Foxy Smith

Best thing to grab extractor with is tap wrench ( that is tap for cutting threads not water tap) Having said that I've never ever succeeded in getting a sheared bolt out with one of these. The answer is lots of patience lots of penetrating oil WD or Plus gas a bit of heating with a gas torch will help. Do all of these not just one. If the remains of the bolt are well below the block surface I generally make up a bush to centre a drill on the bolt and progressively drill it out and end up picking the remains of the thread of the bolt out with dental instruments which you can improvise with hard wire.

Having had similar problems I saved this table and found that it was roughly correct for the sender on my Vx when tested in a cup of water cooling from boiling. In the end it turned out there was nothing wrong with the sender or gauge just a high capacity ally radiator that was'nt allowing the engine to come up to temp, solved prblem with a hardboard radiator blind. Hope this helps. Temp Resistance deg C ohms 45 263 50 224 55 190 60 162 65 137 70 117 75 99 80 84 85 72 90 61 95 52 100 44 105 37 110 32 115 27 120 23

Thanks all for prompt replies.

Can anyone let me have a copy of the instructions for one of these or point me to a Website? Thanks Foxy

Like you all Roger Green's pictures made me shudder as for some time now I have been concerned about vunerability in rear end collision. Given the low profile of the seven the chances of being rear ended by unobservant drivers are high. My major concern however is that of the fuel tank which is a fragile article in our cars. It sounds from the article that Roger's tank was split/damaged and fuel spilled. What could happen after that doesn't bear thinking about especially given the fact that most of us use multi point harnesses and require steering wheel to be removed before getting out of the car. In my car the boot floor has been replaced with ali honeycomb by a previous owner. I'm not sure how much additional rigidity or protection this offers if any. I'm still giving thought as to how the tank can be further protected until then I'm keeping one eye on the mirror in vunerable situations.

My car was converted from Clamshells to cycles for the previous owner 2 years ago by Caterham. The job was done properly including reskin and respray. I was told the conversion cost just over £1500 but there is no documentation to support this. Hope this is of help.

Yes, one of the first ones I looked at. But as I was really looking for a tourer the gearbox put me off. That and the noise the gearbox made. I thought the car was interesting and the owner had some good ideas re the dash and switch gear just a shame that none of his little projects were completed.

What was the deal then Arnie? Bought the car? or just the gear box?

Anyone know a source for a proper radiator blind? High capacity alloy radiator is keeping my engine from reaching proper running temp and although my natty sheet of hardboard is doing the job I would like something that can be fine tuned as the weather gets warmer.

Red and slate accordingto the wiring diagram for Pre '93 Vx. I'll check on my '92 Vx tomorrow if you want.It's too dark out there now to see.

Thoughts 1. Petrol in tank? 2. Pick up pipe in tank obstructed, disconect fron pump and blow back down into tank (if there is crud in it it's still in the tank) 3. Try running the pump with the output disconected and directed into a suitable container. 4. Check filter in pump

So do I

I've traced a non-functioning reversing light to the fact that the connector to the gearbox switch has come adrift. Peering through the small gap in the tranny tunnel I can't see a lot. Can someone please give me a clue as to where the connector plugs in. '92 HPC/BGH Rocket gearbox (but believe this is still the standard 5sp 'box casing). Ta Foxy

Could I hijack this thread and ask a related question. What do people generally carry in the way of jack/tools. Are there ultralight jacks/wheelbraces availiable for touring? Also how is the problem of luggage security approached e.g. when on the ferry or wandering around those quaint little French towns? Thanks, Foxy

Anyone know what the appropriate oil is to fill the gaiters on the outboard CVJs on De Deon axle? TIA Foxy

George Polley is on 01435 863679 I was down there on Tuesday getting tyres. George showed me the new 048-R which is not availiable here yet although he tells me that Lotus are testing them at the moment and are very excited about them. It looks a bit like an 032 but with deeper and more aggresive tread pattern. Probably not availiable till next year unfortunately.

Try www.europaspares.com for a variety of options on the number plate lamp.

TF I've spent the last few months looking for an HPC. One of the early cars I looked at was an ex Mithril (Goodwood) car which had been fitted with a Quaife six sp sequential by its new owner who I understood is a test driver for what used to be Tom Walkinshaw racing. I have to say that the gearbox put me off bigtime. It was incredibly noisy, much more noisy than other straight cut boxes that I've driven previously or since. I also found it ackward to use especially going from neutral into first but I'm sure that you would get used to it. To be fair the cars owner was obviously a brilliant driver and certainly knew how to use the car but even he struggled at for example junctions where you had to clunk down from third or fourth to find first again to pull away. I have also been told subsequently that this gearbox is pretty heavy which is the reason it has not been popular in the Seven.

Not sure about the Carcoon specifically but a similar device uses SS cylinders filled with silica gel or similar to absorb moisture. When these are saturated they can be dried out in a domestic oven. I would have thought that a small dehumidifier running in an enclosed garage will achieve the same effect and not be too costly to run plus the water collector could be connected up to a hose to discharge outside. Nothing to keep an eye on then.

I understand that it is common practice in starting more exotic racing engines to spin up the engine on the starter without firing up to prime the scavenge and pressure pumps and establish a supply of oil to where its needed. It strikes me that this could easily be achieved by isolating the coil and petrol pump, turning the engine over a few times on the starter and then switching pump and coil on from dashboard switches to fire up the engine. Does anyone think there is any merit in this or is it just a good way to drain your battery?

Incredibly noisy, drive one before you convert. The noise alone put me off although the speed of shifting is incredible.

Making the spare wheel carrier removable is a great idea. One issue that nobody has addressed is what do you do about illuminating the reg plate which presumably now stuck to the bodywork. If a lamp is fastened above the plate surely this will obstructe the wheel when you put the wheel carrier back on. Am I right, is it not a legal requirement to illuminate the rear plate??

Thanks Arnie, I should have made it clearer the engines are in cars. Your comments obviously still hold true. What about the oil catch tank,is there any significance in large volumes of oil being present here? I'm surprised to hear about porosity problems, I've had experience of this before with Ford tractor engines - not funny. Presumably the best place to detect water in the oil is on the filler cap/dipstick?

I have three Vx 2.0L lined up to look at over the next week or so with a view to purchase.(Only allowed to buy one unfortunately) Two of these are dry sumped and whilst I understand the principal of dry sump have had no practical experience of them. Can someone pleaase give me some pointers as to what to look for problem-wise in a second hand dry sumped engine. Or comments on the Vx engine generally would be appreciated.

Thanks guys for replying to Dave's posting. I'm the guy thats looking for the car and I've sorted out my registration with Blatchat. One of the problems about having a common name like Smith! I'll contact you directly after the break. I would say my interest now is definately turning to the Vx engine. I'm surprised that there are so many low mileage Vx's out there, don't you guys enjoy driving your Sevens??? ;-) Thanks All speak to you soon.