Six Cylinders Motoring Notes

23,768 · March 19

On 18/03/2025 at 14:05, Six-cylinder said:

I hate it when I get sold dud cars that bits just keep falling off!

That headlight is dechroming a bit too.

37,390 · March 21

Yesterday was the first warm day of the year and @Slowsilver helped me take advantage of it.

The aim was to get the Vanden Plas 1500 running and inspected to return to the road.

It has been out of use for over 3 years while @Andyrew had done a miracle job saving it as more and more rust was revealed. Without him that would have been the end for this car.

Plan “A” was to take the plugs out and put a drop of oil in each bore but the first problem was the ignition switch was stuck and would not turn at all. After much WD40 and working it suddenly it worked and the engine turned over.

We added some petrol and looked for a spark but there was not one. We cleaned the points but still no spark so we took the points and condenser from the old engine. The condenser fitted but not the points, however we now had a spark at the plugs. We had spun the engine over quite a lot but no sign of petrol so Easy start was used and it ran, but not enough to draw petrol from the tank under the car into the fuel pump and push it up into the carb.

Next time I will try my old 2CV trick of back filling the fuel pump by taking the pipe from the fuel filer inserting a small funnel and poring petrol in.

37,390 · March 23

In @Zelandeth thread I looked at the cost of the cheapest 1300cc Ado16 against the VP1300 Auto.

In April 1968 my Morris 1300 listed at £698 and the VP1300 Auto at £1135. The VP cost 63% more.

My poverty model, Morris 1300 2 door had saved the first owner £26 over the 4 door!

---

This week with @Slowsilver working on the Vanden Plas 1500 we pondered what the cost difference was between base and VP Allegros.

In 1976 the year of our VP1500 the base Allegro 2 door 1100cc cost £1626. The cheapest 1500cc was the Super deluxe at £2015. While the VP Auto was £2775. The VP1500 cost 38% more than the standard 1500 Allegro.

43,212 · March 23

On 17/12/2024 at 15:54, Six-cylinder said:

I love that car

37,390 · March 23

8 minutes ago, flat4alfa said:

I love that car

That is the Series 1 and Mrs6C won't let that go.

One day when I prepare it I might let the Series 2 go.

22,737 · March 23

15 minutes ago, Six-cylinder said:

In @Zelandeth thread I looked at the cost of the cheapest 1300cc Ado16 against the VP1300 Auto.

In April 1968 my Morris 1300 listed at £698 and the VP1300 Auto at £1135. The VP cost 63% more.

My poverty model, Morris 1300 2 door had saved the first owner £26 over the 4 door!

---

This week with @Slowsilver working on the Vanden Plas 1500 we pondered what the cost difference was between base and VP Allegros.

In 1976 the year of our VP1500 the base Allegro 2 door 1100cc cost £1626. The cheapest 1500cc was the Super deluxe at £2015. While the VP Auto was £2775. The VP1500 cost 38% more than the standard 1500 Allegro.

I guess you can't really put a price on Plah.

37,390 · March 23

Be jealous!

After 18 months our Alfa 156 V6 six speed manual Sports Wagon has finally come back to us in full working order.

The intermittent non starting turning out to be corrosion on the wires to the fuel pump relay.

37,390 · March 23

As @ianbmw took his Monza to the NEC this weekend I got second dibs on his welder.

So back to my Discovery MK1 today, the repairs to the offside bulkhead and inner wing has been completed.

19,605 · March 23

10 hours ago, Six-cylinder said:

In @Zelandeth thread I looked at the cost of the cheapest 1300cc Ado16 against the VP1300 Auto.

In April 1968 my Morris 1300 listed at £698 and the VP1300 Auto at £1135. The VP cost 63% more.

My poverty model, Morris 1300 2 door had saved the first owner £26 over the 4 door!

---

This week with @Slowsilver working on the Vanden Plas 1500 we pondered what the cost difference was between base and VP Allegros.

In 1976 the year of our VP1500 the base Allegro 2 door 1100cc cost £1626. The cheapest 1500cc was the Super deluxe at £2015. While the VP Auto was £2775. The VP1500 cost 38% more than the standard 1500 Allegro.

apart from maybe a kadett what opel could you get for that /contentious

19,605 · March 23

alfa door lol

park the 308 and the rangie on the drive

@IronStar will be round to nick the alfa

37,390 · March 23

25 minutes ago, hairnet said:

apart from maybe a kadett what opel could you get for that /contentious

In 1968 Olmpia started at £1040 and Records at £1351.

In 1976 Ascona started at £2000 and Record at £2900.

37,390 · March 23

17 minutes ago, hairnet said:

alfa door lol

park the 308 and the rangie on the drive

@IronStar will be round to nick the alfa

We bought the 156 with minor damage to the offside front wing, then a nurse visiting next door forgot to turn the steering wheel and dented the front o-s door. The big one was a run away Focus from my neighbour drive that pushed in the o-s rear door right in and pushed the car into a tree in the hedge.

I bought a new door from a silver car 2 years younger and it was a different shade.

We have had it 10 years and it has lived a life!

When it was delivered back today I took it for a drive and can report it is still a great car to drive with a peach of an engine.

19,605 · March 23

id have been upset only if it biffed the c15

2,925 · March 24

1 hour ago, Six-cylinder said:

We bought the 156 with minor damage to the offside front wing, then a nurse visiting next door forgot to turn the steering wheel and dented the front o-s door. The big one was a run away Focus from my neighbour drive that pushed in the o-s rear door right in and pushed the car into a tree in the hedge.

I bought a new door from a silver car 2 years younger and it was a different shade.

We have had it 10 years and it has lived a life!

When it was delivered back today I took it for a drive and can report it is still a great car to drive with a peach of an engine.

This will be Grigio Sterling 694, sticker is on the right side of the boot door to confirm. The wrong colour door is Grigio Stromboli 651/A.

Yes I can tell the color code without even looking it up, just by looking at the photo. Yes I’m that sad.

Lovely, lovely cars.

@hairnet Depending on the immo box, stealing it ranges from needs immo box replaced to fairly trivial as ROM can be dumped. The box is under steering column and single-plug, not in the ECU itself, so fairly easy to swap out for the one you have the right key for. You need to virginise ECU for it to accept the new immo box though, but that’s also trivial.

No, I’m not into stealing cars. I just lost the transponder in the key when swapping out the key shell, as it bounced never to be found again and learned all this whilst locksmith was pairing my car with new immo unit.

43,212 · March 24

I'll buy it

Because it is ULEZ and I have a set of GTA sockers to fit and refresh it

And my (owned 15 yrs) 2.4 JTD Wagon isn't, and I need to get in and out of London Boroughs with job at moment

All-round vision in a 156 wagon is brill, compared to moderns

2,925 · March 24

5 minutes ago, flat4alfa said:

All-round vision in a 156 wagon is brill, compared to moderns

Except that huge blindspot caused by the rounded mirrors. Caught me out more than once after driving other cars for a while. 🫣

43,212 · March 24

Can't say I've ever had a problem there... I'm going to be watching out for it now arghhhh

The Giuletta poor visibility when reversing drives me nuts so the 156 is my go-to for urban parking efforts, because of that

19,605 · March 24

51 minutes ago, IronStar said:

Lovely, lovely cars.

I just lost the transponder as it bounced never to be found again

oopsie

44,508 · March 24

The Discovery is wearing Disco 2 wipers for some reason. I am pained. Lovely colour though!

37,390 · March 24

1 hour ago, dollywobbler said:

The Discovery is wearing Disco 2 wipers for some reason. I am pained. Lovely colour though!

I didn't know about the wipers but I do believe the headlights are Disco 2.

I am not keen on the colour.

26,690 · March 24

It'll look lovely once polished 👌

15,161 · March 24

PERB! 🤣

37,390 · March 25

11 hours ago, High Jetter said:

PERB! 🤣

I had to look it up "Public Employment Relations Board"?

17,453 · March 25

16 hours ago, dollywobbler said:

The Discovery is wearing Disco 2 wipers for some reason. I am pained. Lovely colour though!

It is. Probably because a Discovery 2 somewhere is wearing the D1 wiper arms, as the blades for a D1 (generic) are significantly cheaper than those to fit a D2 arm (specialist). It's seen as somewhat of an upgrade to put D1 arms on a D2. As will come as no surprise, the mechanism between D1 and D2 is largely identical, and also similar to RRC. Hence the interchangeability.

I never did it on my D2, but I wanted to.

2,401 · March 25

My D2 didn't last long enough to wear out a set of wipers.

Come to that, it didn't last long enough to wear out a tankful of diesel either.....

44,508 · March 26

21 hours ago, Talbot said:

It is. Probably because a Discovery 2 somewhere is wearing the D1 wiper arms, as the blades for a D1 (generic) are significantly cheaper than those to fit a D2 arm (specialist). It's seen as somewhat of an upgrade to put D1 arms on a D2. As will come as no surprise, the mechanism between D1 and D2 is largely identical, and also similar to RRC. Hence the interchangeability.

I never did it on my D2, but I wanted to.

Interestingly*, if you look at early brochures for the D2, they kept the D1 wipers so it must have been a late decision to change them. I was never keen on the upgrade. Saw a D1 wipered D2 only the other day.

Edited March 26 by dollywobbler

37,390 · March 26

A lovely afternoon!

@Slowsilver and my non Autoshite friend Colin came over to progress the VP1500.

The first problem from last time was no fuel getting to the carburettor of the VP.

We back filled the carb and the fuel pump and the car started which ran nicely until it emptied the carb without pulling any petrol from the tank.

Slowsilver laid down under the VP and checked petrol out pipe and that all seemed fine.

Next was the pump and we connected the fuel pump to a can close by and it filled the fuel filter just fine. We reconnected the line from the tank and now it was primed it was able to draw petrol from the tank.

It leaked petrol from the carb float chamber top so very took it apart and the shut off valve worked again.

We found the VP clutch had stuck on, but Colin started it in gear and took it into the field to give it a talking too, it came back working fine.

Colin then gave it a run up the road and slowsilver a run in the field.

---

6 days and the Mini becomes eligible for free road tax so it was time to wake it up, a drop of extra petrol into the carb intake and it bust into life and had a run around the field.

---

So 2 of our 4 BL products are up and running!

9,609 · March 26

37 minutes ago, Six-cylinder said:

So 2 of our 4 BL products are up and running!

Think you may have missed some...

1,449 · March 26

So does that mean the barn is empty? Empty so a Carlton saloon could move inside?

23,768 · March 26

1 hour ago, Six-cylinder said:

A lovely afternoon!

@Slowsilver and my non Autoshite friend Colin came over to progress the VP1500.

The first problem from last time was no fuel getting to the carburettor of the VP.

We back filled the carb and the fuel pump and the car started which ran nicely until it emptied the carb without pulling any petrol from the tank.

Slowsilver laid down under the VP and checked petrol out pipe and that all seemed fine.

Next was the pump and we connected the fuel pump to a can close by and it filled the fuel filter just fine. We reconnected the line from the tank and now it was primed it was able to draw petrol from the tank.

It leaked petrol from the carb float chamber top so very took it apart and the shut off valve worked again.

We found the VP clutch had stuck on, but Colin started it in gear and took it into the field to give it a talking too, it came back working fine.

Colin then gave it a run up the road and slowsilver a run in the field.

---

6 days and the Mini becomes eligible for free road tax so it was time to wake it up, a drop of extra petrol into the carb intake and it bust into life and had a run around the field.

---

So 2 of our 4 BL products are up and running!

Calendar shot?

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