Blogs

A tale of two lucky VDP's - part 12

13/6/2020

by Andy Perman

After the very "Gar" wet weather run up to Coventry where I’d inadvertently blown water into all the electrickery by leaving the cooling fan override switch on, I thought it would be a really good idea to fix the dash warning light cluster so I didn’t repeat the mistake again. Only the low fuel light in the cluster worked, although hugely inaccurate so I assumed there was something sinister lurking in the console electrics. Obviously there was no rush as it was now winter, Christmas was coming and I wouldn’t need the VDP until the Austin show at Brooklands in March., which meant I could pick a mild day to investigate as I am a southerner and not used to ‘bracing’ weather.

What that meant was my arm chair was way more comfortable than the workshop and there was obviously no suitable day as it was winter. Brooklands was almost upon me when I thought I’d better hurry up and take a look.

Armed with screwdrivers and a multi-meter I set about dismantling the centre console and removing it from the car. With it on the bench I rolled my sleeves up and got my probes ready to get stuck in proper as I rather enjoy diagnosing electrical problems. Imagine my massive disappointment when I found in the first five minutes that it was just three blown bulbs! With them replaced it also gave me a chance to adjust the low fuel warning mechanism as it was coming on quite early so I usually just ignored it.

All in all it took longer removing and replacing the console than it had to fix it. Never mind, with the engine running I now had all the lights doing what BL intended them to do - problem solved!

I attended several shows over the next four months; Brooklands (which was excellent), the Allegro club show in May and my favourite local show, the SHVPS and I was pleased to see even more rust than in previous years in the auto jumble. I picked up a couple of AVO 8 multi-meters for very little cash here, and they both worked too! Then in July there was the second meeting for the Enthusiasts of British Motor Vehicles, which was to be held at Gaydon. Again BL Dan was going, so knowing his love for all things Allegro I asked one of my fellow Allegro buddies Jon Bennett to join me. He agreed and said he’d bring his white estate that had spent the majority of its life in Sri Lanka and had quite a tale to it.

The show was excellent; I recognised a few faces from Coventry the year before and of course there was a pile of cake so high there was snow on the peak. The Stig even joined us for an hour taking a look round but not saying much! Asked him to stand by my VDP which he did for a camera roll, still use it as wallpaper to this day! BL Dan voted Jon’s estate his star of the show and had a sit in the rear of it as a treat. There was also a photographer taking lots of action shots of all the cars and I was really pleased with how the VDP looked poised on the road, a view I don’t get to see from the driving seat.

More shows followed throughout the summer, including my last visit (didn’t know this at the time) to the VDP show where I actually picked up an award! Then in August it was MOT time so I rocked up as usual 8am on a Saturday morning to be greeted by a bright yellow MG Midget and…… drum roll…… a metallic blue VDP! Upon quizzing James the garage owner he explained it was owned locally but not used a lot and it was in for a few running repairs.

I took a few pictures, noting it was a MK2 and had a gorgeous black vinyl roof. Then my attention was interrupted by James who was halfway through the MOT by now saying there was a bit of play in the steering arm, not severe enough to fail but wanted investigating before it got worse. I mentioned the shimmying hub problem and he agreed it had most likely caused something to wear out within the rack as the steering arm was attached directly to it and I’d felt it coming through the steering wheel.

The following weekend I went to see my friend Jon Bennett in London who owns a massive nine Allegros! He had recently acquired a 1500 special HL but was having trouble getting it started. As the engine is exactly the same as the VDP we could copy the settings from mine (which runs like a metronome) onto the Special. This we did, but it still refused to start. Few more checks of all the obvious drew a blank so we had a break for some strong coffee and a think. Bingo, the one thing we hadn’t checked, compression! Well the best reading we got was 60psi, the worst 40psi. No wonder it wouldn’t start! With a good squirt of oil in each bore and two batteries connected we pulled in the starter and it fired up. We even managed to keep it going for about 20 seconds until it died.

With the engine needing an overhaul that put an end to things, so we decided to remove the sump and check the gearbox. We were greeted with long spirals of swarf in the strainer so it looked like the auto box was toast too. At this point we gave up and went for a spin in his Ford Model T, like you do.

September rolled around again and I was booked into the Milton Keynes show at the end of the month. I wanted to take a look at the steering rack play before the show, so the weekend before I removed the rack from the car & got it on the bench. Whilst I was visiting Jon the previous month he’d said there was a nylon bush inside the rack that after forty-odd years becomes brittle and breaks up, causing the play and knocking I was experiencing. Fortunately another Allegro member had some bronze bushes re-manufactured to replace the nylon part and I’d bought a few from him. I’d never worked on a steering rack before, but it was surprisingly easy to dismantle and remove the failed bush. The new part fitted like a glove and it was soon all back together and back on the car with no play. Getting the tracking checked the chap said ‘you got that within 1mm, well done!

The Milton Keynes show was excellent. My VDP picked up another award in its class! I was fast running out of space on the parcel shelf for them all. Again the car drove superbly, the steering was sharp and focused, however I’d had a really interesting conversation with Ian Kennedy about the Hydrogas suspension units and the need to get the nitrogen replaced in them. The symptoms of low gas I was now noticing - choppy at the front and a bit tip-toe over rough surfaces. I decided to get the units re-charged next year when I was a bit closer to Telford where he is based.

The final show of the year was an MG show that I’d not been to before but had been invited to. It was a short drive along the coast to the town of Lancing and it was right on the sea front with great views over the Solent. More than can be said for the views of the cars - it seemed pretty much everyone who could drive had turned up, I was parked next to a Vauxhall Corsa with bigger speakers than its wheels in a line of similar dull moderns. Needless to say I spent the majority of the show on the sea front and have never been back!

So another year had passed, I’d fixed a few niggles on the car but mostly just enjoyed driving and showing it off. The most poignant moment had passed, at least to me, almost unnoticed in the MOT test garage where I’d looked at and photographed the VDP that would come my way in somewhat unusual circumstances the next year, and bring with it a whole bunch of problems, top of them all would be another difficult conversation with the wife……

To be continued.

0 Comments

The herd mentality

9/6/2020

1 Comment

by Gar Cole

I hope those of you who are our members enjoy the group and like that we are 'enthusiasts' of all British vehicles. The Admin team along with loyal members have long tried to combat deeply entrenched opinions about certain cars or marques that aren't based on experience but word of mouth. In this regard I believe we have had some success, myself included in that group that's been educated about some vehicles, which brings me to the autumn of 1986....

Back then I was a gobby car mad 8 year-old; everything I knew about cars came from Dad, uncles or guys down the local Working Men's Club, where I was allowed in if I kept quiet while the Rugby was on 😀. In those days school yard jokes were about Skoda, Lada and Reliant, despite none of our families or friends owning any of these cars it was drummed into us they were no good and to be avoided.

Walking along the canal bridge one rainy day a Reliant of 70s vintage buzzed past me with that distinctive note they have. 'Alright plastic pig' I cheekily waved at the driver. Immediately he screeched to a halt, did a quick turn around and stopped next to me. I had that dread feeling you get as a kid when you know your in for a rollicking.

Living in Birmingham, I was surprised when the window wound down and a booming Scottish voice called me a 'cheeky wee @@@@@' , but said while laughing at the same time, 'Don't you like these cars son?' Well my Dad says they are horrible'. 'And has your father ever driven one?' Nope, he's got a 3.0 Granada Ghia, I bragged like the precocious spoiled brat I was.

'Hmmm well thats very nice for him, your father is obviously doing well for himself, but we can't all afford posh cars, or even want them for that matter. This car suits me fine, it's very economical, the insurance premium is low and I can take the wife and wee one with luggage to the coast which I couldn't do with my motorbike. And did you know you can drive these aged 16?' This pricked my curiosity. 'Just think' he said, 'would you rather be soaked on your push bike at 16 or warm and dry with the radio like I am now?' I took his point as the rain was pouring off my head by now but I didn't dare walk off.

Trying to have the last word I played my Top Trump. 'Ahh but these have only 3 wheels, they tip over easily so my Dads mate said. 'Ohhh is that right is it? Tell me boy, how many normal 4 wheeled cars have you seen crashed and rolled over?' (a common sight in 80s B'ham). 'Errmm, well loads I guess'. 'And how many 3 wheelers have you seen upside down?' My eyes looked at the ground as I sensed my Top Trump was failing. 'I've never seen one rolled over'.

A big meaty hand came out the window and patted me on the shoulder 'You see son, it's never the cars fault, just the big Numpty behind the wheel! Now away home with you before you catch your death' and off he buzzed in a puff of blue oil smoke leaving me feeling thoroughly chastised. That day always sticks with me.

Fast forward 8 years to 1993 aged 16 visiting family in Wales.

My Uncle Roderick was a nutter for small British cars. He had a Morris Minor convertible, a proper Mini Cooper S and a Reliant Robin, all 3 of them in British racing green. We were visiting so he could put a new A series engine in my mom's Mini Clubman. I'd not known him long as he came into the family by marriage and I'd not seen his collection before. Naturally I swooned over the Cooper S and admired the Moggy convertible before I opened my gob yet again, 'What you want the Reliant for Uncle Rod? It must be a nightmare on these twisty pot holed valley roads'.

He dropped his oily spanner and walked over wiping his hands on a rag. 'You ever driven one?' 'I haven't passed my test yet, not 17 until next year' I stuttered. 'You can drive these though'. I shrugged my shoulders, he threw the keys at me and said, 'Come on then big man, let's see how you can handle this 'nightmare' '.

Now at this point all I'd ever driven was a 25cc moped on some fields behind the house. Unbeknown to me with Roderick being a mechanic he had that 850cc running well, mildly tuned with a bigger SU carb and a fruity exhaust, some stiffer rear shocks and a pair of fat minilights. I asked why he hadn't put 3 alloys on it and he said 'Who's going to see the front one underneath the car? Waste of money you wally brain!'. I nervously pulled out onto the quiet village road and accelerated away. Having never driven on the road before it felt quick despite never passing 30mph' it felt more like 60. I'd just started to get into it on the twisty roads between Pontlottyn and Bargoed when Police sirens wailed from behind. I stopped and freaked out, omg what's Mom gonna say, etc etc.

The policeman leaned in looking first at me, then my uncle. 'Alright Rod, ows it going? 'All good cheers Dai, just letting my nephew have a go, he don't like Reliants apparently'. Before I could say anything Dai the copper said 'I thought it had been stolen, I saw this spotty kid with the silly spiky hair doing 27mph and knew something was up - you never drop below 55mph between villages!' then he laughed and went back to his car.

At this point I'd sweated through the back of my T-shirt and told Uncle Roderick he could drive back. What followed was a 4 mile white-knuckle ride taking bends at quite high speeds with total control, even though I was convinced we were going over the mountain edge. Uncle Rod confirmed that day what the Scotsman had said 8 years before - it isn't the car, it's the Numpty behind the wheel.

From then on I've had a more respectful admiration of these basic little cars that owners seem to love.

I was prompted to write this as today is my cousin Molly's 13th birthday. Sadly her father Roderick passed away 2 years ago aged just 55. He was in the process of restoring a Reliant at the time of his passing; they even had Reliants on the cakes at the wake. His daughter Molly wants the car for her prom when she's 16 - the car is a 76 P reg Robin similar to the one in the photo. The engine and box are removed as is the steering, but the body and interior are intact apart from a broken rear window caused by local yobs. The family are trying to decide if we're going to try and find a company that's willing to reassemble the car and MOT it in time for May 2023; failing that we will have to hire one.

So am I a Reliant convert? Yes I think so; I appreciate them for what they are and what they were built for. My personal favourite is the Regal saloon with the Anglia-style fins and rear windows. If any of you owns one, please bring it to one of our driving tours or shows 😀

1 Comment

The things people say about our classic cars

2/6/2020

3 Comments

by Paul Sweeney

I recently asked our group members, "What is the most ridiculous comment you have ever heard from a member of the public about your classic?". The response was fantastic - here is a selection of the more amusing responses. My thanks to all the contributors.

A Muggle said, "Oh look, it's a horsebox!" - sent in by Dale Scutter

I had a mechanic who when looking at my Volvo 480 tried to tell me it was the same as the Civic Aerodeck
Steve Hancock

Nice car , shame it’s an MG tho
Nala Reklaw

It will be nice this time next year when it’s finished
David Bevan

“I like your Vitesse.” “Thank you but it’s a Herald 13/60.” “No it’s definitely a Vitesse. You can tell by the bonnet.”
Mike Peake

Guy looked at the front of my car which has a large union flag with Standard Coventry on the radiator and says to me ‘nice Austin 7’.
Colin Clatworthy

Nice car mate, is it a Ferrari?
Paul Steel

Can we tie our marquee to your Scimitar?
Zachary Marshall

A guy looked at the engine of my V4 Corsair from the side and commented on it being 2 cylinder.
Richard Norton

Mate of mine who was in his 30s was asked if he owned his 1959 MK2 Consul from new
Kevin Zms

If you have a Herald, they had a Vitesse, if you have a Capri, they had the 3 litre special, something else, they had the Ghia and on and on it goes until they get in their little shopping car and go home.
Andy Campbell

A herald - they don’t go round corners though.
Andy Brooker

Why d'you bother driving that old banger?
Ross Adams

Blokes at work... when you going to get a new car ?
My answer- when I’ve worn this one out ! (Triumph 2.5PI .. 31 years and counting)
David Harvey

Is that going to be a classic car when it's finshed?
Leon Guyot

I have two Allegro Vanden Plas, so there is a list, but the most common are;
An All-Aggro
The wheels fall off
If you jack it up the windows fall out
Where's the square steering wheel?

What amazes me is they think its the first time I've heard it and they are being hugely funny.
Andy Perman

Some people ask, "Why do you drive a Beetle when you got a modern car?" I reply, “Why do people ride horses when they have cars?”.
Their faces drop when two girl dancers get out and I am 70 in January!
John Newbury

Best reaction I had when driving my Magnette through town, an elderly well-dressed gent walking with his wife, stopped and stared, then applauded and said 'bravo' as I drove slowly past.
Steve Favell

You only keep it cos its tax exempt
David Sambrook

It’s got the wrong hub caps
Bill Catherall

I've been asked if my Austin Maxi is American, is it Russian, is it a Lada? The mind boggles.
Kev Sharp

Employee of Ferry company ”Do know your car is dripping oil”... me “when you’re nearly 60 you’ll leak a bit mate”
Graeme Whiting

Driving my Alfa GTV6 into a seaside car park in Cornwall and the attendant saying “you’re the first Ferrari we’ve had in here”
Howard Godolphin

At a car show I was asked if my 1968 E type had been remapped.
Peter Talbot

How could you do that to a Rover p5?
What a waste of a rover p5.
My eyes, my eyes, this can never be unseen, someone needs to be hung drawn and quartered for doing this to a beautiful rover.
Sacrilege.
That's shocking.
That's awful.
I love it.
I hate it.
Kill me now.
Yada yada yada.
Tony Tosh Brooks

About 20 years ago a committee member of the local vintage car Club said my Hillman Californian would never be a classic. Mmmmmmm.yup!
Ernie Greenwell

Is it a Cortina?
I was in my Triumph Stag with the top down...
David Reason

Driving home from a New Years Eve party with the roof down on my Herald somebody shouted out "Aren't you freezing driving that?" My retort "No just cool"
Paul Girling

I'd drop a 2.0 litre engine in that , do the arches and put some wider wheels on.
John Lonergan

That’s a girl’s car
Korey Craft

They called it a piece of junk.
So I informed them that if I wanted their opinion, I'd beat it out of them.
David Harmon

Someone at a show coming up to me and saying “Nice Zephyr mate”.
I politely explained it was a 1959 Cadillac.
Pete Curran

It doesn't look very rusty
James Butler

Driving home one evening in my black ‘54 Morris Minor, pulled up at some traffic lights and the car I’d noticed had been behind me for the last mile or so pulled up on my right, wound down his passenger window and asked me (in all seriousness); “What make is that car mate, is it an Aston Martin?”
Lee Hallam

How do you drive it without air bags and ABS?
Bruce Jones

My mate was at a petrol station and some youth said look wooden alloys!
Steven Chisnall

Man looks at my 1966 Land Rover and told me it was fantastic to see an ex-WW2 army vehicle being used properly.
(N.B. 1st Land Rover designed 1948...)
Joe Farrow

Had one chap come up to me saying 'I had one of those , it was a Ghia though ' ... 'This is a Vauxhall mate '
'I know , just saying mine was a Ghia ' ...
Zebidee Habib

Can I have a smell...?
Matt Harris

It didnt come out of Dagenham with a CD player in
Ian Woodward

A woman riding in the back of Queenie my 1954 Daimler told her horrified (now adult) daughter sitting beside her, "You were conceived in a car just like this"
Paul Sweeney

Very first outing in my Ford Corsair, it had no badges on as it wasn't quite finished. Someone asked what it was, so I told them, and they replied "Ah a Corsa, didn't know Vauxhall made them that far back!!" and yes they were serious.
Ken Bridges

I had an AA man warn me that my power steering and brakes won’t work with the engine off when pushing my Herald onto my drive.
Mike Peake

"Lovely car, is this the one with the 2.7 V6?" - standing next to my Rover P6B ("3500" badges on both front wings and bootlid, "V8" badge on grille and bootlid)
David Beadle

So its a TR7 - asked someone about my TVR 400SE
Ian Shippen

I went to look at an A40 Farina which was rotten
The seller said " You won't find a better one!"
My reply " You better look at mine parked around the corner '
James McLernon

My elderly father saw my Morris minor for the first time and said " it's so modern looking"
Rob Earwicker

My Cortina Savage estate was on stand at the NEC...Chap comes over and tells me that Raceprooved only ever built one estate Savage....I replied that the other one I had at home must be a replica....
Jack Major

Some youths as I was driving up a residential street in Plymouth- "Your car's old as f*** mate!". Didn't really have much of a comeback to that...
Matt Fowles

Rear windows on those pop out when you jack it up
They were banned from the Blackwall Tunnel
Rear wheels fall off on those
Has it got a square steering wheel?
George Beresford

I own a taxi, always roll my eyes when I'm asked if it's fake.
Roy Coker

You should keep that in a garage, you’ll wear it out if you use it.
Mitch Crancher

"Did you buy it new?“ to the twenty year old me driving a thirty year old Herald.
Andrew Spittlehouse

My sister once asked me if everything was ok? Was I struggling?
When I asked her why the concern? She said it was because I always seem to be driving the oldest car in the car park.
Nick Arthur

CEO of a well-known construction company crashed into my Morris Traveller while he was queue-jumping in his Audi (of course) last year; during the rather heated exchanges afterwards he claimed it was my fault for 'driving a stupid small car' and he was 'glad he crashed into it'!
Toby Bruce

I went to the local shops in my classic Jag and parked next to the little coffee shop. There was a cosy group of 50-something ladies supping their lattés. One leaned over the railing and said 'I suppose you think this is your chick magnet'. I was surprised as I am of similar classic car age and said that if it is, then it's not working, but maybe it's finally starting with you today. I didn't continue the dialogue. I have standards
Peter Lloyd

When I broke down in my Vitesse, a woman passer by said she didn’t know a bra company made cars
Edward McNab

A guy told me the correct vinyl roof and steering wheel on my MK4 Cortina were wrong and totally missed the MK5 seats and Capri wheels!
Richard Norton

An "enthusiast" at a show here in Australia that insisted my MG RV8 was an MGC, completely ignoring the difference between a straight 6 and a V8 ! and then argued with me
Steve Hodgson

I've got a 1955 Norton Model 19R.
At one of the rally's I went to, a man came up to me and said: "Young man, I once owned a BMW like yours, when I was your age!"
Lewis Williams

Is that a Jensen Interpreter?
Mark Rivron

Telling me my Maxi should be lowered!
Peter Thomson

All of us Singer owners are continually asked 'what's the connection with the sewing machines then?'
John Hadfield

"Why are you getting so irate, it's only an old car" by an er "elderly person" who'd just reversed into the front of my just rebuilt Spitfire 1500 outside my office.....
Simon Stock

“Did they really make them to look like that from new?” Ford Squire.
Allan Broadbridge

"What is it mate?" - "A Morgan" - "No, I would recognise a Morgan, seriously, what kit is it?" "No, really, it's a 1954 Morgan." "No, listen Mate. Morgans never made 4 seaters and are not that old" "What do you think it is then?" "Dunno, some kind of kit, that's why I asked YOU!"
Guy Loveridge

While studying the badge on the grill. "What car is it?" 'A Morris 1800.' "Is it like a Morris Minor?" 'No! More like an 1800!' "What engine's in it?" '1800' "So what is it?" 'It's a Morris 1800.' "So what kind of car is it?" 'A family saloon car.' "Is it a Morris Minor?" 'No! It's an 1800!' Walks away clearly dissatisfied.
Jacob Theunissen

3 Comments

Mildred in a lockup - in a Lockdown

1/6/2020

0 Comments

by Mark Smith

Great Aunt Mildred gets some Lockdown Pampering....Eventually!

Not sure when you will get to read this but at the time of writing it’s the last few days of May 2020, some three months into the Coronavirus Lockdown. I hope you and your families have come through this unprecedented world pandemic safe and well.

I made a mistake when the Lockdown was announced. I should have gone round to Mildred’s lock-up and liberated her but I didn’t. I left it too late to move her and so there she had to remain. Oh, some would say I should have just gone and got her anyway. After all, the lock-up is only in the next road, which is about half a mile away. From our upstairs box-room at the front of the house I can look over the gardens of the houses opposite and across the track of the Great Central Railway and see the roof of Mildred’s garage, she is that close!

I could have taken a chance and gone and got her but perhaps unlike some more modern classic cars, Mildred is a bit more conspicuous. Her design being more akin to pre-war cars than those of the early 1950’s when she was built could make a Mayflower a bit more noticeable and the last thing I wanted to do was to draw attention to myself and have someone complain that I should not be driving the car when we’ve all been told to stay at home. It would be just my luck to find there’s a Policeman stood on the corner as I drove Mildred round to home! Maybe many would say I was being a bit paranoid but as I see it, rules are rules so before doing anything I contacted Leicestershire Police and explained my plight and what I wanted to do and asked if it would be OK for me to go and collect the car, drive it straight to my house where it would be kept off the road and behind locked gates so I could carry out a few little maintenance jobs while we were all confined to home. The reply was courteous but adamant, it would be ‘an unnecessary journey’ and was therefore forbidden under the Lockdown rules in place at that time.

Time drifted by and eventually the government eased the Lockdown rules enough that I thought gave me wiggle room to legitimately move Mildred round to home so, after spending a Friday afternoon jet washing all the winter cobwebs from under the carport (which led to jet washing the whole of the drive way as it does) I eventually brought Mildred home on Saturday 16th May and work could begin. I had three particular jobs I wanted to do; one necessary and two that were mainly cosmetic.

The first of the cosmetic jobs was to sort out the rear number plate. As I am writing this piece for publication within a number of different club magazines as well as internet platforms, I had better explain to the uninitiated that the boot lid of the Mayflower was designed so that it could be lowered and used as an extra luggage platform, perhaps to strap a wicker picnic basket to. This was very much a pre-war idea and as the number plate has to be legally visible at all times, the Mayflower’s number plate was hinged so that it would hang vertically with the boot lid open. This was a problem on Mildred. An owner in the distant past had fitted an extra high visibility brake light above the number plate, obviously as a result of finding that even the traffic in the 1970’s was moving at a faster pace than Mildred was designed to do. Plus, the original small round brake lights fitted to the lower outer edges of the Mayflower’s rear wings just could not be seen clearly enough.

The additional brake light was a brilliant idea back then but as even the smallest of modern cars is now able to out-accelerate the boy racers of forty years ago, I am more than grateful for it! However, it was fitted to the boot lid immediately above the number plate mounting bracket so when the lid was lowered, the number plate light which moves with the plate, jammed on the auxiliary brake light, preventing the number plate from hanging vertically. OK, this was probably never going to be a problem to me. The chances of driving the car with the boot lid open is probably not going to be very high but I suppose I must be a little bit OCD as I like things to work as the designer intended.

The auxiliary brake light only needed to be raised up the boot lid by around a quarter of an inch but these jobs are never as simple as they first appear, are they? Of course not! Yes, I could have just moved the light, but the number plate mount was rusty. Can’t have that! As my parents would have said, ‘If a job is worth doing, it’s worth doing properly’ so off came the number plate assembly! The number plate was removed from its back plate first and then, after the wires were removed, the light was also unbolted and then the whole assembly was unbolted from the boot lid. The various parts were cleaned with wire brushes etc before rust killer was applied and then given a coat of black spray paint.

While the number plate assembly was drying, the auxiliary brake light was removed. As I said earlier, it only needed to be raised by a quarter of an inch but I had been concerned that the original fixing holes would be left visible which would be unsightly and had wondered how I was going to fill them. As luck would have it the problem was sorted for me as the mounting plate of the light was so deep that it covered the old holes once mounted in its new position. The plate fits nice and tight so should not have allow water ingress that would cause the holes to rust but as an extra precaution, I cut a gasket out of a small sheet of 1.5mm thick rubber gasket material I had ordered off eBay to complete another of the little jobs I had lined up - details on that to follow. Once dry, the number plate mount along with the number plate and light were refitted and now the assembly hangs vertical when the boot lid is open, just as it should do. Of course the auxiliary brake light can’t now be seen if the car is driven with the boot lid open but that is a whole new kettle of fish and anyway, the car is unlikely to be driven with the lid open.

Job number two was not cosmetic it was absolutely crucial! On a family Lockdown walk, we ‘happened’ to walk past Mildred’s garage and so stopped by to say hello and check she was OK which of course involved starting the car’s engine. Mildred was driven out of the lock-up just far enough to be able to raise her bonnet and do a visible check and that’s when the problem came to light; the gasket between the float chamber lid and carburetor was leaking! This was not good as the exhaust manifold is directly below the inlet manifold. This could have caused a nasty fire if not sorted so the float chamber lid was removed and the fragile gasket carefully lifted away. Luckily, I had the remains of a sheet of gasket material left over from a job I did on my 1978 Lada some years ago and that was plenty big enough to cut out a new float chamber seal. After placing the remains of the gasket on top of the gasket sheet and drawing around it, I cut it out with a crafting scalpel and fitted it in place, another job done.

Job number three was another of those ‘unnecessary but it should work’ types. The bonnet catch was made to be lockable but none of Mildred’s keys worked it. Now this could have been a problem with the lock barrel or it may be that the key had been lost in the distant past. Either way, the only way to find out was to remove the bonnet catch assembly from the car and strip it down. The catch assembly was easily removed from the car but then things got more difficult! In order to remove the lock barrel from the catch assembly, the bonnet mounting shroud had to be first separated from the handle shaft but that was easier said than done! The locking action of the bonnet catch requires a crude metal bar to be slid through a hole in the shaft where it lines up with a square hole in the shroud casting that then stops the shaft turning when locked.

My problem was that to remove the shroud, the locking bar needed to be slid through the shaft on the ‘open’ side and into a special groove that runs the height of the shroud, allowing the shaft to be pulled though the shroud once the retaining clip is removed. Unfortunately, the locking bar was positioned so that it was neither far enough across to lock the catch assembly or far enough over in the ‘open’ position that it was located in the groove and in order to move the bar over, a key was required which of course I had not got! This caused a lot of head scratching. After looking at the catch assembly from various angles, through gritted teeth and making another mug of coffee and mentally willing the bar to move, I hit upon the idea of trying to ‘pick’ the lock with a couple of jeweler’s screwdrivers. The theory being that if I carefully mounted the bonnet catch assembly in a vice I could slide one screwdriver down inside the lock to push the spring-loaded brass tangs into the side of the lock barrel, therefore disengaging the lock and after simultaneously sliding another jeweler’s screwdriver in down the side of the first one, it might be possible to get enough force to turn the lock and slide the locking bar into the correct position. It took a few goes but it eventually worked and I was able to slide the shroud off the shaft…..phew!

With the parts separated it was just a case of driving out the pin that held the lock barrel into the shaft with the aid of a small nail and tack hammer and the barrel was out. Now I would be able to see what the problem was and it didn’t take long! All these old lock barrels are stamped with the key number and it was clearly visible on this one and it did not match either of the other two key numbers, one for Mildred’s door and boot lid locks and the other for the ignition switch. On closer inspection I noticed that the only difference between the door lock and the bonnet lock barrel was the very first brass tang. The door key was missing a space for the tang to drop into. As I had a few door keys I cut an additional niche into the top of the key with the Dremel and hey presto, it worked! The lock barrel could now be turned. The bonnet catch assembly was rebuilt and after and a new gasket to replace the one that sits between the shroud and the bonnet was cut from the small sheet of 1.5mm thick rubber mentioned earlier (the original was too far gone), the whole assembly was fitted back onto the bonnet of the car. Once fitted back on, the lock was tested again and worked fine. Two new keys of the correct code were ordered plus a replacement for the butchered door key and the bonnet can now be locked as the manufacturer intended.

However, this is not quite the end of the saga as there is quite a bit of play in the catch handle when in the locked position. I believe this is caused by wear in the small bar that slides through the handle shaft when the key is turned, locking the shaft and stopping the bonnet from opening. The metal plate mounted on the end of the shaft that actually forms the bonnet catch is also quite worn. Both of these parts could do with replacing with better condition ones. It is possible there are some serviceable replacements in the Triumph Mayflower Club’s spares cache but due to the current Lockdown situation searching the stores stock will have to wait for another day!

In addition to the work carried out on the vehicle itself, I have also been filling spare moments with building a ‘period’ tissue box cover for the rear parcel shelf. The intention was to make something that could pass as being an after-market accessory, sold to the discerning Mayflower owner of the 1950’s! The cover is made from 6mm MDF, obviously a material not available in the 50’s. The top and sides are all held together with glued dovetail joints and the removable bottom is held in place by magnetic catches. The whole structure has been covered in a deep red sticky-backed felt dolls house carpet material that blends quite nicely with Mildred’s interior. For anyone that likes doing craftwork and model making, I can thoroughly recommend these sheets of dolls house carpet. They are not expensive and are easy to work with. To finish off the tissue box and connect it with the Mayflower, the Mayflower script was traced from the front of the Owners Handbook, transferred onto the reverse side of some black felt carpet material and then cut out with the modeling scalpel. Two were made and one carefully stuck onto either side of the tissue box cover. In my simple mind the result is just how I would imagine such an accessory to have looked had one been available in those early days of post war marketing.

So that is the updated situation on Mildred. A number of small jobs completed, most of which are cosmetic rather than necessary but all help to take Mildred back nearer to the condition she would have been in at the time she left the Standard Triumph factory, in function at least! All that is needed now is a return to a more normal way of life that allows the classic vehicle shows and meetings that we all enjoy to resume.

0 Comments

blogs

Categories

Archives

A tale of two lucky VDP's - part 12

The herd mentality

The things people say about our classic cars

Mildred in a lockup - in a Lockdown