Getting back on the road

The Rovering Member said:
Nice work.

I didn't realise the VW mounts were hydraulically damped. That's definitely a modification l'll do on Bruiser.
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I only know this because coincidentally I had an '87 Golf a few years ago and had to replace the self same mount on it. The old one had split in the rubber around the top edge of the metal body. It was filled with a 'fluid' of a similar viscosity to treacle. I'll let you know how it goes. From the other posts it sounds pretty good.
 
The Rovering Member said:
I didn't realise the VW mounts were hydraulically damped.
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Yep, here it is.
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Although there are cheaper / earlier versions that are simply a rubber cone where you can put a bolt through, like the original Rover mountings.
 
And we have ignition! Made the fuels lines up yesterday (nice bit of brass tubing to connect things). Choke cable has frozen, so I'll need to dismantle things and see if I can free it up some. Throttle adapter I still need to finish the bracket for. But she sounds and feels very smooth at last. Obviously some tuning is required, but she's alive again at last!
Videos of her running here:

Fast idle just after start (Kim's hand holding the choke open for me) http://youtu.be/BhR7WEoGDPE
Closer to a normal hot idle, still need to tune her properly http://youtu.be/wZwwpYUM93o

Getting close to driving her again. In addition to the above I need to fill and bleed the brakes and clutch.
All in all I'm a happy bunny tonight.

If the throttle adapter works out well I'll share drawings and CAD files on here for others to reference.

Finished engine and bay looking good now.
 

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Throttle stuff

So, I've swapped to HIF6's. Unfortunately I wasn't able to find the 'seesaw' that converts from linkage to cable control on the throttles. So I decided to design my own.

I took measurements of the linkage travel from the ball jointed rod that connects to the accelerator pedal shaft, Measured the travel of a cable tied to the cam on the throttle shaft of the two carbs and used those to design a seesaw in CAD.

Here's the CAD model exploded and assembled see saw.




I designed a bracket that I would weld onto the existing throttle bearing bracket. (Remember this is going on a LHD car, I'm not sure if its different to the one on RHD cars). I used a flanged nut welded to the bracket as a mounting point for the shoulder screw. It also gives us a useful offset for the seesaw when rotating. I discovered that I needed a stop for the rest position after I made mine but was able to modify the CAD to have it as part of the main piece of sheet steel.



So, I was able to borrow my old employer's model shop and their CNC mill. I machined the lever and cable guide out of 6061 aluminium. It looks so pretty when done! I was able to find a place that made parts for old Dusenbergs that had the correct ball to fit the rod ball joints and I tapped and screwed that into the lever. Used a vice to press in the oil-lite bearing and tapped and screwed the rest of it together.



Next I used my CAD model to work out the development of the steel bracket as a flat piece, printed it out and glued it to some 2.00mm 1018 steel sheet, I cut it out, bent it where the lines told me to and welded the flanged nut to it.



I cut the old bracket short so I had a flat edge to weld to with the newly made bracket. You can see by how much and where in this pic:



I did have to use a cross pein hammer to bulge out a bit to clear one of the pipes from the brake fluid reservoir, but otherwise it seems to fit pretty well. A coat of gloss black paint and a pressed in ferrule from a bike shop finished this part off.



I've found a dirt bike throttle cable that works pretty nicely. It has a screw mount at one end and the other end fits snuggly into the ferrule from the bike shop. I was able to cut down the outer cable length enough for it to fit well in the engine bay. With luck I'll be able to fit this tonight.

If anybody wants a copy of the drawings (I can create 2D drawings from the CAD models fairly easily) or the CAD 3D files I'd be happy to share along with specs for the other items I found. Hopefully this is of some use to others.

Cheers,

Steven
 

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Demetris said:
It is obvious that you enjoyed making it much more than you had to! :D
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I was lucky in that I had a quiet few days at work so was able to play a bit more while in the studio, that and an understanding 'car widow' as she calls herself now :). It was a lot of fun to workout. The measurements you gave me for your seesaw wee very helpful when it came to confirming the measurements I made of the travel of both the accelerator and the throttle shaft. Besides, I like making mechanical things look 'sexy'.
 
Well, Beryl hit the road last night! Feels pretty good on the whole. I think I need to check the toe in still as it feels a little vague straight ahead. The rebuilt steering box and idler make it feel a lot lighter to steer now.

The throttle adapter needs to be revised slightly. It's pretty on/off at the moment. I can machine a new lever with a longer arm for the ball joint and that should give me a little more control. Power feels pretty good though, more low end torque, smoother delivery. The HIF6's certainly feel easier to tune than the HS8's.

But generally everything feels way better than before. And I have the added plus of all the fluids staying inside the engine and gearbox now.
 
I should also add the VW engine mounts make a huge difference to the way the engine feels. Far less vibration and movement and a lot less noise transmission. I would definitely recommend the change.
 
With a "new" tight engine and new mountings i am not surprised that it feels nice.
Mind you, new original Rover mountings feel just as good (i know, i have tried them), but in a couple of years they are dead.
You will like the HIF6s too. I have them on for some years and something like 60K miles now and they are as hassle free as a good reliable injection system. In fact last week i checked the emissions before going for an official roadworthy inspection (just like MOT in UK) and everything was just as good as the last time that i checked them in September!
When you say that the throttle is on-off, you mean that it has too small travel?
Mine also has a smallish travel in comparison with modern cars for example, but as it is smooth and light, i got used to it very quickly.
 
Hey Demitrius, yes the accelerator travel is way too short at the moment. About 60-70% of when the HS8s were connected. It's not terrible but with so little travel it makes for less control pulling away.
 
She's been running well for a week. Until yesterday. We were on the way back from seeing a friend with a NADA 3500S and I smelt petrol after pulled up on the drive. Sure enough it looks like the front float valve has stuck partially open. Anyways I hope it's that and not the choke 'tap' seals as I know they can do it too. Always something, huh? I'll pull the carb this week and take the bottom off to investigate.

I more fun news I did manage to put in an un butchered drivers glove box I had spare. But not before recovering in black pleather. Looks pretty good and much tidier than the old one with a cutout for a radio. I have a plain console too to put in. The AC console is an ugly thing and seeing as it's no longer functioning I might as well give myself an extra inch of width in the foot well.
 
Pulled the front carb last night. The float valve was fine. However, the o rings on the choke valve had swollen badly causing it to leak into the float chamber at idle and dump more fuel back into the float chamber when the engine was turned off. The rebuild kits I'd been sold for the carbs turned out to be NOS and rubber they used can't handle modern fuels. Annoying and dangerous! I'll order new kits today and hopefully be back on the road when i get a chance to fit them.
 
Pulled the carbs, fitted viton o rings and refitted carbs. Ran like a top that evening. However, the next day after a few miles fuel smell back and sure enough the float chamber vent was weeping petrol. I've ordered new viton tipped style float valves from Joe Curto and I will pull the carbs when I get back from holiday to replace them. I know, I know, I should have done those at the same time, but I really thought I had it sorted. Besides there was no dirt in the fuel that could have caused the issue. At least the HIF's are much easier to pull than the HS8's.
 
Well, the new carbs are back on again. Sure enough the front one started flooding again after a few miles. I pulled it once more and the float had risen by about 3mm! I think the brass tab has some fatigue and the vibration and load from the float are lifting and bending the tab. I hope that Joe Curto has a spare good on a shelf somewhere and I can fit it before next week's Spadoro rally. However, I'm not sure that's the end of the problems. I noticed a new noise while tuning the carbs earlier this week. Sounded like a dry bearing on the alternator so I didn't think too much of it. Dribbled a little oil onto the shaft but the noise stayed. So I took the fan belt off and the noise was still there, bugger! Took the valve cover off and there's bearing dust in the oil. So tomorrow's fun includes dropping the dump to look at the main and big end bearings. I wouldn't mind but they only have about 1500 miles on them.

I did manage to replace both the control arm supports. I had noticed the boots on the ball joints were missing (who knows how long) and sure enough the right hand one especially was in a bad way. The bushings were also bad so I replaced them with two good used ones with new bushes from Wins. The front end feels a lot better now. Now if the engine could behave for more than five minutes.

Actually had to yell at the car today while working on her. Just putting things back together and she wasn't cooperating. I shouted "you're a Rover, behave like one!" And sure enough it all worked a treat! Little victories.
 
Keep at it! You'll get there in the end, I am not sure why the cars which we shower with nothing but love and attention feel the need to test us like this at times... But they always do sooner or later!
 
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