seen a couple of minis run the Diahatsu (sp?) 3 cylinder turbo diesel back in the UK, those worked well and fitted not to badly.

_________________
Used to have 2000 Cooper Classic Sport 500, No 338, currently miniless

Yeah, I've heard a little bit about those.. but how cool would it be to build an A-series diesel?

Anyone got a spare 1100 lying around in need of a rebuild?

_________________
Simon

The adventures of an owner builder in the Tallarook Ranges

It is not a simple matter of removing the spark plugs and fitting injectors in the same place. The injectors have to be in the right spot. They must be centred in relation to the combustion chamber bowl in the piston.
Oh yeah, the pistons are pretty special too! They are very thick to handle the compression and the bang! They have the combustion chamber in the piston.
The head is flat. The valves are level with the surface of the head. (It is quite easy to CC the head!)

Thre is a copy of the workshop manual on the web in PDF form at http://www.instruction-manuals.co.uk/

By the way, lots of good diesel engines have 4 valves per cylinder (pushrod operated). Cummins has been doing it since the 60s. (and the japs have been copying them since the 70s)

would it not be easier and better to start off with the diesel engine and adapt to mini ger box?

_________________
1964 Nb Race Car - big bore short stroke & lots of revs - Sold
1969 Mk2 Cooper S - First Car

easier maybe.... but I don't think it's the point

I'm mates with a guy who runs a tractor repair business with his father, the father is a toolmaker of the highest order and all day has people wandering in saying "I need a doover for a 1953 fangerwooger", and he says "oh yeah, the one with the brass jintagraphier" etc. etc.

I wonder if he could think of a diesel head that would go on an A series

and no, he doesn't know of any BMC tractors

_________________
did I tell you that I won a trophy?

A series diesel parts would now pretty much be unobtainium.
The heads used on them were indirect injection using pre-combustion chambers, with 4 glow plugs needed for (not very) cold starting. This is olde skool technology now well and truly superseded.

If you must have a diesel, I'd shoehorn a modern common rail unit in there, gearbox included.
I recently hired a Hyundai I 30 CRD in Darwin and was very impressed. This is one civilised, torquey little 1.6L turbo diesel. Frugal too, it drank only 16L in 5 days of running about.

_________________
DrMini- 1970 wasaMatic 1360, Mk1S crank, 86.6HP (ATW) =~125 @ crank, 45 Dellorto (38 chokes), RE282 sprint cam, 1.5 rockers, 11.0:1 C/R.

I was going to say that the A Series, being a small engine, would've had indirect injection and pre-combustion chambers.

You'd still want glow plugs, though. My 2005 2.5L Common Rail Variable Vane Turbo Diesel still has Glow Plugs, and a little light on the dash to tell me when they've warmed up (only takes a couple of seconds). So, that would mean you'd actually need 8 holes in the head..? 4 holes for glow plugs, 4 for injectors.

If you were to do a TD A Series... Wouldn't you use a 1275 head? I mean, the turbo/blower exponents amongst us all seem to end up going that way. Plus, it's a small combustion chamber, so it's easier to jack up the compression ratio.

My big concern would be the 3 bearing crank. Everything else can be upgraded, but it's pretty hard to add extra bearings to the crank.

That said, I'd love to see someone with heaps of time, skill, equipment and money try to do it. Or even just someone with bits of those, and lots of determination.