Morris Minor Owners Club

Hi everyone,

I've heard about 'Gold Seal' engines before, but I have no idea what they are! I'm wondering if my Minor's 1098cc engine is one?

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It's painted gold and doesn't seem to have ever been a different colour (the blue backplate came off a different engine) - could this be one? Also the hole for the (non-Minor models) fuel pump and cover plate are missing, which my other 1098cc engine has.

It's been in the car since 1979 and hasn't covered that many miles, but no idea where it came from!!!

It's temporarily out of the car with my spare engine in its place as the cooling system was completely full of silt and muck (hence why the core plugs are off), but as it's in super condition it'll be going back in one of these days

I'd love to know why its gold - anyone know why?

Ben

Whats is the engine number and may be we can tell you more

I would say its a gold seal unit!

Sure looks like a gold seal to me. Silver if they're half re-conned.

Gold seal and silver seal engines were normal engines originally fitted in production but then showed a fault after been sold and were replaced by dealers under warranty. The engines then went back to the factory to be reconditioned. The extent of work required designated them as either gold or silver. They were issued with a new engine number which was quite different from the normal designation so this should tell you for sure assuming it is as original.

Thanks very much everyone.

So, gold means that Morris did some big work on this one, while silver means less needed doing, PSL?

The engine number starts 8G162RM and there's also a big 'AD' stamp elsewhere on the engine number plate - all quite different to the 10V etc. number on my other engine

The cylinder head is gold, too, but that's in use bolted to my other engine (hence not in the pics!)

It is a gold seal unit - what stamping is showing on the piston crowns ?

Gold standard was pretty much a full rebuild and silver was a partial rebuld - same rule applied to gearboxes too. The engine number confirms a factory rebuild.

As far as I am aware, a gold seal engine was a complete engine factory rebuild exchange unit and a silver seal was a short engine rebuild, ie the engine block less the head. Seen plenty of gold seal engines but never a silver seal.
A selling point was that the car was fitted with a gold seal engine (so it must be good). My answer was that if the engine had done 60,000 it was likely to be in no better condition than any other engine that had done 60,000 miles

I have a silver seal in my traveller... it is painted ( you guessed it ) silver. I also have all the silver seal documentation from when it was fitted.

I have a gold seal in mine too, (looking smug, tongue in cheek).

Is there anyway of being able to date them? Mine is a 948.... which I guess was the replacement recommendation back then when the 803cc went pop.

my 1954 morris minor series 2 used to have a 803cc goldseal engine before i bought the car and was replaced with a 948cc engine before i bought it but still has the gold sealed 803cc gearbox attached to the 948cc engine.

makes you wonder why both needed to be replaced in the first place,

3 engines and 2 gearbox (including the original) in 55 years.. even at an average of only 5k miles a year would mean it has covered 275K miles... so 3 engines is no surprise.