Six Cylinders Motoring Notes

[Six-cylinder]

41 minutes ago, Andyrew said:

Whatever this is , one is too many!

It used to work.

[hairnet]

it rode past beko then it broke  (joke sam)

 

[Six-cylinder]

I started writing my confessions of 2022 and it is/was a great year for driving our own cars. If you want to see what I drove from our own collection then the link takes you to an online advent calendar I have created for the month of December one day at a time, in no particular order.

https://calendar.myadvent.net/?id=hhc8tn1h0b9fvr4dy1i6bxa2483r7z5x

[hairnet]

*rofls and claps loudly

[Six-cylinder]

I have now driven the Peugeot 404 on the road.

With the help of @Zelandeth we changed the cracked fuel hoses, replaced the filter and found the reason for it was sucking air bubbles last time. The top of the fuel pump was loose and a simple tighten solved that problem.

Then our troubles began as it would not start, we did all the usual things like cleaning up the distributor cap and still no go. To remove the spark plugs we went home to get my special thin walled, deep box spanner and it was only later we found the one @Harriytaithad thoughtfully left in the boot.  

It turns out the spark plugs were wet with petrol and we had to toast them over the camping stove, a squirt of easy start and it coughed into life. We refitted the missing headlight and I took it for a test drive, only 4.1 km but enough to convince me it was capable and safe to drive on the road.

Next week Zel is going to have a look at the electrics for me as they are still a bit hit and miss.

The big question is when you switch it off why will it not restart without a 5 minute pause?

[LightBulbFun]

46 minutes ago, Six-cylinder said:

The big question is when you switch it off why will it not restart without a 5 minute pause?

I wonder whats the condenser condition like? if its worth trying another? I have to wonder if its degrading when hot, not enough to cause the car to stall but just enough to prevent it from starting?

same for the ignition coil etc

 

 

otherwise very awesome to see it completed a road test without anything going wrong  

[Zelandeth]

It's a really strange one and has me well puzzled.

I don't think it's a heat soak issue as it's not "Switch off, wait a minute and it won't go," rather you switch it off and go straight back to start and there's not even a cough.

I checked when it was doing this before and we had a solid spark at the plugs, thinking fuel must be to blame I gave it a quick scoosh of easy start but absolutely nothing.

Wait five minutes, and off she goes.

It's absolutely bizarre and I'm frankly baffled by it.  I've had engines which wouldn't want to restart, but they'd still cough, splutter or something...this is just absolutely not interested in the slightest - until she goes again.

[Bear]

I had something similar with a Visa and it was down to the alternator and an unhappy battery, but I can't remember why. However, my brain's trying to flag something regarding "a visual spark you can see" vs "actual sparks that'll run a car" and a failing coil on a CX 22.

[Zelandeth]

43 minutes ago, RichardK said:

I had something similar with a Visa and it was down to the alternator and an unhappy battery, but I can't remember why. However, my brain's trying to flag something regarding "a visual spark you can see" vs "actual sparks that'll run a car" and a failing coil on a CX 22.

Yeah, that's kind of where my brain was going - because what else could it be?  I've ascertained we *have* a spark, but how strong it is during the falt condition hasn't really been tested.

I'll need to get a tester on the other end of the leads I think (the plug end is really hard to get to as the plugs are recessed about a mile down into the head) and see what we've got.  But it feels like it *has* to be ignition.

On the plus side it seems repeatable so shouldn't be *too* hard to fault find with a bit of time.

One of the first things that will be getting replaced will be the main battery leads as they're really not in a great shape and do get rather worryingly warm during cranking.

[High Jetter]

6 hours ago, Six-cylinder said:

The big question is when you switch it off why will it not restart without a 5 minute pause?

Maybe it's waiting for you to have a stand-up expresso? C'est francais, n'est pas?

[Bear]

9 hours ago, Zelandeth said:

Yeah, that's kind of where my brain was going - because what else could it be?  I've ascertained we *have* a spark, but how strong it is during the falt condition hasn't really been tested.

I'll need to get a tester on the other end of the leads I think (the plug end is really hard to get to as the plugs are recessed about a mile down into the head) and see what we've got.  But it feels like it *has* to be ignition.

On the plus side it seems repeatable so shouldn't be *too* hard to fault find with a bit of time.

One of the first things that will be getting replaced will be the main battery leads as they're really not in a great shape and do get rather worryingly warm during cranking.

This! Resistance on battery leads etc. But I think that caused the alternator to boil the battery in weird ways on my Visa.

The Visa could do about 80-100 miles before things began to fall off - wipers and lights then sparks. Once stopped it would appear dead - but go away, come back, and it'd be fine on a turn of the key. Not even jumped - at first. After 400 miles the battery was toast - but a new battery had all the symptoms. However I fixed it by changing everything at once so I don't know what /fixed/ it.

[Zelandeth]

7 hours ago, RichardK said:

This! Resistance on battery leads etc. But I think that caused the alternator to boil the battery in weird ways on my Visa.

The Visa could do about 80-100 miles before things began to fall off - wipers and lights then sparks. Once stopped it would appear dead - but go away, come back, and it'd be fine on a turn of the key. Not even jumped - at first. After 400 miles the battery was toast - but a new battery had all the symptoms. However I fixed it by changing everything at once so I don't know what /fixed/ it.

This is still running an old school generator as well for extra potential for electrical strangeness.  I'm not 100% it's charging either, though it definitely was when we started out.

If it's as simple as an ignition system service and going over the heavy duty side of the power supply I'll take that as a win.  Fact that it flooded out so easily when we went to cold start it kind of suggests to me the spark isn't maybe the strongest - though the belt it gave me when I was checking if we had spark at that point suggests there was *plenty* of juice at the king lead at that point - though that was before I had looked at the distributor cap which was quite badly fouled (I cleaned it up a bit).  We've since found there was a new cap in the car, so that will be going on early in proceedings.

[Fumbler]

27 minutes ago, Zelandeth said:

This is still running an old school generator as well for extra potential for electrical strangeness.  I'm not 100% it's charging either, though it definitely was when we started out.

If it's as simple as an ignition system service and going over the heavy duty side of the power supply I'll take that as a win.  Fact that it flooded out so easily when we went to cold start it kind of suggests to me the spark isn't maybe the strongest - though the belt it gave me when I was checking if we had spark at that point suggests there was *plenty* of juice at the king lead at that point - though that was before I had looked at the distributor cap which was quite badly fouled (I cleaned it up a bit).  We've since found there was a new cap in the car, so that will be going on early in proceedings.

It sounds as if you're heat-soaking the coil and/or the condenser. I reckon both or either one is electrically breaking down after the car is shut off. I can't imagine the voltage regulator for the dynamo is all that happy either. Might there be a generator-esque alternator going in its place one day?

[Six-cylinder]

Chauffeur de taxi comment avez-vous réussi à faire payer autant pour 2 km jusqu'à la tour Eiffel !

[Six-cylinder]

A nice, if cool trip out in the 230TE today to a breakfast meeting with the Milton Keynes Classic car group.

[hairnet]

'je ne vais pas au sud de la rivière à cette heure du soir'

[hairnet]

2 hours ago, Six-cylinder said:

Chauffeur de taxi comment avez-vous réussi à faire payer autant pour 2 km jusqu'à la tour Eiffel !

'sorry - will not px the jag' swiss toni sorry sixcyl motahs'

[Bear]

That red Manta ❤️ I would very much like to see one of those again close up.

[Six-cylinder]

5 minutes ago, RichardK said:

That red Manta ❤️ I would very much like to see one of those again close up.

We sold our 1.8 sports hatch last year to keep the early 1.9 Auto Coupe. 

Both cars need a fair amount of work, but the Coupe is booked for welding and MOT work so it should be on the road next year.

[AnthonyG]

It’s disturbing how much I do look like a French cabbie in that pic. Only needs one of those horrible cigarettes for the full effect. Gitanes - yuck…

[Six-cylinder]

47 minutes ago, AnthonyG said:

It’s disturbing how much I do look like a French cabbie in that pic. Only needs one of those horrible cigarettes for the full effect. Gitanes - yuck…

 

[hairnet]

55 minutes ago, AnthonyG said:

It’s disturbing.

Yes.

[Six-cylinder]

A slow Saturday here at Six-cylinder towers at 2°C outside, I have done a bit on the BMW 3.0S. Yes picking the heads off rust bubbles grinding and rust converting. I have also been grinding the paint off the Velosolex ready for a hand repaint.

Tomorrow's outside temperature is likely to be the same tomorrow so there will be more grinding, filling, smoothing and painting in the garage at 10°C. If anybody is bored you are welcome to join me at the house rather than the FoD. There might even be biscuits! 

[hairnet]

yeah them will last an hour 

 

[Six-cylinder]

10:45am and still minus -0.2° C

[Joey spud]

It's a bit too chilly down here in Kent to do any up the end of the garden Minor fettling today.

I often get quite miffed that I am 115 miles away from your ledgendary hospitality as a bit of a chat while playing with old cars is probably just what a lot of guys need right now.

More power to your elbow Sir.

[hairnet]

This is as far as I got

Motorway patrol now crocodile Dundee II

[Six-cylinder]

22 minutes ago, Joey spud said:

It's a bit too chilly down here in Kent to do any up the end of the garden Minor fettling today.

I often get quite miffed that I am 115 miles away from your ledgendary hospitality as a bit of a chat while playing with old cars is probably just what a lot of guys need right now.

More power to your elbow Sir.

A chat about old cars, nothing but slave labour here. I having to do my own work now and I wish @Ghosty was here as I am afraid to take the head stock apart because in the past I have struggled with run away ball bearings!

[Snake Charmer]

I have ventured out to the storage tent to retrieved a 3kw electric heater and set it up in my workshop with the intention of welding some panels in a VW T4. If not mildly warm in there by 14:00 I'm going bCk to bed!

How are you keeping warm Chris?

[Six-cylinder]

The garage is integral to the house and never seems to drop below 8°C.

The garage has 3 small radiators to frost protect it, but we can afford to use them as they are off the oil boiler.

For the garage I used to have a Calor gas room heater but when I had a friend do some spraying in the garage he did not want the naked flame. Now the Calor heater has stopped lighting and the gas is more than double the price.

We did install 3 electric panel heaters for painting, but I am now afraid to switch them on because of the cost of electricity.