Thread of remorse AKA Project Last Chance Saloon.

[Parky]

That's a palm tree. Not far off though...

[fatharris]

 

Quick coffee stop, my brother and I have been convoying down before we split off to our separate destinations. 100 miles in and the car feels absolutely spot-on. The new sensor has transformed the driving experience!

 

As a Billy bonus, the fuel gauge is currently sitting at 1/8, meaning the tank unit snag has been fixed with correctly re-seating the units!

 

Only another 305 miles to go!

 

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[fatharris]

Pooch loaded!

 

 

Tank run down!

 

 

Heavy right footage!

 

 

Homeward bounders!

 

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[twosmoke300]

Are you a fellow Cornish shiter then ?

[Pillock]

If you're building up to a for sale thread, you're going about it the right way! This is turning into a really good sounding car (especially compared to the disease-ridden interior it came with)....

[fatharris]

Are you a fellow Cornish shiter then ?

I am indeed, live and work in Helston, although I'm originally a Plymouth boy, the wife says I try so hard to be Cornish!

 

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[twosmoke300]

Cool , I'm in Camborne / Redruth

[twosmoke300]

Need to have a zt and r75 photo shoot 😄

[fatharris]

And we're finally back. 

 

The car ran lovely all the way back, although there were a few small issues picked up along the way, namely the cigarette lighter doesn't work, and there is possibly a sticking caliper piston, as there's a resistance point when pressing the pedal whilst moving. There was also a noticeable brake fade when I pressed on through the twisty roads, so I'll look into that next week.

 

On the plus side, the touch up paint has arrived, along with the spray cans, so the bodywork will get squared away soon.

 

So, it is nearing actual completion!

[purplebargeken]

4, 24 and 29 please. 

[phil_lihp]

Funny, the lighter socket didn't work in the raffle ZT either.

[fatharris]

Perhaps more annoyingly, is the bugger refuses to retract properly, which is the exact reason I changed the centre console in the first place!

[Noel Tidybeard]

And we're finally back. 

 

The car ran lovely all the way back, although there were a few small issues picked up along the way, namely the cigarette lighter doesn't work, and there is possibly a sticking caliper piston, as there's a resistance point when pressing the pedal whilst moving. There was also a noticeable brake fade when I pressed on through the twisty roads, so I'll look into that next week.

 

On the plus side, the touch up paint has arrived, along with the spray cans, so the bodywork will get squared away soon.

 

So, it is nearing actual completion!

 

fix the cigarette lighter

[Parky]

Great job all round on this. Really really impressed with the final results.

 

Did you keep a tally of the total costs? It seems to me you have a lovely usable future classic for around a grand?

[fatharris]

I don't have the figures to hand, but I can't see it being too much (if at all) over a bag.

 

The paint might* have pushed it over the edge though.

[Parky]

And even so if it does go a few quid over a bag you have something that really stands out in car parks amongst all the black, grey, and silver Eurochod. Says the man who drives a piece of silver Eurochod!

[fatharris]

The bloody thing must have been listening to me feeling slightly confident with the numbers.

 

Handbrake suddenly doesn't want to handbrake any more, only stopping right on the travel, hopefully just a compensator!

 

Either way, I've got one more day of insurance on the MG before she goes away for a little while longer, so hopefully she'll never be this dirty under my watchful eye again!

 

 

At some point, I'll tally up the total cost so far and see how we are getting on.

 

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[oldcars]

My Shuma was as dirty as that from the trip to Brum & back. Had to wash it last night in the dark as it was to much for my ocd to take.

[Parky]

The underside looks a bit dirty......

[purplebargeken]

There is a mod available via the ZT/75 forum. 

[fatharris]

I fitted a modified compensator to my old 75 - a job that's much easier with - wait for it - the carpet removed.

 

Ain't life hilarious*?

 

 

 

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[purplebargeken]

Have fun

[fatharris]

Well, I've had a lovely week off from cars, MrsH agreed that I could get back to tinkering though, so first things first:

 

 

Popped open the bonnet and reconnected the battery, forgetting completely that the alarm siren would go off, making me fill my pants. Once connected, I moved her to the wash spot.

 

 

...and immediately noticed the very low tyre on the OSR. I will have to look into sealing methods for that one, as within 14 days it dropped from 32 to 4 psi.

 

 

Downed all tools and got some air back in the tyre.

 

 

Once cleaned, the water was running off really nicely. I had to drown it with water and run to grab the camera to get this photo in time!

 

 

I used the air line and blower to get rid off the excess water, which resulted in:

 

 

 

 

Lovely reflection shots for all! Once dried, I popped her onto a ramp, to once again source the knocking from the front end. Today I figured was a good time to do the drivers' side.

 

 

The springs looked complete and intact.

 

 

Not going to chance it though, so I started to take the strut off.

 

 

A lot of faffing and fucking around later, and it finally came out.

 

 

Whilst it was out, I turned the top mount and hey presto - we found it! Notchiness and resistance when turning!

 

 

I took the cap off, and found that any grease that hadn't escaped early on had been worked to an inch of its life and had completely congealed/dried out!

 

 

Thankfully, the remedy was simple. I soaked all the parts in parts cleaner for ten minutes and cleaned all the ball bearings thoroughly, before moving onto the bearing carrier and the runway. If you'll looks closely, you can see where the lack of grease has slightly pitted the casing.

 

 

The mount side was also cleaned...

 

 

..and filled with a copious amount of aircraft-grade bearing grease.

 

 

Then the bearing carrier was inserted, and the balls inserted individually. Bloody fiddly job!

 

 

Once everything was re-assembled, the suspension was put back together. I haven't had a chance to test it thoroughly yet, but I think that's cracked it, there's still a very slight knock, but I think once I've done the passenger side, it'll be gone entirely. Not bad for a free fix, considering the bearings alone were £21 each with trade discount.

 

 

Next job on the list was investigating the source of the big bang noise on the way back home last Sunday. All I had to go on was I heard it go off from the rear. With that in mind, I jacked up the rear end and started wiggling and shaking. Didn't take me long though, found the passenger rear spring had snapped right at the top:

 

 

Where there's one, there's invariably another the other side, and sure enough, on the drivers' side at the bottom:

 

 

Luckily, MG-R printed a little label on the NS fuel sender lid detailing the colour code of springs and dampers fitted to this car, so I can easily get on the owners' club for replacements:

 

 

That's on the to-do list then. 

 

Finally in terms of fault investigation, the handbrake had suddenly become way, way too easy to apply and wasn't operating effectively. The drivers' side wheel was free to rotate with the handbrake applied, so that ruled out the compensator. Figured the best thing to do was start at the drum and work my way back. Caliper came off with the carrier, and the TX50 bolt was loosened on the hub face, allowing the disc/drum combo to slide out "with ease".

 

 

Looks all right from this angle, right?

 

 

*Insert Family Fortunes wrong answer buzzer here*

 That'll be a separated lining then.

 

 

Cleaned the drum, there's nothing I can do without replacements.

 

 

Refitted the wheel and lowered it to the ground. So, rear springs and handbrake shoes. I am going to change the driver's rear caliper too, as the piston looks like it's seen better days.

 

 

Those amongst you in the MOT testing fraternity, what's the deal with this little chunk? Is it an MOT fail?

 

 

Answers on a postcard please!

 

 

Final job of the night was hoovering out the carpet after the wife and pooch tried their hardest to undo my good work.

Driver's footwell before:

 

 

After:

 

 

SO MUCH DOG HAIR:

 

 

NOT SO MUCH DOG HAIR:

 

 

I FEAR I MAY KILL HER FOR HER INSOLENCE: 

 

 

I almost lost enthusiasm, but she's too pretty to suffer a premature death.

 

 

Cheers.

 

Hours worked: 95.

[fatharris]

Here's a bonus picture of my previous 75. Sadly I had to scrap her with a mere 260k on the clock with alternator issues, and a replacement one didn't fix it. With Christmas literally round the corner, my hands were tied. Would have done 300k easily, no doubt.

 

[pompei]

How are you going to tackle the eyebrow on the bonnet?

[fatharris]

I don't really know, paintwork isn't my forte, my friend popped down for a chinwag whilst I worked and he is of the opinion that half the bonnet will need lacquering to blend in!

 

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[Ben_O]

I don't really know, paintwork isn't my forte, my friend popped down for a chinwag whilst I worked and he is of the opinion that half the bonnet will need lacquering to blend in!

 

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To make the best possible match and finish, you will need to base coat the front quarter of the bonnet and wing top and then lacquer the entire bonnet and wing

[twosmoke300]

Try a chap called swifty in Helston . On the ins estate with mill autos iirc

[twosmoke300]

Industrial estate

[purplebargeken]

More excellent work. You are a National Treasure!