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hi all, as for progress so far, i have got the head of and am going to check the valve seats as the exhaust ports are looking wet! and i am sure this shouldn't be the case! I should have striped the head down last time but i don't have a spring compressor usually borrow a M8s so will be doing that over the weekend. One question. Last week when i put the head back on i used a new HG i started the car twice there was a problem so thats why i have striped it down, is... MORE
Topping off the dash pot oil? I hope mine doesn't leak. I try to check it at least yearly. Bob, Troutdale, OR "Robert Webb" 30995... MORE
Hi Ben If I was you I would try to buy a part restored 1500 that somebody has given up on. It's amazing how much people spend on the mechanics, blinkered to the fact that the shell is totally rotten. We did the same with an MGB when the engine blew. As well as a recon engine and new carbs we also got a set of wires,overdrive box, new brakes, a good interior, a silent back axle, 2 new tyres and a webasto roof! Not bad for =A3300 Take whatever you need from the donor car and then sell... MORE
Ben, My 1500 has Peco exhaust, oil cooler but no magnetronic ignition or kenlowe fan, from Nov 2002 until Oct 2003 it was in daily use and i covered 15000 miles in that time as well as several large jouneys includng Le Mans and back which all told was 1000 miles in 4 days. (I'm in the UK) My car is far from perfect but regular and pre-emtive maintainance is the key to reliablility. Once you've ironed out all the faults that the previous owners failed to take care of (in my case my own brother!) its pretty easy... MORE
Jim- I will keep you posted. I am "down" to about 200 lbs but am over 6' tall. Ingress and egress is not a problem, but the movement of my foot from gas to brake is difficult. It would be impossible if my feet were bigger than size 8! Your idea about "relaxing the webbing underneath is excellent. I will give it a try. I plan on adding to the metal clips so I can tighten them as needed in the future. Talked with a friend of mine who does a lot of restoration work. He explained the different... MORE
Thanks for the suggestions. As several of you have stated, the new foam may not "collapse" quite like the old stuff. I am going to speak with an interior shop to see what they would do. With respect to a smaller steering wheel, I doubt that would help. It is my knees hitting the underside of the dash that is the problem, not the steering wheel (although a smaller wheel would really help with ingress and egress!!!!). I am currently eye level with the top of the windshield frame. Paul '73 RWA (almost 5 speed) "dfwip" 30939... MORE
Paul, It was serious advice, and not really related to how big you may be. The new foam will fairly quickly compress aand settle. There is no real way of lowering the seat, except I guess you could work out a way of removing the runners and bolting the seats direct to the floor. Guy "Guy Weller" 30912... MORE
Paul, It was serious advice, and not really related to how big you may be. The new foam will fairly quickly compress aand settle. There is no real way of lowering the seat, except I guess you could work out a way of removing the runners and bolting the seats direct to the floor. Guy "Guy Weller" 30911... MORE
Bob- Any idea how much? Is there a way for me to lower the seat? Thanks much. Paul "dfwip" 30910... MORE
David- I'm probably dealing with a number of issues. Jens advised that the foam I am using is much denser. I suspect that I do not sit "into" the seat like before. Putting on weight is not really an issue. Since I began this restoration, I have put on 100 pounds..... For me, this is a real problem. The frames were sandblasted and painted. All components were replaced and the seats covered with leather. I have a bit of money in them, and they are beautiful. Unfortunately, because of my size and how I sit in the seats, I... MORE
Jens- Thanks for the info. The thought of hacking up my new seats is quite painful.... Paul "dfwip" 30904... MORE
Paul, I've got an original brochure (actually from a '72 RWA, but it's close enough) and that shows interior space dimensions and guess what? The height from steering wheel to seat top is 5 inches exactly! Put a bit more weight on and you'll soon sink down enough ;-) Regards David "David Jacobs" 30901... MORE
Paul... Considering the way he seat is mounted, I've no idea how one could lower it. You could take the new cushion(s) out and sit upon them as often as possible in the comfort of your home until they "settle" to the extent they are useable, assuming the old cushion(s) are still serviceable to the extent you can at least drive the car. I am not joking here...if their height truly prevents you from driving the car, some "out of the box" remedy is required. Or you could carefully "crush" them (VERY carefully, obviously) by artificial means.....a hydraulic "press"... MORE
Finally got around to restoring the seats. Got covers from England and components (webbing, foams, etc.) from M*ss. Everything went together nicely and the seats look great. Installed the driver's seat last night. Maybe I am used to the old worn out seat, but it seems I am really "high" (insert joke here...). The seats are very firm with almost no "give". From the bottom of the steering wheel to the top of the seat is five inches. I feel as though I am looking over the top of the windshield, rather than thru it. Is this all just... MORE
Hi I have changed to a manual choke in my 1500 Midget I was curious to see where most of you have mounted your choke cable. In the dash is not an option, I wnat to keep it reversable. and I was hoping not to have to put a hole in any interior panels , but that may be the best place, on passenger side? Thanks Mike. "mk2sprite2000" 30883... MORE
I put one in my Bugeye, aftermarket, plastic with two screw mounts, on the passenger side of the heater box, above the panel, out of sight because of the dash. You have to know it is there to find it. There is a brown, always hot wire, that comes through the firewall and goes to the ignition switch. There is a "Lucas" conector right after it comes through the firewall. I changed that to a dual plug and plug the "non usable for heat" cig. lighter into that and grounded it through one of the mounting screws. Bob, Troutdale,... MORE
Thanks Don - the radio shack behind the dash idea is a good suggestion, rather than putting a hole in the dash. The lighter is listed as an option in the manual, so I am guessing there might even be existing leads ready to connect. Rather than go from the battery or fuse box, I was thinking I would want to hook it up to a point in the circuitry after the accessories key switch (does my car even have an accesories key switch?) so that when my car was off, any portable device left plugged in would not... MORE
Kevin, I do not think, or I have never seen a 1965 Midget with a lighter. Do not see any photos in the Terry Horler book. However, on later models the cigar lighter is located on the front right of the radio console. If the sole purpose of the lighter socket is for power for portable devices then any generic 12V cigarette lighter socket will work and no need for the actual lighter unit. You could mount the socket out of sight behind the dash or just below it. Radio Shack has several different sockets one with an angle... MORE
Bill, Fairly common fault. The selector fork wears and the result is that the 1st / 2nd gear moves a fraction too far along its splines and allows the spring loaded plungers to pop out, preventing the gear cluster from moving back as it should. Sorry, that is probably not too clear until you have dismantled the box to fix it! Cause is likely to be from "crawling" in first gear with your hand resting on the lever. One can often get it back out of 1st by pulling REALLY hard on the gear lever whilst driving. As you... MORE
Thank you for your responses By Modern driving I am assuming that they are talking about fast road and motorway driving 60-80 mph. I'm not sure exactly what rpm she'd be doing at that speed but I would imagine that it would be around the 4000+ mark. Given what has been said then in 90F summer heat an oil cooler would be very beneficial for fast use. However I wouldn't take the Midget onto the motorway for the same reasons that I wouldn't take the Cooper onto the motorway 1. It is too small and vulnerable 2. It is... MORE
LOL, James....hilarious post!!! :):) Yes...it all depends upon how the car is going to be used and ambient temperatures in consideration thereof. I thought your reason "these cars handle so well, why would I choose to drive it in a straight line" was absolutely great!~ :) Cap'n. Bob '60 :{) PilotRob@... 30808... MORE
Pre-rubber bumper UK spridgets (and US ones up to...?) had the same pressure switch - I've replaced it on mine after about ten years, so they're not totally reliable! One trick I someone told me was to pour boiling water then ice-water over the switch to free it up in case something had got stuck inside. This worked to some extent, but I thought it was safer to have the brake lights coming on before the car was standing on it's nose! David "David Jacobs" 30780... MORE
the plastic is usually stuck to the door itself - either over the whole door, or just over the openings. It is to protect the hardboard backing to the interior panel from any moisture that runs down inside the door. David "David Jacobs" 30779... MORE
I had to do just that on my 68 midget, loosen the pedal box and wedge a screwdrive under it to give me enough clearance to install the new switch. and as someone else said, taking care not to get the wires so twisted that they break. Cute little operation!! Mark 68 midget "MARK" 30772... MORE
Just picked up a pair of doors for my 1500, one is different to the other and the two I had on my car. This door is a passenger side door and appears to have a second panel init under the door skin, this panel runs the full length of the door but only from the top of the door to about 2/3rds down, it's spaced about 5mm inboard of the doorskin, this is not present on the two original doors of my car and not present on the drivers side door that I acquired with it, any one... MORE
