MGC Anyone done a ring job on an MGC?

[MadRiver]

Howdy all:

My MGC's been burning a serious amount of oil so I decided to do a compression check. Cylinder 1 was fine, but 2 and 3 were *horrible*, so I didn't go any further. In flipping through the factory manual, it looks like a pretty involved process just to get the pan/sump off, though once that's done, I presume it's no harder than the typical ring operation. Anyone done a ring job on an MGC? Any suggestions before I dive in this winter?

I should note that I'm a fairly good mechanic, but I haven't put rings in an engine since my father, brother and I built a 302 for my brother's '75 Land Cruiser (that's a whole other story, but that truck was crazy). And that was, oh, 20 years ago! Am I crazy to tackle the C's mill?

 

[rick_ingram]

I hada my 1969 MGC engine rebuilt in 1996...rings and bearings. The bore was within spec.

I would imagine that it would be EXTREMELY difficult to get the oil pan off of the engine without the engine being out of the car. You will probably save time (and perhaps some skin) in the long run by taking the lump out first. And it is a very long, heavy beast.

Good luck....but I know that you can do it.

 

[RickB]

Pull the front of the car off. (just everything in front of the engine)

Disconnect the transmission from everything.
Disconnect the engine from everything.
Pull the transmission & engine together.

While out check the clutch, to replace the clutch see above.

Once it's out things are straightforward.
Be sure to measure all the tolerances & renew things that are too far out.

Oh, and take several times more pictures than you think are really needed. Get every possible angle. Save these pictures on site, off site and in a sealed vault.

Rick
(who rebuilt his MGC engine in 1986 / 1987 and then had the clutch replaced in 1988)

 

[68Sprite]

You might want to do a leak down test to see if the problem is in the bottom end or in the cylinder head i.e. valves or guides.

 

[Dave Russell]

You might want to do a leak down test to see if the problem is in the bottom end or in the cylinder head i.e. valves or guides.

Good advice. Having two adjacent cylinders low is an indication of possible head gasket or head problems, especially if the other cylinders are good. Check the rest of the cylinders before going too far. "Leak down" is by far the best way to find where the problem is before you take things apart.

If you do end up pulling the engine, having the head & attached equipment removed will make engine removal much easier.
D

 

[RickB]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:]If you do end up pulling the engine, having the head & attached equipment removed will make engine removal much easier.[/QUOTE]

Too true - just about everything on there is big & heavy.

Oh, and don't be like me of 20+ years ago.
Keep track of all the pieces that come off & put them back on.
I still don't know what happened to several parts, including the radiator top seal piece /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/frown.gif

 

[mgcsaylor]

Have the engine out on my C.

You need to get the back end up higher than the front, that way she can clear the firewall and the bonnet slam panel.

Make sure you get a tilting engine lift bracket - one that allows you to adjust the angle at which you are lifting the engine. Will help tremendously.

If you have no idea what I'm talking about, it's a device that has a threaded rod onto which you connect the chains that are connected to the engine. Adjusting the rod moves the lift point, allow to lift the front or the back without losing the load.

Ditto on checking the clutch. May also want to rebuild the oil pump at the same time, not to mention paint and undercoat the areas you can't get to with the engine in place.

My two pence.

 

[RonMacPherson]

Or see if Moss still sells the Oberg tilters. Works a lot better than the threaded rod kind. I know I had both.