1971 MGB GT - Float valve replaced, fuel leak problem now (hopefully) fixed - see page 28

[camryv6]

Did he charge for the skim and new cable ?

[Peter C]

From Moss UK

[sierraman]

I hope he left some flowers on the back seat as an apology and threw in some piss flaps. 😂

[camryv6]

I am amazed you can still get that switch new

[Six-cylinder]

  On 14/03/2025 at 19:02, Peter C said:

Do you want to sell it?

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No, the car is fully operational so this switch works for a living!

[Peter C]

  On 14/03/2025 at 19:06, sierraman said:

I hope he left some flowers on the back seat as an apology and threw in some piss flaps. 😂

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My MGB doesn’t have a back seat.

I got a free new throttle cable fitted for my troubles.

[Peter C]

  On 14/03/2025 at 19:07, camryv6 said:

I am amazed you can still get that switch new

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There’s nothing you can’t get for these cars.

[SiC]

My overdrive switch was straight and I believe was original. 

I wouldn't be surprised if it varied if they ran out of stock and had to go to a straight switch to keep the production line rolling. 

[plasticvandan]

Good that he took it back and re did it,but a bit more time spent road testing and checking before handing it back would have been good. Obviously being a 50 year old car anything can happen but something obvious like a non operational clutch should have been picked up.The perils of paying someone else to do work for you I guess.

[Westbay]

Thinking about the worn SU's ... you could ... swop 'em for a Weber 45 ... just sayin'  ...

 

Was a Special Tuning option BITD...

[chadders]

  On 15/03/2025 at 08:20, Westbay said:

Thinking about the worn SU's ... you could ... swop 'em for a Weber 45 ... just sayin'  ...

 

Was a Special Tuning option BITD...

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Didn't that suffer from cold starting issues, especially compared to twin SUs?

Twin 1 3/4 SU was the favourite as far as I remember if you were buying new carb(s).

[SiC]

Webber's are bit more complicated than SUs to tune especially as the jetting/etc is correct on these SUs for this engine. If PeterC didn't enjoy or want to setup the SUs then probably not the best thing to retrofit it with an aftermarket Webber. 

[jim89]

  On 14/03/2025 at 19:05, Peter C said:

From Moss UK

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Hfm? Plus shipping? 😢

Time some enterprising shiter started 3d printing 'cranked toggle switch extensions' shurely?

[Peter C]

I spent a couple of hours this morning cleaning the MGB.

If you squint a lot, it looks brand new.

I put a full tank in before heading out to London. It’s so pretty.

Cruising on the motorway is now more relaxing as the engine isn’t screaming at 55MPH.

Looking good in the sun. Have I said how pretty it is?

The oil cooler pipe connections are definitely not leaking. There is a recess in the panel under the oil cooler which can only be accessed for cleaning if the grille is removed first, which I couldn’t be bothered to do today. On the motorway run, more oil residue came out from under the oil cooler but significantly less than what I noticed yesterday. The oil cooler is new so unless it sustained damage during the engine removal / reinstatement, I have nothing to worry about.

I need to move the temporary overdrive switch to a more convenient location. I might do that tomorrow.

Great to have the MGB back, I love it.

[danthecapriman]

That’s a handsome old thing! Looks great in that red paint. 
Glad you have it home and everything was resolved👍

[MJK 24]

Great thread!

I’m glad the garage came good for you in the end!

I had some paintwork done on a Mk2 Scirocco a few years ago now.  I asked them to re bush the gear linkage whilst they had it.  (They did mechanical work too).

Bloody awful.  Had to redo it myself afterwards!  

[vaughant]

Looks a lovely car fair play, I love red cars, and kudos to them for repearing it without much fuss.

Having owned a garage shit does happen and also having worked in engineering my whole life I can also say that over the last ten years at least, quality control has dropped through the floor. We used to scrap brake discs which were more than 0.1mm out of tolerance and some I see now don't even have chamfers or weather grooves in them.

The theory is that it's cheaper to deal with the occasional random issue/compliant than make EVERY component perfectly, shame really, particularly on cars like these that don't get used very often, some won't do 1000 miles a year and therefore it could take a while for a major to pop up, and in that time a lot of owners will simply put it down to lack of use. 

As for "specialists" years and years ago when we first had the E36 328i, the handling went really twitchy on it, turned out to the rear bushes which were pretty common to fail on them. It went to BMW for a service anyway which seemed to consist of them simply printing out 50 sheets of paper thing me everything that was wrong with my car and trying to charge more than I paid for it to repair it, well not quite, the car cost me £12k in 2002 🤣🤣.

Anyway, we were told by a friend of my Mrs there was a really good specialist just up the valley from where she worked. We booked it in and dropped it off and straight away I had a bad feeling as I pulled up and he basically ignored me telling me to "park it over there" like a schoolchild and seemed to have zero interest in what the actual issue was.

He phoned me up about 2hrs later telling me I need to come and collect this car as it's got a "major issue" that cannot be rectified and it "needs to go back to the garage I bought it from IMMEDIATELY, it's too dangerous to drive on the road".

Oh fuck, I've only had this car a few months,WTF could it be? 

I get there and he tells me " the car has too much torque and it's ripped the bushes that hold the rear axle onto the car. I think the engine must have been modified because it's got a twin piped exhaust on the rear, which you only get on higher powered cars plus somebody has fitted wider tyres to try and keep the power on the road, but that's created more resistance and I think it's why it's torn through these bushes. It's really unsafe, do you want me to call the AA to recover you?".

Nah I think I'm alright mate 🤣🤣🤣.

What a fucking trumpet.

 Got them done at an actual BMW specialist for about half what BMW wanted who also went through the sheets of death they came up with and found about £500's worth of stuff wrong.

 

[Peter C]

I forgot to say that David had my flywheel skimmed before he fitted the second clutch, just in case and to avoid any possible problems in the future. He didn’t charge me for any of the remedial work.

Overall I am happy with the quality of service that David provided and his work has transformed the way the MGB drives. I only have one issue. When I went to collect the car the first time and noted the problems, I was disappointed by David’s initial response and suggestion that maybe a prop shaft UJ had failed and is causing the problems. That was obviously bollocks.

I will call upon him again in the future if the MGB needs further big repairs.

[Matty]

  On 15/03/2025 at 19:30, Peter C said:

I forgot to say that David had my flywheel skimmed before he fitted the second clutch, just in case and to avoid any possible problems in the future. He didn’t charge me for any of the remedial work.

Overall I am happy with the quality of service that David provided and his work has transformed the way the MGB drives. I only have one issue. When I went to collect the car the first time and noted the problems, I was disappointed by David’s initial response and suggestion that maybe a prop shaft UJ had failed and is causing the problems. That was obviously bollocks.

I will call upon him again in the future if the MGB needs further big repairs.

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Human nature. Most people, even genuinely capable skilled people, will go on the defensive in the first instance. Don't take it personal, he did the right thing in the end. Glad it's sorted mind. They really are the ideal old car.

[lesapandre]

We used to use a golfing analogy at work.

It's not how you got into the bunker - but how well you can get out of it.

Sounds like everyone exited elegantly and well from this.  

[vaughant]

  On 15/03/2025 at 19:30, Peter C said:

I forgot to say that David had my flywheel skimmed before he fitted the second clutch, just in case and to avoid any possible problems in the future. He didn’t charge me for any of the remedial work.

Overall I am happy with the quality of service that David provided and his work has transformed the way the MGB drives. I only have one issue. When I went to collect the car the first time and noted the problems, I was disappointed by David’s initial response and suggestion that maybe a prop shaft UJ had failed and is causing the problems. That was obviously bollocks.

I will call upon him again in the future if the MGB needs further big repairs.

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I suppose though reading his initial response he'd never had a faulty clutch in all those years so maybe he did think that wasn't the problem but as @Mattysays, especially engineers, often think it can't possibly be the brand new component they just replaced, rather it must be something else. 

I was taught to always prove component failure as a last resort, unless it's obvious, and for possibly 85% of my career, it's been something else that's caused it, usually a poor connection or failed mechanical component somewhere.

However I've worked with many other people whose first port of call is to swap out the component as it must* be that. 

I think the guys proved he's a pretty good egg overall and as you said, you've got a lovely working car and really, that's all you wanted at the end of the day 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻.

[Peter C]

Last time I drove the MGB, fuel leaked out of the 2nd carburettor's float chamber overflow pipe. This has happened twice now. Removing the top cover and lifting the float is all that is needed to restore order.

A bit of research suggested that this happens due to debris in the pipes that cause blockages.

I had a look inside the float chamber, there is no debris at the bottom and everything looks pristine.

Is there any benefit in replacing the float valve?

Another problem that I noticed is pretty bad steering wheel wobble, which occurs at around 60MPH. Below 55MPH and above 70MPH the steering is fine. 

The wheels look straight (there is no evidence of any kerbing), the tyres are new and the balance weights are all in place.

Before I investigate further, I have swapped the front and back wheels around. Perhaps there might be an issue with a wheel or a tyre.

Whilst I had the nearside rear wheel off, I noticed that the handbrake cable touches the exhaust pipe. With the handbrake released, the cable is slack but still touches the exhaust. With the handbrake applied, there is no way of pulling the cable away from the exhaust pipe.

Any ideas how I can sort this? I don't want to bend the exhaust.

I removed the original (defective) overdrive switch and fitted a crappy plastic one. It looks awful but does the job for now. 

I have made a long list of things that I propose to buy at Beulieu in May, which is steadily growing longer.

More soon.

[jonathan_dyane]

It's worth taking the float out and shaking it to see if petrol has got inside (in which case it's knackered)

[Andyrew]

If it just needs a little clearance and the exhaust can't be jigged about I'd oval the pipe a bit there to give it clearance. Big g clamp and maybe a bit of heat if it happens to be made of thicker pipe. 

[plasticvandan]

Most likely the float needle just needs cleaning as it is getting stuck. Re handbrake cable,presumably when the car is on the ground there is clearance?

[Missy Charm]

  On 15/03/2025 at 19:09, vaughant said:

Looks a lovely car fair play, I love red cars, and kudos to them for repearing it without much fuss.

Having owned a garage shit does happen and also having worked in engineering my whole life I can also say that over the last ten years at least, quality control has dropped through the floor. We used to scrap brake discs which were more than 0.1mm out of tolerance and some I see now don't even have chamfers or weather grooves in them.

The theory is that it's cheaper to deal with the occasional random issue/compliant than make EVERY component perfectly, shame really, particularly on cars like these that don't get used very often, some won't do 1000 miles a year and therefore it could take a while for a major to pop up, and in that time a lot of owners will simply put it down to lack of use. 

As for "specialists" years and years ago when we first had the E36 328i, the handling went really twitchy on it, turned out to the rear bushes which were pretty common to fail on them. It went to BMW for a service anyway which seemed to consist of them simply printing out 50 sheets of paper thing me everything that was wrong with my car and trying to charge more than I paid for it to repair it, well not quite, the car cost me £12k in 2002 🤣🤣.

Anyway, we were told by a friend of my Mrs there was a really good specialist just up the valley from where she worked. We booked it in and dropped it off and straight away I had a bad feeling as I pulled up and he basically ignored me telling me to "park it over there" like a schoolchild and seemed to have zero interest in what the actual issue was.

He phoned me up about 2hrs later telling me I need to come and collect this car as it's got a "major issue" that cannot be rectified and it "needs to go back to the garage I bought it from IMMEDIATELY, it's too dangerous to drive on the road".

Oh fuck, I've only had this car a few months,WTF could it be? 

I get there and he tells me " the car has too much torque and it's ripped the bushes that hold the rear axle onto the car. I think the engine must have been modified because it's got a twin piped exhaust on the rear, which you only get on higher powered cars plus somebody has fitted wider tyres to try and keep the power on the road, but that's created more resistance and I think it's why it's torn through these bushes. It's really unsafe, do you want me to call the AA to recover you?".

Nah I think I'm alright mate 🤣🤣🤣.

What a fucking trumpet.

 Got them done at an actual BMW specialist for about half what BMW wanted who also went through the sheets of death they came up with and found about £500's worth of stuff wrong.

 

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It does pay to find a decent specialist.  I used an independent marque expert when I had a BMW.  They were decent, but ended up losing my custom as the result of a courtesy car.  Their ordinary courtesy motor was a dead-slow and boring BMW 3-Series estate with a small engine.  I had it a couple of times and didn't like it.  Their relief courtesy car was a Peugeot 206.  I took it from them whilst my own car was in for yet another repair, drove off and, two miles later, was thinking 'this is so much better than a BMW'.  The BMW was sold a few months later, and I've have front-wheel-drive hatchbacks ever since.  Moral?  There isn't one.

@Peter C: the old fashioned method for dealing with wheel-wobble that occurred at a specific speed was not to drive at that speed*.  In all seriousness, it might be a damaged or bulging tyre.  Has the tracking been done?  

* I have 'never' used that method.  

[Peter C]

  On 22/03/2025 at 14:14, plasticvandan said:

Most likely the float needle just needs cleaning as it is getting stuck. Re handbrake cable,presumably when the car is on the ground there is clearance?

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I’m such a tit!

With all four wheels back on the ground, the handbrake cable passes about two inches above the exhaust pipe.

Problem (that didn’t exist) solved!

Thank you @plasticvandan

[vaughant]

  On 22/03/2025 at 15:52, Missy Charm said:

It does pay to find a decent specialist.  I used an independent marque expert when I had a BMW.  They were decent, but ended up losing my custom as the result of a courtesy car.  Their ordinary courtesy motor was a dead-slow and boring BMW 3-Series estate with a small engine.  I had it a couple of times and didn't like it.  Their relief courtesy car was a Peugeot 206.  I took it from them whilst my own car was in for yet another repair, drove off and, two miles later, was thinking 'this is so much better than a BMW'.  The BMW was sold a few months later, and I've have front-wheel-drive hatchbacks ever since.  Moral?  There isn't one.

@Peter C: the old fashioned method for dealing with wheel-wobble that occurred at a specific speed was not to drive at that speed*.  In all seriousness, it might be a damaged or bulging tyre.  Has the tracking been done?  

* I have 'never' used that method.  

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I love a FWD hatch as well 🤣🤣🤣.

We've been using a Merc specialist about an hour from our house who've been great up until a few incidents lately, damaged bonnet pull that they never told us about, he overpriced a job for us and quoted a lot less to my mate on exactly the same car, then the final straw was not tightening up the locking wheel nut, wheel coming loose making the car undriveable and a really shit attitude from one of the garage owners. 

I won't use them again as he was truthfully really fucking rude to my Mrs, who doesn't take a lot of shit anyway, but he got all shouty down the phone that I was supposed to be driving up to get the locking nuts fitted and I was making it up that I told him to simply post them. I even had text messages to prove it but he reckoned it wasn't their fault anyway and someone else must* have done it. 

What annoyed me was that I didn't even ask for a refund or the like, I just asked for a fresh set of locking wheelnuts as now they wouldn't match and I didn't fancy having two different sets on it.

I'm annoyed that I didn't insist on speaking to the other guy that owns it as he's a really decent guy.

Bear in mind the service was £450 which didn't need any other work so not really small change and we've always had whatever work we've needed doing on it done. I did also point out to him I've sent them 3 other decent customers so I was expecting something like "we'll knock 10% off the next service for your inconvenience, sorry" but just had attitude off the guy that it seemed really odd it was only one wheel and was I sure someone hadn't tried to steal the wheels or something. Just sounded to me like he was trying to deny all culpability and giving me the new set of lockers was really through gritted teeth. He was insistent he met up with me to fit them as I think he fancies himself as a bit of a hardman who'd intimidate me but I've met him before and he's just an angry guy about my age. Plus I'm more than capable of fitting a set of locking wheelnuts, also saving them work.

We've found a garage nearby that seems have rave reviews and also seems a bit of a Merc specialist so we'll give them a try at the next one. 

There's another Merc specialist in Swansea but his rep is fucking dreadful 🤣🤣🤣🤣.

[Westbay]

As regards the needle valve , take it out and look at the (pointy) end , it will probably have a wear ring around it ... if very bad it will cause symptons as you describe ... if you are really lucky it may only be  a small piece of dirt stuck on the seat ... 🤞

[Peter C]

I removed the float chamber top cover, put it in a vice and I tried to undo the fuel inlet valve.

Old photo for reference.

No chance. It's proper stuck. I squirted plenty of carburettor cleaner into the inlet pipe and reassembled the float cover. That's the best I can do for now. I thought about fitting an in-line fuel filter but as the fuel lines in the engine bay are all braided and I have no intention of cutting them, I will park that idea for now.

I went or a test drive up and down the M40.

The float chamber is not overflowing, at least for now.

The wheel wobble is also completely gone. Swapping the wheels back to front has done the trick. Driving at a steady 60MPH the steering wheel doesn't budge.

I have removed the rear wheels and will be taking them to the garage that fitted the tyres on Friday morning. Perhaps the balance weights aren't quite right.

More soon.