Cars of Crackers (contains a modern. Sorry.)

[Bfg]

Those single wire cables easily get kinked and then all but lock up.  The one controlling the heater's water valve on my Triumph was kinked ..at the valve's lever and simply snagged ..so would not pull more than a very small distance, and certainly not enough to operate the valve.  

I'd recommend you start at the carb end of your choke cable, disconnect the cable there and straighten it.  Then with it disconnected you can operate the knob on the dash, and you might well find straightening the wire at the carb restores its full travel.

Pete  

[High Jetter]

Should be around 2" travel, IIRC. Likely to be a stranded cable rather than solid.

[Crackers]

Yes, multi-strand cable on this. If I can get it off tomorrow and it moves a bit further, I'll lob some lube down it and see if normal service can be resumed. Otherwise, I'll be off to screwfix to buy some cheap vise grips to rig the choke up until a new cable arrives.

[bunglebus]

You might be able to use a cable tie to hold the choke on, but with enough slack left in it so you can remove it once the engine starts - you might have to release the choke mechanism gradually as the engine warms up though.

I had a set of cable ties done up to the right size that I kept in my vw van to close the flaps on the heat exchangers,  as I didn't fancy trying to replaced the rusted up cables that ran from the dash to the engine at the back

[BeEP]

13 hours ago, Talbot said:

Is this a classic BL "pull-n-twist" type choke cable?

Probably teaching grandmother to suck eggs, but assuming as Talbot suggests it's a pull-n-twist cable, is it definitely twisted to the 'unlocked' position before you try pulling it?  (obviously you only need to twist-to-lock when it's pulled out, but there's nothing to say it hasn't been twisted whilst in the fully in position)

[Talbot]

if it is a pull-n-twist cable, it's the law that you never use the (probably broken) locking mechanism, rather you carry an assortment of clothes pegs in the car to put behind the choke knob while starting.  I recall just about everything from BL in the 80s and 90s had at least three pegs on the dashboard for that reason.. most mornings might be a 2-peg start, with very cold ones being a 3-pegger.

Also... if you're able to pull the choke knob out by 3/4", that should be giving some movement at the carbs even if not full-travel.  I suspect this will need a bit of investigation, possibly a new cable and definitely some re-setting of the cable adjustment.

[BeEP]

4 minutes ago, Talbot said:

if it is a pull-n-twist cable, it's the law that you never use the (probably broken) locking mechanism, rather you carry an assortment of clothes pegs in the car to put behind the choke knob while starting.  I recall just about everything from BL in the 80s and 90s had at least three pegs on the dashboard for that reason.. most mornings might be a 2-peg start, with very cold ones being a 3-pegger.

Also... if you're able to pull the choke knob out by 3/4", that should be giving some movement at the carbs.  I suspect this will need a bit of investigation, possibly a new cable and definitely some re-setting of the cable adjustment.

Yep, pegs scattered on the dash in my BL offerings.  Although I did recently fit a new cable to the 1800, so the pegs in that might get a six month holiday before they're used again.

But yes, definitely start with adjusting the cable to remove any slack.  I've always used pliers (shouldn't be too tight) as I don't have the patience to find the correct tiny spanner/socket!

[Crackers]

Getting into it with the pliers shortly to see if I can get it undone. If not, these have been purchased for a bodge:

It will start today, whether it likes it or not! 

[Mrs6C]

Swing by a supermarket and get some clothespegs, if you don't have any at home... it really was and remains the traditional and effective method to keep a choke on at different stages of operation!

[Crackers]

Just now, Mrs6C said:

Swing by a supermarket and get some clothespegs, if you don't have any at home... it really was and remains the traditional and effective method to keep a choke on at different stages of operation!

If I reach a point where the cable works, I will do! For now I just want to get it started by bodging the mechanism into position as I don't get many opportunities to drive it in the week.

[Mrs6C]

The other approach to take of course is to drive it into work and then ask the 'old hands' to help you as it dooesn't seem to be starting very well... you'll have a dozen enthusiastic folk in and around it in no time and the root cause discovered, analysed and a solution found, probably by the end of your lunch break...

Yes, you will need to get it started at least once for this to work!

[Crackers]

Yep! I've already had plenty of people asking to see it, so I'm sure it'll prove popular when the time comes! 

[Crackers]

A couple of cable ties to hold the choke mechanism in place yielded the desired result. A highly effective bodge until I can get it apart properly!

Well, not the result the neighbours seemed to want, but I don't care 😳😂 

(wind noise alert)

A good hour's drive out ("essential journey") round the local roads to get the battery back up to speed, no faults to report, sweet as a nut. Need more petrol now though. 

With the mechanism held in place by the cable ties, the choke lever pulled out nicely, and much further than it did before. Does that indicate the cable is knackered internally, has too much slack, or just needs a damn good lubing? 

[mitsisigma01]

Were you driving it for the full hour with the choke fully pulled out? 

"Does that indicate the cable is knackered internally, has too much slack, or just needs a damn good lubing" 

Could be any combination of the above. 

[Crackers]

Just now, mitsisigma01 said:

Where you driving it for the full hour with the choke fully pulled out? 

"Does that indicate the cable is knackered internally, has too much slack, or just needs a damn good lubing" 

Could be any combination of the above. 

No - the bodge allows the choke to be set with the cable tie for starting, then pull the handle out to lock it, remove the cable tie (so choke is now only held by locked choke lever) and gradually return lever to off position. I checked that the choke returns fully, which it does. 

[Crackers]

3 minutes ago, Crackers said:

bodge

I shouldn't call it a bodge. 

It's an engineering deviation, you know. 

[Fumbler]

1 minute ago, Crackers said:

I shouldn't call it a bodge. 

It's an engineering deviation, you know. 

Improvise, Adapt, Overcome!

[Heidel_Kakao]

You know it's a good improvised repair when you never get round to repairing it properly and just live with it 😀

[mitsisigma01]

It's so good he doesn't want to show us the pictures 

[Crackers]

24 minutes ago, Heidel_Kakao said:

You know it's a good improvised repair when you never get round to repairing it properly and just live with it 😀

I will fix it properly at some point, I promise*!

20 minutes ago, mitsisigma01 said:

It's so good he doesn't want to show us the pictures 

Crap, I forgot entirely in the heat of the moment! I'll take a pic next time I use it.

[High Jetter]

Glad you've found a solution. All running ok when up to temp then?

[Crackers]

5 minutes ago, High Jetter said:

Glad you've found a solution. All running ok when up to temp then?

Yeah, sweet as anything, smooth power delivery and bang on temperatures.

Little puff of oil smoke when revved from idle, doesn't worry me although the engine was rebuilt 3000 miles ago so I'd prefer it not smoking at all.

[Saabnut]

3 hours ago, Crackers said:

Need more petrol now though. 

Welcome to P6b ownership!  

[Minimad5]

Oosh that Rover V8 sound.

[Talbot]

4 hours ago, Crackers said:

Little puff of oil smoke when revved from idle,

A smidgen of blue?  Not uncommon and not a concern really.  It simply means that at maximum vacuum (which idle is very close to) that a little bit of oil is being drawn either past the valve guides or past the oil control rings.  If it doesn't blue smoke at all when idling, only when revved, the likelihood is that it's the inlet valve guides letting a bit of oil past, which is accumulating on the back of the valve head.  When the engine is revved, that oil then gets swallowed up by the engine and burned, hence the blue.

If it was gently blue-smoking all the time at idle, that would be more likely oil control rings, as every time the oil is drawn into the combustion chamber, it's burned off.

As long as it remains simply a small puff of blue as you pull away from idle, it's not even worth worrying about.  The amount of oil needed to make that blue smoke is really very small indeed.  Once it blue smokes all the time and/or uses a litre per 1000 miles, then worry.

[Crackers]

I haven't had the chance to take it out to make any proper videos yet, but here's a little clip of sitting down on a nice idle. 

There really is nothing else that sounds quite like these 3.5s.

 

[captain_70s]

BROWN.

Well bought. These things give me the fear with their sideways suspension and inside out brakes, I'm sure they're great when they work but the idea of trying to pull on apart sounds like an arse. That V8 burble is proper nice though.

[Crackers]

"Stay at home" no longer.

[busmansholiday]

On 3/28/2021 at 12:04 PM, Mrs6C said:

Swing by a supermarket and get some clothespegs, if you don't have any at home... it really was and remains the traditional and effective method to keep a choke on at different stages of operation!

You forgot to add that being BL, they need to be the older, imperial size pegs, not those modern metric ones.

[Six-cylinder]

15 minutes ago, busmansholiday said:

You forgot to add that being BL, they need to be the older, imperial size pegs, not those modern metric ones.

I don't know what @Mrs6Cthinks she knows about this problem anyway as her Metro has a working pull and twist choke!