Chris A

Well, I have put my 'performance improvement' to the test today as I went to a small local event and i can say without fear of contridiction - it didn't make the car run worse. Can't say I noticed any improvement either but considering the heat under the bonnet after the run out it ought to have sucked in much cooler air. I actually saw a real 'Unicorn' for the first time, actually a 1948 Licorne and very nice it was as well

I don't do winters 🥶

Just a thought in passing really. On my 13/60 the air intake that is on the filter housing stops short of the radiator so, logically, it breaths in hot air rather than air at the ambient temperature from outside the engine bay. Since an engine should perform better with cool air wouldn't it be an inprovement if the air intake was ahead of the radiator instead? Maybe there wouldn't be an improvement or maybe the bean counters won over the engineers. Any thoughts? Just to try it out I've borrowed one of the hot air pipes from the heating system and put it over the intake pipe so it passes in front of the radiator and will see if I notice and difference, for the better or worse. To be honest I doubt it.

Having sorted the mower out the strimmer decided to play up last week. It started up as usual but part way through the job started to cut out, the frequency of the cutting out got worse until I was spending more time restarting it than strimming. When I examined closely I saw tell tale signs of petrol on the top of the tank and around the carb. Yup, the petrol pipe had started to perish, so soon I only bought it in 1994. the pipe used for the return of excess petrol is made of a different material but the same diameter so a quick swap over of the pipes and away it went. New pipe is on order as the return pipe is a bit short so the petrol level has to be kept high and there is no filter on it. cheap fix 5€ plus a lot of 'gros mots'. So not just Triumph petrol pipes that suffer. Beginning of this week it was the wife's wheelbarrow that needed repairing. Loss of air from one of the wheels - her wheelbarrow has 2 wheels as she has no sense of balance. Removed inner tube, haven't done that for decades, dunked the partially inflated tube in the rain butt and bubbles from the valve. Brain wave! Every time the garage changes a tyre for someone they fit a new valve so he must have a bin full of secondhand ones . . . Modern is due for a service so quick nip up the road, car booked in and a couple of old valves in my pocket. Job done and cheap at 0€ plus several 'gros mots' (getting the inner tube off was a pain and not really necessary to find the leak). If I wanted to spend my days repairing old machinery I'd buy a Triumph! Oh, I have . . . This afternoon's job is cut the hedge, unless the hedge trimmer knows otherwise!

Great news

More likely Colin prefers to get plastered, but not the sort you get in a hospital . . .

when I got my car there was an old one fitted that needed replacing, didn't fully retract. Fitted a replacement, not that I listen to the radio, no problem with space under dash/bulkhead. I once got back to the car at a show to find a couple of 'youngtimers' looking at it trying to figure out what it was . . https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/401143244279?hash=item5d660025f7:g:ffYAAOxyzHxROtv8

Seems I spoke too soon, oh dear.

I would sort of agree with Pete, as replacing the plug cured it it could well have been the plug giving up, might simply have been the plug lead coming adrift from the plug. Pleased it was a simple fix at any rate.

I've put some fairly thick copper wire from old electrical cables round a number of garden tubs that used to suffer from slug attacks, does seem to have worked.

That's progress for you

I'm not having one of those in the garden. It's bad enough having to reset all the clocks, phones, timers, coffee machine etc twice a year without having to struggle with one of those things 🙄

Rich B*st**d! Difficult as my green space is in 3 seperate sections. Note I call them green spaces not lawns, the remains of the Englishman in me won't accept them as being up to the required standard.

Big dilemma. On Friday my 2009 Italian built beast lost a wheel, well not lost broke off. I thought it time to review my options. Looked up the webby thing about replacements either petrol engine or electric. Saturday morning a visit to my local salesrooms. Being ‘careful’ with my money I didn’t like the amounts being asked for either version and wondered should I try and repair the old beast. The bodywork has already been significantly repaired (rust). Well, repaired is a bit strong – let’s say bodged. On a scale of 1 to 10? Doesn’t make it to the starting point. Can it be repaired? The parts are available. Can I dismantle the old wheel assemblies – if 1 has gone the other won’t be far behind I assumed. Saturday afternoon did a part dismantle to confirm I could do it – no point in buying new parts if I can’t fit them? Confirmed it was possible so ordered the bits. This morning decided to disassemble both units, clean the parts that would be reused ready for when the bits arrive. I now feel very pleased with myself, large sum of money saved BUT most importantly (honest) a good eco/green gesture. Plus a proper repair not a bodge*. So for 51 Euros including delivery I get the 2 wheel bits plus a new blade. All should be in order by the time the grass needs cutting again; it was a pain doing it with only 3 wheels on the beast. *The bodge would have been to refit the wheels without the mechanism to adjust the cutting height.

No point in me asking for a lift in it then. lovely car, and as you say very practical

Thanks. The photo was taken on a rare day when the car is shiny 🙄

I'm not at all biased 😁

You've got the priorities right there. Give it a complete service, lubricate everyhting that should be oiled/greased, then drive it. anything that needs to be done will come to light over time.

A bit small for a grill badge I would think but a good idea

A word of warning: don't try it with modern cornflake boxes as I'm sure the quality of the cardboard will be nowhere near as good as the 'old stock' 😁

That's all I did with the badges on the boot of my 13/60, good enough for me as I prefered to keep the originals rather than buy modern copies (that might look even worse)

Not just me then 🤔

See reply on 'the other site'

Same here, we clearly both have the same refined taste

You posted this on 'the other site', quite rightly. Same comments as there: Back then it might have felt as if it lasted 80 hours but it was only 24 😉 There was also an old circuit near Rouen that used public roads. Modern road improvements does still mean that a part of the old circuit is still a public road. https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circuit_de_Rouen-les-Essarts