Zel's Motoring Adventures...Volvo, Renault, Rover, Trabant, Invacar & A Sinclair C5 - Updated 12/05...

[LightBulbFun]

Just now, Zelandeth said:

The plus side is that the Cohline hoses are about half the price of marine grade ones - but I have a reliable trustworthy source for it rather than a random eBay shop which has always vanished by the next time you need it.

Happy to chuck a metre or so of this your way if you need it.  I grabbed four metres of it, but I use 6mm once in a blue moon so that will probably last me the next 20 years.

Can't remember what size the fuel lines are, but the breather line is 6mm!

would be rude to say  say no, tho I do feel like its a bit of a waste to use it on a simple breather connection! the main fuel line on a Model 70 is 5 mm stuff, so not sure how well the 6mm stuff will fit? or more specifically I dont how critical the difference is in this sort of application where its mostly going onto barbs (tho reading the technical data for the stuff you have it says the ID is actually 5.5mm)

[Zelandeth]

Despite the day being absolutely DETERMINED otherwise I did manage to get a bit of time this afternoon on cars.

The Rover has now had the valve clearances set properly.  Intakes were a mixed bag of tight and loose which honestly didn't surprise me.  Sounds a lot happier.  Even if my fingers weren't - doing adjustments on an engine that's fully up to temperature is so much fun.

Quite a milestone has been achieved in that all of the bits of engine are now back in the engine bay rather than the boot.

I am having to sit on my hands to stop me seeing if that air intake duct would polish up nicely...

Only thing I found that I'd forgotten was the bracket for the return spring on the carb.  Which is no big deal given that said spring is currently MIA anyway.  Honestly the return spring on the linkage does a fine job anyway.  It's primarily there to ensure that if the linkage slips that the throttle plate will still return to the idle position.  The one that was on there when the car arrived was far too strong and made the pedal really heavy to the point it was really hard to have any fine control over it.  I'll chuck the bracket back on (it's about five minutes work) next time I'm in the area and keep my eyes out for a suitable spring.

We then went out and drove around our neighbourhood (so never more than a couple of hundred yards from home!) for about half an hour probably driving the neighbours mad with conspicuous straight six noises.  

Findings.

[] Engine is definitely running far more smoothly.

[] Coolant temperature stayed right where it should be.  Even once we were done I could remove the radiator cap without there being any noticeable pressure there.  Previously this would have resulted in a foamy brown geyser if the engine had been idling for about ten minutes, never mind under load.

[] Steering is waaaaaaay better.  It's still vague, but it's vague rather than "bloody terrifying" as we started out with.  I reckon the wheel alignment could maybe do with a slight tweak to improve the self centring a bit, but it's entirely driveable now.  It was legitimately alarming as it was.

[] Brakes definitely need attention.  There is definitely something not right.  They do stop the car, and pretty evenly even.  There is just way too much travel in the pedal and the rears are dragging.  Handbrake is also totally absent.  That's the next major thing on my to do list.

[] Centre glove box lid needs a latch.

Preferably before it gives me yet another heart attack by dropping open as I release the clutch.

I need to make a tweak to the arm which limits how far it can drop to stop it hitting the gear lever when in 1st or 3rd.  There wouldn't originally have been a cover here as that's where the radio was, but I actually quite like the idea of being able to completely hide a modern double DIN stereo with properly integrated navigation etc behind that door.  Seems a nice balance of quality of life improvement while being able to completely hide it away like something in Lady Penelope's Rolls Royce when it's not in use.

Feels like decent progress now.  It's astonishing how much less death defying walking pace feels when the steering works properly and the throttle isn't simply an (inconsistent) on/off switch.

Hopefully keep riding this wave of enthusiasm now and get stuck into the brakes - as the car actually feels tantalisingly close to being properly driveable now.  

Don't get me wrong, there are a thousand things that still need sorting, and I need to go over all the steering/suspension to make sure there aren't just random loose bolts etc.  However most of them are more detailed things like figuring out what the fluff is going on with the headlight wiring, fixing the fuel/oil gauge switch, nothing to stop the car being used.

[PhilA]

Hopefully you unearth all the gremlins and are able to enjoy the rather astute way in which this car will be able to devolve miles into a relaxing place to be. 

Phil

[Zelandeth]

On 01/05/2026 at 05:35, PhilA said:

Hopefully you unearth all the gremlins and are able to enjoy the rather astute way in which this car will be able to devolve miles into a relaxing place to be. 

Phil

The worst thing for cars tends to be sitting unused I've found.  Get them in regular use and deal with gremlins as you find them and they'll usually end up being dependable.

Not going to get much time this weekend it looks like, but did sort the intermittent brake light on the dash yesterday.  It worked maybe one time in five.

This wire just being stuffed into the terminal rather than being actually connected had a lot to do with that I suspected.  It was just floating around in the engine bay when I got the car.

New terminal was crimped on attached to both wires and it now works properly.

Now I just need to make the actual brakes work properly.

That must be a weak spot as I had issues with the wiring there on my last P4 as well.

It's a tiny item off the to do list but at the end of the day they all count.

[TrabbieRonnie]

Well done Z, just had a catch up on your always-interesting thread.

P4 brakes are on my list too...  Like yours they actually work very well, but the travel has increased with the miles covered.  I have a new set of discs, pads and pins for the front, and will adjust up the rears (the shoes back there were in new condition when I got the car, so I haven't bought new yet).  I think the wheel cylinder is supposed to be able to pivot slightly (?) to better align with the shoes...

Watching with interest 👍

 

[Zelandeth]

Well look who turned up to visit this evening.  

Last seen departing in August 2022!

Now back on the road and in regular use courtesy of @Grey the Floydian Sergal who has done great work getting her back up and running and seems to absolutely be the right person for the car, and loves it.

Did manage to get a little tinkering done today.  Not as much as I'd hoped but I'll take it.

I think we may have found something responsible for the god awful clonking noise from the offside front of the Rover.

The entire upper drop links bush having escaped maaaaaay have something to do with it.

The nearside one is all there but has about 1/4" of play in all directions.

Discovered while I was in the area that a whole bunch of the bolts holding the spring seat into the lower arm were basically finger tight.  Yep.  I stand by my previous comment that I need to go through this car end to end to find nonsense like that before something critical falls off.

Also have ascertained that the reserve fuel pickup line is plugged - albeit not very well.

I'll need to get in there with some non-decomposing fuel line and clamps at least.

I am hiiiiighly suspicious of that loose looking bolt in the background as well.  I didn't notice that in person and am not sure what it's supposed to be holding in place...it obviously needs checking out properly.

I had planned to dig into the rear brakes today however need to try to un-seize the adjusters first so I can back the shoes off enough so the drums will come off... currently they're binding tightly so nothing obviously wants to move - however the adjusters are very disinterested in moving at the moment.  They've been doused liberally in Plus gas and left to think about what they've done.  I'll revisit the matter in the near future with a longer spanner and large hammer to hopefully persuade them to play ball.

[beko1987]

Awesome! I spoke to him at Rustival with Sezand gave my brief weekend knowledge of the car but didn't know much more detail, and we both said you need to speak to Zel 😂 

(Was shitefest Bubble car, when we did the euro car parts run for fuel hose and got it running and driven off the trailer and around the field gently. I remember cleaning the interior with @Ghosty whilst we were both quite pished 👌 )

[GlenAnderson]

If whoever revised the fuel pickup situation did it “properly”, then they would have plugged the normal outlet and would be running off the reserve one, which I think that is if my memory can be trusted. The pickups share flange face dimensions with Series Land-Rovers, so if you want a single outlet instead of a twin one, that’s the way to go. At the end of the day, a reserve function is a throwback to the 50s or earlier, when petrol was harder to find out of hours and really isn’t necessary nowadays.  It probably was of limited use even when these cars were current. 

[MorrisItalSLX]

Fantastic to see the BeigeX all sorted and on the road, a testament to all involved in it’s rescue and repair. I would love to see more of it, now it’s looking so good.

[Zelandeth]

19 hours ago, GlenAnderson said:

If whoever revised the fuel pickup situation did it “properly”, then they would have plugged the normal outlet and would be running off the reserve one, which I think that is if my memory can be trusted. The pickups share flange face dimensions with Series Land-Rovers, so if you want a single outlet instead of a twin one, that’s the way to go. At the end of the day, a reserve function is a throwback to the 50s or earlier, when petrol was harder to find out of hours and really isn’t necessary nowadays.  It probably was of limited use even when these cars were current. 

I would quite like to return it to standard at some point.  It saved me significant embarrassment when I discovered quite how optimistic the gauge in the last one was - and having essentially a complete backup fuel pump just seems a decent idea when the car is already set up for it.

Just wish the correct pump wasn't so damned expensive!

[beko1987]

If you ran both at once would you gain many horsepower? 😂 

Be like a switched boost mode 

[Zelandeth]

6 hours ago, beko1987 said:

If you ran both at once would you gain many horsepower? 😂 

Be like a switched boost mode 

I think "Pursuit Mode" in a P4 sounds like a terrible recipe for understeering through the next hedge given their general objection to being asked to change direction in a hurry!

You couldn't do that anyway as it's a two position switch which selects it.  Though admittedly given how much messing around I've seen with the wiring so far in this car anything in possible...

[Zelandeth]

Speaking of wiring etc, pulled the fuel/oil level switch out today so hopefully I can pull it apart, clean it up and get it working again.

While I was poking around behind the dash I also sorted out the wobbly ignition switch.

Can't really tell from the photo but the issue there was that the nut behind the panel was too loose so the securing ring was running out of threads before it clamped the thing against the panel.  Wish all fixes were that quick and easy.

That's literally all I've had time for today sadly.

[Zelandeth]

Okay, so sitrep.

Deadline.  ConFuzzled starts on Friday 22nd May.  That means that the Rover ideally needs to be ready for a drive to Birmingham by then.  Ideally without stranding me at the side of the A45 as that definitely never happened to me in 2024.

Nope...oh. 

Yeah, that DID happen in 2024.

No shade against the car for that happening by the way.  Was just a case of old, worn out parts deciding it was their time.  Could have happened in any car, whether it be a Trabant or a Rolls-Royce.  A lot of things have been done to improve that car since then.

Back to the present day and Rover.  Time is rapidly running out, especially as there's a few days of lead time on most parts.

What's my essential to do list?

[] Secure the centre glove box lid before it gives me a goddamn heart attack again.  This is before I even MOVE the car again.  I cannot quite convey the degree to which that scared the bejeezus out of me during the last test drive.

[] Investigate excess free play and dragging rear brakes.  Unstick adjusters.  A working handbrake would be nice too.

[] Replace drop link bushes once they arrive.  Not actually that critical as it's not *going* anywhere, but it makes an utterly horrendous noise currently.

[] Go over everything on the steering, brakes and suspension I can see or think of to make sure nothing critical is loose, missing cotter pins etc.  A lot of things on this car seem to have just been chucked together when it went up for sale and I've found a couple of kind of unnerving things finger tight.

[] Check oil levels in gearbox & back axle.  I don't even know there's any in there for certain.  Grease propshaft while I'm in the neighborhood.

[] Investigate possible oil leak from vicinity of oil pressure switch.  

[] Fix horn (or bodge something in temporarily).

[] Full check of lights, wipers etc.

[] Test drive a decent amount to get a bit of confidence in it.  As I'd *really* rather just jam it on the M1 and go up that way as the A5/A45 route takes absolutely foreeeeeeeeever.  That's definitely going to involve a decent bit of confidence building first though.

[] Change oil again to get any of the last of the gunge from the head gasket failure out.  Will put on the spin on filter kit at the same time.

[] Fix anything else I add to the above list found during road testing.  As we know full well there will be a new list.

 

Wish list.

[] Clean and lubricate the speedometer head.

[] Get wheel alignment checked.  

[] Unstick the lock cylinder on the boot so I can actually lock it.

[] Change all indicator bulbs, clean lamp holders and grounds to see if that gets both sides to flash at the same speed.

[] See if I can stuff some extra padding under the driver's seat to help deal with the distinct slope to the right it currently has.

[] Valet.

If the Rover isn't ready and hasn't covered a decent amount of miles before then I'll probably fall back to the Trabant.  If I'm not decently confident in the car it's not going.  It's just a long enough drive and on busy enough roads (even if I take the non motorway route) that a breakdown has the potential to be Very Unpleasant.  I was *bloody* lucky that the Trabant broke down where it did a couple of years back as a few hundred yards in either direction I'd have been stuck on a 70mph dual carriageway with nowhere to safely pull off the road.  I also just don't have the mental energy to deal with that sort of stress these days.  

I could take TPA as well, but I'm going to have a reasonable amount of stuff with me, entirely likely bringing back more if I buy anything, and could well also end up having to carry overflow cargo for Chris.  He's running several events and is currently stuck in a Nissan Juke rather than his Multivan as the repairers are taking FOREVER to repair some damage caused by flying debris in the storms we had last month.  We've both got some question marks on whether he can fit everything in the Juke, so am kind of on standby as extra cargo capacity.  I know you can actually fit quite a bit of stuff in an Invacar, but it's a faff and doesn't exactly make for a particularly comfortable journey.

Let's see how far through that list I get.  I've also got a crap load of boring other things going on in the background so time is already a pretty precious resource.

[GlenAnderson]

As and when you get to looking at the speedo, drop me a line if you need any parts as I have several P4 ones in my speedo graveyard. 

[Surface Rust]

Nothing like a deadline to focus the mind!

Probably telling you how to suck eggs, but the dragging rear brakes and lack of handbrake could be linked if the mechanism is seized / sticky. Mine responded well to lots of lube.

If you have individual front seats then they are fully adjustable for rake and height via bolts and brackets underneath, could be you are missing a bolt, causing the lean?

My Speedo was jumping all over the place (+/-20mph at 60). It was the cable, I think they get kinked behind the dash if people aren't careful.

Your centre glovebox appears to have the original latch, have you tried bending the spring bit further down to improve it? It that doesn't work I think I have another spring bit in my spares you can have.

Good luck!

[Zelandeth]

6 hours ago, Surface Rust said:

Nothing like a deadline to focus the mind!

Probably telling you how to suck eggs, but the dragging rear brakes and lack of handbrake could be linked if the mechanism is seized / sticky. Mine responded well to lots of lube.

If you have individual front seats then they are fully adjustable for rake and height via bolts and brackets underneath, could be you are missing a bolt, causing the lean?

My Speedo was jumping all over the place (+/-20mph at 60). It was the cable, I think they get kinked behind the dash if people aren't careful.

Your centre glovebox appears to have the original latch, have you tried bending the spring bit further down to improve it? It that doesn't work I think I have another spring bit in my spares you can have.

Good luck!

 

8 hours ago, GlenAnderson said:

As and when you get to looking at the speedo, drop me a line if you need any parts as I have several P4 ones in my speedo graveyard. 

Yeah, just need to see what I find when I take the drums off.  Given quite a few things seem to have just been thrown together anything is possible.  There doesn't appear to be much tension on the handbrake linkage when it's in the on position - but if one side is way too loose to start with, that would be the case.

Speedometer is a 50/50 I guess as to whether it's issues with the cable or the trip/odometer gear train.  Or both.  Guess it's one of those things you can't really do much about other than fixing one and seeing if that sorts it.  EDIT: - Have the speedometer on the bench (it's tipping it down so not really going to get to anything else today) and it's really stiff to turn the input shaft, so that definitely won't be helping things.  Let's see if cleaning up and replacing the 64 year old grease helps.

The latch is on the door of the glove box, but there's no corresponding striker for it on the dash as the cover is a later fitment filling the hole left by the removed radio.  I'm probably going to keep this arrangement as it allows me to completely hide a modern head unit behind the door, so I need to sort that.  For now though a firmly wedged piece of card will do if a proper solution isn't forthcoming.  Or just chuck the radio back in for a couple of weeks I guess as it's only a couple of screws.

As for the seat I think it's just wear and tear in the padding between the seat itself and the springs/frame.  It sits fine at rest but the springiness is definitely far greater towards the centre than the edge where someone has been sitting for many years.  My last one was exactly the same but considerably worse.

[Zelandeth]

I definitely am not the first one in here.  I honestly don't know how the lenses for the indicator/main beam lights would originally have been retained - but I'm pretty sure that it wouldn't have been with sticky tape.

The fine film of congealed WD40 is also a clue.

Cleaned everything up and applied a more suitable lubricant where appropriate.  I think these speedometers will always be subject to a *bit* of wobble just because of how the advance mechanism for the mileage counters work.  Should be a lot better now hopefully, it behaves properly when run from a drill anyway whereas it was all over the shop before.

I couldn't actually come up with a better solution to securing the lenses...so put them back in exactly the same way.  I'll come back to that at a later date - it's not critical to making the car work.

Brakes are.  I got stuck into those today.  Offside rear off - pleasantly bodge/disaster free.

The adjuster was wound all the way off.  I thought this side was binding, but the drum just slid straight off once I pulled the retaining screws out, so I look to be wrong there.

Handbrake mechanism and piston all moved freely so all looks good there.  The drum could do with a good clean up but I'm not doing that dry as asbestosis ain't fun, and the shoes are a bit glazed.

Other side did present an immediate surprise when I popped the wheel trim off (in addition to it smacking me in the face).

Apparently the cup shaped bit in the middle of the hub has come loose here and this was a solution to stopping it from making a racket.

This is simply labelled "extension piece to aid wheel changing" in the manual, so looks to be non critical. 

I did for a fraction of a second have a moment of wonder of "Jeezus, is that foam holding the half shaft in?!?" but thankfully it seems to be innocent aside from stopping a rattle.

This side I couldn't get the drum retaining screws out - I'll need to get the impact driver out and give it a shot as I didn't want to risk stripping the heads with a normal screwdriver.

In contrast to the other side, the adjuster here was wound on waaaaay too tight.  About a turn and a half off got the wheel rotating again, so it was adjusted about right then left alone.

The handbrake still does precisely nothing - though everything seems to move freely, hopefully just needs adjustment.  Ran out of time before I could get to that at lunchtime.  Maybe later.

Pedal definitely feels better based on driveway testing - though the pedal itself and its linkage to the master cylinder also needs adjusting.  As does the one for the clutch - see also my comments about a lot of things just having been seemingly chucked together to get the car driving to sell.  I've doused everything in that area in Plusgas again as I remember the adjusters not being impressed with the idea of movement when I last tried.  Probably wouldn't be the worst idea to bleed the brakes either (if the bleeders will move...) as there could well be air in there - though it doesn't feel like it to me - the brakes *feel* fine, the pedal isn't spongy, there's just too much free travel before it does anything.

That suspicious loose looking bolt I found the other day but the offside rear wheel apparently is just way longer than it needs to be and is tight.  So whatever it's holding in place (fuel tank?) isn't going anywhere.

Hoping I'll get half an hour later to tweak the handbrake adjustment and see where that puts us.

-- -- --

Additional from a couple of hours later.

Okay, having gone for a trundle around the block a few times, I clearly have cranked that adjuster up a bit too tight as that wheel is binding.  I find myself questioning if it WAS actually that one that was beforehand.  However the other drum is fairly cool and this one is at 95C and I've done about 1/2 a mile and never exceeded 20mph.  Thermal cameras make checking that way easier.

Something is also clearly amiss with the handbrake.  It is indeed currently adjusted all the way off at the moment - however tightening up the adjuster the the point where the lever can do anything results in it being nearly solid - and producing no noticeable braking effort when applied.  So something I've not fully investigated yet is clearly sticking there.  Further investigation needed.  Pedal while still not *great* seemed a lot better than last time the car was out so feels like I'm on the right track at least.  Entirely possible that the entire nearside drum is a rusty, seized mess given that I didn't actually get into that one today!

Didn't get any further today as again it started raining.  Though I have confirmed the windscreen wipers work, and do at least a slightly better job of clearing the screen than on my previous P4.  Not that that's saying much.