Motown

Thanks Bren plenty of sealant on the end seals wish id known about the tin gaskets though! 👍

The SD1 has been leaking oil from what appeared to be the valley gasket for awhile now what started off as a seep when the engine was hot eventually turned to a pool of oil forming on the top on the V8 so i thought it was about time i got it sorted. After removing the Edelbrock carb and Offenhauser intake manifold there is alot of crud visible and its obvious the end seals are knackered. The valley gasket was in fairly good condition to be fair but it will be changed after everything is cleaned up. Looking at the condition of the end seals and knowing it wasn't all that long ago they were last done i can only imagine the quality of re-manufactured parts these days is very poor CHINA? New end seals next to the old ones for comparison After lots a scrubbing to make a nice clean surface the new composite gasket is fitted Usually this is the time to put everything back together and hope its been done well enough that it doesn't leak but i realized i didn't have a new gasket for the Yank carb so it will have to wait until the weekend before its put back together 🤣

After reading the thread and your messages i am starting to think the water ingress/dampness is whats caused the running issues while it was sitting clearly its gone from bogging down to not working at all. I have a spare relay and i am returning to the mainland briefly on the 16th so will try and get this to you if you still need one. They are rarer than rocking horse shite but i would like the car to survive and to see you enjoy it as intended when it was sold. As for the Rover 800 club if its John you've been talking to he is very knowledgeable and a great help but the car has had no previous running issues although i have owned somewhere in the region of 8-10 Rover 800s so its an easy mistake to make and he may be getting mixed up with another ive owned. Any major issues i had with the car previously was usually down to rarity/lack of replacement parts but i always found them or a way round the issue in the end an example of this would be the headlight relay. As ive said many times the car was in daily use for three years its been to Belgium France and Germany and proved itself to be very reliable car until i left it sat for a few months while i restored my SD1. Its only when i returned to it after having the stainless steel exhaust fitted the dampness and bogging down raised its ugly head.