Out and about..
- Thread starter oldbloke
- Start date
sdibbers
Well-Known Member
US cars (including my 2000TC) had aerials mounted on the rear deck as standard. They were mostly fitted by dealers here in the states (very badly in my case)
falkor
Active Member
oh right, well just as a matter of interest, you prob know that here in the UK E10 petrol has arrived it contains 10% ethanol .
do you in the US still have E5 as normal or have you gone E10 as well? has it effected your cars?
do you in the US still have E5 as normal or have you gone E10 as well? has it effected your cars?
sdibbers
Well-Known Member
It varies by state. NJ has between 5-10, but higher octanes tend to have less. I always run 93 RON (highest you can get on road pumps here). Had a few problems when it started:
[1] I run HIF6's on my car. The downside is the float chambers are at the bottom of the carb bodies. In 88F (31C) and hotter weather the float chambers would boil causing the floats to drop and the chambers to overflow. Ethanol lowers the boiling point pretty dramatically I discovered (Took a good six weeks of tail chasing to find out the cause of the overfuelling!). My solution was to add 3mm thick self adhesive glass fibre heatshielding to the original heat shield. I added to both sides, it also has a reflective foil film. This has cured the problem since then. Including 100F (37C) days and sessions on the track.
[2] the O ring in the fuel reserve tap needs to be replaced with a viton rubber O ring (ethanol attacks regular rubber)
[3] Replace the diaphram in the fuel pump (same reason as No 2 above). Mine failed at higher temps, again due to ethanol.
[4] If you have a rubber hose between the carbs or anywhere else on the fuel system, replace with E10 proof fuel line. you DO NOT want an engine fire!
On a note about running on ethanol fuel. I found a slightly richer needle helped avoid flat spots caused by the lower grade fuel.
If leaving the car standing for a few months buy some fuel stabliser and fill the tank (counter intuitive I know). Ethanol likes to absorb moisture from the air. By having a full tank there's less air exposure, so less available moisture. Ethanol fuel tends to go off after about 6-12 months. The stabliser with help combat this. The car will run on old fuel, but it won't be happy.
I think that's about it.
oldbloke
Active Member
Quite satisfied with the aerial. Wish it could be completely retracted, but installer told me there isn't enough room using that hole.....
sdibbers
Well-Known Member
Yep, mine is a permanent one. The people who fitted it 50 odd years ago cut a hole through the base unit too. Hence the boot used to flood in the rain. See pic for the repair.
Attachments
clive P62
Active Member
Drilled in the same spot on my NADA !
sdibbers
Well-Known Member
They didn’t drill it on mine. Looked like they’d taken a can opener to it!
Demetris
Well-Known Member
Probably because they realised that they could not hide the mess on the roof panel that would create that can opener or hammer and chisel aerial installation tool they were using.
sdibbers
Well-Known Member
Radios were an option in the US normally fitted by dealers. It’s much easier for them to drill and fit a conventional ariel than to pull the headlining and route the cable down the A pillar.
Really? The front bit rolls back easily enough without dropping the whole liner. I believe that was the whole point of doing this to allow easy access to the antenna. Routing a cable to the rear and butchering the base unit seems like hard work to me.
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sdibbers
Well-Known Member
Yeah, most dealerships would do the bear minimum. They really didn’t understand the cars they were selling in the first place, hence drilling holes through the base unit that let water into the boot. Not to mention a low reliability reputation later. I think Rover (and other British marques) underestimated how much specialised training they needed to give their mechanics. It led to a lot of problems that were down to missed or poor maintenance
GRTV8
Well-Known Member
Just looking at that pic "sdibbers" put up. Reminds me of my front lower windscreen rubber that was completely shot and let water into the footwell. Quite an easy and satisfying DIY fix
One wouldn't know if the rear lower rubber was stuffed, unless you happen to remove the rear decker panel , as water would find its way out using the wing chanels.
Does this rear rubber fail like the front one does over time?
Good question eh?
As far as cutting holes in a P6 for an aerial -desecration.
Roof aerial every time
One wouldn't know if the rear lower rubber was stuffed, unless you happen to remove the rear decker panel , as water would find its way out using the wing chanels.
Does this rear rubber fail like the front one does over time?
Good question eh?
As far as cutting holes in a P6 for an aerial -desecration.
Roof aerial every time
DAK
Active Member
Looking at the photos of those installations makes me really happy that the Canadian dealer in Vancouver that installed the radio in my car opted for the roof installation. They ugly hole they drilled in the side of the radio console to install the fader rheostat that Blaupunkt provided with the radio is another matter altogether.
Actually quite an insight as to how poor the whole network was. A simple memo would have saved time, money and unhappy customers with damp luggage.
jp928
Well-Known Member
In my early time with an SC that came without an aerial I fitted a sticky tape type - coax cable for a couple of ft, then a fine wire on clear sticky tape up the windscreen beside the A pillar and across the top of the screen. Worked well for years until the sun killed the sticky. no cutting needed.
