mysterious head number
Posted: Fri Sep 30, 2016 4:16 am
I bought my pre-airflow coupe in 1978, partly because the turrets had rusted on my SS DHC, and I knew it would be off the road for an extended period. So, it did not bother me that the engine and gearbox were out of the coupe and supposedly rebuilt. It had been off road for as long as 10 years and I was told that the head had been replaced because the PO had put too hot a spark plug in it and damaged a combustion chamber. I was told the replacement head or maybe just the cams were Cosworth L1s, but at any rate, I put the newly acquired engine and box on the shelf and used the known quality of the motor and box I removed from the SS. I drove that coupe for the next 6 or 7 years while the SS was restored.
Back in the '80s, I had some head gasket surfaces welded on the head, but otherwise it has sat on the shelf waiting to power the coupe in the future. The SS was rebuilt on a new galvo frame in 1985 and after years of vintage racing a Lotus Eleven and now a formula Jr, I am in process of restoring the coupe. So, the head came off the shelf tonight for a look over.
I'd always known the head number was strange and didn't match the engine number stamped into the block or the VIN plate in the engine bay, but does anyone recognize what it might mean?
The number stamped into the back center of the head is: P125 SBH 607. The valve sizes are standard early Elan 1.530 intake, so I doubt any Cosworth connection. Anyone have any ideas?
Roger
Back in the '80s, I had some head gasket surfaces welded on the head, but otherwise it has sat on the shelf waiting to power the coupe in the future. The SS was rebuilt on a new galvo frame in 1985 and after years of vintage racing a Lotus Eleven and now a formula Jr, I am in process of restoring the coupe. So, the head came off the shelf tonight for a look over.
I'd always known the head number was strange and didn't match the engine number stamped into the block or the VIN plate in the engine bay, but does anyone recognize what it might mean?
The number stamped into the back center of the head is: P125 SBH 607. The valve sizes are standard early Elan 1.530 intake, so I doubt any Cosworth connection. Anyone have any ideas?
Roger