Jump to content


Photo
- - - - -

Mini mystery cylinder head. (Leyland/BMC)


  • Please log in to reply
109 replies to this topic

#101 gruntguru

gruntguru
  • Member

  • 7,635 posts
  • Joined: January 09

Posted 05 October 2014 - 03:58

You could always put me out of my misery with a link?



Advertisement

#102 carlt

carlt
  • Member

  • 4,169 posts
  • Joined: June 09

Posted 05 October 2014 - 10:57

5 port can't  breath enough for more than 150-160 bananas - any more is a pipe dream 



#103 Catalina Park

Catalina Park
  • Member

  • 6,766 posts
  • Joined: July 01

Posted 05 October 2014 - 12:24

I would guess a 7 port.

#104 Lee Nicolle

Lee Nicolle
  • Member

  • 11,036 posts
  • Joined: July 08

Posted 05 October 2014 - 22:48

Ah but no one said "standard configuration" did they? The only stipulation was "unsupercharged".

 

I know the 1275 bottom end is regularly stretched to around 1600 cc. Put an eight port crossflow head - better still a 16v twin cam head from a Yamaha or similar on top and I would be surprised if the power didn't approach 200 hp.

 

I know you know sprintcars but a 700 hp sprintcar engine is pretty mild in terms of power spread and rpm and also durable compared to say a Nascar engine which doesn't even run ram tubes or Methanol but can run at 900 hp for a couple of hours.

Actually a 360ci Chev  Sprintcar engine at 700-720 is pretty strong for a standard configuration engine. eg 23 deg heads all in the [generally] standard position.

410s are entirely different, almost unrecogniseable as the base engine design.

Speedway Super Sedan engines are going that way too, and good ones have over 700hp though have very little driveability. The driver has to keep the engine screwed up tight all the time. Then the old fashioned 18 deg and even 23 deg engines steam past in traffic.

Nascar engines these days are a 2 valve pushrod race engine but even before had very little similarity with the base engine. The Fords had some similarity to a Boss 302 in the basic head layout.

As for Minis and 200hp from a std configuaration head. Tell em their dreaming!



#105 smithyrc30

smithyrc30
  • New Member

  • 1 posts
  • Joined: February 16

Posted 16 February 2016 - 08:12

I have just spotted on ebay what is said to be a prototype cylinder head for an A series Mini and it features an unusual combustion chamber shape.
Can our esteemed engine experts pass any clues?

01.JPG

Old thread dragged up however I only just saw it.

The head is one of several run in the early 1980's by BL to try to improve the emissions and fuel economy of the A series engine.

The chamber in it is the May fireball (same as in the HE Jaguar V12). It was run by BL Technology when they were at the Rover site (in the old gas turbine buildings) at Solihull before they moved to the new facilities at Gaydon. Most of the heads went into the scrap bin when they moved over.

 

The 3 holes in the chamber are for optical flame front speed measurement. There should be another to measure cylinder pressure. There were I think about 10 heads cast like this. This was part of the research for the Metro, Maestro and Montego series of powertrains.

 

There were other things tested, ceramic coated pistons, exhausts and a variety of fuel delivery systems.

 

 



#106 GreenMachine

GreenMachine
  • Member

  • 2,629 posts
  • Joined: March 04

Posted 16 February 2016 - 09:47

 

I have just spotted on ebay what is said to be a prototype cylinder head for an A series Mini and it features an unusual combustion chamber shape.
Can our esteemed engine experts pass any clues?

01.JPG
Old thread dragged up however I only just saw it.
The head is one of several run in the early 1980's by BL to try to improve the emissions and fuel economy of the A series engine.
The chamber in it is the May fireball (same as in the HE Jaguar V12). It was run by BL Technology when they were at the Rover site (in the old gas turbine buildings) at Solihull before they moved to the new facilities at Gaydon. Most of the heads went into the scrap bin when they moved over.
 
The 3 holes in the chamber are for optical flame front speed measurement. There should be another to measure cylinder pressure. There were I think about 10 heads cast like this. This was part of the research for the Metro, Maestro and Montego series of powertrains.
 
There were other things tested, ceramic coated pistons, exhausts and a variety of fuel delivery systems.

 


There appears to be a tiny hole between the valves of No4 - for cylinder pressure?



#107 Catalina Park

Catalina Park
  • Member

  • 6,766 posts
  • Joined: July 01

Posted 16 February 2016 - 10:08

Old thread dragged up however I only just saw it.
The head is one of several run in the early 1980's by BL to try to improve the emissions and fuel economy of the A series engine.
The chamber in it is the May fireball (same as in the HE Jaguar V12). It was run by BL Technology when they were at the Rover site (in the old gas turbine buildings) at Solihull before they moved to the new facilities at Gaydon. Most of the heads went into the scrap bin when they moved over.
 
The 3 holes in the chamber are for optical flame front speed measurement. There should be another to measure cylinder pressure. There were I think about 10 heads cast like this. This was part of the research for the Metro, Maestro and Montego series of powertrains.
 
There were other things tested, ceramic coated pistons, exhausts and a variety of fuel delivery systems.

Great post. The three holes being used to measure the flame speed makes a lot of sense.

#108 Lee Nicolle

Lee Nicolle
  • Member

  • 11,036 posts
  • Joined: July 08

Posted 26 February 2016 - 07:58

There appears to be a tiny hole between the valves of No4 - for cylinder pressure?

I think this was brought up in the past,, it must be a diesel head. No plug hole and that odd [useless] chamber might be ok with a low rpm diesel.

 

Maybe it was drilled to measure casting thickness. Or thinness!



#109 gruntguru

gruntguru
  • Member

  • 7,635 posts
  • Joined: January 09

Posted 27 February 2016 - 05:46

It has spark plug holes if you look at the OP.



#110 Catalina Park

Catalina Park
  • Member

  • 6,766 posts
  • Joined: July 01

Posted 27 February 2016 - 11:44

Why read the replies when you already know everything?

It is quite simply a diesel head and I'm glad that Lee put us all out of our misery.