Steve P

I have the one of the originals in both my Herald and Vitesse with one of these: Works a treat on the original speaker with another one in the drivers footwell that was there when i bought the car in 1985.

Hello Ian, It was a PI engine but it has HS6 carbs,TR5 cam,123 tune Distributor.Saloon overdrive box as well with a 3.27.diff. The head and inlet manifold were modified by a well known tuner from Estonia. All balanced when built.I just fitted a paddle type clutch as the old AP on wore out prematurely. I was lucky to find a `Mike the Pipe` 6-3-1 manifold,which is a work of art, and i had a system made by Matt Simpson of BTCC fame as he`s near me. It had 172 BHP on the rolling road after run in. Don`t know what it has now 5 years later but,this summer i took it down Staines bypass which is near where i live,nothing on the road so i booted it,there was a man behind me in a Jag XF V8,at the next lights he pulled alongside me and wound the window down and said "you must have a V8 in that". Made me smile, as it does whenever i drive it which i do all year round. Steve

Personally i prefer the front grill and headlamp surrounds of the MK 1.Some of my experiences... I have a brand new Courier spring sitting in my garage that i bought some years ago,fitted it to my Vitesse to compare with the one on there, which is a Triumphtune unit i bought in 1986 in Richmond.Advertised as uprated and De-cambered.(Owned the car since 1985 when i was 19). I also have one of their Rear anti roll bar kits which never made it on to the car. I may not have let the courier spring settle and i don`t remember what lowering block i used,but the ride height and positive camber were terrible,i swapped it back very soon after. May re-visit it as the years advance but my car (Mk 1 Convertible 2.5L 170BHP) handles like a go cart.It also has 6 inch period Revolution wheels.Avo front adjustable ride height shocks and 600lb springs. I converted to the Jones/Bowler Rover/Volvo CV setup for the shafts,but only because a rear wheel overtook me in Cornwall when a driveshaft snapped at the hub end. Steve

I had the same problem on my Vitesse,mine has twin HS6 carbs and a Silver top electric pump. It was down to knackered fuel rubber pipes which was not apparent from the outside,soft and squidgy and allowing air in.Fitted Gates Barricade throughout and it`s ok. Steve

I install CCTV and was recently asked to provide downloaded footage from a shopping centre in London,it was a Lexus 4x4 hybrid.Guy pulled alongside,slid underneath and nicked the cat,done in 2 mins.£1800 to replace apparently. He was driving a Vauxhall Zafira but the plates came back as a Mini. Steve

Fitted a new hi torque motor on Thursday,(club shop best price),without the spacer as suggested,it whizzed over at full speed,something its never done,but when it fired up there was a hideous noise as if the motor was still spinning with it,killed it and removed the motor again and fitted the spacer.Hey presto its spins over as it should and starts much sooner. I think the other motor was always faulty as it always cranked slowly. Steve

Is it oil? in the second pic that looks like the instant gasket type stuff some people use. The recess in the back is the end of the oil gallery and should have a tapered grub screw in it,if this was missing you would lose all the oil in a short time. Leaking?,possibly but i wouldn`t have thought it started without being disturbed. Easy to get the flywheel off and check while it`s out of the car. Steve

My Herald and Vitesse both had insulation wrapped in plastic,i believe this aided corrosion.Not rockwool but something similar back in the day i think. Steve

No idea about that cutout,i thought maybe someone did it to retrieve weather seal clips that always fall into the bottom when you try and fit them,but you can get your arm in the existing holes enough to do this. That insulation looks more like rockwool,was it bagged?.Looks like a mouses nest to me. Those handles are ten a penny on e bay. Steve

Looks like the motor is dead,fresh battery and a jump lead and it doesn`t turn over at all now. Damn tunnel out again! Steve

I don`t think Bill (Rarebits 4 Classics) has been trading for a while now. Steve

I will try it again tomorrow with the battery freshly charged,it does have the spacer fitted at present. Steve

No, i disconnected the trigger wire from the starter to see what voltage was there when the key is turned to the cranking position,it was 12.1v. On another note i was looking at new motors,Rimmers list different ones for Vitesse and 2.5 Saloons,the club shop doesn`t show any part numbers but both say 9 teeth. My car is a 2.5 engine but with a Vitesse flywheel and engine backplate, so i guess i need a Vitesse one?. Also should it still have the spacer ring fitted?. Steve

Did some tests with a multi-meter today,battery voltage at the battery and the starter was 12.6v off load,the battery was charged 2 weeks ago.I haven`t used it since then. Voltage at the starter switched live when the key is turned is 12.1v,that`s not on load though. It won`t turn over at all now,i am suspecting the starter is duff and may always have been. Battery is a Yuasa HSB075 60Ah 620A Steve

So my Vitesse has always cranked over slowly,spec is: 2.5 PI engine(on carbs),TR5 cam,compression ratio of 10:1.6-3-1 exhaust,123 tune dizzy,Saloon gearbox It has a high torques starter,i ran a new cable straight from the battery + to the starter and did away with the old solenoid. Got an engine earth from the suspension turret to the block. It still cranks so slowly that the battery goes flat before it fires up,i have one of the booster pack/jump start things and this helps. I put a new battery on it which is the biggest i could fit in the tray 063 or 065,cant remember. Any tips that i can get it to spin over quicker?. Steve

I recently replaced all the petrol pipes on my Vitesse with Gates Barricade hose as the old ones had gone soft and started sucking in air. Steve

C + M used to be XRN engineering but when they sold out, Paul who worked there took it over and still runs it. Steve

Send me a private message if you want my experience of building a 2.5 for my Vitesse with them. Steve

Isn`t Bedford where MR Lewis resides?. Edit,just seen Luton,sorry Pete. S

A new MOT is ZERO guarantee of anything,i could get you one by post sadly,a good inspection is a must. Steve

My Herald does this going uphill,and i found the front carb overflowing,when i took the top off there was a release of pressure and i got a coating of petrol.Haven`t got to the bottom of this yet.Brand new pump with too much pressure?. Steve

I have a DAB/FM in my Vitesse with an ordinary telescopic aerial on the front as in Colins picture,i tried the stick on aerial that came with radio,it was useless,hardly any reception unless parked up. I bough a converter from the same place that allows you to use the ordinary aerial as the DAB unit,works well,not 100% everywhere but i`d say 95%. Steve

Similar story to Clives as above,but with a different result,the builder fitted a feed to a no expense spared 1500,it flooded the cover,even with a 1mm restriction,so much so that the oil catch tank filled with oil through the breather.They are blaming that on blow by caused by incorrect bedding in.Mine grenaded after 480 miles.:( It has to come apart again to check pistons,rings etc. as a minimum. S

My new 1500 was 190,195,210,210, before it grenaded after 500 easy miles. Don`t know the history of your engine but If yours was mine i would whip the head off and have a look at the valves and seats. Steve

Good colour!