"Hazel" - a series 1 V8 daily driver

I've now got Hazel's carbs back on & have a few observations.....

There is some water collecting from somewhere just below the o/s rocker cover:

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(I don't think that gasket is seated correctly :rolleyes::LOL:)

I don't know where that's come from :hmm: There doesn't seem to be anything mixed in with it. There's also a weep on the temperature sender housing (which I haven't removed):

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There's also a leak from both carb fuel bowls/feed pipe which I thought I'd sorted 'on the bench'. This is an old pipe - just like the new - neither have a lip or similar for the fastening nut to clamp to, so they can be just pulled out :oops:. I'm sure I must be missing something:

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I've set the chokes now per the factory manual & it looks like starting will be much easier going forward because the o/s choke was hardly opening when the n/s was quite far open! Here's a general pic of the connections:

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I have bought all the service items from a P6 supplier & the kit includes the following air filters, as compared to the originals (the new one is at the bottom):

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Will these be better or worse than the old ones? They tear easily.... :

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:hmm:
 
The new ones need rubber rings both sides of them, the old ones you had don't. The new ones are more like the OE ones from back in the day, but TBH I prefer the type you had on it.
 
There's also a leak from both carb fuel bowls/feed pipe which I thought I'd sorted 'on the bench'. This is an old pipe - just like the new - neither have a lip or similar for the fastening nut to clamp to, so they can be just pulled out :oops:. I'm sure I must be missing something:

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Yes, you are missing a rubber O ring that fits over the end of the tube, and as it is squeezed from the nut, it provides the seal.
Check if the old ones are stuck in the bowls' inlet.
 
The new ones need rubber rings both sides of them, the old ones you had don't. The new ones are more like the OE ones from back in the day, but TBH I prefer the type you had on it.

They came with those rings & I've installed them, so they should be OK.

Yes, you are missing a rubber O ring that fits over the end of the tube, and as it is squeezed from the nut, it provides the seal.
Check if the old ones are stuck in the bowls' inlet.

They have the small rubber O rings in, but they don't seem to clamp against anything....... ahh, I see - they will need to be put round the tube before it is fastened in, not put in the hole first as I've done... :rolleyes:
 
Fuel leak now sorted - thank you guys :thumb:

I am doing a full service including the points, shown here before setting the gap statically:

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I've changed the rotor arm - the new one is the red one. When I took the distributor cap off, I saw that the rotor arm could be moved, which must have been down to the bent pressure clip as seen here. The new one is a much tighter fit:

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When I replaced the HT leads & pulled the king lead out, the end came off & it didn't look very healthy:

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I also reset the chokes as per the factory manual - they were well out of balance meaning the n/s jet was lowered well before the o/s. This would contribute to the poor starting that Hazel has always had & perhaps the sooty state of the n/s carb. This is the link that you need to adjust - you may be able to see that I've effectively 'pulled the chokes apart' by lengthening the connecting rod.

From this:

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to this:

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So far then, the king lead was duff, the rotor arm was loose, & only one choke was working most of the time.... :oops:

This is really the problem with trying to keep several classics on the road at once; you don't keep on top of things as you'd like to :(
 
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Going to replace the distributor cap, I found that that the brand new one when fitted has some serious rotational play in it, whereas the old one doesn't :mad:

Surely it must be designed for a slightly different dizzy, & presumably if I fitted it to Hazel, the timing could be all over the place?
 
Was that black rotor arm arcing on the inside Phil? This guy is amazing, not Rover. D3Sshooter
But he has a V8 MGB.

There's some info on his channel! Not sure about the arcing, Brian. There wasn't any particular damage etc on the rotor arm, just the usual muck.

Are you sure you weren't putting the new cap on 180 degrees out? They rotate a bit when you do that...

I'll check that Mike, thanks.
 
Back to setting the chokes - I've had to re-do these because the n/s choke spring had slipped off its tab, meaning that the jet dropped quickly & without resistance. Thinking about it, this carb was like that when I removed it, so it will have been running over-rich on this side & it is probably that one issue that caused the car to be undriveable :oops:

I'm not being very technical, I'm afraid but reporting what I've found. This spring isn't specifically mentioned in the factory WM:

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The other end of it must be located under this arm (it's pretty tight & awkward to fit):

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I drove Hazel for a few miles last night to see how it performed - what a transformation! :D. The idling speed just wants dropping a little, but apart from that it ran really well.

It just goes to show that keeping on top of servicing & checking the relevant measurements on a regular basis will keep your car in great running order. I must try to practice what I preach! :oops:
 
It's the best part of a year since I prepped the new NSR wing, which I fortunately sprayed in the summer when it was warm & dry. A bit of flatting & polishing brought it up to a reasonable standard:

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This will soon go on the car. I have taken the old wing off & I'm very pleased to report that the inner wing & wheel arch are in great condition :). I will clean & 'kurust' the area & spray 'shutz' on whilst it's accessible:

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The old wing is going to be skipped unless anyone wants it FOC & will collect. The upper part isn't great but otherwise it's only surface rust, plus it's not had 'series 2' holes in it:

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I think I could also let a similar wing go that's poor under the rear light, but good elsewhere, if there are any takers. That one even has a repair section to go with it, cut from another wing.

I will be putting Hazel up for sale in the Spring as I'm wanting to slim the fleet down. It has a really good base unit that hasn't had much work done to it (as can be seen earlier in this thread). Keeping 4 classics on the road can become a bit of a chore & whilst I have enjoyed Hazel very much over the last 15 years, I've got to do something!
 
I'm still slowly plugging away at fettling Hazel, although tbh it's been rather too cold to be bothered for most of the last several weeks ;).

I got the osr wing on & then I decided to tidy the bottom of the sills up. They can look particularly poor on series 1 cars in a lighter colour as any rust (even surface) detracts from the overall condition of the car, especially if they're wet, when the rust almost looks black.

Fortunately it was all surface & so I've derusted the relevant bits & I'm prepping them for painting. I should be able to do this on a milder day soon, as I'll use my modeller's airbrush just to feather some new paint in. It will also be in front of a fan heater on the bench :)

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The actual underside of the car & middle sills are still in very good condition & have had only minor work in its 53 years:

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A good wire brushing & another dose of 'Shutz' should keep it looking this way.
 
I also decided to fully bleed the brakes & replace the brake fluid. This went well until I came to start the car a few days afterwards & the pedal went to the floor :oops:

As there's no evidence of lost fluid, I suspect that it's now in the servo & that the slave cylinder seal has given up. I've got a full service kit, so that's the next job on the list :rolleyes:
 
If the servo has the fluid there will usually be a lot of white smoke out of the exhaust. My money would be on a failed master cylinder seal. The master cylinder seal can be quite happy, until you ask it to operate beyond the stroke it normally uses, as in bleeding operations, then it may have rubbed over some corrosion in the bore and damaged the seal.
 
I have bought all the service items from a P6 supplier & the kit includes the following air filters, as compared to the originals (the new one is at the bottom):


Will these be better or worse than the old ones? They tear easily.... :

:hmm:

Why not use the common type from the 2 litre Montego. 3 times the length but fit inside the housing.

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