How many engines?

[BlownMGB-V8]

I'm trying to find out the total number of Rover engines  that have been built since they acquired the V8 from GM. This would include the Australian and any other variants but would be separate from the GM production numbers (which I would also like to know btw. For that matter it'd be good to have the Buick production numbers for all 300's, 340's and 350's but maybe that's too  much to ask.) This information could lead to a new head design.

Jim

[Moderator]

I'd really like to know this too...

[4.6 MGB V8]

I have never heard anything but vague estimates of the Rover numbers being under 1,000,000 units but Des Hammill claims that that "Rover V8 cylinder block production peaked in the 1980's at about 1420 blocks per week with cylinder heads at about 2900 per week"(How to Power Tune Rover V8 Engines, Page 12). Maybe you can generate an estimate from those numbers.
He also says that the "Best estimates put Oldsmobile production at around 250,000 units; Buick at around 500,000 units. (How to Power Tune Rover V8 Engines, Page 10).

This site also gives some pretty specific production figures for the American engines broken down by model, if you want to do the math. http://www.roversd1.nl/sd1web/v8-1.html

It would be interesting to finally know how many were really produced. Good Luck.

[BlownMGB-V8]

What we've deduced (no real hard figures) is that there have been just under a million Rover and Rover based engines SBB's to that we come up with about 3/4M 300's, and around 400K 340's for roughly 2.9M engines with the early head and then 2.9M Buick 350's with the late head. So in total about 5-3/4 million engines based on this design which could use the new aluminum head should TA Performance decide to make it. Of course many of these engines no longer exist, but it does give a rough idea of the potential market. This head would flow very big numbers and be affordable. For use on a 350 cam bearing inserts would allow the use of the early cam, 215 style headers would work and the early type intake, possibly with spacers.

Jim