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MG TD TF 1500 - OLD ENGINE START UP

We just brought home a right hand drive 1950 TD. The car has been off the road for 10 years. We plan on getting it to driver status for the summer. The full restoration will be in the future after we finish the 52 we are working on. We bore-a-scoped the engine on Monday. The first three cylinders look great, the #4 piston was just about TDC. A little rust tint on the piston. The engine turns over with the hand crank. Do we need to let the rings soak in automatic transmission fluid to loosen the rings? What weight of oil would work for the initial start up then change after a short time? Will drain and flush the fuel system, rebuild the carburetors, change all fluids and check all ignition parts. What problems might we run in to on the start up that has happened to you with an engine sitting this long?
Gary
Gary Krukoski

i would do everything you said, marvel mystery oil in the cylinders, and remember, once you get it rolling you may not want to stop, but at some point you will need to.. so...rebuild the master and wheel cylinders...replace the brake lines..rubber and steel and bleed with silicon brake fluid. (these old cars are only single circuit.) IMHO tom
tm peterson

Hi Gary,

I would be a little concerned about 'bad noises' i.e. bearings and the like on the initial start up. When I tore down my 'running' engine, I was shocked at the wear and errosion on the surfaces of the bearings on both the big end and the crank. I also had corrosion on the block face to the head from water damage, and a burned exhaust valve on number one. The engine did run pretty good with all that damage though!

I initially put 20w50 in my rebuilt engine, but Bob Figenskau encouraged me to go with 30w non-detergent. I'm not a big fan of non-detergent oils in engines, so I compromised with straight 30 detergent oil on my start up. I'll change the oil when I have some miles on the engine. If I were running a old engine, I would run the 20w50 and change it after 300 miles or so so I could inspect it and the filter. One thing that I think you should consider is to crank the engine without spark plugs to assure oil pressure before you start. In my cold garage, even with the wood stove running, I put a light bulb under the sump over-night to warm the oil to a reasonable temperature so it would flow better.

You might want to start the engine off a gas can rather than the fuel lines. Just hook a flexible hose to the SU pump and place the gas can back a few feet. If you do clean the fuel system, and install a filter to catch remaining debris, the filter needs to be downstream of the fuel pump. The SU does well passing large junks of debris through it, but doesn't like to be starved for fuel on the upstream side. If you clog a filter downstream, it is no worse for the pump than to have the float bowl needles closed.

The BSW wrenches and sockets are in the foyer if you need them this weekend. Just let Camper know if you need to stop by and pick them up.

warmly,
dave
Dave Braun

Just a note of caution.

If you're going to soak your rings with a penetrating-type oil like Marvel or autotranny oil, remember there will be some residual oil on the top of the pistons when you start it up, even if you do cycle the engine on the starter.

So be sure you have lots of ventillation - better still, do it outside, as you can expect copius amounts of oil smoke!

On my first ever rebuild of my TC (1950), I just opened the garage door and after cycling the engine, replaced the plugs. Yes, it did start but I had the wrath of all nearby residents plus the fire trucks as a reminder of what I had done!

Gord Clark
Rockburn, Qué.
Gordon A. Clark

Gary

The points will need to be changed or filled to remove any oxidation on them. The SU pump will most likely be in as bad shape as the carburetors and will most likely need attention.

As for the oil, if the engine was run on non detergent oil for an extended amount of time and you change to detergent oil you may dislodge a significant amount of sludge which may or may not cause problems. I would stick to the non detergent until you rebuild.


Steve Averka
Steve Averka

This thread was discussed on 15/02/2006

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