Squire's voitures

[mercrocker]

Nice to see the Minor coming on like that.....

[Hooli]

You need to learn how to make a cup of tea lad, you forgot to put the teabag in that one.

you bastad, I spat beer out when I read that

You're welcome

[fried onions]

This is the body details plate from the Minor. They are attached to the front nearside tie plate in the engine bay and most look like this now, or are missing completely if the tie plates were replaced. Fortunately, someone has made reproductions faithful to the original, so I have deciphered the codes and ordered one. That will be nice when I restore the engine bay.

IMG_0281.JPG (692.61 KiB) Viewed 2745 times

I also bagged a Gold Seal 948 engine and smooth case gearbox off eBay. Though I already have the seized 948 engine I had been on the lookout for a Gold Seal rocker cover for the 'factory rebuilt' decal. Now I have that, and the correct engine with it. Fingers crossed it won't want much doing to it.

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

Nuffield Metal Products.

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

With the 948 on the floor, add a battery to power the coil and starter and fire it up. It’ll run for 5 without a rad if there’s coolant in the block.

[Hooli]

I'd expect it to run off across the floor like that, or is that only if they are revved?

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

Be fine. You won't be chasing it down the road.

[fried onions]

I will whip the cylinder head off, inspect what is revealed and then attempt to run the blighter. All I can say now is that the engine/gearbox was successfully collected and the engine turns.

[fried onions]

Well my old proles, it's press-release time. Oil & filter change on the big Humber with some restorative painting of associated parts. Maintenance schedule is to change the engine oil every 2,000 miles and the full-flow filter element every 6,000. The reality is I change the engine oil every 3,000 miles and the filter at the next oil change, i.e. 6,000. Rootes constantly developed these engines so that in their final form they had a disposable 'spin-on' canister oil filter and 6,000 mile engine oil change interval, although the bearing metallurgy had improved. But these engines do seem sensitive to oil quality and run noticeably better with fresh oil. I switched from Morris Golden Film to Duckham's by the way. A tenner premium but much greater ZDDP content which is important for these old engines. I still can't think why Duckham's ceased production years ago only to re-launch recently, but I get the impression the brand is managed differently now as some 'heritage' crap.

Less conjecture, more affirmation.

The oil filter cover was looking the worst for wear, as you can see from this photo when I did the top-end job.

IMG_6428.JPG (489.6 KiB) Viewed 2708 times

The silver it was painted in appeared to contain a lot of green, but looking at what my local Range store had on offer I opted for Peugeot Moonstone Blue. The reason for this was twofold. It looked a good colour on the tin lid swatch and more importantly was not an Audi, BMW or Ford colour, which were the other nearest matches, but I could just not countenance applying one of their coatings to my car. As the last vestiges of the Rootes empire were acquired by Peugeot-Talbot, it was the right thing to do. It looked right, too.

IMG_0294.JPG (984.43 KiB) Viewed 2708 times

I had to give it a couple of coats of clear lacquer as directed on the tin, because the raw paint was alarmingly susceptible to damage by petrol, which of course it will be regularly subjected to when cleaning. I gave the lower filter housing a thorough clean for the first time in my ownership and removed quite a lot of mud-like sludge. By the time I'd finished it was clean as a whistle and ready to take the different oil. 3 pints remain in the engine's oilways however, which must be taken into account when re-filling the sump.

Otherwise, with a lot of time on my hands, I had been thinking about the engine cooling fan. This of course is belt-driven and permanently working. I regulate the engine temperature by having a summer and winter thermostat. However, it struck me that on the odd dry day I use the car in winter, it was not necessary to have an 8 blade fan whirling away, especially during the crucial warm-up period. So I consulted my books and the Rootes engineers had evidently given this field much thought with every model, as each had a different fan. Series I, 6 blades 12". Series II, 8 blades 12", Series III, 4 blades 15", late Series III onwards and Imperial, 2 blades 15". Thermostats differed too. Series I and II had a bellows type element opening at 77 deg. C. whilst later cars had a wax element opening at 88 deg. C. with a higher rated radiator pressure cap.
You can see the difference quite clearly here in this photograph of a Series I and Series V engine.

IMG_0274.JPG (723.26 KiB) Viewed 2708 times

There are a few options open to me. First and foremost I am limited to the 12" fan because of the cowling (on later cars the cowling was deleted).

IMG_0273.JPG (685.04 KiB) Viewed 2708 times

I am trying to remove the Series I six-blader as it will fit in my car's fan cowling. Failing that, I could either remove the fan completely throughout winter, as it will probably only be needed in traffic, or remove the cowling and see if the two-blader fits. Bearing in mind I have fitted an eighty-odd degree bellows 'stat. It's a lockdown quandary for sure.

[Hooli]

When I had my MG I ran a winter 'stat all year, it seemed happier warming up properly.

Glad you see you're not considering the stupidity of an electric fan, I fitted one on the MG once & then slung as far as it'd go over the hedge. Not having a fan running all the time resulted in fuel vaporisation in traffic even in quite cold weather.