[Mystery Coupe (Kit car maybe?)]

has the tail fins of early Alpine    

but TS4 was the prefix for the Commer  Rootes 4 cylinder 2 stroke  diesel ( thats something i do remember )

[Hello from Paula and her Vitesse]

sounds a plan   dont panic  rules apply 

Pete

[Hello from Paula and her Vitesse]

 

had a donated pair of ramps last month but declined as no one wanted them     now wish i could be clever afterwards

belive they  went up the tip   Grrrr  9 owner moved to france )

tin of STP is simpler but not recommended by the many !!!!

 

Pete

[The embarrassing Herald restoration thread - getting to the fine points]

bit of a marathon  but we knew you could do it 

brilliant stuff

Pete

[Hello from Paula and her Vitesse]

might be worth dropping the sump and looking at the bearing shell condition(one day  !!!)

not a road side task to envy .getting the sump of can be a faf with the oil pump getting in the  way 

but with the odd knocking and a growl  could be worn crank shells 

but dont discount some exhaust making contact when underload(a much simpler fix ) 

Pete

 

[Hello from Paula and her Vitesse]

there used ti be a problem of mixing any oat based pink with previously  used blue glycol  

dont know how this pans out but seems blue and pink are very incompatible 

i would drill an air bleed 3mm hole in the stat rim  anyway

doesnt explain the  excess exhaust steam  apart from the weather makes it more pronounced when  its cold  running /

Pete

[Hello from Paula and her Vitesse]

no  being colder needs to run richer   bad idea    stick with a std    82c 

Pete

[Thermostat bolt extraction]

there are a good few variants of the pipe  sounds like your pipe doesnt match your model 

and olives a 12mm   you wont find one in BQ etc. 

Pete

[Stromberg 150CDSE Mongrel Pair?]

i would give the piston slide a good clean with some very fine wet and  dry 

if its not got a thick diaphragm that can  jam the piston  and at fully up wont be needle centralisation 

can only be a high spot on the slide 

Pete

[Hello from Paula and her Vitesse]

think i would buzz through the tappets again to loose some of the sewing machine noises 

thermostat 82C    needs  air bleed jiggle pin in the rim to aid refilling by letting the air out when closed 

but you can just drill a 3mm hole in the rim ,thats works well enough 

so those are call ed moving iron gauges , dont need a voltage stabiliser the gauge workings balance 

any voltage changes . s

these use a very different sender unit is 121997     very different to the one for stabilised gauges if you mix them up and get some daft hot readings 

£3,25 from james paddocks stock them if you think the gauge is misbehaving 

Pete

[bolting seats through the carpet or not]

dont think there was any conclusion answer to why some parts list show only 3  

Pete

[Thermostat bolt extraction]

they have spanner or 1/2"drive  designed for impact gun use but spanner or hand ratchet is fine  

pete

[Hello from Paula and her Vitesse]

Paula  do feargals guage needles move instantly and wag around on bumpy roads or the needles rise slowly

early vitesse had non stabilised  instant needle  and later stabilised   slow needles

this is controlled by a small voltage stabiliser on the back of the speedo  these go wrong and as the battery charge increases the needles will  with a uncontrolled voltage read hot/full  both temp and fuel run off this thing.

if he gets all wooly and peters out when in traffic  slow fan speeds up the under bonnet  temp  to high levels and it gets richer 

i would lean him off a little   and maybe up the idle to get more fan at idle 

Pete

[Herald 1200 rocker cover breather confusion]

ive always done dry and found the cover comes off easy .

if you stick it then it may shred  on removal 

pete 

[bolting seats through the carpet or not]

have always used a spacer /penny washer  to keep the slides off the carpet or they can bend 

but that was vitesse      sorry 

Pete

[Herald 1200 rocker cover breather confusion]

the best part of having an alloy cover is it takes on engine heat better doesn't get cooled by the fan 

and hence does not attract the forming of mayonnaise which you will get with a tin cover especially on short runs 

the old gag in the 70s to stop this was to ,either ,,lag the cover ,make a air flow baffle at the front,  remove the fan 

i just dont see the spout outlet being any problem if you use a filter or hose it to atmosphere

rocker gaskets have over the many years have always been a risk of leak due to poor seal retention or other misplaced 

seals be they cork. neoprene, composite or what ever  its the nature of sealing a nasty tin cover in an oily environment

its not something you need to remove monthly ,maybe not even annually depends on mileages.

triumph tin covers have no gasket retaining lugs or positioning aids  

what ever you use its a high risk leaker design 

the alloy flat face and thin gasket is or should be a better bet 

Pete

Pete

 

[Herald 1200 rocker cover breather confusion]

ive used a club one ( we were part of the idea to get some made )   for years on two cars  they are problem free

if they get adhered and you rip it off then i guess it will stretch or worse   they are quite thin but mine have been reused a good few times without issue

club shop are half the rimmers £28

6cly £14,40   4cyl  £12  inc vat

Pete

[Tunnel Cover - Spitfire 1500 Gearbox]

the plastic is a bit more robust than the FG type 

to seal just use / glue a strip of foam (ive used strips of a slab from dunelm) the seal sold by most is silly price and hopeless.

it doesnt have to be closed cell (best) and you can make it thick easy to compress and seals all the old floor undulations very cheaply 

Pete

[Shocked and surprised]

I had Gaz on the front of the Vit6 the control knob fills with road dirt and needs cleaning ,easy to remove the knob but  make sure the detent ball and spring doesnt fly into the grass.

the rears were Spax   and if you dont cover the adjuster screw with thick grease that will seize , again easy to get under and give a twiddle 

but setting for unladen or  4 up and a boot full needs adjusting 

the fixed std type shocks take most of the ride variance in their stride with no need to feel a reset  is needed to get a ride quality 

sorry having given them a good testing find them to be one of the Must Have headaches  many of us just dont need

you will find lots of clues that end up with Minimum setting  works  ....what the point !!!!   just silly costs .

Pete ( well its raining )

 

[Shocked and surprised]

adjustable shocks can be an expensive headache   none of us have the ability to set a correct damper rate 

its all a bit trial and error if its just a road car then std fixed setting are made to a specification to suit the bump and rebound of the car weight etc.   if anyone has a full chassis dynamometer then you can set up accurately the damping

adjustables are very expensive and may not ever give you the ride you expect 

from experience you can be always on the turn it up turn it down mode 

do your homework  before you empty the wallet 

Pete

[Spitfire Steering rack and oil]

well based on the service side is to grease via the nipple on the pinion  hsg.   ( but often fitted with a plug)

i would hazard a guess that any oil added would wash out the grease .

its the old adage   "sealed for life"  the only way to keep the passenger side bush greased is to remove the gaitor 

and smear some on the rack

it says dont fill with oil but does it say anywhere its pre greased or this  needs greasing?????

Pete

 

[New here (sort of) with a TR7]

well  so long as he is not part of the club of 7  were ok 

Seven  Names in Order

• 1. Doc
• 2. Sleepy
• 3. Dopey
• 4. Grumpy
• 5. Happy
• 6. Bashful
• 7. Sneezy

Im sure the Tr7 will put a smile on the face , loved by some hated by others but can be quick and very usable  classic 

Pete  

 

[Exhaust studs…please can someone direct me]

dont see the problem canley list brass nuts for the  exhaust   been used for   50 years  

and at 56p   whats the problem 

 

[Herald 1200 rocker cover breather confusion]

club shop sell the flat neoprene gasket for alloy rocker covers (and they are everlasting )

you wont get a cork one to work well as there is no register to hold it in place 

as  they are  just  flat faces on alloy covers 

Pete

[D type OD overhaul]

my recollection is theres a fair clearance on that middle bush with the relief in the centre 

but brain fog   it been a while since i stripped ours 

Pete