Zel's Motoring Adventures...Volvo, Renault, Rover, Trabant, Invacar & A Sinclair C5 - Updated 13/11.

[barrett]

@Zelandeth regarding your seat problem as mentioned on Tim's Visa thread. I think a set of low-spec early Mk2 seats will be your best bet, at least in the short term. This car is currently in Harry Buckland's yard and seems to have a complete interior... would be worth seeing if there is a local shiter who could liberate the seats for you? (not my picture)

[Tadhg Tiogar]

13 hours ago, Zelandeth said:

.....it peaked at 165C...

Fahrenheit, surely? Celsius would be generating low-superheat steam at 165.....

[LightBulbFun]

14 hours ago, Zelandeth said:

Yes, I could have taken the Xantia today, could have taken the Jag...Nope, I wanted to take TPA because we're honestly at a stage now where she's just a fun little car to drive.  Overtook several cars on the A5 on the way back home - much to the surprise of the drivers!  I was making a deliberate point of holding her at an indicated 70 (honest...) for a good few minutes as I wanted to see what the temperature did.  On a very slight uphill gradient (which let's face it is about the best we can expect her to maintain it on...The fact this car can DO 70 is enough of a surprise for most people) it peaked at 165C, which is pretty much smack on 1/2 way on the gauge - which I'm absolutely happy with.  I'm measuring this from the left hand cylinder head, which being shaded by the oil cooler should always be the hot one.  Given blatting down roads at motorway speeds wasn't really in this car's design brief was why I wanted to make sure the temperature wasn't slowly creeping up when travelling at higher speeds.

very happy to hear how well TPA does these days! (especially the making other peoples heads explode that will never cease to make me grin )  I hope someday that my own Model 70 will be able cruise just as well at 70 as TPA can  

(Well Model 70, its in the Name? LOL!)

would be awesome to see some video at some point of high speed cruising/overtaking  

48 minutes ago, Tadhg Tiogar said:

Fahrenheit, surely? Celsius would be generating low-superheat steam at 165.....

Not when theres no water to boil  

(well theres the windscreen washer bottle in the Cabin, but if thats boiling over I think you have other problems to worry about and should make an attempt to grab the fire extinguisher behind your right shoulder!)

[Zelandeth]

3 hours ago, Tadhg Tiogar said:

Fahrenheit, surely? Celsius would be generating low-superheat steam at 165.....

Air cooled engines run slightly warmer!  To be fair, some of that is that you're measuring the actual head temperature rather than the coolant temperature.  Not sure how big a difference there is between the two on a water cooled engine though I do have to admit.

5 hours ago, barrett said:

@Zelandeth regarding your seat problem as mentioned on Tim's Visa thread. I think a set of low-spec early Mk2 seats will be your best bet, at least in the short term. This car is currently in Harry Buckland's yard and seems to have a complete interior... would be worth seeing if there is a local shiter who could liberate the seats for you? (not my picture)

Whereabouts is that?  Definitely worth asking the question in a few places!

[barrett]

Voila:

Cotswold View, Golden Valley, Gloucester Road, Cheltenham GL51 0SS

[Zelandeth]

40 minutes ago, barrett said:

Voila:

Cotswold View, Golden Valley, Gloucester Road, Cheltenham GL51 0SS

Cheers, have put a shout out to see if anyone's in the area.

[barrett]

If you can find somebody willing, I would quite like the hubcaps off it...

[Zelandeth]

29 minutes ago, barrett said:

If you can find somebody willing, I would quite like the hubcaps off it...

Realistically if it weren't for the current situation I'd probably be in there tomorrow and assuming the yard aren't daft about pricing would probably be grabbing anything that's in serviceable/repairable state off it that I can fit in the back of the Xantia.  Sadly the current situation is what it is.

[Zelandeth]

Sadly the seats were a combination of missing or mouse-eaten in the scrapper at Buckland's.

Good news though, @barrett - the wheel trims were still there and were grabbed for you.  If you pop over here and get in touch with @Andy F who was kind enough to get them to arrange how to get them to you.  Happy to act as middleman if needed, but a set of wheel trims should be easier to get shuffled around than a whole interior hopefully!

[Mrs6C]

17 hours ago, Zelandeth said:

Sadly the seats were a combination of missing or mouse-eaten in the scrapper at Buckland's.

May I suggest a set of nice seat covers for yours, as a quick, easy and cheap solution? Then keep an eye out for replacement seats or seat foams and new covers, at your leisure. Our Bleu Uzes Visa and the GS both jaunty sport seat covers and have done for years. I can't remember even what colour and fabric are on the seats underneath!

[Zelandeth]

1 hour ago, Mrs6C said:

May I suggest a set of nice seat covers for yours, as a quick, easy and cheap solution? Then keep an eye out for replacement seats or seat foams and new covers, at your leisure. Our Bleu Uzes Visa and the GS both jaunty sport seat covers and have done for years. I can't remember even what colour and fabric are on the seats underneath!

It's probably exactly what I'll end up doing, though it'll never be a long term solution I'll be happy with as the covers will never sit right just because of the design of the seats in the BX.  Not unless I figure out some inventive solution to that anyway.

Making new covers isn't out of the question, though given the last project involving sewing has been stalled since mid 2016 I'd not hold your breath for that happening.  Admittedly a set of seat covers - with an existing bit of fabric to use as a template even - is several orders of magnitude simpler!

[Heidel_Kakao]

Thought you mind this interesting @Zelandeth 680KG for engine and manual box and I would guess the auto is even heavier. @LightBulbFunwill be along to confirm no doubt but I am guessing it weighs more than a whole Model 70.

[Zelandeth]

8 minutes ago, Heidel_Kakao said:

Thought you mind this interesting @Zelandeth 680KG for engine and manual box and I would guess the auto is even heavier. @LightBulbFunwill be along to confirm no doubt but I am guessing it weighs more than a whole Model 70.

Sounds a little on the heavy side, pretty sure 435kg for the bare engine/box was what I'd seen.  I know there are a LOT of ancillary bits to add to this, and probably the best part of 50kg in fluids alone.  That's just a number "from the internet" though so it could be miles off!

It's a heavy old lump either way - and yes the quoted weight of a Model 70 is around 410-430kg.  It varies a bit depending on whether it's an early or late car.  TPA is registered as 410kg unladen.

Never mind Invacar, a Suzuki Cappuccino is only 720kg!

[LightBulbFun]

2 minutes ago, Heidel_Kakao said:

Thought you mind this interesting @Zelandeth 680KG for engine and manual box and I would guess the auto is even heavier. @LightBulbFunwill be along to confirm no doubt but I am guessing it weighs more than a whole Model 70.

Yeah watched that when it was uploaded, the 680Kg figure was quite surprising as I remember Zel mentioning the drivetrain in his XJS V12 being only 450Kg 

On 28/03/2020 at 23:31, Zelandeth said:

Nearside one you can see bits of at least!

Which also does a good job of highlighting how ridiculously long the engine is given that the cam cover runs from the oil filler (mid way between the radiator caps) all the way back to just above the windscreen washer bottle.  She's a substantial old beastie!  Pretty sure I recall seeing someone quoting a figure somewhere around the 450kg mark for the drivetrain in this thing...The unladen weight of the Invacar is 410kg!

so im curious where the large discrepancy comes from! still a heavy old lump

but regardless of which figure is the accurate one, you are correct it weighs more then an entire Model 70, which depending on what you read and which Revision of Model 70 your dealing with, weighs somewhere between 406Kg and 414Kg

[Zelandeth]

Finally got around to sorting something today which has been making my teeth itch for over a year now. 

Spot the difference.

(Aside from the distributor cap.)

Yes... finally dealt with this horrific bodgefest.

 

These are the original battery hold downs.  Sadly as I was completely unable to find the original form factor battery (or indeed what type it even was), they're basically useless.

Here's a reminder why bungee cords and cable ties are not a permanent solution.

That had been pinched between the rear wheel tub and the chassis rail and had rubbed about 2/3rds of the way through.

My solution has been to cut a couple of bits of M8 threaded rod to roughly the right length (a little over 6") and fasten a bit of webbing between them - this is a bit of seatbelt originally from KPL I think where the buckles had completely rotted away to nothing.

I heated a metal rod up to red hot before using it as a punch to make two holes.  This melts the fibres together and prevents anything from fraying.

Not too worried about that anyway.  Ever tried to tear a seatbelt, even if it's already frayed halfway through?

Finished article...

It's tightened up sufficiently that the battery is completely secure.  If I have issues with it ovalling the holes out I'll replace it with a strip of angled steel instead - but I'd really rather avoid the need for metal across the top of the battery if I can avoid it given the layout.  I might go back and bolt a lip onto the tray though just so there's then *absolutely* no way it could conceivably slide free then.  It can't go anywhere the other direction as the wheel tub is in the way.  Probably overkill...but I'm a fan of doing what I can to keep Murphy's Law at bay.

I had someone ask me on another forum what the labels on the slam panel were all about - the answer is "me getting fed up of realising I need to consult the manual in the middle of a service one time too many."

Couple of photos from while she was out in the sun today.

Really need to remember to paint that rear wheel arch...I just can't see it from in the garage so keep forgetting there are still white filler spots visible there.

Noticed I've got a drip from the sump plug... that's what I get for being a cheapskate and not just replacing the copper washer (which I noted was well mangled originally).  No idea why I didn't just change it given I have them in stock.  Oh well...on the plus side at least I'm not dropping a huge amount of oil to change it!

 

[LightBulbFun]

9 minutes ago, Zelandeth said:

and yes the quoted weight of a Model 70 is around 410-430kg.  It varies a bit depending on whether it's an early or late car.  TPA is registered as 410kg unladen.

its one of those long standing Model 70 things I am still trying to nail down exactly

if you read the workshop manual it gives 896LBS which is 406Kg, but Every pre March 1976 (pre Rollover bar) Model 70 I have seen has generally had a unladen revenue weight listed as 410.0kg on their V5c

and then with the introduction of rollover bar revision of Model 70 in March 1976 (LOI8065/MPD477P and NVW205P) it became 413.0Kg or 414.0Kg (some Model 70's have 413Kg others have 414Kg)

 

however an interesting thing to note is on copy of the 1985 V5 I have for my November 1976 (post rollover bar) Model 70 the revenue weight is listed as 413.2Kg, however by the time of her 2001ish V5 I it became 413.0Kg (where it is still 413.0Kg to the current May 2020 V5)

so I have to wonder what happened to that .2Kg! I highly doubt someone went out of their way to lop off 0.2Kg themselves, so I think it was a systematic thing on the DVLC end, but this raises the question of

did Pre rollover bar Model 70's have revenue weights down to the decimal point as well? (ie was it possibly 410.3Kg instead of 410.0Kg that we see today for example)

but I cant say for sure as I have never seen an early V5 for one of those machines

however I have seen the 1983 V5 for a Pre Model 70 machine a, an AC Acedes Model 57 and it  does have its revenue weight listed down to the decimal point 279.4Kg

so I would imagine that if machines before and after them did have it recorded down to the decimal point, that Pre March 1976 Model 70's would have had it recorded such originally 

(as a side note its worth mentioning on the figure from the workshop manual may be quoting figures for the 1970 User trial Prototype Model 70's, even tho it was written in 1972, I have noticed there are some Pre production bits in the manual here and there)

 

however one thing to note is 410Kg is one of the change points in the classification of an Invalid vehicle, if an invalid vehicle is above 410Kg then its no Longer classed like a Reliant Robin is (a Motorcycle/Tricycle) but is instead classed as a Motor car like a Mini or something such

so maybe pre March 1976 Model 70's really where 410.0Kg to skirt under the classification change, ill just have to hope I can find an old V5 for one to verify at some point in time!

(an invalid vehicle no more then 254Kg is classed as an Invalid carriage, an invalid vehicle above 254Kg but no more then 410Kg is classed as a motorcycle, and if it weighs more than 410Kg or has more then 3 wheels it is classed as a motor car)

 

and all this is why Invalid vehicles have a weight listed on the V5 (and in hundredweight on Buff logbooks before that) in the first place, because the weight plays an important roll in their legal classification of what exactly they are with regards to the Road traffic act and the such like

(for example you can and could always Legally take a Model 70 on a Motorway as they are not invalid carriages but Motorcycles or Motorcars, but you could not take an Invacar Mk8 onto the Motorway as one of those is bellow 254Kg and as such is classed an Invalid carriage and is banned from motorways)

and this is also why for Body type, on the V5 it specifically says "invalid vehicle" and NOT invalid carriage, as an invalid vehicle is not always and invalid carriage! (an invalid vehicle simply is a vehicle specifically built for use by the disabled etc and not just a regular car adapted for disabled use)

 

so yeah the innocent question of "how much does a Model 70 weigh" is a much bigger can of worms then you would expect! and hopefully all this wall of text makes some semblance of sense!

[Zelandeth]

Should make a point of actually getting one weighed sometime!

[Cento16v]

Found this in an old Top Gear mag today!

 

[Zelandeth]

14 minutes ago, Cento16v said:

Found this in an old Top Gear mag today!

 

Yep, I've got a copy of that one!

Think the Activa is one of those cars which you really can't get a good feel for on a couple of hour test drive.  I'd not have said the steering lacked feel...it just feels *different* to that in many cars.

The ridiculously conservative boost map from the factory didn't really do anything any favours either.  The shove in the back that results from it being turned up a little totally changes the character of the car I reckon.

The grin factor both from it coming on boost in that very Saab 99/900 turbo like way and the ability to go round corners while seemingly disregarding the laws of physics hasn't decreased in the last three years...

[Cento16v]

I think a manual boost controller may be purchased if it doesn't already have one installed!

[Zelandeth]

15 minutes ago, Cento16v said:

I think a manual boost controller may be purchased if it doesn't already have one installed!

It's been in there since some point in the late 1990s I believe!

[Zelandeth]

As mentioned above, TPA has been marking her territory since the last oil change.

This is because the idiot doing the service for reasons unknown decided to refit the rather dog eared copper washer rather than replacing it.  Which required him to walk all of four feet to pull one out the box.

This has now been rectified.

While I'd got the oil dropped (again) I figured it wouldn't hurt to take a look at the sump strainer.  I had been checking it religiously for the first few oil changes as quite a bit of sludge was initially washed out - but subsequent checks revealed nothing so I'd left it be for a while.  Reckon it's probably been untouched for 650 miles or so now.  Any slime present today?

Nope.  Clean as a whistle (well, a very oily whistle...but you get the idea).  The grainy looking bits at the far edge are attached to the gasket.  No deposits in the basket at all.

I think with regular oil changes and the sort of driving I do I can probably drop pulling this out down the service interval list a bit.  It's worth keeping an eye on, but definitely doesn't need to be pulled out with every oil change or anything like that from the looks of things.

Jag got a brief run out to the post office today and rewarded me in a typically Jaguar way by making random components fall off.

Yep... situation normal there then!

Edit: Also found five minutes to fit the new horn to TPA properly.

Aside from needing to fit the proper foam pads in the fuel tank frame (which I do now have in stock at long last) it's *almost* looking orderly under here now...

The spare belt got in the way of the catch for the hatch so has been relocated to in a bag under the seat for now.  I'm probably going to attach a couple of the down points for said bag on the fuel tank supports when I have them out to fit the anti vibration pads so it can stay up front, but somewhere actually out of the way.

Edited March 30, 2021 by Zelandeth
fscking autocorrect...

[R1152]

3 hours ago, Zelandeth said:

Edit: Also found five minutes to fit the new born to TPA properly.

You are King Herod AICMFP

[MT606]

vid of the new horns tune?

[Zelandeth]

2 hours ago, R1152 said:

You are King Herod AICMFP

Bloody autocorrect...

1 hour ago, MT606 said:

vid of the new horns tune?

Very boring normal car horn noise I'm afraid!  Seems decently loud at least.

[MT606]

was thinking of upgrading the honda-davidsons is all n that one looks like it may fit, whats its diamensions?

 

[Zelandeth]

3 hours ago, MT606 said:

was thinking of upgrading the honda-davidsons is all n that one looks like it may fit, whats its diamensions?

 

I'll grab some approximate dimensions next time I'm in the garage.  It's about the most compact resonant cavity type horn I could find though.  It pretty much fits in the palm of your hand.

 

Additional data for the last post: For comparative purposes, here is the photo of the oil pickup strainer the first time I had it out after the car was on the road again.  I can't remember without digging back through two years of this thread, but I *think* this was about fifty miles in.

This was the only time I got any major gunk out of it.  There were slight deposits on the next two checks but nothing significant.  The fact that it's stayed this clear now tends to lead me to believe that most of the historic crud in this engine that's going to come out has now done so.

It's the lowest point in the crankcase by a good 1/2" so any slime in there is always going to preferentially gather there. 

It's been longer than it really should be since I last checked the valve clearances (mainly because I had kept forgetting to order rocker cover gaskets, which I now have), and seeing how clean or otherwise the inside of the rocker covers have stayed will be interesting from a comparative perspective too.

4 hours ago, HarmonicCheeseburger said:

Drag race Santa Pod, looser does their next video dressed as Scooby Doo.

I can't quite pull that off...though there is a costume based on a character of mine who has some vaguely wolf-ish visual characteristics in the progress of being made.  Sadly it's been a work in progress since mid 2016 when I abruptly realised quite how far over my head I was in with the construction process.  So goodness only knows when the poor guy will get finished. 

My guess is probably somewhere around April 5th 2063, based on current progress.  Unless I give in and throw the job at a professional anyway, though that feels far too much like defeat for my stubborn streak to accept.

 

All silliness aside, once some degree of safe normality has returned to the world I would be really curious to do another comparison between TPA and TWC now.  Both cars have had a huge amount done since they last met.  That does kind of remind me that 99% of that work is invisible on TPA and that realistically trying to better tidy some of the bodywork is creeping back towards the top of the to do list.  That I'm not looking forward to as I don't seem to really have the patience required for that job.  Oh, and I'm still finding dust from the sanding of the previous repairs in areas of the house not even adjacent to the garage two years on doesn't help my enthusiasm either!

At the very least I really ought to get a mould made of the rear apron from one of the FoD cars so I could tidy that up.  Likewise the front corners, though they jump out at me less, and are at least solid, the rear apron is quite flimsy though as it lacks the return on the bottom edge the factory moulding would have.

Once I've rebuilt those areas I may well - if I get any decent recommendations and a quote I'm not sent screaming away from - throw the car at a body shop and see if they can at least do something about the paint situation.  Though I know full well that the answer is going to be "Sure, give us three grand and we'll talk..." As the solution is going to be several kilograms of filler, a few gallons of high build primer and many tens of hours of sanding.  Precisely why I don't want the job!

I do just feel that she's getting to a stage now where the visual condition of the body is letting down the rest of the car though so I'd like to do something positive in that regard.

[Zelandeth]

Zip done on the fleet today as this needed the first cut of the year.

Unsurprisingly the old mower, being a sidevalve Briggs and having been kept clear of ethanol fuel fired up literally first pull after being in the shed since September or so.  It is however showing its age elsewhere so will probably be replaced soon.  Engine is still absolutely sweet...but the mower is falling to bits around it.  To be fair it's the best part of 30 years old and was a kerbside find six years ago.  It owes me nothing.

I did need to move the cars though, first time the BX has moved off the drive briefly for about 2 minutes - there's definitely a clonk from the offside front, sounds and feels like a drop link to me - I'll have a closer look shortly.  Strange sensation though not being physically aware of driving on/off the kerb!

Really looking forward to redesigning the driveway...though having run some numbers I don't think we'll see change out of £20K all in.  Ouch!  Though in theory it'll add value to the house, blah, blah, blah... responsible adult homeowner waffle...I just want to be able to get into the garage without needing to spend 15 minutes shuffling cars!

[LightBulbFun]

I would not worry too much about the bodywork, keep in mind back in late 2017 she looked like this

so you have done a bloody good Job on the bodywork alone, let alone all the mechanical fettling you have done (which is much more important then looks in my opinion) to get her into tip top shape in that regard too!

(its fun reading your posts across the other forums your on and watching how people who thought these things ran out of puff at 20Mph react to your 70Mph antics in TPA ) 

 

[R1152]

And hasn't TPA progressed well from being a "spares car" - putting TWC to shame.