project 1980 Austin Princess

[vulgalour]

I'd like to say I learned my lesson with the 1100, I didn't.  Nor the Renault before it.  Nor the Princess before that.  Nor the BX before that...

 

I'm going to do the weird thing of waiting until the right car comes along at the right time and make use of the Rover being reliable and the Princess working most of them time to give me the luxury of time.  No more* jumping head first into a project because I feel sorry for it.

[Craig the Princess]

[vulgalour]

A non-picture update on things.

 

The Princess had lost all but the weakest and most intermittent spark recently which meant it wouldn't start.  Initial testing made it seem the condenser was at fault and, having had issues with poor condensers, it seemed sensible to replace that.  However, on fully removing the condenser in readiness for replacement, the earth wire inside the distributor decided to part company with one of the eyelets.  The wire, which had been replaced many years ago to replace the bare wire wrapped in electrical tape the car came to me with, had gone brittle and fractured right at the crimp.  This meant that the earth connection was incredibly poor.  Over time, this has steadily been getting worse and visual inspection had revealed nothing amiss, the symptoms manifesting as though other parts were at fault.

 

The solution was simply to replace the wire with new. I'd already bought a replacement condenser but rather than fitting that straight away, we put the new wire and the old condenser back on just to be sure it's not the old condenser at fault.  Happily, the old condenser is fine and the car starts quite willingly now.  There's also no sign of the occasional stutter/stumble that's been bothering the car for the last year or two and that I couldn't track down so I suspect that's also been due to that poor earth wire.

 

I shall continue to monitor the situation, hopefully this has resolved the issue.

[junkyarddog]

It's amazing that the smallest of faults can be such a big pain in the arse.

[PhilA]

Well, all of the electricity that makes the car run has to go through that wire.

 

Shouldn't they be an ultra-flexible braided effort, or was the original just a regular piece of wire?

 

Phil

[vulgalour]

I think originally it was just an insulated wire with those side-mount eyelets so the wire sits nice against the curve of the housing.  I don't actually know, because it had already been bodged when I got the car.  Replacement wires seem to be pretty poor efforts with the wrong, over-sized eyelets and a bare wire, much like was in the car when I got it, so perhaps that really is how they were done originally.  I don't think it would need a flexible braided type, the housing is designed in such a way that a regular bit of wire joined to two side-mount eyelets would fit very snugly with no stress on the crimps/solder points.

 

After a little drive I've learned that a few issues I didn't even know where issues have gone away now.  Aside from the smoother running, the car starts far more willingly than it has in ages and requires much less cranking.  I haven't had to juggle the choke anywhere near as much as usual for a damp day like today.  Acceleration is improved too, there's no hesitation or bogging down when setting off when the engine is still cold.  There seems less of a load on the engine when I've got all the items on, had to have headlights, interior fan, wipers, and heated rear screen on today and I didn't notice the usual slight drop in power, which is promising.  All of this, I assume, is because there's just a superior earth to previously.

[PhilA]

Huzzah! Yes, the engine will labor much less with a good spark at low RPM, better too at high RPM because it'll have less propensity to "blow out".

 

Plus now you have spare condensers. A useful thing to have.

 

Phil

[purplebargeken]

I'd like to say I learned my lesson with the 1100, I didn't.  Nor the Renault before it.  Nor the Princess before that.  Nor the BX before that...

 

^^ I do believe that this would apply to 99.9999999999999999% of the people on this very forum.

[vulgalour]

It's only been a few days of only-car duties.  So far, it's going very smoothly, as you might expect in the honeymoon period.  I haven't yet dreaded getting in the car, no matter what the weather is doing.  I do have some observations.

 

- Starting.  Since replacing the earth wire, the car now starts, idles, runs, and generally behaves much better.  The occasional stutter/stumble thing it was doing it no longer does.  Less throttle is required to make progress and to accelerate from a standstill and a very quiet tick I couldn't place beyond 'the top of the engine somewhere' is now gone.  Perhaps the tick was the old earth wire sparking out and earthing where it shouldn't, perhaps it's merely coincidence.

 

- New tyres are amazing.  They're the best I've ever driven on and I don't feel like I've even come close to their limits.  I'm continually impressed with them, especially in the rain.

 

- Oil pressure switch I replaced has cured an oil leak.  Previously, I wasn't entirely certain if it was the cause of the oil down the belt side of the engine, now I am, because that side of the engine and the driveshaft are all oil-free.  I'm pleased about this as it means I'm losing less oil than I was.

 

- Brakes are good.  However, the braking habits of other drivers aren't so much.  I find myself driving slower than I might normally because of how unpredictably, and how quickly, other drivers stop.  The plus side to that is it means I'm paying a lot more attention when I am driving and therefore driving more defensively which has meant I've avoided situations that may have become a close call, or worse.

 

- Island style speed bumps are less of a problem because of the width of the Princess, in most cases the track is wide enough that it's like they're not even there.  Bar type speed bumps are a little more annoying, especially the ones with a harsh drop off and rise, but no more so than in any other car.

 

- I feel generally less vulnerable and more visible to other road users than I do in the Rover.  This in turn makes driving considerably more relaxing.

 

So now the problems, since I can't pretend it's been entirely plain sailing.

 

- My old regime was to check the fluids once a week or every 100 miles, whichever came first.  Because the Rover never needed this attention, I'd slipped to a more loose once a month or every 500 miles and that doesn't stick with the Princess.  Today, the gear change was notchier than usual and reverse became difficult to select when the oil had warmed up and on checking, the oil was barely at the bottom of the dipstick.  Thankfully, a glug of fresh oil resolved this.  I suspect the car is consuming a little oil, though not alarming quantities, and I know there are still oil leaks I haven't been able to find the source of.  I suspect one or more of the gaskets that were replaced when we did the clutch are the culprit since the minor leak I do have is on that side of things, it's just proving difficult to find since it takes a while to manifest.  I shall continue to monitor the situation, at any rate.

 

- Sidewinds are tedious.  It can be easy to forget how much power steering compensates for small corrections, so you are more prone to a little bit of lane wandering when it's as windy as it's been today.

 

- Although there's no noticeable coolant usage, I did notice a very small spot of coolant under a pipe join today.  It's something to monitor, the one spot wasn't even enough to constitute a weep, let alone a leak.

 

- Parking is still a chore.  The biggest issue I face here is no longer the lack of power steering.  The combination of the Princess' C-pillar blind spot and the sheer bulk of modern cars causing big visual obstacles can make reversing out of a parking space a bit of a gamble, especially when other drivers seem intent on paying no attention whatsoever to a car slowly exiting a parking space.  The bodywork on most modern cars is so high that I can't simply look through the cabin of neighbouring vehicles to see if it's safe to exit a parking space, so it has to be done with caution.

 

That's it.  Overall I'm quite happy to hop in and use this car.  The biggest problem I encounter on a daily basis really is other inconsiderate road users, the sorts everyone else encounters too.  If anything, being behind the wheel of the Princess again is making me think a lot harder about hazards and driving and, I hope, making me a better driver in the process.

[timolloyd]

I hear you about parking. I tend to reverse into most spaces anyway, because it’s always easier on the exit, but especially so in my Caterham where I simply can’t see anything either side.

[Felly Magic]

The Saab we have on loan has serious blind spots, and I agree about parking, some fucker in a soft roader parked right on the white line, making getting in a barsteward

[RayMK]

The Saab we have on loan has serious blind spots, and I agree about parking, some fucker in a soft roader parked right on the white line, making getting in a barsteward

 

Yes, they are that wide and parking spaces don't seem to have been changed since the 1990s.  Also, with them being so high, reversing out is tricky because you can't see until halfway out - and other drivers are distracted as they set their satnavs to get home from the supermarket and select music for the trip.

[dozeydustman]

It's nice to hear Princess Vulgarlette is running nicely for you, I can fully sympathise with the HUGE C-pillars having owned a couple of Scimitars which don't have the best visibility for a touring break.

 

Chelsea tractors parking up to the lines is a real bug-bear of mine, especially as parking spaces are the same size if not smaller than 30 years ago, but cars have got wider and taller.

[320touring]

Glad she's doing valuable work !

 

And especially pleased to hear that the Uniroyal tyres are working out - I've always been impressed by them.

 

Re parking - reversing in or the coveted "drive through" is your friend here - I've even got the Burd actively seeking such opportunities.

 

Pity re the sidewinds - we had proper stormy/gusty weather up here last night, and the GSA was happily cutting through the standing water on new tyres and handling the crosswinds despite no power steering.

 

I assume that you're not missing any "undergarment" on the princess that may be in place to distribute sidewinds?

[vulgalour]

I do hunt out the drive-through spots, they're tricky to find.  I reckon the Princess gets blown about because it's fairly slab sided and very lightweight for its size.  It's not as bad as my old Polo was, which was even more slab sided and even lighter on skinnier wheels, so that's something.  I'm probably more sensitive to it because of using the Rover so much over the last few years.  Nothing is missing from underneath, nothing was ever fitted, this is an Undertray Free Zone.

 

At least the Princess is small enough that even if I end up parking like a cock I'm still well within the lines, and that can be very useful if someone in a gigantocar has been unable to figure out how to get their behemoth to fit.  I do feel bad for those folks that have massive cars and make the effort to park nicely, especially if they actually use their gigantic car to move lots of people and things around, it can't be easy.  There are some good drivers and passengers that treat neighbouring vehicles with respect, they deserve to be recognised, not everyone is a selfish entitled prick.

[captain_70s]

 the GSA was happily cutting through the standing water on new tyres and handling the crosswinds despite no power steering.

 

Can confirm, passed me on the motorway like I was standing still...

[vulgalour]

A couple of minor issues today.  The first was that on doing a lights check, the hazard telltale has decided to stop working, even though the hazards themselves function perfectly normally.  Shall have to give the bulb/wiring a wiggle and see whether or not the bulb has blown.  At least it's the easy bulb to get to.

 

The second was that for some distance I was driving with my reversing light on without realising it.  The new switch was not provided with a locking ring and I'd lost the old switch so couldn't swap it over.  As a result, the new switch has self-adjusted into a position where it's permanently on.  Since it's dark and very wet, Mike and I decided to unplug the bulb and sort it out tomorrow, especially since I've since found the old switch so I have the ring to swap over and stop this happening again.

 

Headlight aim is too low.  I had set them at home on the drive but forgot to account for the slight incline of the drive.  An easy enough job to raise them up a bit now that I actually have working adjusters.

 

So realistically, everything is fine.

[SiC]

Both hazard lights and reversing lights are not needed for an MOT on this age car. Just flamboyant extra factory options.

[rovamota]

My 1981 Princess failed its last MoT because of inoperative hazard lights. It was the testers fault for not wiggling the switch correctly.

[SiC]

My 1981 Princess failed its last MoT because of inoperative hazard lights. It was the testers fault for not wiggling the switch correctly.

Take the switch and warning light out. Can't fail if it's not there but can if fitted and not working.

[PhilA]

Had that with fog lights. Two front fitted, one burned (hadn't thought to check them)

 

Fail on MoT. Went in, pulled the plug on the wire, went get pass cert.

 

Strange system

 

 

Phil

[Tadhg Tiogar]

The Saab we have on loan has serious blind spots, ....

 

All modern cars have blindspots, all due to thicker pillars mandated by legislation in the name of, er, safety....

[Heidel_Kakao]

How many MPG's do you get out of this? I am guessing it's less than the Rover?

[vulgalour]

Princess seems to do no worse than 18mpg and no better than about 37mpg.  Rover seems to do no worse than about 28mpg, and no better than about 42mpg.

 

Fuelly averages on both cars (see signature) can be slightly misleading since it reflects what sort of driving I'm doing.  The Princess looks bad at 21mpg at the moment because I've been almost exclusively using it for urban with very little motorway, the Rover has been the other way around.  Also, the Princess has been very broken through a lot of its Fuelly record, so the figures are a bit skewed because of that.

 

Realistcally, I expect about 25mpg average out of the Princess and about 35mpg average out of the Rover for the sort of driving I do.  I don't do enough miles for this to be an issue, really.  With the Princess now in better health and more regular use, I'm hoping the mpg improves a bit, it's been a fairly rocky fuel history for it over the last few years with all the issues.

[vulgalour]

To add to this, since I've just fuelled up, 100% urban over the last 150ish miles has got just shy of 22mpg (21.71mpg).

 

Hazard telltale - now fixed.  Pulled the bulb, tweaked the tines out, plugged the bulb back in and it now works normally.  It's either the bulb or holder that's a bad fit, or both, this seems to have fixed it.

 

Auxilliary belt - squealing.  I thought it was because of the wet weather until I checked and it's gone a little slack.  I'll tighten it tomorrow when I can see what I'm doing, it's probably stretched a little.

 

If it ever stops raining I'll get the reverse switch and headlight alignment sorted.

[GrumpiusMaximus]

You're a bloody hero for trying this.  They were bad enough when new...!

[vulgalour]

- Auxilliary belt. Retensioned using a couple of 13mm spanners.  Charging improved and screechy belt noise gone, predictably.

- Headlights aim.  Improved by adjusting the aim higher.  I'm not entirely happy with where the headlights are pointing so I will get a local garage to set them properly for me in the MoT bay rather than make a best guess.

- Reverse light switch.  Reinstalled the old switch.  Reason being, the new switch has collapsed internally (broken spring?) which is the actual reason the reverse light wouldn't turn off.  The old switch actually works perfectly fine, the problem wasn't with it, the problem was with the broken wire which we have resolved.  The new switch managed to last all of about 30 miles, which is frankly rubbish.

 

[vulgalour]

This week has seen me do less miles than usual, but on faster roads, and with two other people in the car.  The Princess certainly felt more at home plodding down the A19 and A66 than it does pottering about town and kept up perfectly well with modern traffic.  I have noticed that the occasions of people pulling out on me in everyday driving is reduced drastically compared to the Rover, it does still happen of course, but with much less frequency.  I feel more visible and as a result, safer, in the Princess than I do in the Rover.

 

Occasional Misfire -   Only when the car isn't up to temperature, and only when under load/putting your foot down.  At idle it's perfectly normal, and once warmed up it behaves perfectly normally.  I shall go through the various ignition components and check all the settings are as they should be, my suspicion is that the timing or a gap is slightly off somewhere for winter conditions, especially since this was last checked in more clement weather and has only become an issue now that we're starting to get sub-zero temperatures.

[PhilA]

Does the Princess have a summer/winter adjustable intake position on the air filter, or is it thermostatically controlled?

 

Phil

[SiC]

Reminds me of the ado16. None of the advanced automatic thermostatic nonsense here.