I wouldn't worry about it too much but I doubt if it is a case of someone an the factory forgetting to stamp the number. That area where the number should be is normally machined flat prior to the stamping and yours doesn't appear to have been machined so two seperate operations have been missed. I don't know if exported engines where stamped but I assume they would be for the sake of the factory records. However, as I say, don't worry about it, although I do realise that these sort of anomalies are intriguing.Hi Col,
It just looks like it has been forgotten if that is possible? The original paint is still there, it is only me that has tried to clean the oil and paint to try to see the numbers. Also I'm pretty sure it is all original its done 69,000 miles and two owners. There is no engine number on the new logbook or on the copy I have of the old logbook.
Cheers,
Brian.
This may be true but years ago, I bought a replacement, refurbed gold seal engine for a mini and that had its original number on it. When I lived and worked in Birmingham, I used to walk past an engine storage area at BL, Longbridge. There were hundreds of engine block casings all piled up in an outside yard. At that time theft of parts from the Longbridge factory was rife, if you knew who to ask, you could get anything. It would have been the easiest thing in the world to walk off with an engine casing. In those days not everyone bothered with antifreeze and cracked blocks was a common problem.Was it not the case that replacement engines had no number and the garage that fitted it was supposed to put old engine number onto the new one.
Engine refurbishers also ground of old number and stamped there own number on.
My 15J had no number stamped but a plastic number glued on where original should have been.
Some don't, many do. But very often, the numbers on the V5 are not the number of the engine that is in the vehicle.Thanks for your reply, have all your log books got engine numbers on them?
I have a copy of the old log book and this doesn't have the engine number printed on it.
I have the same issue on my 69 (California car). Interesting, I don’t have the metal plate like the second pic. I was wanting the serial number to determine the engine compression for tuning. I also appear to have a 2.5 head so curious what I have and what is means with regard to tuningWho knows but these are some pics of where my number is. First pic shows where it normally is and other pic shows where it actually is.