Colin Lindsay

I suspect it's the same as in this thread - bottom of the first page:

By the way, I found out why I had a top speed of about 30mph unless I really pushed the accelerator through the floor, then made it to the dizzy heights of 62 mph... the accelerator rod bush had given up and the pedal rod was resting on the metal where it passes through the bulkhead; in fact it has been for some time and has worn a deep groove into the metal. I had to overcome well over an inch of movement before it reached the carbs. The photo shows a masking-tape rubbing of what should be a circular hole... new bush fitted (actually not as hard as I'd been led to believe) and will do as a temporary fix until I can get some repairs to one of the most inaccessible areas of the car.

So good, they posted it twice!

That has happened to me a lot recently with my electrical work on the GT6; if I simply drop the battery terminals onto the battery the starter doesn't turn at all and I have to tighten the terminals with a spanner before they'll spin the starter. That circuit seems to need a good tight connection.

What's your HVLP gun? I had an Apollo Spraymate, it was brilliant at about £100, but someone borrowed it and has vanished off the face of the earth. I've now got a Sealey HVLP2000 version, which I use for spraying furniture and fences and this has made me wonder about spraying body panels - I don't see why it shouldn't work, but if you've tried similar it looks very encouraging.

I never used them for years until they had a part I desperately required, so I started to use them; I found they'll phone me if there's any doubt especially if they need to know if it's GT6 or Herald parts I require and just haven't made a mistake when ordering. If you put a note with the order, there's a facility on the order page to do that, and tell them exactly which car you need the part for, they'll oblige; or else, just phone or e-mail them directly.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/TRIUMPH-VITESSE-FRONT-SEAT-BASE-RUNNERS-RIGHT-LEFT-SIDE/254698150362?hash=item3b4d3159da:g:38wAAOSwjPtfQ3g9 One pair on eBay at present; probably cheaper than many suppliers.

Some sheets of heavy cardboard - open out a sturdy box - placed over the floor panels and carpets will help protect things when you slide the gearbox about. The edges of the bellhousing will eat paint and trim very easily.

Paddocks front £45 rear £67 so a lot cheaper still; I fitted both to this engine (It's an HC-prefix Vitesse engine) many moons ago and they're a good weight reduction. I had the heavy saloon flywheel on my GT6 when I bought it; it was an MB-prefix engine from a large saloon and it made the car very smooth running and quiet compared to the lighter version which I have now.

In that case I'll PM you!

Agree, easier to do it all in one go, then clean up only once afterwards. Lots of places on the inside to put hooks or brackets.

They can be hard to find, Derek, no outlets local to me but I buy them online; I was buying them ten at a time recently at around £1 each: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/5x17A-CONTINUOUS-35A-BLOW-CAR-AUTO-AUTOMOTIVE-GLASS-RADIO-CHARGER-FUSE-6-3x-31mm/291022081317?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649 However I've just found Paddocks selling them at 35p each so will stock up on a few - thanks for your very kind offer but I don't want to use up your stock! Shouldn't have any more bother (I hope!!) now that I've identified the problem (I hope!!). You can see in the photo how the bullet connector has come back out of the connector tube plus damage that has been caused to the outer sheath by the use of ordinary pliers, not bullet pliers, and how close it was to the engine earth strap where it shorted out. You learn from your mistakes... all sorted now and rewiring on-going.

Lucas version a lot cheaper: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Lucas-Universal-Full-Width-Rear-Screen-Heater-Classic-Vintage/383637138502?_trkparms=aid%3D333200%26algo%3DCOMP.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D225113%26meid%3Da1561a79f82e45e98555db34efab1464%26pid%3D100008%26rk%3D2%26rkt%3D4%26sd%3D123865766148%26itm%3D383637138502%26pmt%3D0%26noa%3D1%26pg%3D2047675%26algv%3DItemStripV7%26brand%3DLucas&_trksid=p2047675.c100008.m2219 Best fitted with the glass removed and lying flat!

Very very fiddly stuff to work with and from my own ham-fisted experience you never get it looking like the original filaments - you always have a thick silver bit joining the lines! I remember trying it back in the mid-1980s with a Daihatsu I had that had lost some of the rear demister filaments and could never get it to look right.

That's very appreciated, as always, but by the time I read the post I already had the system disconnected and largely dismantled so it's probably my fault for marching on ahead and starting before reading the instructions... ah well.

I think I've found it. I think, and fervently hope - it's the most unlikely combination of things - the solenoid was a red herring, only stuck in place from disuse over the 18 months that the car was off-road, and not the fault. The two bullet connectors that I disconnected yesterday to isolate the overdrive are on the bulkhead, and connected by two cable ties to the main loom so that they can't move about. Running very close to them is the main brake line. When I disconnected the bullet connectors I wound them round the loom to keep them from touching metalwork and shorting out, but when I reconnected them today I found that one of the bullet connectors was loose and able to move by a quarter of an inch in and out of the connecting tube. At rest there's no problem, but I suspect either the bumpy roads, or the blast from the engine fan, has moved them into reach of the braided engine earth cable, which the loom was resting on, (it's the long y-shaped one from a later Spitfire) and they've shorted out against that, or possibly the wet weather yesterday allowed water to short it out. Either way I suspect that there's been a short when conditions permitted the bullet connector to both pull out of the tube and touch metalwork. I'll confirm once I can get sufficient fuses to play about with. I'm still on for replacing the fusebox, but if this is the problem then I'm more than halfway to combatting it.

The column switch is just a break in a loop, Rob - power comes from the reversing light switch / circuit, goes to the inhibitor switch, through the column switch, and back to the solenoid and earth. Just one big loop. All the switch does is break the circuit. I haven't disconnected the column switch; just the entire circuit where it joins the main loom. I reckon if I bypass the column switch, so that the overdrive is permanently on when in 3rd or 4th, it'll still blow - but I'll certainly try it. Even if the switch bullets touch each other during driving, and they're hanging lower than all the other bullets so way down the column, they'll merely power the system up; they're also far enough away from anything so as not to make contact with anything metal. No exposed wires or incorrectly fitted bullets, and it's all insulated from when I fitted the new switch.

Oh Lord... did you see THIS post in that thread??? I certainly made up for that... Having said that, the last few posts show the start of my fuse-blowing shenanigans... and six months on I'm still no further with determining the cause. I've read that entire thread and even back then I was interested in replacing the fusebox - although now I'm still in two minds as to making the new fuse box the sole box, or keeping the old one as a dummy and have the replacement in behind, accessible via the footwell - intending to attach the spades from the back rather than the side, but the bits about bus bars put me off... hence seeking advice from a spark mate just so I can do a proper job. Does anyone have good photos of how their finished article was connected at the rear?

That's now definitely on the plans, but first thing is to get the car running. I'm going to put a modern fuse box in behind the glove box, on the inside. I can't have a system where one fuse leaves me minus the essentials of wipers, brake lights, heater blower, reversing lights, temperature and fuel gauges, and indicators all in one. If the overdrive goes - fine - but I can't have it taking everything else with it. Thankfully the lights are on a different fuse but yesterday's heavy rain was worrying when everything else failed. I've to talk to a spark tomorrow, if I can track him down, and see if he can advise. I've been wondering - despite telling myself not to, for today at least! - if the overdrive circuit appears on the bulkhead out of the main loom, and is powered from the top fuse, does the fault lie in that short section in between? It's a new Autosparks loom that I fitted in 2005, but there may be something going on in that foot or so of cable. I can't see any exterior damage but I'll maybe split the covering and inspect the wiring underneath.

Overdrive worked perfectly for two days, including the long run down the dual carriageway and the motorway with overdrive on. No problems; instant engagement and disengagement. It only started to blow on a very hilly mountain road, with overdrive off, but once it started it was very frequent. I even had the fuse box hanging free over the battery to make sure it was not shorting out against the bodywork. With the circuit disconnected at the bulkhead it did not blow again. Will try both those solutions (means taking off my nice new tunnel cover and disturbing the seals, which was the best fit I'd ever achieved in any car) but will have to wait for more fuses. James Paddocks are 35p per fuse, Rimmers are £2.35 per fuse... so yesterday's run could have cost me either £4.55, or a whopping £30.55... Monday morning, strip the entire car out, and start again. Not until. Today I'll just pretend that I don't own one. Anyone want to swap for a Vitesse convertible?

I've bought most of mine recently from James Paddock: https://www.jamespaddock.co.uk/gearbox-od-3?pagenumber=2 Rear seal £3.45, front £2.25. No problems so far, although the gearboxes haven't covered many miles since the rebuilds.

No; it was completely untouched for years and started blowing whilst still unmolested, so it worked from about 2002 when originally fitted, then I fitted a new loom during the restoration back in about 2004 / 5. I can't rule out the reversing light circuit, as the rear panels were replaced in December and the car returned to me in January, which is when the fuses started to blow, but if that's the case surely it would also blow if reverse was selected? I've wondered about a short in that circuit as I refitted the lights after getting a new rear panel and boot floor, but again surely it should blow when reverse is selected, not O/D?

This one maybe?

I'll check that by Monday at the latest, but don't forget that it's column-switch activated so there are no switches or wires near the gear lever but I'd assume that it will blow in 3rd or 4th - it's just that I get to 3rd first! I've replaced the switch Doug so doubt if two have the same fault, as they're different brands of switch and different shapes. It has all run perfectly for over 15 years, but only started blowing in January this year and has done so ever since. Am I correct in that, by removing the overdrive circuit, I've isolated the fault (since it hasn't blown since) therefore the fault is on that side of the loom, and can't be before the bullet connectors as it would still have blown even after disconnecting the circuit further along? Doug's second point is uncannily accurate - just been to the offie. Tonight the GT6 will be but a hazy dream.

Another good run, even if some of us had to finish early due to electrical problems. Patchy weather including some horrendous showers, but that's Ulster for you. Watching the mad scramble for hoods was quite entertaining for a smug GT6 driver with a solid roof (who was punished for being smug by having to limp home later in second gear with no wipers...!) Over the hills to Glenariff Forest Park and then back via Glenarm, for those that made it that far...