only become apparent when bolting on the ancillaries.

It would be interesting to find out more about ...

One of the pics from the online advert: Pic of the side of my engine: Looks to me like there’s no blanking plate or boss at all from that view. Curious.

Great information!

Looks like a GG motor so 5 bearing. There is no mechanical fuel pump fitting on the block at all that I can see in the location I have one. May be located elsewhere but it’s difficult to see from the pictures. I might see if I can go take a look.

Edit: Apparently, its possible ...

Ideal. Thanks Bryan. I looked this morning but missed that somehow.

Are there any fundamental differences to be aware of between the Marina and MGB GT engines? That’s a 1970 engine apparently. A quick look suggests the fuel pump is somewhere different at any rate. Might not be a show stopper but I ...

There is a very good chance that your engine and carb setup were lifted straight from a Mk2 Marina HL, as that is what they used. If so you will also have an MGB exhaust manifold which makes one of the best sounds out there.
I do have spare O series engines, but there is a lot of work involved in ...

I suppose then my best bet is to rebuild the B I have and get that car back on the road as the first order of business. I would still be keen to O series it at some point for originality but that’s a secondary consideration. That said, If you have a spare O series I would be happy to chat about ...

Hi Kilroy, thanks for the offer. The housing is in the back of the car. I’ll need to check if there is actually a filter in there. There’s definitely some other bits and pieces missing. If you look closely you might be able to see that the throttle cable is attached to the carbs with an electrical ...

Ah, great info on the cert aspect. I guess if it’s no big deal to get it back on the road then the old B might not be a bad idea given the better availability of parts etc. It would be nice to have an O but I’ll press on with the rebuild in the existing lump and see what’s out there.

As I continue on my voyage of Marina discover it’s suddenly all fallen into place. My car has completely the wrong engine. I think.

CB1F8C8B-9F5E-4494-AFE5-C20A015392AE.jpeg

As far as I can work out I should have a 1700 O series, not the 1800 B series. I did wonder but thought it might be some ...