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MG Midget and Sprite Technical - 1275 mild cam

Hi All,

Looks like the speedo drive in my ford type 9 is on the blink as speedo doesn't work, head unit is fine as is cable :-(

Anyway whilst I have the engine out I can take a look at the clutch release mechanism as that is causing drag and making a right old racket at idle

But more importantly maybe a quick camshaft swap whilst I am about it.

Currently my A+ engine which has remarkably only done 3000 miles from new has a badly setup weber 40 twin choke, K & N air filter, maniflow LCB maifold and large bore RC40 exhaust system.

I was thinking of a mild cam upgrade maybe the MG metro profile or equivalent ? I do like a bit of midrange torque and I dont want a dead fish at low RPM so dont want to go as far as fast road.

Bit worried about horror stories of regrinds. Will all MG metro cams fit my late Ital A+ engine ?

What do people recomend and what should I avoid ?

Also do I really need to buy new followers as mine have only done 3000 miles ?

When I get a bit bored sometime in the future I will also whip the head off and do a little porting too.

cheers

Ben
Ben Brown

The MG Metro camshaft is excellent IMHO.
The profile was originally available as a 'Special Tuning' fast road cam.
It was the specified cam for the MGOC race championship for many years. It also works very well with 1.5 rockers.
The MG Metro cam will fit any A-series engine. It has the A+ slot-drive for the oil pump, so you have to use the correct pump.
Dave O'Neill 2

Hi Ben

You must ALWAYS fit new cam followers with a new cam otherwise you will very likely wear the cam out at a rate of knots.

As Dave says the MG Metro cam works well especially with high lift rockers when the cam should be advanced by 4 degrees from standard to gain the best preformance.

You might want to consider the Piper 270 cam or the Kent 276, the Piper os similar to the MG cam and the Kent is a little hairier.

Which ever cam you decide to use, buy a billet cam, more expensive but will last a lot longer and deliver more power.

You should also time the cam in to gain the best from your tuning.

Peter
P Burgess

If you can find a cheap used MG Metro cam then go for it, I seem to recall they aren't too cheap tho.
The Swiftune SW5 is an excellent road cam. I had one and it was very tractable at low revs, up until the lobes fell off.

Matt
Tarquin

>> I had one and it was very tractable at low revs, up until the lobes fell off.

Strewth!!

Not even high ratio rockers would make that work!

I had a 276 timed at +4 that was useful for road (incl 5spd box) and speed competition; torque orse very steeply between 2 and 2.5K.

A
Anthony Cutler

This thread was discussed between 11/10/2010 and 12/10/2010

MG Midget and Sprite Technical index

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