Project Rusty Triumphs in Scotland - Dolomite in "most reliable" shocker - 08/02/24

[SiC]

Yup, I reckon vast amounts of my car are original. Which after 41 years becomes a problem when the car had a estimated lifespan of 10 years at most! Dashpot is now full of 20w50 which seems less inclined to fuck off.

 

Your Dolly was registered in 1977, so you're effectively living in 1987. Making your Acclaim only 4 years old, which kinda fits that it works well just a tad rusty...

[Zelandeth]

I believe that type of wiper fitting is quite common in the US. Was a Cherokee I first saw it on I believe.

 

The rear wiper on the Xantia's are attached this way, and they've been getting awkward to find for a few years now.

[Noel Tidybeard]

i see your fule injeshon carb has the plunger (arrowed) for mixture setting- used on my mini to great success using one flat at a time and a check on tail pipe (nice dark biscuit colour) every so often

 

[vulgalour]

Those pins may be shared with Princess.  If so I may have a couple of spares, I just don't know if I can get to the wipers because my entire life is still in boxes.

[matty879]

Yup, I reckon vast amounts of my car are original. Which after 41 years becomes a problem when the car had a estimated lifespan of 10 years at most! Dashpot is now full of 20w50 which seems less inclined to fuck off.

 

In other news the car is now back running it's original points system, 'cause fuck it. Why not? (I can hear Squire Dawson cheering from here). Still starts and runs and is certainly no worse than previously, it also makes me feel slightly warm and fuzzy that the car is a little more stock...

 

Sadly it is now dark so a test drive/warm up will have to wait.

try atf in the dashpot.20/50 is too thick

remove dashpot damper and air filter;

try to get a finger under the slide and push up to remove excess 20/50

repeat the above and re assemble taking care not to cross thread on dashpot.

put atf fluid in,and its should be fine

[dozeydustman]

I thought SUs used 20w monograde? 10w40 will work better than 20w50 if you have some of that knocking about. I wouldn't use Castrol though as it will leave a sticky mess and stop the piston moving.

 

For a few quid you can get genuine SU dashpot oil, should be enough for one HS4.

[oldcars]

I need a pin for the Reliant wiper as well as its well bodged on. If you find somewhere that sells them please let me know.

[dozeydustman]

Some Simcas and Talbots had these pins. As

 

Looks like the pin came with the adaptor as it is too small for the holes on any wipers I have... Any idea where to acquire some pins that might fit?

 

ream the holes out with a 5mm drill or a needle file.

 

I need a pin for the Reliant wiper as well as its well bodged on. If you find somewhere that sells them please let me know.

 

 

As others have suggested use a suitably sized machine screw and nut.

 

Just wondering if there is any interchangeability between wiper arms that use the more common slide under the hooked end that could be retrofitted. Probably worthwhile unless you want period correctness.

[MorrisItalSLX]

My current attitude to pin type wiper arms is a brief visit from this:

 

Followed by the addition of a pair of these:

 

 

And this is coming from someone who has plentiful access to pin adapters!

[Guest Hooli]

Aye! The reason those pin fittings have died out is because they are utter wank!

 

Even when the pins came with wipers I'd just use a small machine screw as it worked better.

[Eddie Honda]

Booo!

[Alusilber]

The rear wiper on my 924 looks like this (with a corresponding hole in the end of the arm). I thought this was some obscure type of wiper with an integral pin, but after reading this I might see if it pops out and could be reused with a new wiper...

[captain_70s]

Continued faffing with the Doloshite today.

 

Secured the dizzy so the timing doesn't wander all over the place. Problem being the clamp to hold it in place is bent to buggery in a manner I can't fix and seemingly NLA aside from a couple of sellers in the USA on eBay. So while the timing now doesn't wander the dizzy is also very tight and can't be loosend, so the vac adjust isn't going to be doing fuck all. I'll have to phone some suppliers and see if they've got any sat on a shelf.

 

Mixture as a adjusted as per the lifting pin method but seems to wander all over the place. Idle speed also goes all over the place, wanders by 20-30rpm at the best of times and will sometimes just fuck off entirely by 200rpm when it feels like it in either direction. Car drives but bogs down under heavy throttle so hills and "quick" acceleration aren't really achievable.

 

The nice thing is that it does now seem to start practically on the button regardless of engine temp...

[SiC]

Just had a look on Moss Motors on the 1300 Spitfire. Is yours an AC Delco distributor? I made the (probably incorrect) conclusion that it would have been a Lucas 25D or 45D distributor.

[SiC]

I'll hestantly point this one out as it's there:

https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.co.uk%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F352401318968

 

I have one of those cheapies on my MGB. It works but the condenser on the included points was shit and I ended up replacing it. However they're cheap and would get you going again if yours is currently utterly shagged. I'd strongly suggests getting an electronic kit for it though as the points included aren't great and it's hard to get decent quality points for the 45D (unlike the 25D).

 

Of course ideally you could send it off to the distributor doctor for a refurbish, but that's going to be like £100 at least.

 

I'm guessing it's probably bogging down under heavy acceleration if the vac advance isn't doing anything?

[Squire_Dawson]

it's hard to get decent quality points for the 45D

 

No it isn't. For the hundredth time, they are £2 or 3 a set at autojumbles, old packaging and all. Otherwise get Intermotor from any parts shop.

 

captain 70s, if you post up the serial numbers of the distributor I will check my spares - no guarantee as I believe they are Austin specification - but will have a look. The vacuum advance moves the baseplate inside the distributor, to check it remove the dizzy cap, disconnect the thin suction pipe from the carburettor and suck on it whilst watching the dizzy. You should see some slight movement. Also something often overlooked is the small carbon centre brush in the dizzy cap - this should be present and spring back when lightly pushed in.

[richardthestag]

Problem is getting points that don't wear out after a couple of miles that all the modern ones seem to do. I'm having this problem on my MGB.

 

distributordoctor.com every single time for me

[SiC]

No it isn't. For the hundredth time, they are £2 or 3 a set at autojumbles, old packaging and all. Otherwise get Intermotor from any parts shop.

 

Which is ok when you have an auto jumble coming up, but when you haven't they're not exactly something you can buy as NOS around the corner shop.

 

The Intermotor 45D points come with a condenser attached. It's crap quality both in design and construction.

http://nonlintec.com/sprite/cap_failure/

 

The yellow leaded one in my video here is a Moss HQ condenser. It's either supplied by or the same manufacturer as a Distributor Doctor one.

[Video]

[captain_70s]

I honestly think the dizzy is fine, I've swapped the entire unit (not just the innards) and tried two coils and the wandering idle persists. One thing does seem to have ceased since fitting the old points set up, which is the poor starting. From cold it now fires up much faster and it actually starts when hot as well.

 

The clamp is this bit:

 

 

At some point it has been over-tightened at an angle (most likely by myself at some point in the past so the centre hole is oval. I have tried a whole lot of hammering, bending and prying with many, many things but it is simply bent for good I reckon.

Now, I thought the the vac advance caused the whole body of the dizzy to rotate, but if that isn't the case then the fact that the dizzy is hard to move and can't be loosened won't really be an issue. I utterly forgot to suck on the vac pipe, I'll have to give that a shot tomorrow as I've no clue if the vac advance on this dizzy works (it did on the electronic one).

 

I reckon this is a carb issue now, every time I drive/rev the car the idle moves around and the mixture seems to change.

 

My neighbour also turned up in this while I was working away:

 

 

That idles beautifully...

 

[SiC]

I reckon this is a carb issue now, every time I drive/rev the car the idle moves around and the mixture seems to change.

 

I wouldn't be surprised if you have multiple issues here that have been causing you problems.

[captain_70s]

I wouldn't be surprised if you have multiple issues here that have been causing you problems.

I agree.

 

Throwing a car into use having dragged it out of a damp garage where it's been sitting for two years does tend to result in bits failing. I'd not be surprised if the electronic ignition had fallen foul to being damp and unused for several years after having been sitting in a hot, vibrating, oil seeping environment for two years prior to that.

 

Also in classic BL fashion fixing anything merely results in something else breaking. The key is to stop fixing things once you have a multitude of niggles rather than major problems...

[Squire_Dawson]

With the engine warmed up, spray a little WD40 around the inlet manifold and carburettor joint. Are these gaskets (carb sandwich plate, inlet manifold &c.) been replaced? Manifold nuts tight (but not too tight)? Failing that, if a brake servo is fitted air could be getting in. Block off the servo connection at the manifold to eliminate.

[Mally]

Problem is getting points that don't wear out after a couple of miles that all the modern ones seem to do. I'm having this problem on my MGB.

 

I didn't realise it was that far from your house to your lock up.

[captain_70s]

Reet. More Dolofuckery

 

Turned out I was misreading the timing markings 'cause I was going from memory like some fucking moron who thinks he has a memory. I have now read the book. So here we go-a-fuckin'-gain...

 

• Timing re-set with strobe light to 9-10 degrees BTDC. Engine up to temp, idling at about 850-900rpm with the vac advance disconnected. Tested vac advance works, it does. Tested mechanical advance works, it does. Using original Lucas branded dizzy with points set-up. Points gapped to .015
• Tweaked up all the manifold and carb bolts, not massively. Just checking if they were tight mostly.
• Sprayed WD40 all over all the places air could be getting in to no noticeable affect.
• Adjusted carb mixture with lifting pin technique. Engine up to temp, idling at 850-900rpm.
• Spark plugs cleaned up and gapped to 0.025.
• Adjusted fast idle and choke controls to engage better.
• Adjusted and lubricated throttle linkage.

 

I can now safely say the car has never driven better. It pulls smoothly (for a shagged motor) and strongly (For a Dolly 1300) through the rev range, no spluttering or hesitation. No spitting fuel out of the exhaust, no pinking, no misfires. I think there is an errant tappet though, I've got a new rocker gasket on the way anyhoos so I'll have another nosy when that arrives.

 

The only problem is that it is current 5C outside and the car won't get properly hot. I have an 88C stat on it's way which should help with this issue. The idle still seems to waver around a bit, by 20-30rpm at a guess, but I can't remember how much of this is normal. Turning on the lights costs about 40rpm, putting the heater fan on max looses another 40rpm, heated rear screen eats about 10rpm.

 

I'll try and get a decent run out after work tomorrow, can it down the M8 and stop at Rutherglen Tesco to see if it plays silly buggers.

 

 

In Acclaim news I decided to replace the wiper pins with bolts. My attempts to fit wipers with the existing adaptors had resulted in a loose fit and my bodge to get around this was... A risk.

 

 

Toddled off to my local hardware shop with the wiper blade as a size reference, got two 5mm bolts and two locking nuts and headed home. Naturally the hole in the Acclaim's wiper arm is slightly smaller than on the wiper. I recalled the picture posted by Eddie Honda having a size and sure enough it's bloody Imperial. On a Japanese car on which every other fucking thing is metric. Whatever.

 

Had a think and decided it'd probably make for a better fit if I filed out the holes on the Acclaim's wipers from 4.75mm to 5mm. Especially as I already had the two bolts/nuts in that size and finding M4 locking nuts locally on short notice was tricky. So I did.

 

 

So good to have silent wipers...

[Guest Hooli]

Hurrah for a working Doloshite, the drop in revs under electrical load sounds typical to me. I seem to recall the revs dropped & rose slightly on my Midget as the indicators flashed!

[SiC]

So possibly looks like it was the electronic ignition module that was causing a lot of the previous on going running issue? Fingers crossed it's back to running in a tired but reliable state.

 

Most modern ECUs raise the idle speed for the same reason as you found when high demand items are switched on, such as the heater fan, Aircon or radiator fan.

 

What distributor is in this? A 45D, 25D or AC Delco unit?

[somewhatfoolish]

The only problem is that it is current 5C outside and the car won't get properly hot. I have an 88C stat on it's way which should help with this issue. The idle still seems to waver around a bit, by 20-30rpm at a guess, but I can't remember how much of this is normal. Turning on the lights costs about 40rpm, putting the heater fan on max looses another 40rpm, heated rear screen eats about 10rpm.

Time to experiment with some Blue Peter-style shite radiator blinds; cardboard, bin bags, gaffer tape and zip ties are your friend! 

[captain_70s]

The dizzy is a 45D.

 

I've played the DIY rad muff game on my old 1850 but I'd rather not resort to that until we're dealing with sub-0 temps on the regular!

[oldcars]

Glad you got to the bottom of the running issues. I idle drops a little two with lights and stuff on the Rialto.

[Ghosty]

Good news. Speaking of the 20-30rpm variance in idle, that sounds like way too small and pathetic to be worrying about. 200rpm yes, but twenty? Sounds a bit daft to me. I'd ignore it.