garybee

I had to replace the [split] boots on the upper ball joints yesterday as the 7 was due an MOT. it's pretty obvious why they split, with the suspension in full droop they're pinched hard between the joint and the upright. I've greased them up on the outside to hopefully give them a couple more 'jack-ups' before they will inevitably split again but I don't like the naff arrangement though. Is anyone aware of any different ball joints that could be fitted to give a bit more room for the ball joint? I don't want to be fitting rose joints at great expense to stop a 50 pence boot splitting but would happily replace the ball joints with something different if it could be done for sensible money. Thanks in advance Gary

The [sPA] speedometer in my Ginetta works in an odd way that could be related to your issue. It uses a hall effect sensor for it's pickup and the speedo' has an adjustment on the back to calibrate the speed reading. This only effects the speed reading however, the odometer works solely on the pulses from the sensor. The speedo has a required signal frequency (at 100mph) marked on it. I had to make a toothed disc for the driveshaft that would show the correct number of 'teeth per second' to the hall effect sensor at that speed. Anyway, is it possible that your speedo' works in a similar way?

I'd also be very interested in a pair of these if they were being made in a size/radius suitable for my tyres (185/60/13).

I've also been on their site looking for a wide track kit and was disappointed to see nothing there. Is this the norm or a recent trend?

Congratulations, that's great news!

Hi, I would like to buy the Duratec V6 adaptor plate and Caterham bell housing please. I would also like the steel sump if you are willing to sell separate to the engine. How much would you be looking for to to sell and post these three things to mainland? Cheers Gary

Hi Les, I might be ok now actually but I have looked into the Sierra LSDs before with mixed responses. What is the difference between the early and late shafts please and how can I tell which mine are? Gary

Still on the search for one, does anyone know someone who might be getting rid?

Excellent news, well done Simon.

Even easier then. Get a spanner on the auto' tensioner pulley (15mm on a duratec I think), release tension and slide the belt off the alternator pulley. When you're done checking the alternator bearings, swing the tensioner pulley across to get enough slack to replace the belt onto the alternator pulley and release. No mucking about subjectively setting the tension on the belts to worry about. Edited by - garybee on 28 Oct 2012 19:56:27

For those guys I was talking to at Curborough about fuel tank vents this is the item I was referring to:- link to Merlin Motorsport These allow air into or out of the tank (due to fuel used and thermal expansion) but seal off in the event the car is upside down. They also stop fuel being pushed out of the tank during hard cornering. They work by using a bouyant ball which floats on top of the fuel to stop fuel escaping during cornering and a weight that allows air past in normal operation but seals the tank if inverted. Known in aerospace as an 'air no fuel valve'. They need to be mounted vertically near the tank. I suspect the issue with the Caterham solution (hose coiled around side of tank) is that over time it is collapsing and closing itself off. Also, those cars that I looked at appeared to only have the coil of hose on the right hand side of the tank. This means if the car were to come to rest on it's right side the vent system could pour out fuel onto the ground. This would still need a pipe/hose from the valve to outside the car but as it would only have one bend in it could be made easily from copper tubing to stop it closing off.

I would like to buy these for the asking price if they are still for sale. Gary

Bit of a cheeky long shot, but I don't suppose you're heading towards the castle Combe sprint at the weekend? Would love to buy this but can't do the detour to collect. Realise it's unlikely of course but had to ask. Cheers Gary

So what's the news then Mark, how was Anglesey? Nothing on the Graduates' site yet.

Reciprocated wave to a seven (white with blue stripe) heading West between Sleaford and Newark at about 13:45. I was in a silver/yellow academy car on way home from Newark kit car show.

To summarise all this for the person who started the thread... The 1st answer you got was right, an oil/water heat exchanger will bring your oil up to temp quicker. The Laminova heat exchangers are very nice bits of kit if a little pricey. With the spec. of your car though I'm guessing the £200-£300 they cost isn't too much of an issue. For those that don't want to fork out that ammount there are plenty of mass produced cars with oil/water heat exchangers fitted as standard. Most of them are sandwiched between the oil filter and housing (fine if you have a take-off/remote filter, probably no good otherwise) but some are completely remote mountable units (I will point out one after the auction is finished on ebay so I don't have another 50 people bidding against me 😬).

All engine oil gets thinner as it gets hotter. I can see why you're getting confused though. Of the two numbers that make up a basic oil grade, the 1st is the oil's cold rating and the 2nd is it's hot rating (which you clearly know). bigger numbers means thicker and the hot rating is always a bigger number so it would appear that the oil gets thicker as it heats up. The hot rating is measured in a completely different way however, so you can only compare hot ratings against other hot ratings and cold ratings against other cold ratings. As Dr Slotter's graph shows, the purpose of a multigrade oil is to decrease the rate at which the oil gets thinner as it heats up.

Here's a picture of a Sierra LSD (if I've done it right):- http://locostbuilders.co.uk/upload/a1063104-!BgdIPdgBGk~%24(KGrHqEH-DsEsKb8vgI)BLF(jrBjI!~~_35.jpg Notice how 'beefy' the crownwheel is and how the planetary gears are offset when compared to an open diff:- http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcS23qDqYh74WrX3km15atopErUHHSHmdR0W_b7eRk8Z10DTxqUi The Lobro stubs are equal lenth in the open diff' and unequal lengths in the LSD. So although you can swap the internals to an open diff' casing it doesn't actually help, as you end up back where you started with a diff' requiring unequal length push in shafts. Most Sierras with discs on the rear had open diff's with lobro flanges. A lot of these are sold as LSDs as many people are under the belief that all diff's with lobro flanges are LSDs. Easy to tell the difference once the back is off however, or by just turning one output flange and seeing if the other rotates in the same direction (means it's an LSD). Thanks very much all . I think having a bash when I don't need the car for a while is the way to go. With luck all Caterhams will have the correct driveshafts/splines to fit a Lobro onto. Edit: Flippin eck, I actually got the picture thing right! Edited by - garybee on 16 May 2012 16:12:29

I have recently bought a Ford viscous coupled LSD which I intend to fit into a dedion S3 (during next winter probably). I am aware that this isn't a straight forward swap but intend to go this route instead of an after market LSD to fit the current diff'. I have been made aware that a member of this forum has already done this and that there may even be driveshafts available 'off the shelf' for exactly this purpose. If anyone has any information on this I would greatly appreciate them letting me in on what they know. Bit of background... The Sierra LSD, that was a standard fit for some models, has flanges for 'Lobro' type CV joints and it is not possible to fit the push in 'Tripod' type shafts found on Caterhams with a dedion rear. On open diff's with lobro flanges, the flanges can be removed (after removing the diff' back plate) and the Caterham shafts simply used as normal. With the LSD however, the internals are slightly different (offset) which means this isn't an option. Current plan is to remove the inner CV joint and simply fit a Lobro type joint to the shaft which can then be bolted to the diff'. The possible issue with this is that there are a couple of different types of shaft/spline, so it is not a certain that the Lobro type joints will fit Caterham driveshafts. It would also be necessary to fit a spring to the outer CV joint (Tripod) to keep it centred as they are designed to work against the tripod shaft on the inner end to keep each other centralised. If I have issues doing this, it would be good to know whether or not driveshafts for this purpose are available or whether I will have to get custom shafts made up. Apologies for the wordy post, but thought it necessary to sum up current findings. Thanks in advance Gary

I'm very interested in this. How much are you after for it please?

Power for illumination of the gauge will be separate from the main power for the gauge, has to be that way so the gauge will come on with your lights. Check your main power feed to the gauge to make you have 12V+ (with the ignition on of course) to rule out a faulty supply before you go looking at the speedo' itself.

I'm very interested in the tonneau and will be at Stoneleigh too. What is the gen' with fitting a tonneau to a different car though? Are the poppers' positions standardised, will they match the positions of those on my car? Thanks Gary

Blatmail sent, would very much like this please. Gary

Best of luck for this weekend Mark, hope it goes well

M10 x 1 is a pretty common thread for temperature sensors, there's a good chance that's what it is.