Lot 0339: Meteor V12 Mk4B engine (UK)

DESCRIPTION

Due to the young and inexperienced nature of many pilots during WW2 it wasn’t all that uncommon for Merlin-powered aircraft like the Hurricane, Spitfire, and Lancaster to suffer accidents on takeoff or landing. When these accidents were relatively minor the engines would be recovered and rebuilt, however it was deemed unsafe to use a rebuilt engine in an aircraft due to safety concerns.

As a result of this these rebuilt engines made their way into British tanks, providing far more power than they’d ever had before and fundamentally changing the future of tank design. In order to use the engine in tanks the direction of rotation needed to be reversed and the supercharger was removed, a slew of minor modifications were made and the resulting engine was capable of 550 to 650+ bhp.

This was considerably down on the 1,000 to 2,000+ bhp that a Merlin could achieve, but it was still vastly more than had been available to tank designers previously.

Due the fame of the Merlin engine and their critically important role during WW2 there is now significant demand for engines, some of which are kept in running condition for display purposes, others are fitted to warbirds and remain in full airworthy condition.

This engine

The Meteor engine we offer in this auction is a Mk. 4B and has been zero timed by the MOD (the UK Ministry of Defence).
Zero timing engines typically are a complete rebuilt – any parts that need replacing are replaced and the engine is then reassembled and fully tested. Comes with the official test report.

The ultimate British Tank engine in WW-II and the post war period.

SPECIFICATION

Model:                             Meteor Mk. 4B

Manufacturer:                Rolls-Royce's Clan Foundry in Belper Derbyshire England

Configuration:                V-12

Displacement:                27.022 liters (1648 cubic inch)

Cylinder bore:                 5.4 in (137 mm)

Piston stroke:                  6 in (152 mm)

Valvetrain:                      OHV

Compression:                 6:1–7:1

Weight:                            1.042.kgs

Dimensions:                    Length:     78,3”    (1,99 m)

Width:      43”       (1,09 m)

Height:     51,2”     (1,30 m)

Serial No.:                        R45195

Date of overhaul:           May 7^th 1991

REMARKS

Location:                         Wichita Kansas USA

Condition:                       Factory rebuild

Permits:                           In case of export out of the USA an export permit will be required.

ESTIMATE VALUE

Between € 15.000 and € 25.000