My new (to me) 'Blacktop' arrived today but it's got a metal cam cover (that's black), rest of it looks like my old blacktop though, sump looks the same isn't that different on a Silvertop, is there a definitive way of telling the two apart.

Early blacktops had a black painted alloy cam cover, latter ones were plastic.
Paul

^^^as he said ^^^

They did, and the water pump pulley is directly above the crank on a silvertop, and offset to the right, when viewed from the front, on a blacktop.

^^ me three ^^

latter ones also had plastic sump pick up pipes that are bugger all use for shortening

Yeah, Ive just bought a metal (off an early mondeo) one for my new black top which has a plastic one, so I can powdercoat it.

[Edited on 17/7/10 by loggyboy]

Water pump position is the obvious one...

So is the sump.

Cheers guys, it is a Blacktop one then, incidentally it did come with the ECU and what appears to be a complete engine loom (Andy R was pleased). Anyone got any use for any of the other stuff I took off, free to a good home (P/S pump, manifold and associated gubbins, alternator, flywheel and clutch)

[Edited on 17/7/10 by norfolkluego]