Talk Morgan Forums Morgan Sports Cars Maintenance & Servicing Dave's Diary of 'Making it Better' Chapter 2

I've been busy again on the Roadster, and have found some time to give you another instalment. I'll be sending a "Brief" to Miscellany so maybe we'll see it in there eventually.
Here we go then...
When the Motolita steering wheel is fitted, it leaves an unsightly raw plastic edge around the cowl. I’d pondered how to improve this for some time before hitting on a solution.
I had a length of ‘U’ section neoprene left over from my rear number plate modification. This was quite easy to slot over the plastic edge and really makes quite a difference.


My hood is black mohair, which has spent most of its life folded. It needed a thorough clean on the inside as the frame seems to leave black marks on the lining. I used Autoglym external hood cleaner, which was very effective. More difficult to solve was that the two front corners of the hood had worn smooth & shiny, by rubbing on itself. It didn’t justify a replacement hood, (perish the cost!!) but constantly caught my eye in the garage, so once again I gave this some thought.
Finally I decided to stick a slightly curved mohair patch on each side to act as a buffer. These take the form of ‘eyebrows’ and I made sure that the line of pile followed the original hood pile. A couple of weeks before taking the plunge I experimented with various glues on some scrap mohair and heavy duty Bostick provided the best join. Although this sounds to be a bit of a bodge, it looks much better than the shiny patch, so I’m happy.




As you know, under the dash is a mish-mash of wires and bare panels. I wanted to cover this area not only for the aesthetics, but also to provide a barrier to damp. I’d already had to replace the bulkhead carpet in front of the pedals and around the steering column, and had some carpet left over. I fitted this first in the centre section over the tunnel, next around the steering column, and finally in the passenger footwell. I’m very happy with the results (which look better than the photo’s suggest as the flash makes the carpet look shiny & grey).






Today - the weather became more bearable, so I looked again at the brakelamp relay situation. First I needed to find a location under the bonnet which would be reasonably protected from the weather, and without the need to drill any holes. I made up a small stainless steel bracket which fits on the cooling hose bracket using the existing allen bolt and hooks over the top crossrail. Next I made up the required loom. At this point, all I will say is those of you familiar with wiring relays will know what to do. Those who are not confident, leave it to an expert. Basically the original two wires off the brake lamp hydraulic switch are transferred to the accessory terminals (30 & 87)of the relay, and a switched live is taken from the brake lamp switch to energise the relay. (86->85->Earth). This means that the current passing across the brakelamp switch is reduced significantly. In the world of MG (where I’ve been for so long) this mod extends the life of the hydraulic brake lamp switch. The existing wiring does not need modifying, so all can be put back as it was if required. I’m also considering a ‘step two’ to this mod which involves a microswitch on the brake pedal to energise the relay, but that’s for another day. Here's the installation:


Under the offside front wing is a metal box, self tapped to the inner wing panel and there to protect the steering column and universal joint. Where the steering column goes behind this box there is little protection from ‘weather’. I tried a number of approaches to making a better seal at this point, but none were satisfactory. In the end I used two pieces of closed cell neoprene, one on the inside and one on the outside of the hole, They are superglued together and this makes a large grommet which works well. Here's before and after. The before shot shows very clearly how big the gap is.




And this shot shows the arrangement with the protective box removed.


Finally, one of the securing screws from the protective box provides a handy point on which to fix a nylon clamp to hold the throttle cable off the steering column. Mine had rubbed from new. This is a very simple mod.
And that's it for now. I hope you find my ramblings interesting. The front mudflaps are no 'further forward' as I must rethink the fixings. I may have to drill one or two holes this time!!

Well done Dave, I find these really interesting. Can I have my new Aero delivered to you for fettling when it is delivered?

Oooooo......let me think

Well, it may take a week or two.......

No problem, but you obviously wouldn't need the ignition keys...

Now that, Aeroman, would be a proper challenge.........

Anyway - There's been a short exchange on Mogtalk about jacking up under the front tube on traditionals, and as it happens I knocked up a wooden pad to avoid slippage. It's not pretty, as I used some offcuts which were laying about. It's worth thinking about if you like dirty fingernails.
That trolley jack, by the way was £22 from ASDA about 25 years ago and it still works. That's ASDA Price Ching Ching.

I love Dave's Blog!

As a side note, the next version of the forum software has a blog section for individual users. I can see Dave being one of the first to use this feature.

(and before anyone asks, I don't have an ETA for the upgrade yet... thinking of it, Dave could you knock me up a hardware/software upgrade if I gave you some plasters, some paper-clips, a few Bic pens and some Bluetac? )

Simon,

Given all Dave's posts about improvements and the recent posts on new car issues it might be worth MMC employing him in the QA dept.

Dave do you need an agent?

Oo-er!
Actually Simon, I've used all those things in the past. It's my Blue Peter apprenticeship with Val, John and Peter Perfect.
I'm only just getting started. There are more ideas in the pipeline. The hardest thing was getting the picture posting sorted. Quite frankly the photo hosting sites are a pain in the proverbials. Give me a sheet of stainless,a hacksaw and a box of assorted fasteners anytime. Aside from my vintage ASDAJack (Ching Ching), I built a tracking gauge about 30 years ago from some offcuts of wood and a few nails, and have never paid for tracking since.

Asbojohn - good idea. 2.5% commission OK?

This is by way of an update. I added a pair of grommets to cover the bearing. This was done by cutting a slit with a Stanley knife, then supergluing the edges together.

Post Photobucket Reboot from January 2009:

I've been busy again on the Roadster, and have found some time to give you another instalment. I'll be sending a "Brief" to Miscellany so maybe we'll see it in there eventually.
Here we go then...
When the Motolita steering wheel is fitted, it leaves an unsightly raw plastic edge around the cowl. I'd pondered how to improve this for some time before hitting on a solution. thinking
I had a length of 'U' section neoprene left over from my rear number plate modification. This was quite easy to slot over the plastic edge and really makes quite a difference.



My hood is black mohair, which has spent most of its life folded. It needed a thorough clean on the inside as the frame seems to leave black marks on the lining. I used Autoglym external hood cleaner, which was very effective. More difficult to solve was that the two front corners of the hood had worn smooth & shiny, by rubbing on itself. It didn't justify a replacement hood, (perish the cost!!) but constantly caught my eye in the garage, so once again I gave this some thought.
Finally I decided to stick a slightly curved mohair patch on each side to act as a buffer. These take the form of 'eyebrows' and I made sure that the line of pile followed the original hood pile. A couple of weeks before taking the plunge I experimented with various glues on some scrap mohair and heavy duty Bostick provided the best join. Although this sounds to be a bit of a bodge, it looks much better than the shiny patch, so I'm happy.





As you know, under the dash is a mish-mash of wires and bare panels. I wanted to cover this area not only for the aesthetics, but also to provide a barrier to damp. I'd already had to replace the bulkhead carpet in front of the pedals and around the steering column, and had some carpet left over. I fitted this first in the centre section over the tunnel, next around the steering column, and finally in the passenger footwell. I'm very happy with the results (which look better than the photo's suggest as the flash makes the carpet look shiny & grey).







Today - the weather became more bearable, so I looked again at the brakelamp relay situation. First I needed to find a location under the bonnet which would be reasonably protected from the weather, and without the need to drill any holes. I made up a small stainless steel bracket which fits on the cooling hose bracket using the existing allen bolt and hooks over the top crossrail. Next I made up the required loom. At this point, all I will say is those of you familiar with wiring relays will know what to do. Those who are not confident, leave it to an expert. Basically the original two wires off the brake lamp hydraulic switch are transferred to the accessory terminals (30 & 87)of the relay, and a switched live is taken from the brake lamp switch to energise the relay. (86->85->Earth). This means that the current passing across the brakelamp switch is reduced significantly. In the world of MG (where I've been for so long) this mod extends the life of the hydraulic brake lamp switch. The existing wiring does not need modifying, so all can be put back as it was if required. I'm also considering a 'step two' to this mod which involves a microswitch on the brake pedal to energise the relay, but that's for another day. Here's the installation:



Under the offside front wing is a metal box, self tapped to the inner wing panel and there to protect the steering column and universal joint. Where the steering column goes behind this box there is little protection from 'weather'. I tried a number of approaches to making a better seal at this point, but none were satisfactory. In the end I used two pieces of closed cell neoprene, one on the inside and one on the outside of the hole, They are superglued together and this makes a large grommet which works well. Here's before and after. The before shot shows very clearly how big the gap is.





And this shot shows the arrangement with the protective box removed.



Finally, one of the securing screws from the protective box provides a handy point on which to fix a nylon clamp to hold the throttle cable off the steering column. Mine had rubbed from new. This is a very simple mod.
And that's it for now. I hope you find my ramblings interesting. The front mudflaps are no 'further forward' as I must rethink the fixings. I may have to drill one or two holes this time!!