Dan's 1976 MGB

Well, it appears that the blue smoke is caused by (drum roll, please) - broken rings! Both compression rings came aprt into 2 pieces when I removed the #2 piston from the cylinder bore! I guess that is good news. So I will replace those rings, and probably replace the main bearings as well, as they seem a little worn (some hints of copper showing through - not as bad as they look in the pics below). The cylinder bores themselves seem to be in very good shape - no scoring and no ridge at the top of the piston's travel. So I will probably pull each piston out, replace the rod and main bearings, then clean everything up and put it all back together again. I do need to check the valves to make sure none are burned or hanging up, and maybe replace the valve seals as well.

The broken rings...













Rod Bearings



























Main Bearing