I have owned my 1959 MGA for 30 years. It currently sports a SBC 327 with a turbo 350 auto.trans. I recently was given the opportunity to buy an xjs with the 5.3 v12 for $500 running. Has anyone out there ever swapped a v12 into an MGA ?

 

Its useless as a reply but I gotta say- Wow!

 

+1

The V12 is a dimensionally BIG engine. Interesting challenge to mate that combination. Do keep us posted if you go ahead with the project.

Graham

 

I have performed several LBC engine swaps thru the years...Mazda rotary, GM & Ford V8s, Datson 4cyl, etc. My favorite driveline donors are now BMW. The US 1995 e46 M3’s S50 engine is prob the easiest of the group as they do not have the keyed security issues...no probs with keys, instruments, etc. and you can cheaply get an honest 300hp without any degradation of reliability. In 1996 there was a change to the engine ECU and security aspects which does add another layer of sophistication, still easy. With that said, my next build will use the N54 twin turbo I pulled from a 335i. Another great thing about BMW manuals is that they use a remote shifter assembly which is super easy to modify to fit the needs of the tunnel. Oddly enough, the straight 6 fits beautifully in the LBCs and has required less mods to the car itself. Obviously you have to think through the rear end as well. Here’s a few pics of a TR6 I did a couple years back with the 1995 S52 M3 engine (I used an LSD Nissan diff).

 

That's a really nice TR6.

 

Sacrilege!
Making a TR run properly, where's the fun in that?
Tidy job though.