2023, April. Loose Front Strut insert

 10th April  Loose Strut Insert

Checking the FHC over after the Taith Cymru and the Daffodil Run I noticed a "clonk" from the left front strut. Looking closer it seemed to be inside the strut so it had to come off the car for investigation.  

Using "special tool" to help release bottom ball joint

 I was worried it could be the insert had failed but it turned out it was just the big nut that holds the cartridge in the casing had worked loose. See video.   I should have had more faith in KYB!

I know that big retaining nut had been done up tight because I did it myself so I think that there must have been something inside the casing that stopped the insert seating correctly. I took the insert out and made a thorough job of cleaning out the casing before putting it all back together again.  I double-checked the crimped locking points on the casing before it went back on the car and its been fine ever since.

August 2018, FHC Front Struts Rebuild

Front Struts

Whilst the car was away at the bodyshop I got on with a number of jobs that I could do separately. The old struts looked to be original so I wanted to replace them to a better standard. My old convertible has KYB dampers and uprated springs all round which gives a nice well controlled, but still comfortable ride, so I decided to get a new duplicate set from Steve Wilcox at S&S Preparations. I also added an uprated servo/master cylinder to my order.

A nice parcel arrived from S&S with this lot in.

 I already had a couple of old struts and the other front suspension parts in the garage so I was able to use these to rebuild.

Set of parts ready for front struts rebuild.

Stripping the old struts had revealed two different inserts so someone needs a talking to, very bad idea to have odd dampers.

Odd pair of front strut damper inserts

After cleaning and painting the strut casings the new inserts fitted fine so now it was time for the battle with springs. I always find it quite scary when you have springs compressed, there is a LOT of energy there just ready to do you some serious damage if they get loose so I treated this part of the job with great care. Those clamps need to be secure!

This could so easily go wrong.

I found this part very awkward. You have to put the gaiter and the bump stop inside the spring before you fit the top mount. The problem is that the gaiter has to be stretched and fiddled to fit in its slot in the top mount at the same time as you try to assemble the top mount with its bearing and nut - but the clamps get in the way. You don't want to disturb the clamps and risk them coming off so its a delicate operation until that top nut goes on. Big sigh of relief when the nut is finally secure.

Its OK to breathe now.

And then you will have a pair of rebuilt struts ready fit on the car.

12th May 2015, Steering column lower bush

According to various owners replacing the bulkhead steering column bush is one of those TR7 jobs that can be a bit of a swine. Folks have resorted to all kinds of tricks to get it done or to avoid doing it.  Unfortunately the time had come to do mine so I ordered the kit from Robsport.

Robsport Steering Column Bush Kit.

 The new ones tend to be made from polyurethane these days and are pretty durable but the material is quite hard so not easy to install.  One of the suggested tricks is to boil it in hot water but that seemed to make no difference at all to my new one so a mechanical method seemed to be the next option. Before all this however, it was necessary to remove the column to gain access to the bulkhead.  In the BL Workshop Manual it says to take my note of the positions of the two washers at the lower end of the shaft. The problem was that there were no washers at all on my car ! Luckily I had kept the ones from the old car I scrapped recently so I could use those. The top bushes just below the steering wheel had been replaced before and were in excellent condition so I left those alone.
The lower bush has to be inserted from the engine side of the bulkhead and as my car is complete and running, access space to the area is limited by carbs, brake pipes, etc.  I tried the usual ways to insert a grommet like using a flat blade screwdriver or starting one spot and twisting it in like a screw etc. but all these attempts proved fruitless.  It obviously needed a way to hold the bush in position and push it home at the same time.  Enter Special Tool no.2.

Special tool no.2. Steering column bush inserter.

It only took 5 minutes to make the tool shown in the picture. Its just a piece of wood about 6-7" long with the end shaped to go through the bush and hold it in place. The washer is the actual one that goes next to the bush and provides a smooth flat surface when pushing it in.  I just held it in position and used another piece of wood about 2 feet long as a lever against the engine mounting bracket and the bush popped in quite easily.
Obviously this will not work for you guys with a LHD car or a TR8. Sorry.

Special tool no.2 in use. The larger piece of wood
is used as a lever against the engine mounting bracket.

With the new bush in place it has transformed the driving experience, no vibration or rattles from the steering wheel now. Just wish I had done it sooner!
..................................................

17th May 2015. GLAVON  May Blossom Run

I belong to the GLAVON group of the TR Register (as well as the TRDC) and they had organised a nice little run out last Sunday 17th May.  It was a "convoy rules" run so no navigation required which meant my other half could enjoy coming along as she gets ill if proper navigation is required. Twelve assorted TR's set off from Tetbury on a lovely day covering a 70 odd mile route around the Cotswold lanes ending up at a fellow members house near Bisley for an excellent outdoor lunch. We had a mixture of TR4's, TR5's, TR6's and two TR7's.  We certainly got a lot of attention as the convoy passed through some of the Cotswold tourist spots like Buscot, Coleshill and Bibury. I think we must be on a hundred pictures taken by the Chinese tourists in Bibury alone!

The new steering bush means the TR7 is pretty civilised now, and I am very impressed by how it rides on some of the bumpy roads we have in this area. According to the receipts I have from the previous owner the springs are uprated ones from S&S and dampers are KYB. It gives a nice combination of handling and ride comfort, just what I would have chosen myself for everyday motoring. It would be too soft for any serious work but that's not what I want the car for.

Some of the GLAVON cars at the lunch halt.

June 2013. Blue car, Fuel tank problems and MOT

17th June.  Back from holidays in Portugal and time to get on with the project.  The sealer in the new tank has had three weeks to dry and looks OK so I need to finish getting the old one out. The old mounting studs actually came out quite easily - I had given them a good soaking with WD40 before I went away - but then I had to remove the rear exhaust section to allow the tank to drop out.  Bit of extra work but no big problem.

Rusty area of old tank 

Interestingly there is a screw head that looks like a drain plug in the old tank (see picture) or it might be where someone has made some kind of repair before.  I wonder?










With the tank out I was able to have a good look at the condition underneath the rear and found it mostly good but some potential trouble spots.  All the main sufaces have a really good covering of sealer/stonechip except the tops of the two chassis rails.  These have some scabby rust starting.  Its like someone has done a very nice job and then completely missed some important bits.  The area above the tank is all excellent so why miss the chassis rails?  Weird.

Tank out, looks good

Left chassis rail top, rust starting

Right chassis rail top, rust starting

Rust treated with Hydrate 80

Couple more pictures. First shows the remains of the tank fixings that came off, you can see they would never have come undone without breaking the straps anyway. Second shows the dodgy repair of the old tank done by the mystery bodger.  I just hope it was an emergency repair and not typical of any other stuff I might find lurking in wait for me.

Old tank fixing studs

Dodgy repair to the old tank

18th June.  Now the Hydrate 80 rust treatment has cured overnight I have painted the areas with some underseal I had in stock.  I think it came with the previous red car project that I sold last year and has never been opened.  Looking at the label it is priced at £1.09 so must be almost something for Antiques Roadshow but it looks to be in perfect condition.  I know the shop ( A&B Autospares ) got taken over in the 1980's and the 4-digit phone number confirms it.
Just realised after writing the above that the underseal is just about the same age as the car, Now THAT is originality for you !!

Historic underseal

Historic pricetag as well!

23rd June.   Well its all back together and the car is sitting on its wheels and running.  Usual sort of dramas finishing the job, had to make a new brake pipe up on the axle as the old one twisted off when I undid it. The bleed nipple rounded off so I had to fit a new one.  One of the KYB dampers had a thread picked up so I had to carefully run a die down it and the fuel gauge is still not working - more of this later.
On the plus side that old Tetroseal has worked out realy well and gives a good finish.

Tank back in place,
note lots of copper grease everywhere!

24th June.   Three Cheers, after all the fuel tank drama the Blue car passed its MOT today so I can now run it down to the bodyshop to have the rear arches done.  Feels like I can really get started making it into what I want now.
So it will just be the Sprint engine, poly bushed suspension, 4-pot brakes etc etc etc to all come off my original red car!!
Could be a busy summer.