Squire's voitures

[SiC]

Isn't this why it has a soft top for?

[BenHar]

Isn't this why it has a soft top for?

One cannot drive with the roof down and the windows up.

Ben

[fried onions]

Changed the fan belt on the Snipe. I dare say the one which shed its outer covers would have gone on for a few hundred, if not thousand, miles more. I put it in the boot as a get-you-home spare. I won't be changing it at the roadside though, because access is from underneath in a confined space, due to the length of the engine. Anyway, turning the engine slowly always gets an old belt off and a new one on as you slip it on the last pulley to get it started and turn the engine slowly to get the belt in place.

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Unfortunately the alignment of bumper hole and crankshaft dog has gone awry, a fault of these cars, and I had to clobber the handle to engage with the dog. Although it doesn't show well in this pic you'll have to take my word for it; hopefully it's not so stiff it won't disengage the handle should I ever have to start the car in this manner, otherwise I'll be the next man on the moon.

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You can see the underslung dynamo and the awkward access. The adjusting bolt is up out of sight where the fan gets in the way. I have no reference documentation for fan belts, so I was dependant on eBay listings - the V970 was listed as Super Snipe Series II but it was smaller than the old one (which was a different number) and I had the dynamo at the limit of its slackest adjustment. But I have since ran the car and took up the slack which new belts develop.

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Got me a nice old keyring at the Tatton show, that is a representation of a Snipe but could be for an earlier Mark car as they later streamlined them further.

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I think this dates the tyre to 1979, a shame its cracking as there's still over 6mm of tread left and was good for eighty-odd miles an hour, but I had the other repaired and put this vintage model back in the spare wheel well. Interesting how tyre pressures change once they are warmed up, increasing by 4 psi. And they do get very warm. The front tyres are heavily loaded on these Humbers, the Snipe has a 60/40 weight distribution and can consume frontal rubber at an alarming rate if it is regularly howled around corners. Already the fronts have 1mm less tread than the rears after 5,000 miles. The suspension bump stops do quite a lot of work too.

[Conrad D. Conelrad]

I think this dates the tyre to 1979

its cracking

was good for eighty-odd miles an hour

[Junkman]

VW fanbelt changerisation.

[youtube][/youtube]

Inspired by this, that's exactly how I did it when the R16 fanbelt snapped down Welwyn Garden City way.

[fried onions]

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[The Reverend Bluejeans]

12G202 means it's a 1098.

Looks like a Goldseal engine number.

[fried onions]

12G202 means it's a 1098.

Looks like a Goldseal engine number.

Thank you. The numbers mean nothing to me; I have also asked the Minor wallahs. The block is a 948, so it's had the 1098 head put on it. The chassis number is in the last 1000 of 948 production so could it have been done at the factory just before they introduced the 1098 model I wonder? It's academic really - at some stage the 948 block acquired a later cylinder head, it's apparently been rebuilt once and will be again very soon. We will know more once I open it up. The block is painted bronze green though, so it's very puzzling.

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

You sure it's a 948? They all had 950 cast into them at the back of the block, exhaust side. 1100's had nothing - in 61/2 BMC started putting metal plates on the back of the block instead. '1000' was a 997/998 Cooper.
The 948 head was also used on the 850 Mini. The 202 was used on the 1098 and late 997 Coopers and its virtually no different, fractionally bigger valves. The slightly bigger chambers will drop the CR. The head to have was the 12G295, the 998 Cooper/MG1100 item that was Formula Junior inspired - it looks like an S head.

The engine could well be some MoD application.

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

Is that 80 or 8G starting the number? 8G is the Goldseal A Series prefix.