Dave the tram

I don’t think it’s just the fan belt, but Nicks suggestion seems a good one so will run briefly without fan belt to identify if it’s water pump or alternator. The noise is most noticeable at tickover. I do most things mechanical on it, but never delved inside engines. However, I imagine timing chain tensioner is relatively straightforward to check and fix. Failing all that, with the combination of low oil pressure when hot, unhealthy noises, a loud ticking that’s been there for years even tho tappets set right, and lowish compression in 2 or 3 cylinders, I might be starting a new thread about rebuilt engine options. I have the luxury of a pit and RSJ to lift from in my garage. Dave

My mk3 GT6 runs well but I suspect the engine is a bit tired and I don’t know it’s history. Original engine I believe and I’ve had the car 13 years, using it almost daily. I do a 500 mile round trip to Suffolk about twice a year and after a long fairly hard drive, oil pressure drops to about 35 at 3k revs and worrying 8-10 at tickover (when cold 70 & 60 at tickover) Decided against oil cooler or an engine rebuild just yet, but swapped to Millers classic sport 20/60 oil. In same conditions got 45 at 3k and 10-12 at tickover. Also hardly any oil used after 500 miles (2mm on dipstick). However, some say that while I might be comforted by the above, because the oil is thicker, there might be no more getting to where it’s needed - or less even! it’s probably coincidence, but after that journey the engine has developed a noise at the front end- a sort of scrapey rattle. Cant tell if it’s from the timing chain gubbins, crank bearing or end of camshaft. Any ideas or experiences of different oils? Dave

Got the recon, upgraded radiator and looks good. Also a new hose kit and the correct thermostat housing with the 2 top hose outlets. One question, as some of the metal connections are a slightly mottled finish - the old ones due to corrosion and the new housing has a new mottled finish - should I use a smear of black silicone sealant when fitting the rubber hoses or is that a bad idea/unnecessary? Cheers Dave

Yes, front engine Porsche’s work, I guess 911s have a back seat but expensive, TVRs are probably another ‘practical‘ classic, or a mate had a Scimitar which I quite liked and has even more room. The GT6 Meccano kit for me though. D

No, Finn is only big border collie size, it’s the wide angle lens effect. Great thing about the GT6 of course. He fits nicely on the back seat, harness clipped in, even if I have a months supermarket shopping in the back. With the seat down even my racing bike fits in with quick release wheels off. I’ve had the bike in with full camping gear as well. A new MX5 coupe might look pretty in a modern sort of way, but it won’t do any of those things, as wont most modern sports cars until you get to something bigger and fancy. Hope Casper goes on ok Nigel, he looks a thoughtful, calm sort of dog. Back to the hot weather etc. I’m 99% certain it’s vapour lock I had Pete. Dave

Indeed. My English Shepherd Finn is only 3 but gives us many worries. He pays great attention when I’m taking things apart. I often think ‘ if only he could speak better, I bet he can remember where all these bits go back!’ And your engine bay looks all together tidier than mine, I must make more effort, although mine would not cope well with those un-lagged copper fuel pipes in a heatwave. Thanks for the link Colin, but I think for an extra £20 I’ll get a new one without the corrosion. Cheers, Dave

All that helps greatly, cheers. It’s so good to keep increasing your knowledge of new bits of the car that you’d never needed to tamper with before. Thanks all for the schematics, links etc.i might as well do it right, so if anyone does have a spare housing to sell let me know, otherwise I’ll buy a new one from Canleys along with hoses. (I must also check again the boxes of old bits that came with the car!) Although I said my car never overheats, ie the gauge says the right thing, I guess that doesn’t mean everything isn’t getting a bit hotter than it might. The fuel evaporation was easily solved with a bit of lagging, but the oil certainly gets hot on those long runs. Might consider an oil cooler one day. Oil pressure about 65 when cool, but when fully hot it’s 25-30 at 2-3k revs, and If very hot only 10 at tick over. Probably the engine getting a bit tired, but first I’ll try better oil at next change. Note the worn top hose due to lack of bonnet clearance. I also learnt that if you don’t turn that jubilee clip out of the way, the screw bit puts an extra mini bulge in the bonnet! Dave

Thanks all. Fascinating. The interesting thing is I only got into this because my radiator leaks slightly from various places. Despite having no cowls or shields of any kind and no extra top hose, It never overheats no matter how I drive it. This includes hammering it through the hills of the Peak District, some very hot weather drives and occasional long hard drives like a recent trip to Suffolk in 30 degree weather, 200miles, almost non stop each way. Ok the gauge creeps up a bit if after a long hard drive if I then sit then stationary or crawling for a long time, but without an electric fan It would be doing well not to. Otherwise it sits bang in the middle. Still, probably makes sense to fit the extra hose when the recon radiator arrives, which has extra core, but no plan to fit cowl. Ha, just had another look and I can’t see anywhere for the second top hose to go, that’s why it’s blanked off at the radiator. I guess I must have a non- standard thermostat housing. Also, my overflow pipe feeds into the tapered bottom of the expansion bottle, which seems a good idea. Another question, what exactly is meant by the ‘extra core’ and how do they do this? You’d think the radiator would already have all the cores it could fit. cheers Dave

Forgive my ignorance, it looks the same as my current one. Mine has an expansion bottle clipped to the side fed from the side of the filler neck alongside the cap. On mine the second top house outlet is blocked off with a blanking plug. Although it’s a late mk3 GT6, (1973 Non-rotoflex) it doesn’t have the thermostatic vacuum switch. Looking at the manual it isn’t clear to me why some have the extra top hose. Also, don’t they all use an expansion bottle? Having learnt my way around this car reasonably well, it appears I am still fairly ignorant about the cooling system. Any further guidance welcome Dave

Thanks Aidan, good timing as I’d just ordered it. I am reassured, cheers Dave

Good thought about keeping the old one, but I’m reaching the point where I’m storing a few too many items like this. Also, I view repairing a radiator the same as I view welding and paint spraying. I’d probably get it wrong too many times before I mastered it so leave it to someone with experience. I think for now I’ll stick to spanners and soldering is for wires only! Good to have a cross section of people giving me food for thought though. Cheers Dave

Also, are silicone hoses any advantage? I might just get standard rubber top and bottom hose plus new drain tap, cap and clips to complete the job. Dave

Thanks all. Yes, the one in Herefordshireland looks worth a punt. Covered by eBay guarantee, the £30 surcharge is already in that price and the postage already covers the return of the old one. Had found a likely looking repairer in Manchester, but think I’ll go for this one. I’ll just check that the photos look identical to mine first. Ta Dave

Got me thinking there Pete. It might not even need a recore as it never overheats either on long journeys or when I often drive enthusiastically, just a dodgy patched up header. We have very soft water which will also help. Still, I might as well go the whole hog if I could get that sort of price for a repair job and can find somewhere reputable within less than 100 miles. Must be someone in Sheffield or Manchester area. Will investigate. As for the alloy versions, I’m not obsessed with originality, rather usability, but somehow distrustful of them. Just seen your reply Chris - will look for that repairer. cheers Dave

Have done few searches of past threads but might still benefit from some guidance. I don’t trust my radiator because, as well as looking a bit battered in places, over the years I’ve fixed various hairline cracks on the top with epoxy resin stuff for rad repairs and these weep occasionally. As I use the car regularly, with some long journeys I think I’m chancing it a bit. You can’t go forever with one eye on the gauge plus a water container and repair kit in the back. I think better to get a new or recon one rather than this one repaired. Do folks agree? In which case any preferences where? Not really tempted by alloy substitutes which seem like a gamble. Club shop don’t do rads and tempted by T D Fitchetts who do recon for 210 plus vat. Happy with that, but they say they also keep the £150 surcharge if mine not re-usable. I guess it might not be so that starts to get a bit steep at a possible £430 inc vat - so close on 500 with new hoses and cap etc, but perhaps just need to bite the bullet. Any views? Cheers Dave

Bit late joining this thread but my gt6 has a metal fuel pipe all the way from the pump, around the front as described above and the only time the car had let me down in 15 years of use as regular transport was with fuel vapourisation a few years ago. To be fair this was after an hour in a motorway queue immediately after a long run on a very hot day. insulated the pipes with foam pipe insulation (sold as ok at high-ish temperatures) and it’s been fine ever since. Last Friday did a 200 miles, mostly at 70mph, from North Derbyshire to Suffolk with no problems even though sunny and over 30 degrees on arrival. Seems like a simple solution. Fuel was cool, engine temp spot on, driver JUST ABOUT OK - windows shut, full blower through face vent! Aircon would have been nice but kept telling myself it’s how we used to do it. Dave

Am I alone in sometimes wishing the interior mirror had a shorter arm, so that it was a bit higher instead of just above the dash? When turning or pulling out I sometimes see movement in the mirror and momentarily think it something ahead that I’ve missed. Also it blocks a significant chunk of the view ahead in what is already a small windscreen. Add a sat nav on the screen (until now I’ve been a purist and stuck with the map book) and the blind spots add up. Probably got too much time on my hands during lockdown, but has anyone fitted a different mirror or shorter arm? Hopefully some of that time has been well spent and on the 450 mile round trip to Suffolk at the weekend I can test the fuel pipe insulation against vapour lock, the new electric washers and the USB charging ports. Hope the purists don’t think I’m spoiling it or getting soft! Cheers Dave

Just done my GT6 drivers seat and very pleased with the foams, webbing, fittings and guidance from Park Lane. Having said that, I did the passenger seat some years ago with Rimmers foam and that was fine also, nice and comfy, supportive. But having said that it rarely gets sat on as my wife hates everything about the car that I love! Didn’t do the drivers seat back then because I couldn’t get the last bolt out to remove the seat. Foolishly, back then I didn’t realise that you can take the seat squab off first to get at the bolts better. Doh! Dave

I had similar dilemma with my GT6 Mk 3 - 155 looked a bit thin and didn’t seem to have enough rubber on the road. Twitchy through bends in the wet. I went for Falcon Sincera 165 70 as they got good reviews (including on the forum) as a wet weather tyre and quite cheap (less than £40 each I think online then got my garage man to fit them). They look perfect and transformed the handling with no clearance issues. My speedo was low due to diff change to give slightly more relaxed cruising. I think 165 70 gave very slightly smaller diameter than 155 80, so will have dropped the gearing a fraction, but not so you’d notice. Cheers Dave

Got Ray Bardashevski in Manchester to come and fit it in the end, having got a COH Baines rubber, which looked identical to the old one and was even shaped at the corners. The Rimmer Bros rubber, that I ruined, looked much chunkier. Ray did a good job, secure and watertight, but couldnt quite get the rubber flanges even all the way round. Suspect a slightly mishapen roof to pillar join as the old one gapped a bit. Can see where I'm pointing it now! Dave

Just a thought, has a new steering rack been fitted? I recently put a new rack and tie rod assembly on my GT6 and because I had trouble finding a reconditioned one, I got an aftermarket complete unit. As well as having a sealed allen bolt where there is normally the shimmed adjustment, the ball joints to the tie rods were stiff. This made the steering stiffer (as oposed to just heavier- ie it is still stiff when jacked off the ground and it also affects the self centring). If yours is not heavy when jacked I guess it's not this. Rather than dismantle again to try and remedy, I decided to live with it, as the steering is otherwise much better. It seems to be improving with time, or I'm getting stronger! Dave

I've just used Bilt Hamber on my GT6 and found it great to apply. I previously used waxoyl, which is probably good for some things and brushed on, but I found it a pain to inject or spray (from an aerosol or their pressurised spray system). Even with warming and thinning everything just clogged up. The more fluid BH with the long tube and 360 nozzle was great, espescially for inside chassis, sills etc. Can't comment on efectiveness over time but othe people give good reports. Dave

I tried several times over 2 days with 2 people, sand filled basher and all and couldnt get the inner lip to go all the way round over the metal flange. Used different thicknesses of cord,KY jelly, but eventually spoilt the rubber by the cord cutting into it, even though well lubricated and fairly smooth 5mm nylon cord. Not much use to you in the South West Chris, but I then paid anout £100 for Ray Bardashevski from Manchester (adverised as years of experience with classics). He did a good job - money well spent. My original rubber seal from Rimmers looked a bit chunky compared to the one finally used from COH Baines, which also came shaped for the corners. The Rimmers Sundim screen was good though and a good price. Even Ray, with much writhing at the big attached suckers couldnt get the seal perfectly even all round, but good enough. I think my car may have had a pillar to roof repair at some time as the old screen also gapped slightly at one corner. I dont think I would ever have succeeded without Ray's experience and his knowing how to apply just enough brute force to position the screen as well as could be achieved. Oh, and what a difference at night and in low sun having a scratch free screen! He even got the metal trim fitted which hadn't been on the car for at least 15 years. Dave

Might go to Baines as suggested. They only list Spitfire Mk 4 surround so will give them a call, but I think Spitfire mk4/1500 is same screen and surround as GT6 mk 3. Can anyone confirm? Cheers Dave

Well, having done all the research I bit the bullet and decided to fit the new windscreen myself - soapy string, sand filled glove etc. The good news is I didn't smash the new screen, but try as we might, could not get the lip over the metal all the way round and eventuall started to cut into the rubber or else twisted the rubber off the glass. Tried different string and lubricants, settling on 5mm nylon tent guy cord. After much time and cursing have found a very experienced sounding man in Manchester who has quoted £125 to fit my screen, including travelling a fair way. He's done classics including Triumphs. Wish I'd heeded some of the advice that said 'get a proffessional in'. I want to get another new seal - has anyone exerience of whether some aftermarket ones fit better than others and a good supplier, before I simply order the same again? My man says one probelem is that some are not the same cross section as the originals. I think I'll also cut a clean cross section of my damaged new one and the original to compare. Cheers Dave