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Maybe you have one of those faulty rotor arms with a hairline crack that opens up as it warms up. Guy "Guy Weller" 28008... MORE
I put the new battery in the car, start it up. I have not started it since early Dec. It runs, but it is missing, and I have to play the accelerator to keep it going. Then, is just dies. It will turn over, but it will not start. I remove the distributor cap, and I am not getting any spark at the points. I went through all the steps in Bentley's "finding a fault in the low tension circuit" and everything checks out ok, but still, NO SPARK! There is even voltage across the points, this is crazy........... MORE
Brad, If you have 12 volts at the points, they WILL spark! Period! If they don't, check to see if they actually close enough to have the actual points really touch each other. If you have a volt meter, make sure that one side is actually grounded and the other side actually has 12 volts on it. I have seen it out of adjustment enough where the little cam does not let the points come closed enough to really touch with any pressure. Doesn't hurt to close points, take a little slip of 400 wet or dry sand paper... MORE
Hi, Guy and David, There are varying degrees of symmetry and our engines are not symmetrical vertically. I also no mathematician, but I am an engineer! The simplest way I can describe it is to say that:- when the crank is at 90 degrees from TDC, the pistons are not half way down the bore! At this point in a 1275 motor the piston is at 57% of its stroke. Hence when the crank is in this position all 4 pistons are at 57% stroke. Compare this when the crank is at TDC or BDC, you will have 0%... MORE
Hi Geri, I am no mathematician, so I am quite happy to accept what you say, and I am not arguing with you... but logic makes it hard to believe! If all 4 pistons are identical, and the throw on each crank journal the same, then I cannot see why the volume displaced by one going down should be any different from the displacement of the adjacent one going up. Neither can I see why the length of con rod should make any difference either. However I can well imagine that there are complex effects of the inertia of... MORE
If anything, this man should get an award for comedy, literacy, and intelligence. Some days that is how I feel a bout the 76 Midget that I have, albeit it is in much better condition than that Jensen. But when one can get only 4 uses out of an ignition switch (NEW) and it breaks the same way the original did that was 27 years old, one feels a bit like selling the thing and being done with it. Oh well. Even if I did sell it, it would prolly come back again. (it did that already) Matt Pfeil... MORE
I am in the process of rebuilding a 65 Sprite and one of the small jobs I have just completed is replacing the rusted out riser brackets which extend the chassis to provide the anchorage points for the front bumper. Rather than buy the brackets I fabricated new ones using the old parts as a pattern. Before I removed the old brackets from the car I noticed that they poked through the front valance panel a bit too low and the two holes in the valance had been modified to accommodate this ( I put this down to the... MORE
Thanks to all the "start-up" advice, the initial run-in went without a hitch. But a strange problem cropped up. Engine is a fresh high compression 1275 with PCV only. It would run very well for the first few minutes, and then start to belch smoke the likes of which few could imagine. It would do this for a couple minutes, then run normal again. Also, I could not get it to idle below 1200 rpm despite the fact that the carbs were fresh and were properly set up. With throttles CLOSED it still idled at about 1200. After doing... MORE
G'day Peter C I pack the oil pump with black moly grease (Molybdenum Disulphide). The oil picks up straight away, the moly does no harm at all to the bearings etc, and it all gets dumped out 30 minutes later anyway. Yes, I know you can prime the pump through the hole in the left rear corner, but my thumb get sore pushin down the plunger on that oil can. Now here's another way of priming the pump. You know where the oil line goes into the rear of the block on the right hand side? Well directly below... MORE
The height legislation was to do with the bumpers themselves. The performance/handling is a very good reason to leave them off (it's equivalent to about a 5 bhp increase, considering the improved power to weight ratio!) so a bit of time spent grinding off the front mountings is well worth it, especially since you already have chrome bumper front wings Are your CB wings original BL ones or pattern ones? The arch radius should be the same for both CB and RB cars. As I said earlier, the mountings are slightly different, so you would probably need to lower... MORE
Peter, Right you are. I wondered if anyone would realize that the distributor drive gear is connected to the camshaft which actually turns the oil pump. Lots of wasted time doing it this way if you ask me. Its your money.....I heard of one fellow that hooked up a presurized bug spray can with oil in it to the oil gauge feed pipe or something and pumped oil through his engine before starting. I heard it killed bugs for miles when he drove by for years afterwards. LOL Really, I think that this is to anal for a common... MORE
(Metallic/non-metallic ontamination) the reason behind magnetic drain plugs, "magnetic" oil flters and scheduled oil/filter changes every 3 months or so many miles as recommended by the mfgr. Cap'n. Bob '60 :{) PilotRob@... 27852... MORE
Peter... My mechanic packs the oil pump with..... grease!! Same grease he uses when lubricating chassis/suspension grease nipples. He will also turn the engine over with a drill via the distributor drive to ensure oil pressure before the actual start. His "way". Cap'n. Bob '60 :{) PilotRob@... 27839... MORE
Paul, Yes, there is a proper way to break in your engine. The first 20 min will tell if your engine will live a long life or die at an early age. Lots of people have differant ideas on how to run it in for the first 1000 miles. I will tell you how I do it at work and what I reccomend to my customers. When we go to start up a new one we always go through the same check list. All fluids up to specs. Gravity fill the oil cooler if installed. Make sure the fuel... MORE
Samuel Only you can really answer this question as you're the one with all the information. Are you moving here permanently or temporarily? And if the latter for how long? Is this is financial decision or an emotional one? Do you have anywhere you can store your car in the US while you're here? I think if you're going to be moving here permanently I'd bring it over with you. If for a temporary time period, I'd leave it in the US. Theres two factors here you should consider. Firstly, English roads are not like American ones, and I'm... MORE
Hi all- First, let me take a moment and thank you all for the gracious way so many of you have spent your time trying to help. I recently sold a '96 Porsche 993, and let me tell you, if you do your own wrenching, you are on your own. This group is a real pleasure..... Worked on the problem this evening. Not sure what I have learned. I first pulled the starter. No change in problem. Next I decided to spend some quality time on my knees watching the valve and piston movement. Very interesting. I watched each... MORE
Hi Bob- Good ideas. I have carefully marked the crank pulley and can tell you that when I push it forward, it stops at exactly the same point each time. When I push it back, it stops at exactly the same point. These two points are about 15 degrees apart on the crank pulley. It does not "tighten up" as you approach the stopping points. Engine turns and then stops. Period. I am going to watch each cylinder and valve assembly closely before I tear into anything. I will watch closely for the TDC issue as you have outlined.... MORE
Steve- Since the starter is only two bolts, no reason for me not to pull it. I'll put it at the top of the list. Thanks. Paul "dfwip" 27728... MORE
Don- Your point is well taken. Just to eliminate the possibility, I will go ahead and get the clutch working. Everything is rebiult or new, with stainless sleeving. Just a matter of adding fluid and bleeding. I will do so. Starter is installed. If it is a problem, how could I get 345 degrees out of the crank? But you are correct. It is installed. Think it should go on the removal list? Thanks for your help. Paul "dfwip" 27723... MORE
Hi Alan- That's what has me really confused. I am NOT sure it is stopping mechanically. Years ago I had a problem like this with one of my race motors, and it was found to be a ring of rust. This time, since I could not detect any "mechanical" stop and the valve train looked fine, I had my boys push a little harder, several times. They ended up skidding the car about a foot. It ain't budging. Got any suggestion as to how I can free up the initial tick-over? One other note. I carefully marked the crankshaft... MORE
Are you sure it stops mechanically? If the engine has not turned over for a long time a ring of rust could have built up above where the top rings would have been , specially if the plugs have been left out for all that time. Then - if the engine has been rebored and crank reground , even with the plugs out , with a tight engine it is sometimes difficult to get the enough umph to turn the engine over top dead centre. At that point nearly all the mechanical advantage has gone and you will be... MORE
Don- As best as I could, I tried to eliminate the tranny in my testing. I put the car in neutral and could roll it all over the garage. I then left it in neutral and turned the engine by hand via the fan pulley. The crank turned the same amount as when in gear. Am I correct that this rules out internal tranny issues? Is there anything I could have done when bolting the tranny to the engine? For what it is worth, as I roll the car it sure FEELS like the problem is in the engine.... MORE
Paul, I also thought of the starter earlier. If the ring gear were picking up the gear from the starter and not engaging properly it would bind and cause the symptoms you describe. I have experience on this from a B that I owned in college. Not at the top of the list but possible. Steve Quandt Steve Quandt 27727... MORE
Be sure and pull the starter (easy) and check inside with a light and mirror, and listen in the hole for sound. (Long bolt) Chances are that a long bolt would not stop engine at TDC but somewhere in the cycle. (random). Use the broomstick! It can't ;possibly just stop with out making a noise unless someone left a red grease rag in a cylinder. I am taking Vegas odds on the cause. I think if it stops at TDC, it is something in the Cyl, but my vote goes for a long bolt (Non TDC stopping) in a... MORE
Paul, I have been reading this thread with interest. A lot of interesting ideas. Let me think a moment and apply my simple Polish logic. Before you go into motor....... you have marked crank pulley and it always stops in the same place. If you back it up, it stops a few degrees from the same place always? right? Then take it until it stops and check into plug holes and find if any pistons are at or very near TDC. If they are, there could be something in the cylinder that is hitting the piston. If non of... MORE
