AdamQ

I'm sure I've read somewhere on here that a loose spark plug can make a fair old din, though I'd have thought that would be independent of RPM. Still, FWIW ... Good luck with tracking it down ...

I got them from Tegiwa Imports: http://www.tegiwaimports.com/wheels-tyres/tyres-cat/nankang-ar-1-ar1-road-track-tyre.html Unfortunately the prices seem to have gone up somewhat since my purchase - they were £60 and £77 resp. a while ago - either a mistake on their part or some sort of offer I guess ...

Does anybody who's converted an under-dash handbrake to a tunnel one still have all the gubbins for the under-dash version? If so, I'd be interested ... Thanks, Adam

I've got one pair available if that helps ... Drop me a message if it does. I was thinking of £20 + P&P if that seems reasonable. Regards, Adam

Ratios are 2.66 1.75 1.26 1.00 0.82. It's done 19,000 road miles plus three track days since it was created by BGH and has always behaved faultlessly. It has the short input shaft. Included in the price will be a once-over by Phil at Road and Race Transmissions. I'll be taking it there early this coming week. If you are genuinely interested but need a long input shaft, I'd suggest that would be an ideal opportunity to make the change. As ever, Phil is pretty busy at the moment so it might be a few weeks before it's available. £1500. P&P not included! Very happy to answer any questions. Thanks for looking ...

I've just got a cheap and cheerful non-FIA battery master switch out of sight under the dashboard - one of the best modifications I've ever made as it pretty much removes the ? over whether or not the car will start after a lay-up of a few weeks (ISTR it took about three weeks on my car for the immobiliser light (and whatever else might have been sapping charge) to drain the battery just enough to cause starting problems).

I have a fixed suede Momo - 260 mm I think. The only point I'd make is that the suede is easier to grip if you're wearing fleece-type gloves ... I've never gone for a quick-release because I wouldn't want to have to take it off every time I left the car and knowing my luck some blighter would pinch it ...! (I'm not really that cynical ...!). I can see the point about the Q-R making it that much easier to get in and out though. Excuse the opportunism, but I have a Racetech Q-R boss and upper column for sale should anybody be interested ... FWIW ... Adam

Re. the handbrake, I'm sure I read in one of the many posts I trawled through on here that somebody had done it - I know plenty of people have gone the other way. I sort of assumed (naively maybe) that once the chassis was stripped and in Arch's hands pretty much anything was possible - within reason ...! Thank Ian and ECR for the worthwhile suggestions - appreciated.

Thank you both. I like the thought of a powder-coated engine bay - sounds v smart... New bushes sounds like a good idea - one hears lots of tales of woe about fitting them oneself. I like the suggestion about the fog and reversing lights - will investigate ... I've avoided poppers in the rear skin by using neodymium magnets - one glued into in the female popper in the boot cover, another Araldited inside the boot - it works well ... Thanks again, Adam

I'm nearing the final stages of stripping a 1999 De Dion prior to having the chassis sand-blasted, powder-coated and re-skinned by Arch. Regarding the 'internal' panels, I can't see why most if not all of them can't be re-used - am I missing anything that makes this a false economy? Regarding other things to do whilst I'm at it, my own thoughts and a search of the archives have resulted in the following list. Remove stubs left over from spare-wheel carrier Move handbrake to under the dash (I prefer the 'cleaner' transmission tunnel) Shorten passenger footwell (car is a DIY Duratec conversion so this gets rid of the botch required for that in order to accommodate the bellhousing, plus I just like the extra space in the engine bay) Engine bay diagonals are already removable so no changes required there Are all driver's footwells created equal? This Duratec conversion required some subtle modification on the driver's side, another identical one on an ex-racer didn't, hence the question ... Filler and dipstick hole in gearbox cover Flexible rear brake lines A-frame is in a fair old state so I'm considering a new one with a spherical central joint (rather than renovating the current one) Lowered floors - they seem to be all the rage, but I've not felt the need so wasn't going to go that route ...Any suggestions from others who've been down this path and have got to the end and thought 'I wish I'd done that while I had the chance' would be very welcome ... Thanks, Adam

But apart from that, how did you enjoy the play Mrs <strike>Washington</strike> <b>Lincoln</b>...?! D'oh - mortified with shame and embarrassment - plead mitigation and off to buy smaller wine glasses ...

That's good to see - I'd missed that when searching recently ...

I agree about Tayna - recently bought one for another car - great service, good value and they seem good. That aside, the most practical modification I've ever made to my Seven (to several in fact) is to fit a battery master switch to isolate the battery completely - got fed up with buying a new Banner or equivalent every year just because of the immobiliser light and other drains on the battery. I've always just gone for the cheap and nasty master switches (~£5.00) rather than the FIA ones - my understanding is that as long as you turn the engine off in the normal way via the ignition an FIA version is not necessary. Powervamps were going for about £45 a few years ago but seem to have doubled in price since then - I would still highly recommend them though. FWIW ...

Soft Bits for Sevens original half hood for S3 imperial chassis with standard FIA (single diagonal) roll bar. Green with yellow stripe. Storage wrap. Complete with fittings, including special popper bases. £100 + P&P at cost or collection from near Sevenoaks. Please message me or call on 0781 007 3021. Thanks, Adam

Thank you all for your replies - the reassurance is much appreciated. As for noticing a difference on the road, in my case, it'd probably be only when there were snow chains on one side that I started to detect a slight difference between left and right ...! Thanks again, Adam

Following a favourable review here recently and having found a set of 185s and 205s for an irresistable £274, I've just taken delivery of some AR1s. Maybe I'm being a bit thick or just demonstrating a complete lack of tyre knowledge (or both), but given that the tread pattern is asymmetric I was expecting one front to be the mirror image of the other front and the same for the rear. However, that is not the case - the two fronts are identical, as are the two rears. Is this correct? Having visited various websites selling them, none offers the option to specify a left or right fit and all the images on Google show the same pattern (there are no mirror images that I can see). Confirmation (or otherwise) would be greatly appreciated ... Thanks, Adam

Hi Ian, I'll take the cycle wing stays if I may please. I'll PM you separately. Regards, Adam

Thanks for all the replies - I'm glad I asked ...! Adam

My 1999 car is in need of substantial amounts of TLC, which includes a great deal of powder coating. On the strength of that, rashly and naively possibly (though it seems to work), I've bought a DIY powder coating kit. The next thing on the list for attention is a front damper. The curing temperature for this kit is 180°C for ten minutes - that seems to me pretty close to the melting point of rubber (and probably not great for the oil inside the damper) - so my question is, are the dampers painted or are they powder coated prior to assembly or, given that it's only ten minutes, can I put some tin foil round the rubber bits and go for it ...? Have people had damper units powder coated before without issue? Any thoughts most welcome ... Thanks, Adam

FWIW, there's a description of what I did at http://www.blandings.net/duratec.htm#throttle And discussion of a subsequent modification at https://www.lotus7.club/forum/techtalk/changing-jenvey-throttle-lever

Hi Tom, I'm interested in these. I'll send you a message so you can send me some pictures if you wouldn't mind. Thanks, Adam

FWIW, I've found that in certain places, e.g. the boot cover, those neodymium magnets are an excellent alternative. I bought a size that fits inside the female half of the popper, i.e. the half that fixes to the boot cover material itself, secured it in there with a dab of Araldite and then fixed some inside the boot, again with Araldite (you need to make sure the polarities are right, obviously ...!). It works a treat ... Anyway, FWIW ... Adam

I don't know the answer to your question, but, as I'm sure many others do, I have Emerald maps for a couple of Duratecs with Jenveys if that's any help - happy to email them - say the word ... Adam

Hi Graham, I'll take this if I may please. I'll send you a message about payment and with address details. Many thanks, Adam

Hi Tom, Is this any use to you: http://www.blandings.net/images/cat/WP_20140401_009.jpg http://www.blandings.net/images/cat/WP_20140401_010.jpg http://www.blandings.net/images/cat/WP_20140401_011.jpg It's from an Imperial Seven from 2000 ... Please drop me a line if you're interested. Cheers, Adam