Monday 8 February 2010

Austin A40 engine rebuild



In the workshop recently:

The owner of this Austin A40 Somerset has become a regular customer.

Before I started looking after the car, it suffered from regular head gasket failure - a problem the Somerset and Devon 1200cc engines are prone to. When the gasket failed recently, the decision was taken to properly rectify the problem.

The engine was pulled and stripped, and the head and block were skimmed showing both faces to be uneven. A few mods were made to the way the studs located the head, the core plugs removed and the cooling system thoroughly cleaned (there was ½ an inch of rust/sludge in places!).

The engine was checked while it was apart and found to be in very good condition. The valves were lapped in and new valve springs, chain tensioner and water pump were fitted. Everything was cleaned to remove many years worth of grime before re-assembly with new gaskets and core plugs. All the head fixings were carefully checked and cleaned, and the head very carefully torqued in gradual stages. To finish things off, the engine was given a coat of Austin engine green.


Today the engine went back into the car and everything was fitted up and re-connected. Tomorrow should see it running and finished, lets hope the problem is sorted once and for all!


No comments: