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Well after a ton of work over the last few days, she’s finally home. Please forgive the mess that currently passes as my work bench. Still in the process of sorting through all my tools.
A downpour began just as I slipped her inside the garage.
{-Zella-}
1984 BCW Model 52 kit on a
1969 VW 1500cc drivetrainWell I decided to spend a few hours with Zella yesterday afternoon and she’s alive!
I changed the oil as it smelled of fuel and was way overfull. I’m guess she puked the contents of the tank into the crankcase from sitting all this time. I also cleaned the oil strainer and noticed a good amount of sludge in the bottom of the strainer cover. Guessing the gas in the oil helped clean her internals.
Next I opened the tank and it was spotless. The fuel filter was also spotless so I threw a few gallons of fuel in the tank and cranked her until I got fuel at the carb. A few pumps of the pedal and I held it to the floor and she fired up. Ran a bit rough at first but after feathering the throttle for a few minutes she was warm enough to idle on her own.
Went back and checked for leaks and I had a big one where the fuel line from the pump hooks into the carb bowl top. I thought it was the line and went to remove it from the brass nipple and the nipple pulled out of the aluminum bowl top. So that quickly ended my tinkering with her.
While I was at it, I found the clutch cable was unhooked from the pedal. I was unable to hook it back up with the little play I had in it and found the cable back where it hooks to the clutch lever on the trans was looped and clamped to shorten the cable. I loosened the clamp, hooked the cable back up to the pedal and re-clamped the cable but I don’t think I got enough slack out of the cable. It sure doesn’t feel like the clutch disengages. Dad was over so I had him jump in the car and depress the pedal with the car in gear and I wasn’t able to roll it.
So my question is should I be able to really notice in the pedal stroke when the clutch disengages or are the clutch springs not stiff enough to really allow you to feel the disengagement happen? Maybe I just didn’t get it tight enough as the clutch lever on the trans only moves about 3/4″ before the pedal bottoms out. Thanks!
{-Zella-}
1984 BCW Model 52 kit on a
1969 VW 1500cc drivetrainGlad to hear after all this time she fired up and ran.
Leave it to German engineers.
I told my VW mechanic they’re like (no offense) cockroaches; YOU JUST CAN’T KILL THEM!! 😆
After the next nuclear war these old cars are going to be the ONLY cars that will run. No ECU’s, fancy fuel injectors, not even a CD player(some not even a RADIO) 😯
It’s the KISS principle!!! 💡
Amor Conquista Todo
It is not unusual for old clutches that have sat for a long time to stick. This might take some doing. Some people have broken them free by putting the car in high gear and rocking it.
Re: The clutch adjustment: You can turn the screw at the clutch arm in the transaxle. You can unclamp and make the loop a little bigger. You can do those both. Do the clamp thing first. You should get clutch then–and, yes, you will feel it.
But you might not: the trouble could be on the “hook” at the pedal. They sometimes crack there, and you might not even see it if you aren’t looking for it. Pull the pedal assembly to check that.
And if the pedal is good, and you still can’t get the clutch to disengage even after tightening up the cable quite a bit, then maybe the clutch lever arm is cracked or bent. This happens occasionally too. So then you drop the engine and have a look.
Thanks guys. I spent more time working on Zella today that I should have spent on my garage, but it was hot again so I decided the shade of the garage was much better.
I found I hadn’t preloaded the clutch cable enough. After a few bouts with tightening the cable, I was beginning to feel a clutch. A hydraulic clutch conversion will be high on my priority list.
I also bought a new battery ($90 with core), and epoxied the gas line nipple on the float cover to stop the leaking.
Once she was warmed up, I took her down the road a few times to get a feel on how she handled. At this time, she’s fairly smooth up to 40mph. Once above 40mph, it starts shaking pretty wildly. So the wife and I cruised into town for ice cream this evening and drove some winding back roads on the way home.
So it’s nice to know she will run and drive, but until I have the time to dedicate to making her long trip worthy, she will be restricted to 35mph back road trips.
My wife loved the ride, and that makes me happy.
{-Zella-}
1984 BCW Model 52 kit on a
1969 VW 1500cc drivetrainI had a very similar experience (without the ice cream). Turns out that my tires, which looked great and had plenty of tread were 10-12 years old and were delaminating inside. At the tire shop one of the fronts could not even be balanced. New tires fixed the problem.
😉
p.s. Don’t forget about that “bendy clutch tube thingy” when adjusting the clutch.
Thanks Kall, I’m fairly certain it’s the tires. They’re original, but with the baby here within a few weeks, Zella’s going to have to wait to get new shoes.
{-Zella-}
1984 BCW Model 52 kit on a
1969 VW 1500cc drivetrainI just got 5 from discounttiredirect.com
165/80-15 Nankangs, I think. Something under $300 to the door. Still need to mount them. The old ones are only 6 years old and have just 20,000 or so miles on them. But it’s time.
Thanks Ed. I’d much rather stick with an American made tire, if I can find them. Ironic, I know, considering the origin of half the car.
{-Zella-}
1984 BCW Model 52 kit on a
1969 VW 1500cc drivetrainWell, zero progress has been made on the car.
My wife blessed me with a beautiful and healthy son, July 1st at 10:16am. His name is Stirling.
{-Zella-}
1984 BCW Model 52 kit on a
1969 VW 1500cc drivetrainCongratulations!
Vicenç - (bee sense)
Pembroke Pines, FL
1986 Aston - BCW Model 52 - "Montse II"(1983 FiberFab MiGi II - "Montse")
Hi there Stirling.
You are going to have a great time working on the TD and cars with your dad when you grow older. Great looking son you both have. Congrats to you and his mom. You are truly blessed my friend. Oh…the TDr can wait in this case. Stirling carries higher priority. 🙂
Allen Caron
VW based 53MGTD - "MoneyPenny"
"If one thing matters, everything matters" - from the book The ShackThanks guys! He’s an absolute blessing! I took the whole month of July off, so between helping my wife take care of Stirling, I’ve been busting my butt in the garage. Almost ready for spray foam.
I went to push Zella out of the garage the other day and the left rear tire had split at the shoulder and won’t hold air any longer. I will throw the spare on it for now.
{-Zella-}
1984 BCW Model 52 kit on a
1969 VW 1500cc drivetrainCongratulations on the new addition. Treat it right and it will be a source of joy as you roll into the future.
Bill Ascheman
Fiberfab Ford
Modified 5.0, 5sp., 4:11
Autocross & Hillclimb
"Drive Happy"Awesome! Congratulations!
Stirling! What a great name for a future TD owner!
Paul Mossberg
Former Owner of a 1981 Classic Roadsters Ltd. Duchess (VW)
2005 Intermeccanica RoadsterIf you own a TDr and are not in the Registry, please go to https://tdreplica.com/forums/topic/mg-td-replica-registry/ and register (you need to copy and paste the link)
Well my update is there is no update. 😉
In all seriousness though, I’ve got a few things I need to do to Zella first thing this year. I’ll be getting some tires ordered this week and hopefully a hydraulic clutch kit as well. The fact that my wife is every bit excited as I am to get her back out on the road really helps my progress.
Those should be pretty straight forward projects to knock out and make her a bit more road worthy.
{-Zella-}
1984 BCW Model 52 kit on a
1969 VW 1500cc drivetrainWell my tires should be here Thursday, and for now I went with a cable shortening kit from EMPI instead of converting to a hydraulic clutch for now. I just don’t have the time to tackle that project right now.
I’ve had an issue with Zella ever since I got her in the air filter department. The engine cover underneath the spare tire carrier has nearly zero clearance to the carb. Some aluminum flex hose has been utilized in the past for this, but I yanked it as I didn’t like it. I ordered a silicone elbow and some 2″ stainless pieces to make a sort of cold air intake tube, if you will, to remotely mount the filter away from the carb for more clearance.
I really need to spend some times polishing her up and trying to source some rubber trim pieces as the originals are getting hard and brittle. Also need to replace all the fuel lines, change all the fluids and check some more basics off the list.
{-Zella-}
1984 BCW Model 52 kit on a
1969 VW 1500cc drivetrainZella’s new shoes came in, along with with some other goodies.
Nankang CX668 165/80R15. If my plans work out tomorrow, I’ll be stopping by the shop to mount and balance them.
Here’s a pod filter I bought along with a 2″ silicone 90* elbow and a 2″ polished stainless 45* sanitary elbow to try to get the filter tucked horizontally up against the fan tins above the generator. I don’t have clearance to mount it directly on the carb, and I really don’t want to cut a hole in the engine cover, so I’ll see what I can make work with what I ordered.
I just bought a vintage Sherwood stereo receiver on Craigslist for $45 that had amp protection relay issues so I spent a little time getting her up and going so I could have some 60 watts per channel shop music. Quick fix and it was wax time today. I also installed my clutch cable shortening kit and it went pretty well but the real test is taking her for a spin in a few days.
I’ve got 90% of Zella freshly waxed with Maquiers Ultimate Full Synthetic wax as well. I found a lot of chips that have been filled and a bunch of light surface scratches. Hopefully some buffing compound will take care of the scratches. Here’s a comparison of the waxing progress. I doubt she’s seen wax in a long, long time.
{-Zella-}
1984 BCW Model 52 kit on a
1969 VW 1500cc drivetrainLooking really good.
You’ve got the right idea, relocating the air filter. The kit MFG requires the remote filter. I used some of the silver “heater hose” that mainly goes from the heater boxes, through the tin,* to the fan intakes on either side of the carb. Clamped some on the carb throat and went up and over the shroud on the right, and hung the filter there with a zip tie. It’s not elegant, and it needs to be checked every so often because it wants to fall apart. But it works.
And right, there is no air filter that I know of that will fit direct on the carb and allow the lid to close. Just one of the fine features of the BCW!
*do you have that tin? There should be a bit of metal around the crank pulley.
I do not have the tin you are referring to. What you see is what I have.
If you refer to the pics on the first page you’ll see that the previous “filter” was connected to the carb with the silver heater hose as you described. You’re right, it worked and it sure as heck wasn’t elegant. I’m going to attempt an elegant approach here. If I need to I’ll order more stainless elbows and sch10 pipe and TIG my own cold air intake.
{-Zella-}
1984 BCW Model 52 kit on a
1969 VW 1500cc drivetrainI cut some pie cuts out of some 2″ schedule 10 stainless pipe so they’re 15 degrees total for each piece. This requires 6 pieces per 90* total angle. I laid it out today and I can get it to fit but the engine lid is just barely making contact with it where it comes off the carb so I’m going to be doing some 20 and 30 degree pie cuts to try to limit the height of the piece for maximum clearance. I’ll try to get some pics up as I go.
If all goes well, next week I’ll have it all welded up and that will be checked off my list.
{-Zella-}
1984 BCW Model 52 kit on a
1969 VW 1500cc drivetrainThis is what I used.
Quick and easy — fits right on the top of the carb.
Phil
Yep that would definitely work! I’ve spent enough time fitting up my pieces, I’m not turning back now. 😉
One more piece to cut tonight on the band-saw and I’ll be ready for tacking for fitment then weld it solid. Overkill, but a one-off piece of overkill.
It may not happen this year, but when I replace the wiring harness most of the wires will be hidden and out of sight.
{-Zella-}
1984 BCW Model 52 kit on a
1969 VW 1500cc drivetrain
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