Jim Durham's 1980 MGB with Ford 302cid V8 Engine
Owner: Jim DurhamBritishV8 UserID: JWD
City: Gig Harbor, Washington
Model: 1980 MG MGB
Engine: Ford 302
Conversion by: owner
How It Was Done
| Engine: | Ford 302, bored 0.020" over and balanced.
Edelbrock E-Street aluminum cylinder heads.
Edelbrock Performer camshaft.
Scorpion roller rockers.
Edelbrock Performer #2121 (satin finish, non-EGR) intake manifold.
Edelbrock Performer 600cfm carburetor.
Facet Bendix-style electric fuel pump.
Pertronix Flame-Thrower Ignitor III distributor.
Pertronix Flame-Thrower ignition coil.
Moroso spark plug wires.
CVF Racing pulleys.
Remote mounted oil filter.
|
| Cooling: | 22" wide aluminum crossflow radiator.
Ford short water pump.
Maradyne 16" electric (puller) fan.
|
| Exhaust: | ceramic coated RV8-style four-into-one headers, specially modified for suspension clearance.
"H" pipe.
2.25" dual exhaust.
Jones Exhaust Systems mufflers: one glass pack and one straight through truck muffler on each side.
|
| Transmission: | Ford Racing T-5Z w/0.63:1 fifth gear.
Ford King Cobra clutch.
Modified Ford Mustang shifter.
Tilton master cylinder.
Nissan slave cylinder. |
| Rear End: | GM 10-bolt rear axle.
3:42:1 ring and pinion.
Locking differential.
Moser Engineering Street Axles.
|
| Front Suspension: | Classic Conversions Engineering (CCE) adjustable coil-over front suspension.
|
| Rear Suspension: | CCE 4-link adjustable coil-over rear suspension.
|
| Brakes: | (master) Corvette master cylinder and automatic proportioning valve. Lokar parking brake cable kit. (front) Wilwood calipers and rotors. (rear) GM rear disc brakes. Wilwood manual proportioning valve on rear circuit. |
| Wheels/Tires: | VTO 8-spoke aluminum wheels, size 15x6.
Champiro VP1 tires, size 195/60R15.
|
| Body: | chrome bumper conversion.
Removed side marker lamps.
Removed middle windshield wiper.
Removed fender beads.
Filled all seams.
Filled firewall and engine bay apertures and holes.
Custom fabricated rear bumper fill pieces, welded in place and painted body color.
Polished windshield frame.
Centered fuel tank.
Underside of car and complete interior and trunk coated with bedliner.
|
| Interior: | Fiero seats with Mr. Mikes covers.
Electric seat heaters.
Kenwood sound system with 6 speakers and high power amplifier (model KAC-744).
Dynamat sound deadener on interior side of firewall.
Thermo-tec insulation on floorboards.
|
| Instruments: | Speedhut gauges.
GPS speedometer.
|
| Electrical: | custom made wiring harness using 10 relays.
Delco 110-amp alternator.
Gear reduction (mini) starter.
Odyssey lightweight battery, located in the trunk.
Battery disconnect switch.
|
| Completed: | 4-1-2016. |
| Jim's Comments: | I do all my own work including body and paint.
The only thing farmed out was the machine work on the engine block.
My goal in building this car was to have the finished product look like a stock MGB to the casual observer.
With the exception of the dual exhaust and two small V8 emblems,
nobody notices the modifications until the engine is started. |
Engine Installation
Ford 302, bored 0.020" over and balanced.
Edelbrock E-Street aluminum cylinder heads.
Corvette master cylinder and automatic ("4-way") brake proportioning valve, plus Wilwood
manual proportioning valve on rear circuit. Tilton clutch master cylinder.
Delco 110-amp alternator.
Edelbrock Performer 600cfm carburetor.
Edelbrock Performer #2121 (satin finish, non-EGR) intake manifold.
CVF Racing pulleys.
Pertronix Flame-Thrower Ignitor III distributor.
Pertronix Flame-Thrower ignition coil.
Moroso spark plug wires.
Cover for fuse block. Note also that engine bay apertures have been filled in.
Fuse block. Note how completely wiring has been hidden.
(Note: relays are mounted under the dashboard.)
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Suspension and Chassis
Classic Conversions Engineering (CCE) adjustable coil-over front suspension.
Wilwood brake calipers and rotors.
Maradyne 16" electric (puller) fan.
Ford Racing T-5Z transmission w/0.63:1 fifth gear.
Nissan clutch slave cylinder.
"I made the exhaust system using a universal kit. I used four small mufflers and an H-pipe
to keep noise down and facilitate not having the mufflers under the passenger compartment,
to reduce cabin heat and increase ground clearance."
CCE 4-link adjustable coil-over rear suspension.
Facet Bendix-style electric fuel pump.
Jones Exhaust mufflers: one glass pack and one straight through truck muffler on each side.
Centered fuel tank facilitates symmetry.
GM rear disc brakes, with parking brake drums inside the rotors.
Moser Engineering Street Axles. Note also: the underside of the car and the complete
interior and trunk were coated with bedliner.
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Interior
MGB interior trim, in classic all-black color scheme.
Speedhut gauges, including a GPS speedometer.
Carpet was purchased in bulk, then cut to size. Jim's wife sewed edging on it.
Sunvisors.
Fiero seats with Mr. Mikes covers.
Dynamat sound deadener on interior side of firewall. Thermo-tec insulation on floorboards.
Battery disconnect switch.
Footwell mounted speakers.
Metal speaker enclosures were built between the front fenders and kick panels and
welded in place to weatherproof the front speakers and increase bass response.
Kenwood 6x9 speakers and model KAC-744 amplifier.
Odyssey lightweight battery.
Bodywork
Stripped.
Primer.
Sealer.
Base coat.
Clear coat. (Still needs cut and buff.)
Polished windshield frame.
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Exterior
1973-1974.5 MGB grille (with black insert) and apron (with two oil cooler holes.)
MG began fitting a third windshield wiper on 1969 MGB roadsters to comply with then-new
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard #104. This MGB's center wiper has been removed
to help make it look more like an earlier model MGB.
Rear bumper fillers were fabricated, welded in place and painted body color.
This MGB has been converted to chromed steel bumpers, but without bumper overriders.
It retains later model (rubber bumper style) license plate lamps.
VTO 8-spoke aluminum wheels, size 15x6.
Champiro VP1 tires, size 195/60R15.
Photos by Jim Durham for BritishV8.org.
Copyright 2016. All rights reserved.
Use by written permission only.
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