my friend is asking what is the best carburator to use on a 1958 MGA with an 1800 "B" engine. anyone know about this stuff?? thanks! jon
I'll bet Brit50 knows all about them! All I know is that the original setup were dual SU carbs (whatever they are!)
Weber I believe makes the SU carb. And they are pretty good. I'd say they are probably the most widely used. I want to say that Minkuni (I butchered that) also had some carbs that are similar to Weber, but still think Weber is the best. I'm sure other folks have more info. Just think, Weber makes Edelbrock carbs, which were Carter carbs, which were OEM on Chrysler...and Chrysler starts with CH...same as CHevy. So it's only a few degrees of separation. Perfectly appropriate! Andy
Su carbs are easy to adjust and very basic, tapered needle in a tapered seat, or you could use the Stromberg which was an easy swap the hot rod boys used to swap them, You also could try, Zenith carbs http://www.stromberg-carburetors.com/ Gerald
MGB Carbies Jon ; The correct ones are S.U. # HS-4's , still available new if he's wealthy , look in Moss Motors , Goleta , Ca. for them . PLENTY of good used HS-4's abound too and as mentioned they're super simple to service , rebuild and especially adjust . S.U. carbies are the ONLY true variable venturi carbies in the world ~ this means perfect carbuation from idle to floating the valves *if* they're properly adjusted . The Zenith-Stromberg carby used from 1975 > is O.K. , not great , it was a wierd (IMO) adjustable maimjet that *MUST* be adjusted using the special tool sold by ALL MG parts houses else it'll run poorly , bog and pop & fart . As mentioned , Mikuni etc. all make aftermarket carbies for MGB's but the S.U. is the hands down easiest one to source use and keep running . I've had MGB's , I recently sold my 1967 MGB GT .
Oops Sorry about that Jon , I was up @ midnight . Anyway , IIRC the new HS-4 carbys are made by Borlen (?) and the price varies all over the map , best to check pricing off various MG Internet parts sources . The MGA 1500 and the MGB 1800 both use them , they really are GREAT carbys , capable of ministering *perfect* stochiometric mixture at all speeds & loads..... This makes them very fuel economical too untill you floor it
Darn, I just messed up by replacing a couple SU's with a 650 Edelbrock in my 72 MGB roadster. Even worse, I had to make room for the 400 sbc that was hanging on the bottom of it. Started out doing the 215ci aluminum Buick/Olds engine ( 3.5 Rover engine to the Brits) and thought, what the h..l, no guts no glory. It should be able to make it up most the hills around here without lugging.
WHEW ! I've seen a few MGB's with the aluminum V-ate engine , they were blisteringly fast . I'd think you're making serious overkill but it'll be a hoot to drive in any case . -Nate
Evan you are a bonafied maniac!!! 400 sbc in an MGB roadster???? My God man!!! What's happened to your mind? How you gonna prevent the darn thing from twisting itself into a pretzel? LOL. Come on now...show us some pics of that bad boy. Andy
He's gonna put wings on it! That ain't a car, it's an airplane! Kinda like a spitfire with a Merlin engine
Actually , The MGB chassis was designed with a V-ate in mind so it's pretty sturdy . The primary fault is : they don't handle for spit ~ my MGB GT only had a freshly rebuilt pre- smog 1800 but it didn't hold the road very well when I rallyed it ~ one time I was trying (in vain) to keep up with my son in his racecar and I flew off a tight road.... -Nate
Will get some pics in the next couple days. Here is where the car came from. My oldest sister passed away nearly two years ago, was nearly eighty, and lived a life most would trade a few years of longevity for. A real character, she never traded in any of hers cars and was one of the worlds worst drivers. She loved British sports cars but always kept one American or Japanese car so she wouldn't get stranded. One was always dinged up but she never said they were at a body shop--rather at the beauty shop for a face lift. Besides the Healy Sprite and MGB GT shown here she had two Austin Healy 3000's and the B roadster that is getting the slight power upgrade. Nate might get memories from the GT. I gave all the drivetrain from the roadster to the man who bought the GT so don't have the carbs anymore. He is the chaplain at the VA hospital just 15 miles down the road in Bonham so very deserving in my eyes.
Indeed ~ I'm sorry you lost your sister though . I just buried a frind yesterday... not much fun lemme tell you but she'd had a _very_ good long run (59 years married) and is no longer suffering .
Here's a few pics of the MG V8 project. Wife has been playing hooky all week and has my camera. She had a mamogram, attended a funeral, and now is off to a family reunion. I told her to take lots of pictures at the mamogram clinic--- fat chance there. Anyway, what's shown is footwell mods to make room for the turbo 350, a simple channel iron trans mount crossmember that bolts to the factory holes and also shows adequate room for the trans, and the use of old flathead ford engine mount cushions and homemade support brackets. Will update if I ever get my camera back. OOPS, exceeding the 300kb limit so will put some at http://s32.photobucket.com/albums/d41/coilover/ scroll down to first few pics.
