Grim Reaper

The comment regarding the modern engines being cleaner during manufacturing made me laugh! I recently bought a brand new VVC unit from Rover,took it apart to give the head to Oily,and the rods off to fit steel ones,and there were bits of metal already embedded in the big end bearings! The engine has never been started (there is no soot or combustion markings in the bores or on the plugs) so it looks like the unit "may" have only been run by an external source to make sure it turned over. Clean my 🙆🏻

I live in Middlesbrough,in the north east. If an arrangement to meet half way or something could be made then the deal is almost done. I should (crossed fingers) be free for the next couple of weekends. A trip straight down the M1 or across the A66 is no problem.

£150 Sounds good but the problem is getting them! I took a quick look at UPS's guestimating chart and 78Kg standard service is around £58!! I can't think when I would be over that way anytime soon in order to pick them up. What to do 🤔

Er...£150 for the lot? wheels and tyres? Assuming they are in good nick? I would be interested! (Ah,but then I am nowhere near Wales ☹️) Edited by - Grim Reaper on 1 Dec 2002 20:03:01

Blimey, gentlemanly conduct! Chivalry is alive and well and living in London of all places! Alas my sump is a deep standard Rover one from a VVC lump,not the shallow Caterham one,though if the existing steel sumped motor is in a "normal" installation,then mine would be the one to go for. 😬

I have a superlight in black,with the carbon nose and wings left bare. Looks OK to me,more resistant to stone chips and scratches than paint,a clean every now and again with MER bumper cleaner brings up a shine and waterproofs it. Do it now while it's still relatively cheap,it'll cost you more if you do it in the future.

Is it like a wax crayon? bright pink? I got a couple of them at the Bike show last year,haven't used them much,you could have one of them if you like.

I just happen to have an Alloy sump for a standard K series,with oil pick up available as well. Interested? For those also looking for parts for a 1.8K, I have 4 brand new,never used,standard rods and pistons,with shells, and a brand new,never used VVC inlet cam and gubbins.(upgrades done to new engine so not required. Offers?

It is possible that the piston itself is binding and the poor handbrake action is a result of this. The only way to be sure is to get a seal kit and take it apart (in this order it makes it much less hassle)and clean it out. A friend of mine had his car fail on Handbrake at MOT time,he took it apart and found the screw thread on the handbrake actuator was mysteriously stripped A previous owner had obviously not known about the fact that the piston screws back in and just used brute force,a vice of some other instrument to force it back. The handbrake was therefore not operating properly on that caliper. Check it,or alternatively,get a new caliper,they should not be too expensive.

Ah! I spoke to Arrow yesterday afternoon,their designer was most helpful but he could not determine (at the time) the grade of the rod from the information which I had written down as being marked on the side of it. The numbers are stamped in and do not match current markings so he deduced they were a few years old.the 82 could be an older part number but he does not know what the other numbers are. the II,HH and EE are lightly engraved on the caps and there is an A very lightly engraved on the rod in each case to the left of the numbers. There is also a 7 engraved on the opposite side to these markings,now as the man from arrow says they use the same grading as Rover (5,6, or 7) I don't know if this is the grade or if it has been put on to remind somebody that these rods were for a Seven. Could we get hold of the original owner of the rods and see if they remember or have any ideas? The only other thing to do is put some shells in and use plastgauge to work it out.

I think it was just a case of being in the wrong predicament in the right place at the right time Will the standard shells fit the Arrow rods? i.e I assume the reason the shell sizes have been chosen to match the size of the rod hole to the size of the crank pin.Will the same size (yellow and blue) shells fit the arrow rods? Am I better off getting standard shells or Lead Indium ones? Any takers for the bits yet? (Oh,and Dave...have you got the Timing belt tensioner bits? 'cause I can't see them anywhere in my garage?) Edited by - Grim Reaper on 4 Nov 2002 12:59:41

I am in the process of upgrading my engine and have decided (with advice from Dave Andrews) to upgrade Con Rods to steel items. However,the original rods,on examination,seem to have had their big end bearings installed the wrong way round,with yellow and blue shells on each rod,and the yellow ones on the bearing cap side. The Haynes/Rover manual states the bearings should be installed with the thicker (blue) shell in the cap side....have Rover put it together wrong? Also, even though the engine was brand new and had not even been started,the shells had marks in them and some embedded particles and as such I feel I should upgrade/replace the shell bearings...what information do I need to order them and does anyone have any suggestions as to where I can get them from? The engine is a 1.8 VVC (EU3) currently being converted to solid by DVA, The Crankshaft stampings are B:BBB The original Rods are marked 25 7 / E 1,2,3&4 for each cylinder The New rods (sorry,second hand from DVA) are Arrow and are marked 1..82 53 / HH 82 53 2..82 123 / HH 82 123 The numbers either side of the / relate 3..82 127 / EE 82 127 to bearing cap / Rod sides in each 4..82 130 / II 82 130 case I therefore have a complete set of 1.8 Rods and pistons for sale,brand new and unused,a Brand new VVC mechanism and inlet cams and valves and an original Rover alloy sump pan. Any takers?

The de-dion rear calipers are sierra items.have a look at a sierra manual for more detailed instructions. To free up the operation,try screwing the piston back in then use the brake pedal to readjust it back out again (use a block of wood a little thinner than a disc between the pads) do this a few times (it may take up to 200 presses of the pedal to get the piston back to its original position each time)The handbrake mechanism self adjuster is a screw thread on the back of the piston so it takes some time to adjust itself. To remove the cable from the caliper,you have to loosen the cable adjuster ( a white plastic screw adjuster ) which is just above the diff casing in the tunnel (very difficult to get to) possibly take the tunnel cover off and get to it that way , maybe even remove the metal plate at the rear end of the tunnel if you still cannot get to it.

Try a local "fluid fitting" specialist (under pipes and fittings-flexible in the yellow pages) who should be able to supply parts for or make up to your spec, Aeroquip hoses. Easy enough to buy a length of hose and the end fittings and do them yourself I would suggest getting several extra olives then if you are not happy with the results you can take it apart and do it again.get them whilst getting the fittings,it saves a trip back to the supplier and only cost about 40p each. Don't tighten the ends up fully,leave about one full turn or so undone and do the last bit on the car and then you can get the orientation of the fitting correct (the hoses do not twist so the end fittings have to be tightened up to suit) I have done several brake hoses for both motorcycles and for the seven (the rear brake hoses from union along top of de-dion tube and onto calipers) with only a couple of remakes. none have leaked in use.

The Motor unit has to be removed from the bottle in order to fit the electrical connector,it is held in place by the metal clip. Just ease the motor out by pulling the connector end at 90 degrees to the bottle edge,it is held in place by the moulding of the bottle, the motor wil come out of its rubber seal by pulling in line with the motor and there is about an inch of tube sticking out of the motor unit into the bottle. Use some KY jelly on the rubber to aid fitting. 😳

I have more than one car I can use it on

Or your feet are in the vicinity of the radiator grille. 😬 Either way,I agree,If you manage to hit the dashboard,the little bump created by the odd switch or two is going to be the least of your worries!

True,the engine does come bare of ancilliaries,but an EA49 kit from Caterham,comes with new shallow sump pan,baffles,dipstick,Starter motor,Engine mounts,Coolant tubes and various other goodies for less than a grand.An alternator won't cost that much and (bearing in mind that this was a VVC,though the standard 1.8K was the SAME PRICE) the VVC head is the better place to start if you are going down the modification route.The only thing is unless you have a VVC ECU,you'll have to do all the mods before you can run it with an Emerald ECU. Did you get the ECU supplied with the kit? And the immobiliser? Dave Andrews also suggested fitting an electric water pump,the K engine apparently suffers from localised boiling around the exhaust ports which leads to cavitation and Head Gasket failure.

Just ordered a 2.5Kg tin of Rubbercoat from Carlife,around £28 inc p&p. 01943 870148...51 Oxford Avenue,Guiseley,Leeds LS20. They said a 1Kg (£17)tin was enough for 2 good sized wings,I decided an extra £10 or so for more than twice that and I would do a few other things as well. I have heard that it goes off quite quickly so use it sooner rather than later once it's open.

Colin, You say "Engine £4500" Is this the cost of the engine from Caterham? I don't want to burst any bubbles but I bought a Brand new,crated 1.8 VVC engine from my local Rover dealer for £2850. I too went down the kit less engine route,bought the powerplant I wanted and Dave Andrews has the head in his Oily hands at the moment. You can get an awful lot of bits for the other £1650.

Bruce, Your location says North Yorks,(bearing in mind that North Yorkshire is a large county)where are you ?....I am in the middle of building a Superlight in Middlesbrough,

Julian, I seem to remember seeing somewhere that a system used with silicone fluid needed to be flushed through with methylated spirits before using a normal DOT4 or 5.1 fluid. I also remember a comment that Brake fluid and Clorox bleach makes a lot of smoke 😬 Though I don't know in what quantities By the way,got the Clifford kit,thanks for that. Fitted it last weekend. Not got a battery in the car as yet so I'll not get to test it for a while.

Tony, Got your email,I tried to reply but seems not to like it. Spoken to Powerspeed,they are already making your pipe but I have tried to explain what was explained to me by Dave Andrews to them (if you see what I mean) The exhausts ideally need to be on an upward angle as they leave the head so as not to give any resistance to the exhaust gases which are heading that way because of the upward angle of the ports as they leave the cylinder. The standard caterham manifold (4 into 1 within a foot) has the pipes welded at 90 degrees to the manifold plate,this has the effect of making the exhaust gases bounce off the top wall of the pipe shortly after it leaves the manifold thus causing disturbance to the flow. I have tried to explain this to Powerspeed who now understand what I was looking for but,due to the restraints of space in the engine bay and the strengthening crossmembers down the sides feel they will not be able to give the ideal shape to the pipes. They say they will do the best they can to give them an upward angle as they leave the ports but it is always going to be a compromise. There is a possibility of taking the primaries up and over the cross member then back down again but this may leave some piping coming out at a different level to the rest and nowhere near the original hole. What they really need is a bare unpanelled chassis with an engine in it to get the best route. Hope this clears things up a bit.I did a little sketch but as I couldn't send it that was in vain. Regards, Dave.

Tony C, Thank you....it would seem that Powerspeed are going to use your car to make my pipes while it is there,I am still building my kit so cannot get it down there for them to fit it,hope you don't mind? I have asked them to make it the same as one they made for Mick Smith,long primaries and secondaries. Dave Andrews advises the pipes need to come out of the head with an upward turn to follow the general direction of the port,could you make sure this is the case? My engine is (will be) a VVC headed 1.8,porting done by DVA and Larger valves/Piper cams. Hope the exhaust turns out as good as they are said to be. Regards, Dave.

Not sure if the thermostat on the K series is the same,but,following an accident where all the water drained from the system, and a short drive home,the wax thermostat in my UNO deposited its contents into the cooling system.I now have a skin of wax in the expansion tank.Could this have happened to you? Of course if the thrmostat is not a wax type one,then this will not be the case. The Meaning of Life Part VII;Death