04/12/2008 18:26:08 Stephen W My first post...and one which I'm sure you have read 100's of times before. I'm a bit late contacting you all but my story is that I've owned a B for 3 years. 1 each year so far. Whilst prepping my favoured car to stage 2 was all well and good I never actually got chance to get involved with track days. Quick runs around North Wales was my limit. Before I got chance to do something stupid rotten sills and a new job saw me leave the car with my folks. Luckily I've been able to trailer the car nearer to me. With more time on my hands a local garage and I have been re-building the GT for the last 3 months: specifically with track days in mind. We've reached the stage in the build where the sills have been done and all the new panles are nearly on. :) Having bought a suspension set up, engine, and brakes with the track in mind what little things do people find useful? For ex. I've bought a roadster roll bar- is this a waste of time? What should I bear in mind- has anyone got any tips, tyres and that sort of thing. Many thanks Stephen

04/12/2008 20:40:04 Martin C [b]Welcome[/b] Hi Stephen, Welcome to MGs-on-Track and I'm sure you will find many members who run B GT's who can offer you advice. To aid this it would help to know is it a chrome or rubber bumper model? Having only run a standard R/B B GT on our track days, and thouroughly enjoyed it, the only advice I can offer is make sure everything is in tip top condition and set up correctly. The other useful bit of advice I would give is, once the car is built if you possibly can get to one of our North Weald activity days. It is the perfect place to shake a car down, learn the characteristics of your new toy and have a whole heap of fun. Also if you can get to some of our days and talk to owners and look at their cars, being able to see things is worth a thousand words. You will often find people are more than happy to give passenger laps so you can see how different cars perform and handle. In my experience everyone on our days are friendly, approachable and are only too pleased to talk about their cars. So look forward to meeting you and seeing the car in the not too distant future :D Martin

04/12/2008 22:20:47 Tim Guy Hi Stephen. Welcome to the forum. As Martin suggests, feel free to come along to one of our events as a spectator if you're not ready to come on track. There's no charge. Shame you missed us at Oulton Park last week, quite close to you I think. Brands Hatch is the last of 2008 calendar but watch the events page for North Weald in February.

05/12/2008 08:23:07 JP12 Stephen, I have an MGB race car and compete in the Peter Best Insurance Challenge and the Classic Sports Car Club Swinging Sixties. I have also recently sold a very extreme MGB GT track day car and both were fantastic on track. Having said that, you need to find the right balance because neither car was very pleasant to drive on the road. My ideal track day/fast road setup would be: Engine: [LIST] [*]Depends on budget really, but I would leave this until last. For fast road track I would go as big as possible on capacity to get really good torque. Some guys are racing with 2100cc engine, but they aren't cheap. You also want to get a good engine builder. I'm not recommending anyone but MG Motorsport, Peter Burgess, McCarthy Motorsport are a good place to start. [*]Maniflow exhaust and manifold.[/LIST]Brakes: [LIST] [*]Mintex 1144 pads are the best in my experience. [*]Mini rear wheel cylinders. [*]Goodridge hoses. [*]Remove the dust shields. [*]Everything in good condition.[/LIST]Suspension: [LIST] [*]7/8th ARB [*]Negative camber wishbone arms [*]Uprated front lever arms [*]Parabolic rear springs [*]Polybush [*]550-600lbs 8inch springs (some might think this is a little stiff)[/LIST]I would definitely fit a safety roll bar of some description and a 4 point harness or click-lock would also be a good idea. Check out any list 1B tyre for track day use, including Yoko A048, Toyo R888, etc.. A 195 60 14 will fit, but with the additional grip you will get more rear axle movement so you will need to fold the rear arch and make sure nothing sharp is present. If you want to take it further you are looking at lightweight panels, perspex windows, removal of heater, window winders, trim, carpet, and head lining. You can also modify the suspension further with dropped spindles, modified steering arms, bump steer check, corner weight, modified rear axle housing for camber and toe, solid cross member mounts, the list is almost endless!! Thanks Joe

08/12/2008 15:37:51 gavinsmith Hi Stephen, I'd pretty much second Joe's comprehensive list of suitable mods. The only other things I'd mention, most of which you've no doubt already thought of are: Deep (83mm I think) K&N 'pancake' air filters with stub stacks, to help 'breathing' Mintex 1144 pads as Joe mentions are good and you might also consider high boiling point racing brake fluid, as a summer trackday can see all fluids getting pretty hot. It seems to work pretty well in my car, but it does need changing at least annually to keep working properly. I have a half (rear) roll cage fitted, which doesn't interfere with the window winders etc., though the diagonal does get in the way of the seat back folding mechanism. It's bolted to plates that are welded into the sills, so if you're at that stage of your build, the timing would be pretty ideal to get one fitted. They used to be made by Safety devices, but mine is by Rollcentre. It has mounting points for the front part of the cage if I ever want to add that bit - I think you can buy just the back or front at one time. I don't know if a roadster roll bar would fit, but if so, I guess it would do the trick. Everyone has different thoughts on tyres. Mine are Yokohama A539s (185 x 60 x 14), which seem pretty good and were cheap (£30 a corner). I don't know if they're still available though. The Yoko A048s or Toyo R888s that Joe mentions are also supposed to be excellent, and will certainly give you a lot more grip in the dry. If I had a spare set of wheels, I'd have the 048s or R888s for the (dry) track and keep my old Yokos for the road. As it is, I'll wear out my existing tyres and then switch to something stickier, by which time my driving MIGHT just have improved enough to make this worthwhile! Finally, many of the other drivers I've talked to at trackdays last year swear by a good rolling road setup making the world of difference to their cars and which it's on my list of things to get done this winter. I'm going to Peter Baldwin at Wilshers Garage near Cambridge, as he comes recomended, but I'm sure there are plenty of others. Hope that's of some help... Gavin

08/12/2008 17:09:00 JP12 Gavin, How did you get on fitting the rollcentre cage? I fitted one in my old track day car and it was a bit of a nightmare because the cage was about 60mm too narrow. I'm not sure that I would buy another one. Regarding the brake fluid, I agreed with Gavin and you definitely want to uprate the brake fluid but I don't think you want full race fluid because you need to bleed it so often. I have used, and still race with Castrol Super Response. It is cheap and does a good job. Yoko A048s are a really good tyre and I have been using them on my MGB for 3 years. I wouldn't be too worried about doing track days in the wet with these tyres because the will still give better grip than the A539, which I have to say isn't very good at all in the wet. It is only when you have standing water or if they are heavily worn that you will need to switch to a proper road tyre or race wet. Again, I will agree with Gavin and get the car on a rolling road before your first track day. It certainly does allow you to make the best of what you have. Having said that, I wouldn't worry about the power or torque figures too much because my car has produced anything from 125bhp to 165bhp on various rolling roads and yet on the track it's the same. My car produced 165BHP on Peter Baldwin's RR, and while I would love to believe it I don't think it's true!! Keep us updated on the progress of your car Stephen and if you need some bits let me know. I still have a Weber 48, uprated front dampers, mega big valve head and some anti-tramp bars that I need to sell. Joe

09/12/2008 09:24:03 gavinsmith Hi Joe (and Stephen), MG Motorsport fitted my rollcentre cage, so I don't know how difficult it was. I know it's a pretty tight fit, as I still have all my headlining and trim in the car and it squeaks away on the roof! I understood from Doug that Safety Devices didn't make the cages for Bs any more, but that could have changed as I had it fitted a couple of years ago at least. I'm sure Doug [Smith] at MG Motorsport ([URL="http://www.mgmotorsport.com"]www.mgmotorsport.com[/URL]) would give you the lowdown on how easy (or otherwise) it was to slot in. Joe - my B is a late model (1979) so I wonder if that makes any difference to the 'fit' compared with your earlier car? I defer to you as someone with much more on-track experience regarding tyres. I find the A539s fine, but 95% of my driving is on the road. They were certainly a big improvement on the ancient Dunlop SPs I originally had on the car! I suspect that my car's less powerful (and much heavier) than yours, and my driving skills are pretty limited, so I'm probably not pushing them anywhere close to the limit anyway. I know having been a passenger in a tweaked Elise 160 that the 048s give phenomenal grip - possibly too much for the rest of the suspension components on my car! I think I'll wear out the 539s and then switch to something a bit stickier. What do you think of Toyo R888s, Joe, or have you not had any experience of them? Thinking about it, I probably don't have racing brake fluid in the car, but I can't lay my hands on the bill with the details on. It's got a higher boiling point than normal, though and is probably similar to what you're using. I certainly haven't had any problems with boiling fluid so far, though most of the days I've been on have been in pretty cool weather. Stephen - I keep a couple of wheel chocks in the boot in case the garage is on a slope as it avoids having to put the handbrake on at the end of a session - not a great idea when the drums are red hot... Thanks for the heads up on rolling road figures, Joe. I won't get too excited when I get the results! I'm not really on a search for more power, to be honest - I just want to make sure that the car's set up as well as it can be. I think it's running absolutely fine, but then I don't have anything to compare it with. Gavin

09/12/2008 12:51:30 JP12 Gavin, I haven't used R888s because there isn't a significant saving over the A048 in the size I use and the Yoko's are a control tyre in the CSCC Championships. I have also read test reports that suggest that while the R888 is good it isn't as good as the A048. More threads like this would be great on this forum. Do you have any plans and/or improvements for you car over the winter? Joe

09/12/2008 17:07:19 gavinsmith Joe, Thanks for the info - I've always been a fan of Yokohama tyres ever since I had an MX-5 many years ago, so I'll probably go for the 048s when I've killed off the 539s, though these are proving remarkably resilient (or more likely I'm not going fast enough:D). If funds allow, I may even try and get hold of another set of minilite reps and put the 048s on those, so I can just stick these on for trackdays and keep the 539s for road use. I've got no plans for further upgrades this winter, other than sorting out a rolling road session at Wilshers. I've just had to shell out for a new battery and alternator, as I got to my council garage last week and was met with nothing more than a feeble churning noise from under the bonnet. I think running around with the lights, heater blower, radio etc. on for the past few weeks has finally killed off the old Lucas red-top battery and the local garage confirmed that the alternator wasn't really doing the business either. New battery, 60 amp alternator and fanbelt now in, so hopefully all is well again. I'm looking forward to doing more trackdays in 2009 as I've really enjoyed the few I managed to do this year. I [I]was[/I] really looking forward to Goodwood in November, but you'll have seen that this was a complete washout - I've never seen rain like it and I can confirm that Yoko 539s don't work in standing water - I think a rudder would have been more use! I hope to get to Silverstone, Snetterton and Cadwell at least next year. I loved Donington in October, but it looks like we might not get back there is year, which is a shame. What other circuits do you think are 'must dos'? Gavin

10/12/2008 17:41:46 JP12 My three favourite circuits are Castle Combe (my local circuit), Donington and Brands Hatch. Personally I am not a big fan of Goodwood, but I can imagine it would be good in a very fast car. I haven't driven Oulton Park or Cadwell yet so it will be interesting racing there next year for the first time. Joe

10/12/2008 18:07:55 Dave [quote=JP12] I haven't driven Oulton Park or Cadwell yet so it will be interesting racing there next year for the first time. Joe[/quote]I think you are going to be pleasantly surprised. Cadwell has to be up there with Donington and Brands. Also, the feedback from Oulton the other week (which I unfortunately missed) was that it jumped to the top of one or two peoples' favourite lists. Croft is and Anglesey was, before all the recent extension work, a great drive - just very far away from the south-east. I don't know what Anglesey is like now with the new circuits.

10/12/2008 18:25:07 gavinsmith Thanks Joe, My experience is very limited, but Donington would be hard to beat for me, though reading the posts, Oulton seems to have gone down well too, as Dave says. I've spectated at Brands (as a kid back in the 1970's watching the likes of Hunt, Lauda, Stewart and co.) and Cadwell, so would love to do both of those too. I'd like to do Castle Combe, as Doug Smith raves about it and I enjoyed Silverstone's full GP circuit last year too. The fact that the latter is so long (meaning you can often drive round without seeing more than a couple of other cars), wide and flat, with big run-off areas, makes it attractive to a novice like me, who can concentrate a bit more on lines, braking etc. without worrying too much about getting in anyone's way. I know what you mean about Goodwood, but I think part of the desire to drive this circuit is its history, rather than the circuit itself. Having said that, I did a Mithril trackday this year though and in the damp, in a Formula Ford single-seater, it seemed challenging enough to me:eek:! So, Silverstone, Brands, Cadwell, Oulton, Combe, Donington (fingers crossed) - that sounds good for starters. Hope to meet you at some of these... Gavin

05/01/2009 12:59:37 Stephen W Gentlemen!!!!!! I am so impressed. Many, many thanks to all of you for your responses: all useful tips! So my rebuild.... I have a 1972 B (with modified engine bay), the car will be 90% new by the time its finished. Its costing me a small fortune, however this is my BMW, my attempt at the M3 or M5 if you like, but obviously no where near as quick or advanced. My theory is that if thats what I wanted, then I'd buy that type of car. But it isn't and I certainly don't want that. What I am passionate about is the sports element to the car and the journey. The technical and also the theory. I imagine that when I get the car built it will be 50% car and 50% driver which takes a corner, rather than the 80-90% car electro-gimicks and 20-10% driver. I am just bowled over by the tips, and little gems of information which you all have which makes your cars that extra little bit special. In many respects I'm not a purist. As I said before I had a 'quick' car but always felt that it was getting close to what I could do with the engine without forking at huge expense for a cross flow head, roller rockers, a supercharger etc etc. At this point I did think v8, however, the enviros and my concious thought better. What I have punted for instead is a 'O series': sherpa van, maestro et al fame!! The engine is a twice rebuilt unit. Once by the owner 14 years before I acquired it. He ran it for 5 minutes then put it in a box. And more recently by an engine builder friend of mine to check that everything should be as it was. Luckily it was. The unit uses twin HIF6 carbs and has a displacement of 2098cc. It has a single over head cam (my greatest advantage over the B push rod system I felt) and is termed an O1 series as the dizzy is 90 degs to the head. I have bolted the O series engine (which in this case was from an entry level SD1) to a B gearbox by use of the sherpa back plate. The idea was always to improve the efficency of the car and tis speed whilst also being able to maintain a level head. I have seen the K series conversion, ridden in a v8 and supercharged B and also looked into the M or T series. However, each of these options I felt was probably beyond my skill level- and the construction capability of the car (just my opinion). I thought why would I want to put >150 bhp through the car? (this may change once I've been on the track). Out of the box, the engine as standard is 110bhp. I hope with a little teasing it may make 120bhp (fingers crossed). I've mated up 4 pipe chimney to a pecco straight through system. I plan to fit K&N's to the HIF's as mentioned in the responses. To accompany the engine I have used a suspension set up suggested by Doug: blue poly bushes, negative camber kit, new rack, 600lb springs, new lever arm dampers with uprated valves, Mintex 1144 brakes and the suggested race brake fluid, standard discs and new calipers. At the rear c/b springs, lowering blocks and new lever arm dampers. I'm hoping that at least when its ready it fires up! :)

05/01/2009 14:05:51 JP12 Stephen, It sounds like an interesting conversion using the O series. If you can get 120bhp for sensible money then it should make a track day B go reasonably well. The key is to get the weight out of the car and for track days you probably want to be looking at 900-950kgs unless you want to get really serious. The great thing about track days is that there are no regulations so you are free to do what you like with the car. Remember that Doug will only tell you so much and there are some secret parts on his car and he is unlikely to tell you what they are. He is also more of an FIA car expert and I get the impression that he is a bit reluctant to use or comment on some of the more modern go faster bits, however, I suppose that is what makes his company so good at building an FIA MGB. There are some modifications you can make to the standard components that have a reasonable impact on car performance, but I doubt you will ever get anyone to post these on a forum!! It all seems to be top secret stuff, but that's because it's illegal in all but a few race championships. Check out: [URL="http://www.fast-mg.com/"]http://www.fast-mg.com/[/URL] Dave has made some parts for me and his work, while very simple in design, seems to be very effective. The american guys are allowed to carry out far more modifications in the SCCA than we are in the UK. Joe

05/01/2009 15:06:28 Stephen W Joe I get the impression I'm going to like this site and the people I meet! Thank you for taking the time to respond. I like your thinking, and I certainly agree that getting the weight out is also paramount to having a quick car. It was one of my arguments for not going for a V8 as it can be an easy way of delivering bus loads of torque whilst keeping the luxurys of driving- like a heater (or a radio if you can hear it). All those things don't have a place in the rebuild. It will certainly be as close to stripped out as I can make it on track days. I hope to retain and return the interior trim for enjoyable touring with the girlfriend when its needed. As I don't really know the tricks yet, or even how the car handles I'll stay green for a while whilst I get used to it all again. As I've been pretty logical in starting off 3yrs ago with a r/b car and stripping that back I hope to have used improvements in sensible places. It was great to see that I had 90% of the list that others would used for setting up the car. I imagine the other 10% like you say is closely guarded. Is there much competition between members of the club? (as if I need to ask)

05/01/2009 16:37:01 JP12 Competition between MGoT members? No, certainly not, it's just a way getting some really good track time in your MG at some great venues. In some of the MGCC race series and FIA events, then yes it can be very competitive, but that's what makes it fun.:D I did my first track day in 2003 when I first purchased my MGB GT. I then got a bit hooked, bought a race car in 2005 and started racing it last year. I still try and regularly attend MGoT days because they are great value and you get loads of track time compared to a race meeting. Keep us posted on the rebuild. Joe

05/01/2009 17:01:48 Stephen W Thats great, I look forward to it all. I have little idea about the FIA regs or racing however I'm sure its easy to get hooked. Hopefully with some useful coaching from you all I could be pretty handy. One question I have is where is the best place to take the car for a shake down once its built? Current progress attached- hopefully. [ATTACH][ATTACH]274.vB[/ATTACH][/ATTACH]

05/01/2009 18:03:56 gavinsmith Stephen, Glad you found the information useful, and it sounds like you're mechanical skills are far more advanced than mine, which will save you a fortune. It'll be interesting to see the O series conversion - only ever seen the odd photo in a tuning book. As Joe says, 120 bhp should give you a good trackday car, or at least a good starting point. My BGT probaably puts out about that much power, and I've not really lightened it, other than getting the rubber bumpers removed, so if you can get some weight out of yours, it'll go well. Doug uses Pete Baldwin at Wilshers Garages near Cambridge for rolling road tune ups, though I'm sure there are plenty of other places you could try. If you come along to a trackday, you could probably get several other equally good (and perhaps cheaper) recommendations. It might then be a good idea to try one of the "starter experiences" at North Weald airfield, which will give you a good idea now the car handles, stops etc. in a safe environment. Hope to see you at a trackday sometime soon... Gavin

05/01/2009 18:11:38 JP12 I normally give my car a good shake down through the local villages the night before a track day!! They love me:D

06/01/2009 10:51:29 Stephen W Gavin Yes, that'd be great to see you around. What have you done to your B engine? 120bhp is quite something! I'll post up more pics of the engine if you're interested? Thought it was quite boring if I'm honest, but perhaps something different is good to see too!

06/01/2009 16:09:26 gavinsmith Hi Stephen, I may be on the optimistic side with my bhp guestimate, as I've not yet had it on a rolling road, but I don't think 120bhp is too far off the mark. The engine is a 1950cc stage 2 with large K&N 'pancake' air filters and a tubular bigger bore exhaust. All bar the air filters were done before I bought the car, though it ran with a terrible flat spot for a year or so before I decided that it probably ought to run a bit more smoothly and spent a hot summer day under the bonnet fiddling with the mixture and carb balance. With a final tweak by Doug, it was a different car - no flat spots and an urge across the rev range that it had never had before. The car's a bit sick at the moment - I think I've managed to blow the head gasket again having fun on track last year. I got a price for a steel competition head gasket, but at £152.85:eek:, I've decided to stick with the standard gasket, which comes as a complete kit (containing all gaskets for the head, rocker cover, exhaust and inlet manifolds etc.) for a rather more reasonable £16.73!! Gavin

06/01/2009 17:14:25 Stephen W That sounds great! I presume you've messed about with needle profile to achieve that. I used the AAA, with a Peco exhaust and manifold and modified head for my B. That was quick and very enjoyable, so I can only hope to have a lap or two as a passenger in the future!! I've used Payen with lots of success. I dare not mention copper!!!! :eek:

06/01/2009 19:08:42 JP12 I wouldn't waste my money on a steel competition 1950cc head gasket. As Stephen says I would use a Payen gasket but it will slightly protrude into the bore on a 1950cc. If you want you can speak to Doug because I know he uses Payen gaskets... actually it was a Payen gasket that he used in the race engine he rebuilt for me in 2007. Copper head gaskets, well, lets just say I'm not going to be using one ever again!!

06/01/2009 19:24:23 JP12 Gavin, Are you sure you don't want a nice Weber 48 for your car;) Joe

06/01/2009 20:37:52 Martin C [quote=Stephen W]Gavin I'll post up more pics of the engine if you're interested? Thought it was quite boring if I'm honest, but perhaps something different is good to see too![/quote] Hi Stephen, Interesting thread this one and I'm looking forward to following your progress and seeing the car. Did you know that Abingdon actually built about six cars with this type of engine in? They used a 1695cc version of the 'O' series engine with the OHC & 90deg distributor as you described. The engine was designed as a replacement for the 'B' series engine, but the demise of MG never saw it go into production in the MG B. I have seen and got some photo's of one of the 'B' roadsters used in the development programme. It was sold off at the close of the factory, minus the 'O' series engine and a standard 'B' unit fitted. It was an export, US spec shell, with the triple wipers, side markers etc. but right-hand drive. The other interesting point was the chassis plate, it was one of the original brass type ones with the original factory phone number, IIRC, Abingdon 251 on it. Regards, Martin

07/01/2009 08:49:45 gavinsmith Thanks Stephen and Joe, I've got a Payen gasket kit from Brown & Gammons, so that should do the trick. I had to have the head skimmed 3-4 years ago when the gasket blew in more spectacular style after the (brand new) thermostat failed. Luckily, I was outside my front door at the time. I'm a bit puzzled as to why it looks like it's gone again so soon. Joe - do you think the problem could be related to the gasket protruding into the bore? I'll get the head checked and reskimmed if necessary anyway, but perhaps I should just take my foot off the loud pedal a bit more often. Stephen - the engine was modded before I bought the car, but for a standard stage 2 conversion, I think you're right that the needles are switched to AAAs. You're more than welcome to a few passenger laps, though whether my car is any sort of benchmark, especially with me driving, is very doubtful. That's how I got the MGoT bug - everyone's friendly and accommodating. You'll go far quicker if you sit next to Joe mind you, and I'm sure some of the V8 boys would give you a spin - Michael Sparks' 270 bhp V8GT makes a [I]lovely[/I] noise;). Finally, Joe - I'd love a Weber 48, but I might end up being a single man again if I went down that route, so I'll have to pass for now... Gavin

07/01/2009 09:02:07 Martin C [quote=gavinsmith] - Michael Sparks' 270 bhp V8GT makes a [I]lovely[/I] noise;). Gavin[/quote] Gavin's correct there, Michael's is a superb example, complete with Hoyle suspension and he built the car himself. It is always driven with verve and style, a trip out with Michael is always a joy :D Martin.

07/01/2009 18:55:22 Stephen W Martin I think I did know that, but I can't quite remember. I had quite long lonely nights at the time and it was something to do!! Luckily enough my good friend did more research and put it on the web in his site! See the link below, find engines and O series, should explain itself. [URL="http://www.upgrades4mgs.co.uk/"]http://www.upgrades4mgs.co.uk/[/URL] I've added another picture of the engine. With a dished sump it fits in nicely without fouling the cross member. Its a modification which lots of other engine swaps such as the M/T have to use-in this case I didn't. The other good thing I've found is that by using the same gearbox, everything back of the back plate remains standard. Easy peasy. I've contacted P Burgess regarding a future tune up (once it runs) and I've decided to renew the ring gear and fly along with a better clutch. Not too mad but something better than standard on the basis that standard now is rubbish! :o Wow, that does sound an experience! One thing that I also found is that the dpo used a screw driver to open the head, it left a small notch close to cyl 3...with a coppper gasket it stood no chance. I really rate the payen. The problems with big bore and it overlapping is not something I've had experience of though I imagine it is crtical to the performance!

07/01/2009 19:04:56 Stephen W another with a trial fitting into an old roadster shell we had knocking around. Many thanks to Mike for his time.

07/01/2009 19:53:16 JP12 Stephen - Did Peter Burgess give any idea of what kind of power he would expect from a mildy modified road useable O series? I have to say that does look like a very simple engine conversion. Is that link Martin's site? Does he still have his black MGB GT and what has Phil done with his supercharged B? The last I read was that Martin had it had a blown headgasket. I was posting on a forum with Martin when I was collecting all the parts for my XE conversion. That was a few years ago and when I bought the racer the XE conversion got scrapped. Gavin - I am no engine builder but I very much doubt that the gasket slightly protruding into the bore would be the cause of the gasket failure. I have used a standard Payen on a 1950cc engine and I know many others have. The last time I had head gasket problems was due to the fact that I was using the new cheapo head studs. On my old car I hunted down some original studs and now I use ARP. Could this turn out to be the longest thread on the MGoT?:D Joe

08/01/2009 08:26:39 Stephen W Martin and I are very good friends for 3 years now. He's to blame for the history behind me and the O....I should add I am really really greatful! I or my cars more correctly, feature a little on the site in rebuilds and progress. Phil's supercharged MGB is resting up for the moment however, it will be back we have been promised sometime in the future. Martin's black MGB is looking sweet. Roughly 100bhp at the rear wheels with more coming from fitting EDIS. Head studs....can't they be a nightmare if they shear! Always worth fitting new and investing in a decent torque wrench too.# Is it?

08/01/2009 08:34:34 Stephen W erm... forgot to answer the question. yes and no. He has told me that he's got plenty of experience with the modifying maestro ? (if I recall the conversation correctly). I showed some bravado and quoted the factory out of the box 110bhp for twin SU. Tbh he didn't think much of that or the fact I suggested it could go to 120bhp with a little tinkering. :( So it really is a case of waiting to see. The standard form was 1998cc, I've got 2098cc- new parts throughout, better air filters, tune up rolling road booked in (eventually), better ignition system than the points and condensor, etc. so we'll see. I'll be better putting a finger in the air rather than suggesting any figures I think!

08/01/2009 10:25:32 gavinsmith Thanks Joe - fingers crossed that the Payen gaket I have will be fine. I think the engine still has the old head studs in it, but it was uprated to 1950 stage 2 before I bought the car and there was no info about the rebuild, so I don't know exactly what was done. By ARP studs, do you mean these (see link)...? [URL="http://www.cambridgemotorsport.com/ARP-High-Tensile-MGB-Head-Stud-Kit"]www.cambridgemotorsport.com/ARP-High-Tensile-MGB-Head-Stud-Kit[/URL] I might look into this if anything looks at all ropey when the head comes off. Gavin

08/01/2009 19:02:03 JP12 Gavin - yes those are the head studs that I use. Hopefully the new Payen gasket should do the trick. Stephen - Get Martin and Phil to get their MGs On Track!! Martin might remember my old GT car because he mentioned that he saw it when it was featured in Retro Car magazine and I posted some pics on Xpowerforums where we used to post. Joe

08/01/2009 20:36:30 Stephen W Believe me i've floated the idea. I'm hoping it takes off between us tbh. Okay, question again....sounds obvious but how do you become a better driver? IAM???? any tips, people to go to..I don't want to stick the car into the first corner with my over enthusiasm. :rolleyes:

08/01/2009 21:09:47 JP12 MGoT always have instructors at their track days and I would definitely recommend them. I was lucky and had a mate at Uni that raced at a high level in Asia. He came to the first three track days that I did and he taught me loads. The best bit was sitting as a passenger thinking 'how the hell does he make it go this fast'!! The other great thing with track days is that you normally get around 2 hours track time. Lots of time to improve your skills and lines through the day so there is no need to go flat out in the first session. Joe

08/01/2009 21:19:11 Dave Joe's right about taking instruction - it's well worth it - even as you get more experienced there's always something to learn. However, if you really want to get some initial driver training and are prepared to pay for it, then I can thoroughly recommend Andy Walsh's driver training days - see his website [URL="http://www.1stlotus.com/intro.htm"]here[/URL]. Dave

08/01/2009 22:34:40 Stephen W Dave That is fantastic. Thats is just what I have been looking for myself and girlfriend. Yes I think getting in with Instructors is also what I'll need for sure (and any of you guys when we finally meet). Any experience is useful!!! Is there space to meet up on a track day if I dn't drive?

09/01/2009 08:07:24 Dave [quote=Stephen W] Is there space to meet up on a track day if I didn't drive?[/quote]Yes, no problem at all. We encourage people to come along and see how everything works. I'm sure that we could fix up some passenger laps for you as well. Dave