Nigel Clark

I found when changing the clutch on my GT6 a couple of years ago it wouldn't disengage completely. The pedal went rock hard before it reached the floor of the clutch disengaged. This was caused by the slave cylinder's piston reaching the limit of its travel before the clutch had disengaged. I hadn't changed the hydraulics and the new release bearing was identical in dimensions to the old one, so there must have been a difference in either clutch cove or friction plate. I solved the problem by spacing the slave cylinder rearward with a 3/8" UNF nut under each of the slave cylinder's mounting lugs. The clutch has worked perfectly ever since. Can't explain what changed to cause this... Could the diaphragm spring in the new clutch cover differ in geometry from the original?? I seem to remember a similar problem when changing the clutch on a mini more than 40 years ago! Nigel

Welcome, and well done for saving another Triumph. It's a big project but you're already making great progress. Good luck! Nigel

I change the oil and filter regularly and would only clean the sump when it needs to be removed for some other reason. The sump has never been off my TR6 in 16 years of ownership, but it's had plenty of oil changes, and still runs nicely with good oil pressure. Nigel

Thank you Pete. I was thinking along the same lines but hadn't realised there are those small internal O rings to replace. Tunnel cover out again, what joy! I wonder if it's worth trying spraying silicone lubricant at the solenoid from under the car to see if that frees up the solenoid piston. Nigel

I've recently fitted a rebuilt gearbox and J-type overdrive which will hopefully survive the extra torque of the 2.5 litre engine in my GT6. Both overdrive and gearbox have been rebuilt. Occasionally, the overdrive fails to disengage and will remain engaged even when changing down to first and second gears. It seems to disengage after the car has been stationary for a few seconds, whether the engine is idling or switched off. After pausing for it to disengage, it will engage and disengage normally in third and fourth gears, until it sticks again. This seems to happen once the engine and gearbox have warmed up, not when cold. It's puzzling me... I'm wondering if the solenoid is sticking as that's the only component that wasn't replaced, the old solenoid was tested, found to work okay and put back. Any ideas please? Does a sticky solenoid seem plausible? Or some other cause? Thanks in advance, Nigel PS: I'm aware of the danger of reversing with overdrive engaged and am trying hard to avoid that pitfall.

+1, totally agree. The most important upgrade to enable a Triumph to cope with modern petrol is modern fuel hose, genuine R9 or higher spec, e.g. Cohline. Please don't be tempted by cheap fuel hoses with bogus performance ratings. The Club Shop sells suitable fuel hose. Nigel

I've fitted the equivalent hard plastic dash top to a Spitfire Mk3. No problem and it looks okay. For my GT6 Mk3, I recovered the dash top/crash pad with a soft textured vinyl kit from Owen at Park Lane Classics: http://www.parklaneclassics.co.uk/Triumph_GT6_Mk3_home_page.htm It's not hard to fit and there's lots of advice available from Owen. The overall effect is closer to original than the hard plastic version, and the Park Lane kit is much cheaper. Nigel

I've had a similar experience with Miller's 20-60 in a worn GT6 2 litre engine. It restored oil pressure when hot to specification after the engine had done 100,000 miles, kept it running fine for another 10,000 miles of reasonably hard use. At that stage I decided to refresh it with new piston rings and bearings. Nigel

Welcome, and good luck. Have to say the Mk3 is my favourite Spitfire too, round rail styling and perky 1300 engine, what's not to like! Nigel

Hi Adam, Welcome to Triumph ownership and to this forum. Most, me included, take the view that converting to unleaded with hardened exhaust valve seats is unnecessary, unless the cylinder head needs to be removed for some other reason, then get it converted. Some will advise using an unleaded additive to prevent valve seat recession. I've not found that necessary, my GT6 covered about 30k miles on unleaded without additives before general wear and tear caused me to rebuild the engine, at which point I had the head converted. Nigel

By coincidence, exactly the same question came up on the TR Register forum last week: https://www.tr-register.co.uk/forums/index.php?/topic/79707-county-pistons-cp800k-skirt-clearance/ There should be a note advising clearances in the box with the pistons. Nigel

+1 Definitely a Gaz shock Blue shroud, gold body and green sticker are typical of Gaz. Nigel

I may have a GT6 gearbox with D-type overdrive for sale in about a month's time. It's all in good working order, I'm only taking it out of my car to fit an updated gearbox with J-type overdrive to cope with the 2.5 litre engine I've fitted. If you're interested and want to see it all running before it's removed, please PM me. Nigel

Hi Aviv, It's 20 years since I bought the Magnecor leads for my GT6, so I can't actually recall which set they were. I would expect the TR6 leads to be suitable but recommend you contract the club shop or Magnecor themselves. Nigel

I use the 8.5mm red competition Magnecor leads on my GT6 and TR6. Both sets fitted many years ago and faultless ever since. However, these red leads have no resistance, so I'm running with Bosch WR78 or NGK BUR6ET resistive multi electrode plugs. And it all works fine. It's a 'fit and forget' option for plug leads. Nigel

Glad to hear your GT6 ownership experience is going well! That SAH valve cover looks great. Nigel

That's almost identical to the GT6 Mk3 breather setup when running standard twin Stromberg CDSE 150s. And there's no PCV on the Mk3. So no problem with the setup on your car! Nigel

As said above, 25psi oil pressure on the move is low. My first step would be to change the oil and filter, using a quality 20W50 classic oil and a reputable brand of oil filter. As for mileage between rebuilds, I stripped and refreshed the original 2 litre engine in my GT6 after 110,000 miles. It appears to have regular maintenance throughout its life, certainly over the last 35,000 miles in my ownership. Pistons, rings, bearing shells and thrust washers were all somewhat worn. After honing the bores and light polish of the crank journals I reassembled it with new rings, bearing, thrusts and timing chain. I refitted the old oil pump as it measured in tolerance according to the workshop manual. The only major component that had worn beyond being reused was the camshaft, so I replaced that with new followers. It ran almost like a new engine (since replaced with a 2.5 litre unit). I would expected the four cylinder engines are driven harder than sixes, so may not last quite as long in normal use, but it gives an idea of what's possible. Your engine probably has tens of thousands more miles left, unless you're unlucky. Nigel

A Stage 2 head plus a new camshaft will eat most of your £1k budget. I would suggest refurbish the existing head, smoothing the ports slightly and getting triple radius seat cuts for the inlet valves. Finish off by skimming for 10:1 compression ratio, assuming 97-99 octane fuel is available in Thailand. If you can only get 95 octane don't go above 9:1 CR. Fit a fast road camshaft, either Spitfire Mk3 profile or or something with a little more performance from Newman, Piper or a reputable cam grinder. For longevity, the cam should be ground from a new blank and must be fitted with new followers. Choose a camshaft profile that will give plenty of mid-range torque as 1500 engines don't like to rev too high. The best cam suppliers should be able to offer advice. Spend the remainder of the budget on getting the SU carbs and ignition properly set up on a rolling road with an operator who is experienced in tuning SU carbs. A rolling road session may well give more performance than any of the modifications! As for the lightened steel flywheel, sorry, in my opinion it's an unnecessary extravagance for a road-going car. And 'balanced' means very little unless the complete rotating assembly of front pulley, crankshaft, flywheel and clutch have been balanced together. I would sell the flywheel and spend the cash on a sports exhaust and tubular manifold. Nigel

I've used Aldon Ignitor on my GT6 for over 20 years, never had a problem. My Scimitar has been running fine with Accuspark for about 6 years. The two cars have covered 40-50,000 miles between them with these ignition systems. Both give easy starting, smooth idling and crisp throttle response. It's worth noting that the above ignition systems have Hall effect magnetic sensors. I've also used Lumenition on a Stag and Piranha on the GT6 previously. Both are optically triggered and both failed. The Stag and GT6 are known for high under bonnet temperatures... It's tempting to conclude that Hall effect sensors tolerate high temperatures better. Nigel

If the rear bumper still has good chrome, I would get the front rechromed. If they're both bad, it's worth considering stainless. Nigel

I had the rear bumper of my GT6 rechromed by ACF Howell in Walsall 4 years ago Excellent job for about £300. I have Harrington stainless bumpers on my TR6, they fit well and look great. No hesitation to recommend either option, rechroming by a decent plating company or Harrington stainless. Nigel

I think the decision really comes down to how many miles the car is likely to cover and how long the owner plans on keeping it. Another factor may be how strongly addicted the owner is to fancy upgrades! For modest mileages replacement genuine Rotoflexes will make sense, though they would need replacement occasionally. However, for a car that's used frequently and clocks up high mileages, the more expensive CV joint drive shafts are a 'fit and forget option', so would be cost effective over a prolonged period of ownership. Nigel

Check the old gudgeon pins visually for wear marks and if they all appear clean and unmarked, I would reuse them. You could also measure their diameters at different points using a micrometer as an additional check, though probably unnecessary if they are free from visual signs of wear. Nigel

I would echo Clive's advice regarding uprating the Spit 1500 engine. Don't forget the brakes if the car is going to be driven hard. The standard system is good if well maintained but needs decent pads for the front discs. Ideally, fit Mintex 1144 pads in place of standard, overhaul the brake system and fill with fresh fluid. Nigel