Stephen Blackburn's 1971 MGB with Chevy 283cid V8
as published in BritishV8 Magazine, Volume XIX Issue I, December 2011Owner: Stephen Blackburn
BritishV8 UserID: sjblack13
City: California
Model: 1971 MG MGB
Engine: Chevy 283cid V8.
Built by: owner
Features and Specifications
| Engine: | Chevy 283 small block engine, rebuilt and blueprinted.
358 hp at 6400rpm and 322 ft-lb at 4900rpm, at the flywheel.
Steel crankshaft.
Dome top pistons.
I-beam connecting rods.
Comp Cams solid lifters and roller rockers.
Custom 202 aluminum cylinder heads.
Edelbrock Performer intake manifold.
Holley 650 double-pumper carburetor.
Pertronix Flame Thrower distributer.
Flame Thrower ignition coil.
Pertronix 8mm spark plug wires.
|
| Cooling: | Be Cool aluminum radiator with two 10" pusher fans and two 8" puller fans. |
| Exhaust: | custom four into one headers.
3" side pipes (as pictured).
Also have a 2-into-1 oval 2-1/2" system with Spin Tech muffler. |
| Transmission: | Borg Warner T5 with a 0.67 final drive.
Lakewood bellhousing.
McLeod pressure plate and hydraulic throw out bearing.
Tilton master cylinder with remote reservoir.
Custom driveshaft. |
| Rear End: | stock MGB (3.909:1 gears and open differential). |
| Front Susp.: | custom made double A-arm with Aldan coilovers. |
| Rear Susp.: | triangulated 4-link with Aldan coilovers. |
| Brakes: | (master) Wilwood master cylinders with remote reservoir, (front) 4-piston aluminum calipers with 11.25" vented disks, (rear) single piston calipers with integrated E-brake and 10.75" vented disks. |
| Wheels/Tires: | stock MGB disk wheel centers mounted on 15" x 7" rims.
Baby moon hubcaps.
Firestone Firehawk 205/55R15 tires. |
| Electrical: | all wired from scratch with relays.
Power windows.
600 watt stereo.
Nippondenso 60 amp mini alternator.
Optima "Red Top" battery. |
| Instruments: | oil, water and fuel level gauges are stock MGB.
Auto Meter Designer Black speedometer and tachometer. |
| Completed: | 7-31-2011. But I will always be tweaking it. 900 miles as of 10-3-2011, and many more to come. |
| Comments: | I have had this car since I was in high school back in the mid 1980s and always
wanted to do this but never had the funds. The car was tweaked on the passenger
side front and rear so I cut out the floors and the front half of the unibody and
made a complete frame for the custom suspension. The build started back in 2003
and I drove it off and on between then and completion, mainly to test the suspension
even though it was only with the 4 cylinder. Even with the complete frame I think
it lost about 100lb between the floor support, front framing and the front and rear
suspension. I can't think of anything I would do different except not have waited
so long to build it... it's a little rocket and handles like it's on rails!
I would like to thank everyone who has posted their information and images on this website. I probably have 1000 hours just looking and reading what you have done and have tried to learn from it. You have all done great jobs on your cars and I hope you don't mind that I used a few of your design ideas. |
Engine Installation
Chevy 283 small block engine, rebuilt and blueprinted.
Be Cool aluminum radiator with two 10 inch pusher fans and two 8 inch puller fans.
Nippondenso 60 amp mini alternator.
Custom four into one headers feed into three inch side pipes.
This little Chevy engine is rated 358 hp at 6400rpm and 322 ft-lb at 4900rpm (at the flywheel).
Edelbrock Performer intake manifold. Holley 650 double-pumper carburetor.
Custom 202 aluminum cylinder heads. Note spacers under the valve covers.
(They're called 202 heads because they have wider valve spacing than so called 194 heads
to use 2.02" diameter intake valves and 1.6" exhaust valves where the other style use
1.94" and 1.5" valves, which results in better breathing at high engine speed.)
4-piston aluminum calipers with 11.25" vented disks.
Old school: header wrap over mild steel headers.
Custom wiring with eight fuses where once there were four. (Note also heat shrink tubing.)
Chevy bellhousing on Borg Warner T5 transmission and plumbing for McLoed hydraulic throw-out bearing.
(This bellhousing later cracked, and was replaced with a Lakewood steel belldhousing.)
Brake plumbing for Wilwood master cylinders with remote reservoirs, and steering shaft routing.
Beautifully detailed engine compartment.
When the stripe is offset to the side like this, some of us call it a "Sebring stripe".
Mechanically stripping all that paint was obviously a lot of hard work!
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Front Suspension
Custom designed and fabricated double A-arm front suspension with Aldan coilovers.
Original MGB front crossmember deleted in lieu of lightweight tubular structure. The
MGB's built-in subframe has also been removed. Motor mounts now mounted on crossmember.
Completely new frame for what was once a unibody car.
Custom front and rear suspension.
Rear Suspension
Triangulated 4-link rear suspension featuring Aldan coilovers. Stock MGB axle.
Single piston calipers with integrated E-brake and 10.75" vented disks.
Interior
Fabric seat covers.
Custom interior trim details.
Remodeled "Abingdon pillow" style dashboard with its padding deleted.
New floorboards.
Trunk paint.
Exterior
Stock MGB disk wheel centers mounted on 15" x 7" rims. Baby moon hubcaps.
Mark one taillights on a mark two MGB.
Checking bumper fit. Note that bumper bolts have been welded-on, grinded down, and smoothed over.
(Later the bumpers were re-chromed.)
Bumper over-riders will be deleted.
Ready for glazing.
Ready for primer.
Epoxy primer.
Stripes before color.
