Hello from Paula and her Vitesse

[Iain T]

I thought all historic cars over 40 years old are exempt from MOT's?

[JohnD]

"Used to", he said.

All exempt, unless had 'substantial change'.     Very liberal!  Even a GTfire may not have had that!  See: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/historic-classic-vehicles-mot-exemption-criteria/historic-classic-vehicles-mot-exemption-criteria#substantial-changes-criteria

J.

 

[Pete Lewis]

i consider it wise to have a safety or MOT on any car to run a rule over its condition. regardless of age or ability, there is some peace of mind for many of us 

 having a 3rd party inspect  your pride and joy,    and letting you know its up to scratch.

how else do you have any idea the brakes are in balance .... await the hedge and  ditch ???

its wise to get it checked ,

Pete

 

[Iain T]

Yes I understand the comfort factor of have an MOT but my last test was all clear then when I examined the track rod ends they were shot! It seems to depend on the examiner and if your car presents well then perhaps they take a more cursory look.

On the other hand as my car has the cv joint convertion with gas struts and type 9 gearbox it could be argued it has 'substantial change' therefore mandatory MOT.

Iain

[Pete Lewis]

think 'substantial'  is a bit more dramatic   

the trouble is those who wish to dodge a MOT for the WRONG  reasons are not respectful of the cars or others 

 dodgy mot have been around since introduction   

and  some of  those with respect dont always know anything about their cars 

cant win .

well its raining 

 

[Paula]

I like to have the MOT done as I don't have a garage, so it's hard for me to check some things on the side of the road. It's a piece of mind thing for me.

My local garage always have a few classics in. The owner drives an old American car. So i trust them.

They tell me what parts I need and I get them delivered straight to them.

 

 

[dougbgt6]

3 hours ago, Iain T said:

it could be argued it has 'substantial change'

When they first started talking about "substantial change" there was a check list, suspension, transmission, engine etc. Too many ticks and that was it, you were "substantial".  So it's cut and dried, no argument. 

Interestingly John's link above says about engines, "If the number of cylinders in an engine is different from the original it’s likely to be, but not necessarily, the case that the current engine is not alternative original equipment." 

"But not necessarily" allows a Triumph straight six in a Spitfire and low, a Gitfire passes the test.

Doug

[Iain T]

My friend who rebodied his Daimler DE36 from a hearse to a brooklands racer had to go through hoops and a year of grief to keep his original number plate.

A monster of a car, started off at 6 metres long and even though he took 1m out of the chassis it still dwarfs my Vitesse.

[JohnD]

Pete,  MoT dodgers are the least of our worries.    The Police caught nearly 80,000 uninsured drivers this year, so the estinate of a million is probably true.

 

and, doug, from the gov.uk webpage it's difficult to think of anything short  of a kit car has not had 'substantial change',  and is allowed.   Except steering box to rack & pinion.   Certainly, "axles and running gear have been changed to improve efficiency, safety or environmental performance" allows CV joints.d

John

PS, Yes, Iain, a stright eight does trump a Vitesse, but a stright eight AND a spare is a Grand Slam, with buckles on!  J.

[Iain T]

Daimler only made 250'ish the most famous being the Docker's Daimler Green Goddess. He has accumulated 3 engines and all have slight differences typical of post war 'what's on the shelf and can we use it' practice. All are 5.4L and with his bespoke pistons giving 9:1 CR, it was 7:1 as standard, it has massive grunt whatever the revs. With the current gearing it easily tops the ton and cruises all day at 80, all a bit scary in a car that weighs 2500kgs with drum brakes!

John, good explanation of compression ratio calcs on sideways forum, if you are going to play with CR you might as well do it properly.

Iain

[JohnD]

Thank you, Iain!

Would the one on Equal Lift on Overlap for cam timing be useful?    The method can be applied in the same way to straight eights, which are two four-cylinder engines, mirrored about the centre line, just as a six is two three-cylinder engines.

JOhn

[Iain T]

I'll take a look.

Happy Christmas all

[Paul H]

On 18/12/2019 at 18:38, Paula said:

I've finished the carbs, I ended up getting a sonic cleaner. They are now the cleanest carbs in christendom!
Pictures soon! I'll probably sell these and then do the same to the original ones.
In the meantime I failed an MOT on the handbrake. I've asked the garage to fix that for me as i'm guessing it just needs adjustment on the cable as the brakes passed with the pedal and it will be much easier on a ramp.
I also got an advisory for a front wheel bearing. Can i do this without special tools like pullers and presses?

 

 

Any pics of your sonically cleaned carbs yet ? 
Paul 

[Paula]

34 minutes ago, Paul H said:

Any pics of your sonically cleaned carbs yet ? 
Paul 

I have!
They look better in the flesh. I'll probably give them a bit of a polish to finish them off.

[Paula]

Here's some before pics.

[Pete Lewis]

wow !!    looking good  

Pete

[Guest]

Yes that looks a great improvement, Paula, well done.

May I suggest dumping the clear plastic hose between the carbs and replacing with either R9 or Gates Barricade fuel hose, when you come to refit them. The plastic hose will deteriorate in time and become very brittle, in addition it will not be suitable for dealing with elements of ethanol.

All the best.

Richard.

[Paula]

6 minutes ago, classiclife said:

Yes that looks a great improvement, Paula, well done.

May I suggest dumping the clear plastic hose between the carbs and replacing with either R9 or Gates Barricade fuel hose, when you come to refit them. The plastic hose will deteriorate in time and become very brittle, in addition it will not be suitable for dealing with elements of ethanol.

All the best.

Richard.

Good to know, i'm going to stick these on ebay. My carbs are still on the car. This was more of a fact finding mission.

[Guest]

In that case, Paula, leave it for the new owner to replace the pipe !!

However, on your car it needs swapping if you do have a plastic tube in situ.

Regards.

Richard.

[Pete Lewis]

and Paula  those are CDS 150  as have the starting valve choke    there  ( ie PatK )  a few on here been looking for a  pair

where as early were CD  with the thames barrier choke ramp 

Pete

[Guest]

15 minutes ago, Pete Lewis said:

and Paula  those are CDS 150  as have the starting valve choke    there  ( ie PatK )  a few on here been looking for a  pair

Standby for some very interested potential purchasers !!

[Colin Lindsay]

On 18/12/2019 at 18:38, Paula said:

 

Looks like the same way I do mine, kitchen sink and Fairy Liquid.

[Iain T]

Mmm 150CDS starter chokes....mine still leaks and Burlen were reluctant to sell me what looked like a similar part from a 150CDSE as they said it may not fit. I'm going to rebush to see if it reduces leak.

Paula, excellent work could this be a new income stream??

Iain

[Colin Lindsay]

Oh, and another myth debunked - boiling them in soapy water or soap powder doesn't make any difference whatsoever.

 

[Pete Lewis]

Ian  i really dont understand the waffle you get from Burlen     its not rocket science    the evolution of models /is very much based on standard parts with a few tweaks to the specification ,                       amazing !!!!!!    expert      x the unkown   ..........spert          a drip under pressure 

 

while wasting time i see  on e bay  stromberg floats (twin arm)  cd+ 150 on sale in the T 2000 list of odds and sods 

 

Pete