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Now thinking about the cooling system. I'm heading towards the solution Mister Towed has in using a Civic radiator with an electric fan. I wondered if there was room under the hood for something like this replacing the original thermostat cover:
Which would do away with having to use an in line filler in order to get a cap at the highest point in the system. I'd appreciate your thoughts (Especially yours Mr Towed)
By the way, I got a new belt for the engine, part number GCB11088 which is correct according to both Rimmers and Canley's catalogues but it appears far too short. Any ideas guys? I seem to have all the default bits on the engine and even with the dynamo at it's closest to the engine, there is no chance of getting it on to the pulleys. The size on the pack is 10A1085C if that helps at all.
I had exactly the same problem and i thought it was because i'd gone for an alternator conversion, seems i wasn't loosing my marbles after all!
I ended up going to Halfords (i know, i was desperate!) with the too-short belt and the really helpful lad there just brought out a box of odds-n-sods and we went through them until we found a "same but longer" one.
I've just had a quick gander and mine is marked as :
HB1100A 5
It's still not massively long, but it fits without being forced and it's done me a few tanks of fuel so far
Now thinking about the cooling system. I'm heading towards the solution Mister Towed has in using a Civic radiator with an electric fan. I wondered if there was room under the hood for something like this replacing the original thermostat cover:
Which would do away with having to use an in line filler in order to get a cap at the highest point in the system. I'd appreciate your thoughts (Especially yours Mr Towed)
Andy, sorry but I'm afraid there's no way that'll fit comfortably. Even the standard thermostat housing on my Vitesse engine looks like it's going to foul the inside of the bonnet, so it's probably going to get the 'Norfolk scoop' treatment, or a teardrop bulge at the very least.
You could always fit it then adapt the bonnet to suit, but it might just need a massive air scoop above it which wouldn't really be in keeping with the period look.
Has anyone fitted the 'wheelbarrow' sport twin exhaust set from Rimmers?
All the parts look good and I'm sure it will be obvious when it starts going together but with no instructions or suggested diagram, Three sizes of clamp (42, 45 and 54mm) and only straps for the back, are there any obvious intermediate hanging points? There aren't any brackets on any pipes apart from the boxes at the back and I'm sure it doesn't feel right hanging from just the manifold and the back pipes
Andy , I am sure that is what we have at the workshop on a donor Vitesse awaiting its turn .....If you don't get it sorted , let me know and I will drive over tomorrow and take a look for you....
Has anyone fitted the 'wheelbarrow' sport twin exhaust set from Rimmers?
All the parts look good and I'm sure it will be obvious when it starts going together but with no instructions or suggested diagram, Three sizes of clamp (42, 45 and 54mm) and only straps for the back, are there any obvious intermediate hanging points? There aren't any brackets on any pipes apart from the boxes at the back and I'm sure it doesn't feel right hanging from just the manifold and the back pipes
I have half fitted the same to mine, it feels remarkably sturdy and think when I fit the last straps at the rear boxes it will be fine, the tube is so much thicker and wider there is no flex along the length...
Pops
Thanks gents. I've just (Gap in the rain) loose assembled the system and I agree with Psycho Pops that it has quite a bit of intrinsic strength. I also see at least a couple of good candidate points for adding 'belt and braces' hangars such as a strap around each part of the 'Y' pipe to the differential front brace, a bar across the chassis tail struts to hang the boxes off by the supplied straps and possibly another strap near the front to the bottom of the gearbox mounting plate.
I'm going to hang the exhaust boxes from a beam across the chassis boot strut but wondered if tack welding would be frowned on by the DVLA inspector? Would I be better bolting the beam on? Thoughts gents ?
I'm going to hang the exhaust boxes from a beam across the chassis boot strut but wondered if tack welding would be frowned on by the DVLA inspector? Would I be better bolting the beam on? Thoughts gents ?
How strange, I have just made up a bar that spans the two 'boot' outriggers and bolts onto them. I am bolting them on in my case mainly because I want it removable as my petrol tank is set back up there. Also because I don't want any hassles at the inspection!
Gary did say that 'minor' modifications such as welding brackets on or bolting to the chassis is acceptable.
Good thinking! With my 'Maintainability/Supportability' hat on I should have thought about what servicing a permanent beam may prevent. Methinks a couple of bolts should suffice.
I'm going to hang the exhaust boxes from a beam across the chassis boot strut but wondered if tack welding would be frowned on by the DVLA inspector? Would I be better bolting the beam on? Thoughts gents ?
That is exactly what i've done, but i've got mine bolted in place and the inspection was fine.
Things have been moving on well with the addition of some more eBay purchases. After looking at the state of my original radiator, Mister Towed's solution of a Civic rad seemed a good choice, and finding a purpose made shroud and fan at around £50 was a bonus! A brief PM with 'MT' about how he had tackled mounting it left me with a clear idea of mounting via the shroud rather than attaching anything to the radiator itself so a couple of ally brackets were riveted up and seem to hold things very nicely in place:
The ancillaries were serviced and fitted to the LH side of the engine:
Still working out where plug lead #1 should go but I'm not too worried about that just yet.
The Exhaust system is installed and clamped together:
And a bar bolted across the tail extensions to sling the boxes from:
Which will be finished off with a couple of bobbins then painted before I declare that system finished.
Back in the shed, I've worked with the loom, labelling all connections and trimming where necessary. I'm going to cut it at front and rear, installing plugs to separate the lighting into 'sub-looms' so all can be attached to the frame and chassis then disconnected when necessary to take the bonnet off for example.
Carbs are in the process of being serviced. Typical of me to have a car with different carbs to all my manuals, I have Temperature compensators and a 'Starter disc' which, I think, are Stromberg 150CDSE which were fitted to GT6 Mark 3?
Ho Hum, Marching on... I've got the Phenolic floors to cut, the Frame should arrive this week and it's getting very close to shipping down to Gary for body fit!
I have been fitting the same boxes to my Sammio and was worried about how far the tail pipes protrude in order to clear the back axle, If I keep them short then the boxes only have about 4 -5 inch clearance , Is there a legal limit for protrusion or is i just sore when you shin yourself on the pipes...?
I have been fitting the same boxes to my Sammio and was worried about how far the tail pipes protrude in order to clear the back axle, If I keep them short then the boxes only have about 4 -5 inch clearance , Is there a legal limit for protrusion or is i just sore when you shin yourself on the pipes...?
There's no specific rules in the Construction and Use Regulations covering exhaust pipe protrusion, just noise, maintenance and modification to increase noise (not allowed!).
There is an offence, however, of using a motor vehicle on a road in a condition which is likely to cause danger to other road users. This is more geared towards people driving home from B&Q with five metres of two by four sticking out of the passenger window of their Fiesta like a jousting lance and picking off pedestrians and pedal cyclists as they pass.
As for the danger of someone burning themselves on the tail pipe as they walk by when it's parked up, if you look at exhausts on motorcycles they're often fully exposed, as they are on Cobra and Seven replicas with side-pipes fitted. If someone ever called me to complain they'd burnt themselves on a motorcycle or car exhasut as they walked by I'd be steering them towards the Citizens Advice Bureau to see if they could bring a civil claim for damages as I really don't see it as a criminal matter.
Interestingly, there's no legal minimum ground clearance in this country either. You can drop your car as low as you like. As the legal maximum for a speed hump is 4" (although most are only 3") I'd suggest around 100mm as a minimum or be very careful when driving around town! Having said that, my Saab 9-3 (now departed) only had 100mm ground clearance under the sump and never fouled a hump.
I'm sticking with my standard stainless steel silencer which is angled up just right to give maximum ground clearance funnily enough.
I started out with the idea of just binning the Vitesse body, grafting the Sammio shell on and driving off into the sunset. The reality was that once I started stripping the donor everything was so crap that most of it needed replacing. The renovation process then gets a bit like chewing a fruit gum - once you start you just can't stop!
Even the standard thermostat housing on my Vitesse engine looks like it's going to foul the inside of the bonnet, so it's probably going to get the 'Norfolk scoop' treatment, or a teardrop bulge at the very least. 
