Some questions from a newbie

Shazzbat

Shazzbat

New Member
Hello all. Just arrived back to Spain yesterday after collecting my P6 2200 SC 1974 in England. By the way, what boring the cruise trip down to Santander is!!

Well, after 600 miles with the car some electric problems show up. Or maybe "problem" is a word too big for my concerns.

1) Wipers. It seem to be a general problem with this car. My switch works following way: Delay works as normal speed, normal speed works perfectly and fast speed stops the wipers immediately. Yeah, I do have to clean the contacts, but any other idea will be welcome.

2) Fog lights. When I take the switch to the "fog" position the headlights come off and only left foglamp works. According with my workshop maybe there is not any problem with the headlights, since perhaps in England foglamps must work alone, without headlamps. It is not the case here in Spain, where it is compulsory for the foglamps to work together with headlights (street position, not main beam). Any information will be welcome.

3) I was a bit worried about choke light, but after reading some other threads it works OK. Only lights on when the engine is a bit warmed up, so I think it is OK.

4) Reverse lights. They do not work at all. Fuse still not checked, but in the meantime I'd like to know about any other problem any of you could have had in the past with these lights.


5) Not an electrical issue. Main feeding system doesn't work, so I have to pull the reserve handle all the way out in order to use the reserve fuel system. It is not specially bothering but I'd like to have the car perfect, so any advise will be very welcome.

6) And finally...Well, this is not an electric issue either, but... Where the hell is located the handle for getting the front hood open? I have been looking for it all this evening long with no success! I am unable to find it!


Thanks and regards
 
Hi Shazzbat, just minor issues then. That's good! :D

1) The delay unit has a number of issues which I won't go into here but there should be lengthy discussions about it elsewhere. It is usually fixable by cleaning though. The lack of a fast speed could be the switch or it could be brushes in the motor.

2) Your workshop is correct, the headlights should go off when the fogs are turned on. If only one foglight works, then the other one is most likely faulty. Check the bulb, connection and earth.

3) The choke light should come on to tell you that the engine is warm enough to let the choke off. It's OK.

4) Check the bulbs first. It's amazing how often they can blow together. Also quite common is the lever that operates the reverse light switch can get bent and not push the button in far enough. This is easily accessed through a rubber plug on the rhs of the trans tunnel. (I presume it's manual?) Or a wire might have come off/broken.

5) Check that the reserve tap does go all the way in both directions, sometime they can stick/seize. Check that the fuel lines are all there, they are easily damaged and could have been removed or plugged. Otherwise, it must be a blocked line so just blow it through with compressed air.

6) The bonnet release should be in the driver side glove box. If it's not there, try the passenger side. If it's not in either of those places, then someones moved it and you're on your own. :)

All easy jobs, should be fun! Enjoy!
 
Many thanks from the other side of the world, KiwiRover.

Yes, my car is manual and RHD.

I will look for the bonnet handle tomorrow. Hope it to be somewhere there!

I will follow rest of your tips by this weekend. As you know it's winter here and I have no sunlight when I finish work every day.



All the best
 
Welcome Shazzbat!

A RHD car is going to be a bit of a problem in Spain isn't it? P6's are very easy to convert between RHD and LHD. No mods at all required to the shell, just unbolt the steering column from the right and re bolt into existing holes on the left! Minor alterations to the steering boxes required and the most difficult bit - sourcing a LHD pair of gloveboxes! Even the instrument cluster will swap side to side under the existing dash top! Chat to Ian Wilson at Rover-Classics. He is almost certain to have appropriate bits from people who have imported USA cars and converted to RHD. Ian also has the parts manuals in pdf form on his website, which are a very useful adjunct to the workshop manaul. Both workshop and parts manuals (Rover Co, not Haynes) are readily available new on Ebay and from the club. They are very comprehensive and very useful.

The fog lights will require a bit of creative wiring - I reckon I could do it with the addition of one relay. British regulations of the time required the headlights to go out - not so now.

To overhaul your petrol reserve changeover switch is very easy - once you've got it out of the car! It is in a pretty inaccessible spot, though maybe better on the 2200 than the V8 I am used to. All you need in the way of parts is one "O" ring which you should be able to get locally - there's nothing special about it.

Learn to use the search function top right of the red banner on here - click on "adavaced search". It's very easy and very powerful and there's bound to have been a discussion on here about most problems you find. And we are a freindly bunch and quite happy to advise on any specifics you need.

Chris
 
No, nooo. I want my car to be RHD!

It is not a problem for me. I lived in Northampton for some months and I am used to drive RHD cars. At the end to drive an RHD on the right lane is only scary in case of overtaking.

I already have the workshop manual, but I would need the user's manual. I will try to find it through Roverclassics, as you say.

I suppose all the issues will be sorted out by the next week. Yesterday I had a chat with my mechanic and he asked me to leave him the car this Wed 9th. Maybe in two days time my car is ready for the technical review. I have a lot of red tape and technical inspections ahead prior to register it with its new historic Spanish numberplate.

I promise some pics of the process.


Thanks and best regards
 
Open the drivers side glove box and put your hand inside at the top, near the drivers door. You should find a two pronged release with 'bonnet' written on it (usually)

You cannot see it from the drivers seat, but if you crouch down outside of the car and look up into the underside of the dash (inside the glove box) you should find it there.
 
Hello all. Here again with new doubts.

Wipers already fixed up. One of the connections to the switch went off. Now the system works OK.

Right fog lamp checked, wire checked... I do not find the failure. Job for the workshop, along with relay installation so that foglights work together with dipped headlights.

I cannot find the rubber plug on the trans tunnel that KiwiRover mentioned. I dismantled the plastic cover (gearlever, handbrake and ashtrays) but I was unable to find any lever for the reverse lights over there. Job for the workshop, I am afraid.

After raising the bonnet, I have found a strange device which I do not know its function. I speak about a small device located near the right hinge of the bonnet. It has some electric connections along with a little plastic pipe connection. Do any of you know what I am talking of and what it is supposed to be used for?

Other thing I do not know what it's used for is a small knob located opposite the steering column adjuster knob. It spins forward and backward for some degrees but nothing happens (apparently).

Thanks in advance and all the best.
 
Shazzbat said:
Hello all. Here again with new doubts.

Wipers already fixed up. One of the connections to the switch went off. Now the system works OK.

Right fog lamp checked, wire checked... I do not find the failure. Job for the workshop, along with relay installation so that foglights work together with dipped headlights.
Click to expand...

Sometimes the fog light does not earth properly. Does it have a separate earth wire or is it earthed throught its bracket? You can check this yourself.
Shazzbat said:
I cannot find the rubber plug on the trans tunnel that KiwiRover mentioned. I dismantled the plastic cover (gearlever, handbrake and ashtrays) but I was unable to find any lever for the reverse lights over there. Job for the workshop, I am afraid.
Click to expand...

This is on the side of the transmission tunnel, not on the top. If you pull up the carpet and sound insulation from aproximately where your left knee should be (since it is a RHD car) you will find it.

Shazzbat said:
After raising the bonnet, I have found a strange device which I do not know its function. I speak about a small device located near the right hinge of the bonnet. It has some electric connections along with a little plastic pipe connection. Do any of you know what I am talking of and what it is supposed to be used for?

Other thing I do not know what it's used for is a small knob located opposite the steering column adjuster knob. It spins forward and backward for some degrees but nothing happens (apparently).

Thanks in advance and all the best.
Click to expand...

Probably you have discovered the wiper adjustable delay system! This is what the device and knob should be for. You can find details on how this system works by searching on this forum, as well as possible solutions to any problems.
 
The access plate for the reverse light switch isn't a rubber bung, that's on the N/S (RHD)for the gearbox filler (manual cars), the reverse light is accessed through a small plate held by 2 screws and is on the side of the tunnel on the drivers (RHD) side.
 
harveyp6 said:
The access plate for the reverse light switch isn't a rubber bung, that's on the N/S (RHD)for the gearbox filler (manual cars), the reverse light is accessed through a small plate held by 2 screws and is on the side of the tunnel on the drivers (RHD) side.
Click to expand...


Harvey, i cannot explain why, but my car has a rubber bung in the access hole for the reverse light switch, identical with the one for the gearbox filler.
 
Maybe I'm thinking of getting access to the speedo cable then. TBH other than the filler plug bung I never took any of the others out, I always disconnected/reconnected both the speedo cables and the reverse light wires from underneath.
 
harveyp6 said:
Maybe I'm thinking of getting access to the speedo cable then. TBH other than the filler plug bung I never took any of the others out, I always disconnected/reconnected both the speedo cables and the reverse light wires from underneath.
Click to expand...

That's correct Harvey. Access to oil filler is rubber bung on LHS; access to reversing light switch is a rubber bung on the RHS and access to speedo cable is screw panel on LHS.

You must have very thin and nimble fingers to get to the reversing light connectors from underneath :shock: I always find that something gets in the way of getting my arm up there, such as the exhaust.
 
I doubt anybody could get their arm up to the reversing light switch, I use a long flat bladed screwdriver and flick the terminals off, to refit I use the same screwdriver to push them back on, but TBH that's after doing hundreds of them, it is "refitting is the reversal of removal procedure" but until you've had the practice chances are it will drive you nuts and you'll give up! :LOL:
 
Thanks a lot. I will have a go this afternoon.

It is strange that moving the gearstick leftwards the hole for reverse lights is on the right side of the trans tunnel. I trust you, of course, but it sounds strange. Well, I think all of it will become clear once I pull up the cover mats.

Regards


EDIT. I found the hole and accessed through to the switch. Very difficult indeed, since I am XXXL size and my hands are shovel-like.

The wire layout is OK. I connected both terminals together and the reverse lights turned on, but they didn't work when connected to the switch. I suppose the switch is dirty, rust or maybe broken inside, I do not know. The lever move it backwards and forwards trouble free, apparently.

Job for the workshop. That's why I pay them for.


Well, in two days time I will hand the car over. I will tell you then how the tale finishes.


Regards
 
Yepaaaaahhhhh

My car is fully OK!!! This morning I have picked up the car from the workshop. All the issues have been fixed up!!

The problem with the reverse lights switch was that the inner contacts were worn out. We put a pair of tin drops and now the contact is perfect. It can last for other 36 years more.

In short, I think I have one of the best P6 running out there. In order to enjoy the car at its most just new numberplates matter is left. I hope to sort this last issue out by the end of January.


Setting sail from Plymouth to Santander. 24 hours sailing ahead. Very boooooring.

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My car at the workshop. Headlamps are for LHD P6s, so no problem when registering here, but they had to be properly adjusted.

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Another view of the workshop. Car almost finished.

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My car parked outside home.

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And my two other toys. Well, better said... Pathfinder is mine and yellow Suzuki is wife's, but anyway I pay for both!

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I hope you like.
 
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