Engine help needed - B979FEW

[revingtosh]

Hi,

I need some help ID'ng what type of engine is in my Mini as the previous owner had little information.

The head casting is a 12g940, weber 45 DCOE etc. It pulls really well so i know its of a 1275 variety (previous owner says its a 1380).

I need to know if anyone else here can tell the A series from an A Plus.

If you look where the dipstick does into the engine, theres a small 2 inch tube coming out of the block that the dipstick slides into.

Also, the alternator bracket sits about 3/4 inch away from the middle core plug if that helps too.

According to the log book, the engine number is 12HC1LAA123778 too. Where should be engine number be found on the engine?

Cheers,

Mike

[Snake the Sniper]

A+ has a ribbed block, as opposed to the smooth front on an A series.
Yours was originally a 1275 High Compression lump, IIRC, from a Metro, but as to what size it is now is anyone's guess. You'd have to pull the head and measure it to find out. Oh, yours should be an A+ too.

Engine number should be on a flat plate riveted to the block just under number 4 spark plug.

This is an A+ block, note the ribs at the bottom of the block, and flat bit (plain metal, not red, horizontal) under 4th plug.

Edited by Snake the Sniper on Saturday 22 November 17:25

[revingtosh]

Thanks for the quick reply,

When you say "ribbed" do you mean at the front of the block, down towards the bottom on the left where the block meets the gearbox?

Ive just braved the cold and been in the garage, there defo isnt any ribbing on the lower left hand side of the engine.

FYI, i think that my engine numbers must be missing, i have the flat on top of the block below the 4th plug but theres nothing there!

Mike

Edited by revingtosh on Saturday 22 November 19:05

[Snake the Sniper]

The most obvious ribbing is down and to the left of the dizzy, and just below the alternator bracket.

[phumy]

Snake the Sniper said:

A+ has a ribbed block, as opposed to the smooth front on an A series.
Yours was originally a 1275 High Compression lump, IIRC, from a Metro, but as to what size it is now is anyone's guess. You'd have to pull the head and measure it to find out. Oh, yours should be an A+ too.

Engine number should be on a flat plate riveted to the block just under number 4 spark plug.

This is an A+ block, note the ribs at the bottom of the block, and flat bit (plain metal, not red, horizontal) under 4th plug.

Edited by Snake the Sniper on Saturday 22 November 17:25

Ive not worked on a mini engine for at least 23 years and when i was working on them, number one plug was at the fan end of the engine and that was also where the engine number platform was. Looking a your picture its the right hand plug (fan end). Unless of course i have been wrong all of this time, i doubt it.

[Cooperman]

Apart from the ribbing on the block, the distributor clamping is different on an A+. Look at the distributor mounting. If it is held in with a forked plate bolted down onto the block on the alternator side of the dizzy, it's an A+. If it has a clamp plate going right around the dizzy base it's an earlier A block.
To get the capacity you must remove the head and measure both bore and stroke. With a 12G940 it will almost certainly be a 1275 or bigger, as to fit a 940 head to a 998 requires special machining of the block.
Don't go by engine number plates as it's so easy to change them from block to block.
I hope this helps.

[Snake the Sniper]

Phumy, you are correct. Not quite sure how I thought that, but either way, he got what I meant!