Scarab the Rover..

Ok
This is difficult to explain remotely.
Firstly you should be able to run more static advance with E5 than having it set at TDC.
It will cope with 10 deg, listen for pinking under load in a high gear, if pinking retard a little.
If you have 8 deg now, you wont need to retard, so even if it is against the hose, you should be good, as advancing will move away from the hose.
8 and 1 leads to the front of the car is good.
Changing the position of the dist to avoid the hose is more involved.
I always time at 34 degrees at around 3500 rpm with the vac pipe off the dist and plugged.
This way you get all the advance in when you need it, the timing at idle then ends up wherever it is, it is not important.
Hopefully you will get the adjustment you need without the vac can hitting the hose.
 
thanks for the detailed reply Cobraboy. I sort of understand what you mean.

So after fitting everything back and filling with all new fluids, the car started after a few turns of the engine. It ran very lumpy probably worse than it has ever done. It limped out of the garage and i checked all the leads and electric connections. I re-started it and it ran a bit better. I took the car for a run around the block and first thoughts are the clutch is almost perfect. Better than i expected, not heavy and biting point exactly halfway. Power delivery isn't an issue. It pulls very very well.

Whilst on a run up the road, i managed to get gears 1-4 with ease. (can't try 5th as i kept running out of road LOL. 2nd and 4th are very close together. I guess this will need me to get used to it. But overall opinion is it's an improvement on the old 4 speed box that i replaced. The gearstick changes are shorter and more direct (if that makes sense). I have modified the gearstick by shortening it so it almost looks like the original 4 speed. Overall i am happy so far.

Next things are to look at why the ammeter gauge and Tachometer gauge both don't work (never have). Are they linked? I fitted another speedo head as previously mentioned and now that works fine although not completely accurate. (not too worried). The odometer has started to work when previously it didn't. I also am thinking of replacing the carpets throughout. They are thin and the underlay has seen better days. Driving down the road i have a few knocks and bangs from the front end, so a suspension bush overhaul will need doing. (horizontal springs frighten the life out of me).
 
:thumb::thumb::thumb:
Well done sir. Did it run better still after you had taken it for a bit of a drive?
Time to go for a longer drive and enjoy that fifth gear!
I hope I get to see your car at a meet at some point.
I was just looking back through your thread and admiring those seats. Did you happen to find out from the previous owner who had re-trimmed them?
 
mrtask said:
:thumb::thumb::thumb:
Well done sir. Did it run better still after you had taken it for a bit of a drive?
Time to go for a longer drive and enjoy that fifth gear!
I hope I get to see your car at a meet at some point.
I was just looking back through your thread and admiring those seats. Did you happen to find out from the previous owner who had re-trimmed them?
Click to expand...


Hard to say if it runs better as i've done about 3 miles! It certainly drives ok but doesn't idle too well. I'll have a go at some fine tuning when i get some free time.

On the subject of the interior, i have no info on who did it or when. i've looked through the paperwork that came with the car and there is no mention of it. I would hazard a guess and say maybe around the time of the repaint which was about 6-7 years ago.
 
Just a little bit of progress. Had a mate over to try and nail this rough running V8. After 7 hours and a few swear words, I think we may have got somewhere now.

What we found was the carbs out of balance. Not sure how but when we did it before, we never really got it right. Currently the engine wobble is all but gone. To get it to run like this one of the carbs is set a little richer than the other. If they are set the same, the car doesn't idle too well. When I say richer, I mean by about 1/2 a turn. Car seems to idle a lot better now.

2 things left to look at are the exhaust blowing. This is a new stainless exhaust so not fitted correctly by me. Blow is under the engine somewhere so guessing near the 'Y' piece. May need a garage ramp to sort this.

The other is it will require a new camshaft and followers which I knew about. I do have them but that will have to be in the future. There is tapping from the back of the engine and its more apparent now the engine runs better.

Slow progress but once if sorted the exhaust issue, I should be good to drive the car around.

When we reset the timing we did it at 8 degree BTDC. It is running on super unleaded 99 Ron.
 
Also after 5/6 heat cycles, the paint on the exhaust manifolds has stayed put. Maybe it might stay that way! Time will tell.

Here is what I used. Purchased from B&Q for £13.

20230331_113946.jpg
 
my NOS V8 camshaft has turned up. On the box it has p/n ETC6849.

If i look in the Rimmers catalogue, it lists it as "3.5 carb, high comp 9.35.1"

As i have an early high comp engine 10.5.1 would this camshaft work fine on my engine. i'm not after more power, just to replace and fit a standard new camshaft along with the tappets. I will also be replacing the rockers and both shafts as well.
 
Car has been used last weekend quite a bit. No running problems.....except....... a very strong smell of fuel when switched off. It has been suggested that the electric pump that is down near the tank is pushing far too fuel through the carbs and out the overflow pipes.

I have purchased a regulator for the fuel line to limit the flow.

Can anyone advise on the PSI i need to set?
 
not much to report on. Fitted the fuel reg and set it at 2.5 psi. Now i don't get the strong smell of fuel when i open the boot anymore. I may trial it at 2.0 psi. It doesn't struggle and gets down the road.

A couple of other things have materialised. I have a noise coming from the front nearside wheel. Sounds like wheel bearing but the car handles fine and drives smoothly? My new carpet set has arrived. The S/S plates that cover the sills are riveted on. Is that normal? i have no other car to compare with. Hopefully i'll get around to fit it at some point.

Have covered around 3-400 miles since the 5 speed conversion and have no issue's to report at all. Car does run nice.

I haven't booked it into any shows this year as i didn't know where i'd be with it. So i'm off to Bromley Pageant on Sunday but in my A35 van.
 
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I had my regulator set to 3 PSI with the four barrel, so I wouldn't bother going any lower with it.

The stainless steel footplates are usually screwed on with some counter sunk stainless screws.

My nearside front wheels had a bit of a noise, which turned out to be a worn stub axle. I tried gluing the bearing on which made it louder, so managed to get a replacement upright which did cure it, - Sparky's winter/spring/summer/autumn work
 
yes. remove lower links and top ball joint and steering rod. spring will stay on top linkwhich will remain supported by shock absorber.
 
Decided to investigate the noise from the nearside front today.

It looks like Cobraboy may have come to my rescue
 

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ampwhu said:
Question I have is does this happen on the P6 often? Is it a known failure?
Click to expand...

I have owned various P6s for most of my driving years but have never heard of anyone breaking a front spring. Others on here who have worked on them for decades may know better, but I don't think it's a known failure.
 
That's good then. Cobraboy has indeed come to my rescue like a super hero.

I'm now forced to strip the front suspension for a paint and some new bushes.

Oh wonderful. I thought I'd be doing the interior next!
 
With the speedo, my LT77 was from a TR7, and my (recently rebuilt) speedo reads around 40 when gps shows 60. The cable driven gear is a 20 tooth red (some say 20 is orange?). This seems consistent with the driving gear on the output shaft being a 7 lead (white) gear, where I think SD1 versions used an 8 lead (black) gear. So now I need to get the speedo recalibrated again - speed is easy to fix, but apparently the odometer is much more difficult. Can anybody verify that the original 4 speed box speedo gear was a 2:1 reduction please?
 
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