10 replies to this topic

[Alburglar]

Hello,
What engine number does an un-leaded metro 1275 head have. As I am looking for an unleaded donor to build a 1380.
Might be usefull to know the leaded number too, so I know what not to buy.

Cheers Alastair

[Alburglar]

Is it a 1300 I'm looking for not a 1275?

[Dan]

Right, I may be wrong about this and I don't doubt I'll get my wrists slapped if I am but.....
AFAIK, unleaded was only ever optional on the A-Plus metro. It was optional on the Mini from about '87 to '90 (I think) when it became standard. But in '90 the Metro was no more and was replaced with the Rover 100 which used the K-seies engine of course. So I don't think there was ever a standard unleaded A-Plus metro. That means you won't find many around. Even if it did become standard ahead of the Mini, there won't be many around 'because it will only have been the last year or so of production.

But, the thing is why do you want one? If you are building a 1380 the cost of getting the head converted is minimal compared to the other machining operations you will be paying for. And new valves are a good idea anyway, even if you do keep the standard size. If you plan to get a tuned head from someone it will (or should) be unleaded, and a leaded head is acceptable core for the exchange.

[Purple Tom]

Ok, I'll add my two penneth worth, talking from personal experience here.

The best engines to get out of Metro's are 1275 A+'s from F to G reg (ie aug 89 to aug 90). These cars are becoming increasingly common in scrapyards now, as the shells are reaching the end of their economical life. BUT because of the increasing trend in hot hatches (Pug 205 GTi, Mk2 Golf, Nova, 5, etc) in the lae 80's, the Metro's of that era are likely to have been used by the older generation as a runabout, and are much less likely to have been thrashed. The best examples are 5 door variants, as these are even less of a boy racer street cred car.

Now as far as it goes with the engines themselves, any Metro, whether it be standard, MG or Turbo were all 1275cc, Rover branded just them as a 1300. From experience the numbers you should be looking for on the block will be:

12HE25 ------ (the dashes being the unique 6 digit reference number to the engine).

12 means 1275cc, H means high compression, E means unleaded valve inserts, and 25 i'm not sure about, I think its a Rover term for the later metro engines.

I also think 12HE17 will do it, basically if it has a D or a C it won't be unleaded.

I bought one of these engines from eBay, was told it definitely wasn't unleaded, so I got it very cheap. I looked on the AutoData program at work and found out it definitely was unleaded, and confirmed it when I rebuilt the engine and head. Its the engine that is now running in the car, and it is in mint condition internally. The same applies to the 1275 engine I got from the local scrappers, Looms's in Derby. I saw the Metro drive in and saw the old gentleman get out, hand over his V5, complete with full service history. I checked the car over, found it had been serviced what looked like the day before (new air and oil filters, new oil, new pads etc) so reserved the engine. I had to remove it myself, which took about 3.5 hours, but for what I paid (£50) it was proper worth it. I haven't stripped it yet, but I have a feeling it will be in pretty good nick.

Those sort of engines if you can find them are the best to go for, and now more and more Metro's are dying you should be able to get them quite easily. (there are 4 1275 unleaded's in Looms's at the mo, unfortunately Its to late to have the engines now, but I may well whip the heads of a few).

Hope that helps

Tom

[Pavel]

Also look at Vanden Plas models. These will have unleaded heads if its a later model (around 89-90). Another thing worth taking is the HIF44+Alloy inlet manifold as its identical to the one used on the MG metro!

[Alburglar]

But, the thing is why do you want one?

because I thought it was a standard engine that was readily available. Obviously not.

[Alburglar]

Cheers Fellas

[andyps]

Metros were badged 1.3 but were the 1275 - the largest A series sold in any new car by the various companies which became Rover.

There were unleaded A-plus engines fitted to metros, but not many of them as they were introduced in 1990 which was the last year of metro production with manual gearboxes - hence not many around butthey were fitted in both 998 and 1275 variants. I think the MG (and particularly the turbo) were the rarest with unleaded as they were not changed over until after the others.

For best power (turbo excepted) the later Vanden Plas, the Sport and the GTa all shared the MG engine.

[Alburglar]

I thought the GTA had a rover K-series lump in it

[Guess-Works.com]

Only after the Metro Face lift did it get the k series engine,

The GTA in the old guise is one to get hold of ( but watch out for those which have been thrashed )

The Power in the GTA was upped ( I think by a different Cam profile and HIF44 )

Here's a complete list of Metro 1275 engine numbers...

Metro 1300 HLE 12HA08AA,12HB,12HC,12HD,12HE,12HF
MG Metro 12H996AA,12HD24,12HF01(Unleaded)
MG Metro Turbo 12HD26,12HF01(Unleaded)
Austin Metro Sport / Gta 12HF02
Austin Metro Unleaded 12HE24,12HE35,12HE39,12HE40,12HE41,12HE42,12HE67 to 75

Also with regards to engine numbers, here's how the code works...

In 1970 BMC changed the way they classified engines, to a more simple code, which for reference also covered the B and C series aswell...

First number denotes the capacticy, ie..
85 848cc
99 998cc
10 1098cc
12 1275cc
16 1622cc
18 1798cc
22 2200cc

the Next letter denotes the orientation.. H - Horizontal ( Transverse ) or V - Vertical ( In-line )

The rest are then model specific..

If you have an engine number of 8G then depending on the colour it is either a Gold or Silver seal engine.

[Alburglar]

Thanks I'll print off those numbers and take a look round a scrappy when I get the chance.