bxhunt

Off my HPC, four minilites with virtually unused Proxes R888 (still with bobbles & coloured bands!). Front 185/60 R13, rear 205/60 R13 (fitted in 2020). Wheels in good condition with just a few marks from flying gravel. Collection from East Sussex or will package up for courier. Happy to send more photos if required. £550 Thanks for looking. Barry

Graham, the answer is yes and yes; original 45s Caterham manifold fitted when built by Caterham as a race car in1994.

PM sent.

I had a similar problem when I switched from Weber 45s to Omex injection. I found that a Pipercross sausage filter and a blank backplate could just be made to fit. Very tight but just possible.

I had the same problem with my 1994 VX race car and the first thing I had to address was the rear calipers; they had to be replaced as there was no facility for a handbrake. Then I found that there was no mounting point under the dash for a handbrake lever and nothing in the transmission tunnel to route a cable. Finally there was no bracket on the de Dion assembly to mount the cables. Hopefully you are in a better situation than I was. Have you checked all the other points I mention some of which are shown in auyt's diagram? Just to finish the story; I ended up by buying a 1965 Mini handbrake, made a mounting point on the transmission tunnel, fabricated a link to the twin cables, made a bracket to fit to the de Dion assembly and fitted it to the new road calipers I had purchased. Good luck!

Well done BlatChat. Wheels arrived today.

Paul, PM sent

Baggiebird - PM sent.

Hi Ian, Yes, I've done a lot of research in the past for both my 165bhp Crossflow 7 and my Blackbird engined car - both of which I raced. And yes, you are right, 13" are way better and much lighter. I'm keeping the 13" for the track. However, what I'm looking for is increased ground clearance which 50's on 16" will give. I don't need the ultimate handling for the road. Interestingly, R888Rs which is what I am running. have a better range in 16" than in 14" or 15". Cheers, Barry

I have 13" for track use but would like some 16" for road use to preserve the sump, flywheel bell-housing,etc. Original HPC wheels would be ideal as it is a 1992 Vx 2litre ex race car. Anybody got a set sitting unused in a garage anywhere please? Thanks, Barry

I need to replace the springs on my De Dion HPC which has wide track front suspension. All up weight including fuel and me is 615 kilograms and weight distribution is 52% rear/48% front with equally weighted diagonals. I'm running Toyo Proxes R888R on 13" wheels. Mostly road use and some track day. I know that there are theoretical formulae for calculating spring rates but I would be very interested in practical experience and any information on what contributors find works best for them if anyone is willing to share it. Many thanks, Barry

Thanks I'll try them on Monday.

When I removed the engine the L/H engine mount bracket fell apart. It had obviously been cracked and held in place by the weight of the engine. It appears to have been re-welded at some point so ideally I would like to replace it with a new(er) one. Does anyone have any ideas where I might get one? Caterham parts don't list it - probably not a great demand! All thoughts welcome.

Thanks for all the advice. I suspect that re-installing is probably more difficult than removal. At that point I might think about modifying the engine bay diagonals!

Thanks. That's really helpful - just what I was after. Also very useful points about the pulley and dry sump system. Unfortunately no removable diagonal! Again, thanks. Much appreciated.

I am about to replace the gearbox on my 1994 HPC. As this necessitates removing the engine which appears to be a tight fit in the engine bay I wondered if anyone has any useful hints? Such things as best points to attach lifting chains, angle of removal, removal of propshaft to enable gearbox movement? would be helpful plus any other thoughts that will save me time and angst. Incidentally, I have all the necessary lifting equipment and have frequently removed X-flows so I have a probably misplaced confidence in my ability! Thanks.

That's great. Thank you all.

I assume it's the original axle on a 1994 HPC race car. There don't appear to be any identification marks so I am guessing. Barry

Any help please with a couple of questions? 1. What grade of oil do I use in my de Dion LSD back axle? 2. Any easy way to undo the filler plug as it appears to be baulked by the de Dion tube? Thanks, Barry

Eventually I did it with a length of steel bar with holes for the studs. It took over 300lb to do it - whoever tightened it didn't know his own strength. Tightening at only 200lbs was a doddle! Thanks all.

Great, lots of really helpful ideas. I just need to find a 20 stone gorilla to sit on the end of my 27" breaker bar and with luck the nuts will loosen! Thanks.

Thanks all. It was the 1/2" breaker bar I broke! Now purchased a 3/4" breaker bar 27" long. I had tried the steel bar trick to stop it turning but mine was too short - all it did was lift the car - so now I'll get a longer one. Good idea to support the hub. I had checked and the L/H side is definitely a left hand thread. Once again, thanks for the ideas.

Has anybody got any tips for removing the rear hub nuts please? I have tried the brake on technique but they are so tight that I have broken the wrench - certainly well over 200 lb/ft and I don't want to have to resort to the angle grinder!

Thanks Elie. I'm assuming it is the Sierra option. Is there any information anywhere about how to fit it? Brackets, leading, trailing, piston size?