2019-06-01 Classic Cars

(Jacob Rumans) #1

104


‘The B18 and B20 engines are

durable, racking up 500 ,000

miles with regular oil changes’

Threedifferentcapacityengines
areavailablewithvarioussingle-
andtwin-carburettorversions.
ThisAmazonhastwinSUcarbs

B20enginecosts£1500-£ 2500 butpartsforthe1.6 are
scarce,soallow£3000to overhauloneofthese.
The B18andB20 enginesare durable,racking up
500, 000 miles happily with regular oil changes.
Oil pressure should be around 40psi at idle on a
warmed-up engine; 50-55psi on the move. Make
surethe oilfilteristhecorrect£10Volvoitemwith
non-return valveor the bearings will bestarved of
oil fr omcold. If there’sathump likeworn big-end
bearings at cruising speed it’s probably because of
worntiming gears;upgradedreplacementscost£400.
Camshaftswearafter 100 ,000miles.Budget£1000
fora newonewithnewtiminggear(usuallyneeded
atthesametime)plusa£40waterpump. Thecore
plugsrotontheexhaustsideandoncerustedinplace
they’rea painto replace;allow£350to putthingsright.
Especially heavy fuel consumption is probably
becauseofa duffthermostat,allowingtheengineto
runcool(replacementsare a fiver)orwornneedlesif
a Stromberg carburettorisfitted(tiredjetsiftwinSUs
areinstalled).Budget£100-£ 200 to fixthings.

Transmission Amazon transmissions are amazingly
durable.Four-speedmanualorthree-speedautomatic
gearboxeswereoffered;onlytheformercametothe

UK, withorwithoutoverdrive.Overdrive isseenas
essentialby many,buta lotofAmazonsdon’thaveit;
upgradingisn’t difficultbutit costsat least£1000.
Clutches, drive shafts, rear axles and propshafts
arestrong,buttherubbercentrebearing ofthelatter
wears eventually. Replacements are available, but
threedesignsofpropshaftwerefitted– thefirsttwo
areinterchangeable.TheB16andearly B18featured
onetype,thelaterB18anotherandtheB20a different
specagain;budget£350to getany reconditioned.
Differentialsarebomb-proof,butcanleakthrough
thehubs.Failuresare prettymuchunheard ofbutthey
willstartto whineuntiladdressed.

Steering,suspension&brakesThedouble-wishbone
fr ontsuspensionisstraightforwardandrequireslittle
maintenance.Thekeything tocheckisthestateof
each bushinthe wishbones wherethey’reattached
tothefrontcrossmember.It’sbestto fit polyurethane
replacementsat under£20a set– aneasyDIYjob. Also
makesure thespringsare intact;carsontheiroriginal
coils cansnap at thebottom, butreplacements are
availablefor£300persetoffourandare easyto fit.
Estateshave heavyweightradiusarms in therear
suspension, which contain very large rubber and
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