Matthew Willoughby

It's got to be worth the risk Chris. They're so cheap!

Still available.

I'm interested in the tatty rear wings. Do they have, or have they previously had, protectors on? Can you let me know how much you would like for them please?

I know of a Brian James Minno Max that will be available shortly. An SV is a bit of a squeeze but will fit on if you don't have wide wheels.

13" x 5.5" Weller steel wheels painted black. Standard Caterham live axle fitment. Not immaculate but perfect for a cheap track set. £75 4 x 185/60R13 Yokohama A539. Dated 2015 with almost full tread (7mm in the centre) having only done a few wet track sessions. £125 Collection only from near Lincoln, 10 mins from A1.

Spax dampers were fitted to all Scholarship cars up to and including 1998, the first year with Vauxhall engines. 1999 cars had Bilsteins. My 1998 car had Spax fitted until I put Bilsteins on it last winter.

Redline sorted me out when I need new Spax springs/dampers for my Classic Grad.

There are several sets currently for sale on Pistonheads in the "parts" classifieds.

I think Bricol's got it. I had another play this morning and had the same problem initially. Having turned off the master switch the engine kept running, even when I then turned the ignition switch off. I turned the master switch back on and then the ignition key worked when used to switch off. I then had a bit of a play with the alternator wiring but everything seemed to be alright. On all subsequent tests the car switched off immediately on the master switch. I noticed that the alternator whine mentioned in post #5 had stopped and decided to check the battery voltage to make sure it was still working. I seem to have killed the new alternator. What I think has happened is that the master switch resistor has failed which led to the failure of the original, old, alternator. Having fitted the new alternator I checked that I was getting an output, which I was. Having stopped the car on the master switch a couple of times the new alternator started to whine. Later in the weekend the car exhibited the running on issue for the first time. Thinking it was a switch issue I changed the master switch, but not the resistor. The problem seemed to go away but soon returned. Now the new alternator has failed the master switch is working just fine. All of this, to my mind, points to the resistor. I've just got to work out where it is so I can change it for the one that came with the new master switch.

Thanks for all of the comments. JK, in answer to your questions: 1 - it isn't linked to the fan as it does it irrespective of being hot or cold 2 - I'm afraid not but the wiring hasn't changed which suggests this isn't the cause. I have fitted a new master switch to rule our a MS fault. 3 - the alternator was the one that Redline stock for X flows and 8v Vauxhalls. It wasn't exactly the same but the connections were similar. Could switching the wires around on the alternator cause this problem? 4 - the alternator charges just fine but it does make a nasty whining noise so I'm going to send it back to Redline. I don't think the whine is related to the running on issue. The ignition warning light isn't connected for some reason, and never has been during my ownership, so I have no reason to think this is linked to the problem. Chris, your problem seems very similar to mine. It feels as though the car is continuing to run on the alternator as the engine revs drop momentarily when switching lights on and when I stall the engine to turn off I immediately lose all other electrics. I need to have a closer look at all the alternator wiring. SM25T - many racers use the master switch to turn off. I understand that as long as it is a properly wired FIA switch this will not cause any problems. I tend to do it this was as scrutineers will always check that the master switch stops the car and I want to know ASAP if I have a problem as I don't want to fail scrutineering.

As a bit of a change from the usual "my engine won't start" threads, I am regularly suffering from the opposite problem. When I come to switch the engine off, which I generally do via the battery master switch, sometimes the engine switches off immediately, other times it stops reluctantly and often it merrily keeps running, even with the master switch and ignition keys switched off and removed. The onset of the problem seems to have coincided with fitting a new alternator after the old one failed. Could this be the cause in some way?

Jonathan, You might want to check the date on your CR322s. If they originate from when your car raced with the Graduates they will be at least 13 years old as we moved to Yokohamas in 2005.

I agree with Oliver. I have similar marks on both sides of my car from when the A frame bush disintegrated very quickly due an overheating diff. This allowed the axle to move from side to side, causing rub marks identical to those in the photo.

Thank you both for your help. I hadn't considered Arch.

Can anybody advise who would be best to do the following to my Ital axle please? Check it's straight and re-align if required Replace the A-frame lugs beneath the diff Replace the damper mounts on top of the axle - the current ones are slightly ovalled

I needed to change the alternator on my 1.6 VX. As a slightly incompetent mechanic I did a search earlier today to see if there were any tips and to check whether or not I needed to remove anything in order to get access. I found this thread and thought it would answer all my queries. The question was perfect but unfortunately nobody had responded so I was none the wiser. In the end I decided to just have a go. Having been successful I thought I would post here for anybody searching in the future. I put the front of the car up ramps to get access underneath. I then unbolted the expansion tank and moved it out of the way but I did not need to disconnect any of the hoses. This created enough space to jiggle the old alternator out and squeeze the new one in. It is a tight squeeze and involves quite a bit of trial and error but it works.

I have a set of black steel Weller wheels as fitted by Caterham to their live axle cars. Not in perfect condition cosmetically but they are straight and would be perfect if blasted and powdercoated. They don't have tyres fitted. I'd be happy with £100 for them. I'm based near Lincoln, 10 minutes from the A1.

Just thought I'd give this a bump in case anybody has a 1600 VX 8v engine they no longer need.

Midlands Tyre Shaving are in Soham, Cambs. They do a great job but it is a faff getting tyres fitted and then finding time to take them for shaving. Most of the Classic Grads use tyres shaved by Polley so I think I'll be going that route this year.

I use Polley and find shaving beneficial. Polley can shave them roughly or you can go to Midland Tyre Shaving (Google them) if you want a slightly better job doing.

Update in case anybody else needs them in the future. Bilstein in Leicester gave me a bag of them. They never got around to posting them as they had initially promised but when I dropped in they had them ready for me. I've got a few more than I need so drop me a note if you need any.

On ebay here: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Adjustable-Spax-dampers-to-fit-Live-Axle-Caterham-/132080590415?hash=item1ec09dde4f:g:ykUAAOSwUKxYjua~

I have removed the fixed platforms from my dampers in order to fit adjustable platforms. I've removed the circlips and made a mess of them so they are not re-usable. Can anybody confirm what size I need to order so I get the correct replacement part? I can't seem to find what I'm looking for on the Caterham parts website.

I would take it to the rolling road at Northampton Motorsport. They are Weber dealers and specialists in tuning them.

Hi Jochen, sorry I missed the word "new" in your post when I looked at it in a rush earlier. I will email you with an offer. Matthew