Westfield

I like Gunk best. The smell after you start the engine when its clean reminds me of my BSA Gold Star……..

I have the same problem as Roger describes. After a good run the water expands into the header tank and remains there until I take the cap off the thermostat housing. It then drains back into the engine to the correct level. I though I had a sealed system but now I am not sure. How do I tell? Can anyone send me a picture of a car with a sealed system on so I can compare it with my set-up. My car is a 1990 W*******d with 1700 cc, 135BHP Xflow by the way. Thanks Tony

Try www.revolutionwheels.demon.co.uk 01952 616833 (Telford) regards Tony

I have just replaced the complete Lucas competition system on my 1700 Xflow (black box failed and I could not afford the replacement cost) with a Bosch system from a Fiesta/Escort with the 1300cc Valencia engine. This is a direct replacement for the Kent engine. T he modification has worked tremendously well and I have noticed a significant improvement in the running of the car (and the fuel consumption !) I obtained 2 distributors (1 for spares) from the scrap yard complete with amplifier packs (part of the distributor) for £5.00 each. I then modified 1 of the distributors to remove the vacuum advance and map the advance curve suit the cam. For mine it was 14 degrees static with the advance starting at 1300 RPM increasing to a maximum advance of 34 degrees at 3700 RPM. The mapping was a bit trial and error and took a couple of hours to do. The initial and maximum advance can be altered by slightly bending the spring posts and bob weight limiters. This is easy to do through a hole in the distributor body conveniently located by Mr. Bosch for this purpose. The wiring was quite simple with just 3 wires from the amplifier connected to the coil and earth. black + positive side of the coil green - negative side of the coil brown to a good earth I went for this set-up for several reasons. Firstly it is dead reliable, secondly parts are easy to get, thirdly it's cheap and fourthly the Bosch distributor is far better engineered than the Lucas one. The car I removed the distributors from had done 75K miles and there was no wear in the spindle at all. The biggest expense was a new distributor cap with side exit leads, this was £10.00. the part number for the distributor cap is: Motorcraft - 5005566 Halfords - HD2 515 intermotor - 45800 Hope this helps Tony

Eric Yes and no. Yes, it is the same Castrol R from pre war days that gave that evocative smell at races (same as you still get at speedway events) No, you can not use it in your Flymo as its a 2 stroke (I think) and you have almost certainly been using a mineral based oil. Castrol R is vegetable based and the two do not mix. Sell the Flymo and get a Mountfield! Tony

All this talk about the smell of WD40 and GT40 reminded me I must mow the lawn. I always add a tea spoon of Castol R40 to the petrol in the lawn mower. The smell almost makes mowing the lawns a pleasure! Tony

I have a 1700 xflow that has just refused to start. There is no spark at the plugs. I have done a few basic checks and these point to the electronic ignition unit which I believe is a Lucas one although there are no markings on the unit itself. The unit is about 3 inches square and about ¾ inch deep and is black in colour. It mounts by two 8 mm bolts through the body. The distributor is a lucas type with what I think is called a “hall†effect sensor. My questions are: Is this type of ignition still available and if so where could I purchase one and what might the cost be? If its not available what should I replace it with? I have to say that my Budget Allocation Manager (wife!) has indicated that there are very limited funds right at the moment so I may have to resort to a cheap fix to get me back on the road…… Can I use the distributor and ignition unit from a Ford Escort that has electronic ignition? I have seen these on the MK4 escort with a version of the Kent engine. Can you modify the advance curve on this type of distributor? Any help would be greatly appreciated; I was looking forward to a drive this weekend as the weather is looking good….

Wanted, xflow engine. I would consider one needing rebuild if the price was right. Tony

I have a 1700 xflow which has done about 14,000 miles. The oil consumption seems to be related to how its driven. A good session gets the consumption down to about 200 miles to the pint. I also get a small amount of oil in the catch tank. What should I be expecting in oil consumption terms?