Body trim and petrol cap

[micmak]

Hi Guys,

Been a few months since I was on here.  I took my little Vitesse out for a short drive today to get fuel.  It was the first drive in months.  It drove perfectly.  I got home and gave her a wash and wipe down.  I have two questions from today’s fun with the car:  

1.     Is there a way to tighten up the Vitesse name and some of the trim that goes all around the car?  I presume they are held in place with push-on type fittings that hold the name and the trim from falling off.  Can they be adjusted or tightened? 

2.     I have an old 60s style petrol cap. It doesn’t lock any more due to the previous owner losing the key. So it just operates perfectly well without locking.  I just turn it clockwise and it closes perfectly well.  But the rubber seal is disintegrating on it.  As a result, it will not “click” into the fully closed position. I’m probably losing fuel too due to evaporation. My question is, are the replacement seals that are on Google any good, or should I fork out for a whole new locking cap?  And are petrol caps for a Vitesse smaller and more difficult to get than for other cars?

 Thanks Guys.

 

…..Mick…..

[Colin Lindsay]

I bought seals for mine from eBay a while back; they were good, maybe slightly thicker than the originals, but you can tell from checking out the manufacturer - in my case it was a UK seller who made his own; he asked for the measurements of my fuel cap then supplied a number of potentials from existing stock. Avoid any of the 'crushing' seals, just take the measurements of the inner section then the outer size so you know it will fit both the centre and the outer cap, then search online for the flat original-type seal. If you know the brand of your cap (Is that a Wilmot Breedon?) you may be able to order replacement seals straightaway, but a lot of sellers list fuel seals for a particular car, ie LandRover or Mini, so if you know the external and internal diameters you can find one easily enough. In my photo the two spare seals are different, one is thicker and the other has a larger centre cut-out, so measurements need to be as exact as possible to avoid the cap rattling or else falling off.

New caps are easy to find - make sure they have THREE lugs on the back, not two, with the locking arm making a fourth - see my second photo, which is one I took to show the seller that type I required and how cracked it was. Sadly I can't find his details at present! I've also repaired caps in the past by buying a replacement cheaply then swapping over the parts the Triumphs require, they're only screwed together.

As for loose trim, you can either replace the small plastic 'lugs' on the legs, which wear and fall out leaving the hole in the metal too large or carefully dab some sealer round the lugs and then press into place until they set. 

 

[Paul H]

25 minutes ago, micmak said:

 

Hi Guys,

Been a few months since I was on here.  I took my little Vitesse out for a short drive today to get fuel.  It was the first drive in months.  It drove perfectly.  I got home and gave her a wash and wipe down.  I have two questions from today’s fun with the car:  

1.     Is there a way to tighten up the Vitesse name and some of the trim that goes all around the car?  I presume they are held in place with push-on type fittings that hold the name and the trim from falling off.  Can they be adjusted or tightened? 

2.     I have an old 60s style petrol cap. It doesn’t lock any more due to the previous owner losing the key. So it just operates perfectly well without locking.  I just turn it clockwise and it closes perfectly well.  But the rubber seal is disintegrating on it.  As a result, it will not “click” into the fully closed position. I’m probably losing fuel too due to evaporation. My question is, are the replacement seals that are on Google any good, or should I fork out for a whole new locking cap?  And are petrol caps for a Vitesse smaller and more difficult to get than for other cars?

 Thanks Guys.

 

…..Mick…..

I replaced my rubber seal making them out of a spare cycle inner tube 

Paul

[micmak]

Thanks Guys.

 

Colin;  I will try your suggestion of buying a cheap cap and try to repair mine with the parts.  A previous owner removed that 4^th leg that you mentioned.  I dunno if any of the moving parts were also removed.  I will investigate.

And your suggestion to use a sealer for the trim, was kinda what I figured, but I thought I’d ask if there was some other way.  

 

Paul; I will try your idea of making a rubber seal.  I didn’t know it could be as “rough and tumble” as an inner tube. I’ll try it.  What have I got to lose?

 

Thanks

…..Mick…..

[johny]

Yes I went the same way as Paul but bought a sheet of viton rubber on ebay as I thought it might resist fuel better. Since used it for fuel gauge sender and even front wheel arch to bulkhead flap seals👍

[Paul H]

22 hours ago, micmak said:

 

Thanks Guys.

 

Colin;  I will try your suggestion of buying a cheap cap and try to repair mine with the parts.  A previous owner removed that 4^th leg that you mentioned.  I dunno if any of the moving parts were also removed.  I will investigate.

And your suggestion to use a sealer for the trim, was kinda what I figured, but I thought I’d ask if there was some other way.  

 

Paul; I will try your idea of making a rubber seal.  I didn’t know it could be as “rough and tumble” as an inner tube. I’ll try it.  What have I got to lose?

 

Thanks

…..Mick…..

Just checked and used 2 layers of inner tube glued together . 2 years on and it’s fine . Part of the mot test . 
Paul