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Spitfire Need help making my Spit 1500 a little more fun...

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Re: Thanks!

Hold on...I think some of you guys are mixing up two very different engines.

The Triumph <span style="font-weight: bold">"1300"</span> (really <span style="text-decoration: underline">1296</span> cc) is a better engine than the Triumph 1500, mostly due to shorter stroke and better durability of rod bearings.
For the street, I don't see any really big difference between the two, but for racing, the 1296 is probably more reliable than a 1500 (but a 1500 will still make more HP....it'll just grenade sooner)

The <span style="font-weight: bold">1275</span> is an Austin engine used in Midgets and Sprites. It's a nice little engine, but it was never fitted to Spitfires.
 
Re: Thanks!

For street use I believe the 1500s higher torque makes a more enjoyable experience. YMMV
 
Re: Thanks!

Bob Claffie said:
The 1300 engine has soooo much more potential than the 1500. That's where I would spend my time and money. Prep that one and buy the necessary change over parts so when you get ambitious you can swap them over. Not empty conjecture, I have had both. Bob
Click to expand...

Note that there are actually two slightly different versions of the 1300 engine. Earlier engines had a smaller diameter crankshaft. Likewise the the big end on the connecting rods are smaller. This engine revs much more nicely than the later versions. The engine that came with my herald was the "large crank" version. Since the block was really shot I found a small crank engine to rebuild and it does make a difference.
 
Re: Need help making my Spit 1500 a little more fu

Brosky said:
Robyn,

Does the company that makes the MGB/TR7-8 replacement front and rear panels, make them for this as well?

That car would look soooooo good with a smoothed front and rear.

The front end would look like a Ferrari with the wide open oval grille.

But that's just my opinion....
Click to expand...

Are you sure you meant Robyn? I'm not really sure what you're talking about. :confuse:
 
Re: Need help making my Spit 1500 a little more fu

I am bias toward the 1296 engine because it responds so well to modifications. Somewhere around .25 can be milled off the head to bump up the comp. A 1296 Spit bored .040 over uses STOCK GT6 pistons. Easy to find SU carbs bolt right up. No unusual thrust bearing problems. We had an 1296 G Production Spit with most of the Kastner modifications and it was almost streetable , probably would have been with a little less cam, just lacking some low RPM torque (but would rev forever). Bob
 
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