[Overdrive relay?]

Thanks for your responses gents.

It appears that the issue was with the relay, not bad after 52 years. However as it has been intermittent I can’t be sure until I have some more miles under my belt.

For anyone who is interested, I got through a couple of relays with diodes in them because I put the fed to the relay coil the wrong way round. Eg I put W1 - 85 and W2 - 86. Apparently for relays without diodes it doesn’t matter, but if the relay has a diode 85 must be the earth.

So the correct wiring for the overdrive relay is:

 

C1 - 30

C2 - 87

W1 - 86

W2 - 85.

Hope this helps anyone dealing with a similar problem in the future.

[Overdrive relay?]

Thanks for such a quick reply Mike, but I have just come in from testing the inhibitor circuit with a multi meter. I get a circuit in 2,3 and 4 gears only which means that all is functioning correctly and takes me back to the relay. I have located it next to the fuse box and have a spare 12 volt auto relay I had intended for the fuel pump.

Does anyone know how the 85, 87, 86, 30 marked terminals from a model relay marry up to the C1, C2, W1, W2 terminals of the original?

[Overdrive relay?]

My car is 1969 model with the A type overdrive fitted. All has been working well until yesterday when the overdrive started clicking in and out randomly. I carried out a small static investigation today, only to find that it had got worse. Thankfully I haven’t tried to move the car because at the moment as soon as the ignition switch is turned on the overdrive solenoid clicks in regardless of gear lever position. I have carried out a continuity test on the overdrive switch by disconnecting it under the dash and putting a multimeter on it. The switch is functioning correctly.

With my limited electrical knowledge, I suspect a faulty relay, but welcome any other ideas.

Does anyone know where the overdrive relay is situated?

[TR6 PI fuel pump/supply voltage]

Hi Jim,

 

Just out of interest, what current does your pump draw before you start the engine and it has 12 volts on it?

[Fuel pump overheating]

Hi Bruce.

 I believe my earth is good having cross checked the voltage with the pump earth cable and then running a earth direct to the battery. The readings were the same. However after the pump earth disappeared into the wiring loom I never found where it came out to make it’s earth. Where exactly is your original pump earth?

[Fuel pump overheating]

As promised I am providing some feedback on my overheating fuel pump.

Whilst  I was away for a week I left the pump with an engineer to examine. ( Toni Dwornik proprietor of Classic Car Services Oxford. )

He found the reconditioning of the pump to be of poor quality. For example the the end float screw was too loose and the new bushes had not been concaved before assembly. After Toni had reassembled the pump and had given it a bench test, I refitted it to the car. The pump is now able to deliver more than the max 110 psi required at the MU and therefore the pressure relief valve can come into play.

I have been testing it over the last few days and so far no problems. The electric part of the pump still gets hot but the impeller part stays cool. I assume the higher rate of fuel flow keeps it from heating up.

What have I learnt - If an item on the car needs reconditioning, only exchange with a trusted source or better still have it done by someone who knows what they are doing.

[Fuel pump overheating]

Many thanks gents for all of your replies.

Got very excited today when I thought I had found for cause of my troubles. The copper washer on the bolt that holds the filter between the top and bottom casing was knackered and letting in air. After sorting that out the fuel pressure at the MU increased by 5psi.

Sadly the pump overheated again after about 30 mins of running.

My work is taking me away for week so there will be no update for a while. Having considered all the advice, I intend to get the pump looked at and have already taken it off the car.

I will let you know what happens.

[Fuel pump overheating]

Thanks Rob, that’s sounds like an excellent suggestion.

It makes me wonder if whoever reconditioned these pumps set the end stop for the pump to deliver 105 to 110 on the bench.

I’ll sleep on it and see if I’m brave enough to invalidate my warranty in the morning.

 

Once again many thanks,

 

Ashley

[Fuel pump overheating]

The car is a pre inertia switch model.

The old pump was able to drive for 2 hours on the hottest day on record ( 37/38 degrees ) and that was with worn seals and fuel dripping from the overflow pipe. So surely a reconditioned pump should be able to manage 25 degrees.

Thanks for the suggestions gents. 
 

Since posting, I have continued to scratch my head over this. I think that having just fuelled the with 25 litres of cool fuel and yet the pump still overheats after 20 mins is some sort of indication of where the problem lies.

[Fuel pump overheating]

Hi Andy,

Thanks for your response. 
Although hard to believe, I was trying to keep my tale of woe as short as possible and therefore missed some information.

Like you I suspected a possible feed problem and changed the filter. There was no issue with the fuel flow to the pump.

I mentioned the voltage drop as according to my research this is fairly standard on the early 6s. I think that the wiring was changed after a year or so of production. Electrics aren’t my favourite subject, but I can’t see why the pump would get hot because of a slight drop in the voltage.

Thanks again, and of course if I ever get to the bottom of this I will post the answer.

[Fuel pump overheating]

I had enjoyed ten years without any trouble from my Lucas fuel pump and was mystified by reports of the pump overheating in hot weather. Then in July of last year, on the hottest day of the summer it finally happened. With less than a quarter of a tank of fuel the pump started to scream and finally the engine cut out. Some fresh cool fuel got the car going again and all was well on the 2 hour drive home apart from a smell of petrol coming from the “tell tale” or pump overflow pipe.
I therefore exchanged the pump for another from Moss but didn’t use the car much as I was fitting new UJs to the propshaft and winter came too early for me.

At the end of March and the beginning of lock down I filled the car up and then left it until a couple of weeks ago. Finally when out for a drive in the glorious weather but after 25 mins the car started to suffer from fuel starvation problems above 2500 rpm and the pump started to change it’s tune. The pump was hot to the touch so I looked into why the new pump might be overheating.

I borrowed an in-line pressure tester from a local classic garage and found that I was only get 75 psi at the MU. When I tried to adjust the PRV the best I could get was 80 psi before the adjustment screw went loose. I therefore replaced the PRV with the diaphragm type supplied by Remington as it seemed to be an improvement and I fitted the braided fuel line in the hope that this would finally remove the smell of fuel from the boot. ( At least that’s what the good man at Revington assured me.)

With the new set up the pressure at the MU was only 90psi, so I fitted the test line directly to the pump. The pump was only putting out 95 psi.

On calling Moss they were very good and sent out a new pump under warranty. I have just fitted the new pump.

The inline test shows that it is putting out 105 psi at the pump, which is giving me 98 psi at the MU.

Took the car to fill up with fuel as it was at about 1/3 and then went for a twenty minute drive. All was well until the last couple of minutes when the pump started to change it’s tune and the car cut out as I coasted into my drive. ( V lucky!)

Once again the fuel pump was hot to touch.

Does anyone have any thoughts on this?
 

On hearing that my friend’s Landrover was suffering from carb ice I wondered if the garages were still using winter fuel as low demand due to Corona Virus had not used up their stocks.

By the way the car is an early PI and does have a drop of 1 volt at the pump from the battery, however wiring the battery directly to the pump only increases the pressure by 5 psi. I have also put an air line on the MU return pipe and can hear it blow out in the tank. I assume that the return pipe to the tank from the T at the PRV is clear as it tried to empty the tank when I changed PRVs.

[tr 5 bogging down]

Hi Mike. I was recently called out to look at a car that was suffering with the same problem. My friend had just finished setting up the car but was not happy with it’s pick up from idle. He had balanced the butterflies with an air flow meter and the engine running at idle. ( He considered the butterfly adjustment to be at it’s most sensitive with the lowest rpm.) I suggested me rebalanced the butterflies with the rpm at 1500 as per the brown book. This worked for us and might hopefully solve your problem. I assume the brown book states 1500rpm as this is a typical low power setting that the car will be asked to accelerate from on the road, and therefore it is more important that the butterflies are accurate at this power rather than idle.

All the best,

Ashley

[Oil woes]

Sorry for the slow response, but haven’t had the chance to look at this site for a while.

 

Yes is the answer to your question. The plug at the end of the MU drive was damp with oil, and the pedestal from this height and below was covered in oil. I guess you’re talking about a leak higher up.

 

Hopefully it will continue without any further leaks.

[Oil woes]

Was the o ring you replaced the one on the vertical drive shaft, engine to distributor. If so, you might want to look at the o ring on the horizontal shaft, distributor to metering unit. I had a similar oil leak which took me an age to locate, and turned out to be this o ring. It’s behind the plate at the front of the distributor pedestal. The plate is only held on by one screw, but to replace the o ring I had to remove the distributor and metering unit from the car. I had a hell of a job finding the part in the moss catalog, but for what it’s worth Jerry at Eninuity in London told me that it’s the same as the other o ring (#513682) although when I finally found it, the catalog showed a different number.

[Kenlowe fan]

Thanks for such a quick response Simon.

I think that my poor terminology has failed me when I say that the return lead is showing 12 volts.

What I have is two leads at the fan. One is a constant 12 volt power supply, the other runs from the fan to the thermostatic controller where I assume it is earthed once the temperature sense reaches the require value.

I have 12 volts at the lead that runs to the thermostatic controller, therefore I have power at the fan. I thought that earthing this lead that runs back to the controller should turn the fan, but perhaps I wrong.

 

Ashley

[Kenlowe fan]

After a winter break my kenlowe fan is remaining dormant.

I have checked the power supply to the fan which is OK. The return lead from the fan to the thermostatic controller is showing 12 volts on a multimeter, however if I then earth this lead the fan shows no sign of life.

Not sure how old the fan is as it was already on the car when I bought it 7 years ago, but would estimate it as "elderly". My next move was to remove the fan for further investigation, but a couple of years ago I fitted a new radiator. As I result of this I had to renew the fan to radiator attachments, and used the plastic "zip tie" attachments provided by kenlowe. I am now concerned that I could damage the radiator trying to remove these ties.

So before I go any further, has anyone got any ideas on how I might coax my fan back to life, and any advice on how best to remove the ties would be gratefully appreciated.

[PC's PI set up]

Thanks gents for your input.

I have emailed Practical Classics to advise them of the issue, but as yet have not had a reply.

I'll let you know what they say if I hear anything.

[PC's PI set up]

I read Practical Classics September issue with great interest as they ran an article titled "how to service your Lucas fuel injection" based on a TR6.

 

However I disagree with they Tech Tip and the way they suggest that the butterflies should be set. I would be very interested in what the rest of you guys think.

My understanding is that if the butterflies are allowed to slam shut every time the throttle is closed they will make a groove in the in the inlet tube in which they sit. For this reason the link rods should be adjusted so that the butterflies nearly but don't quite close. In this position blocking the end of the air valve pipe should stall the engine or cause it to almost stall. The throttle stop screws can now be set so that they just touch their stops. This way, when over time the adjustments in the vertical link rods have altered the throttle stop screws can perform their function and stop the butterfly damaging it's respective inlet tube.

 

In the article PC's Tech Tip is to remove the throttle stop screws altogether and to their advise in adjusting the butterflies is to have them fully closed.

 

Am I doing it wrong or have PCs given advice on how to damage your PI system?

[The tyre debate]

Thanks Kevo,

 

Good to hear such positive feedback, and top tip about the inner tube.

 

Ashley

[The tyre debate]

I have to replace the tyres on my TR6 and have been reading through the old posts on which tyres to use.

To be honest it has left me more confused than I was before I started!

So I had a look at other sites, and found the following on the Longstone Classic Tyres site.

 

 

"Triumph TR6 Tyres

Longstone classic tyres recommend the 165HR15 Michelin XAS for your classic Triumph TR6

 

We recommend the 165HR15 Michelin XAS for Triumph TR6's as they are a correct period sports car tyre. They are an asymmetric classic tyre that offers outstanding levels of grip and directional stability.

 

It is possible to fit lower profile tires to a TR6. Some people fit 185/70R15 or 195/65R15 tires to TR6 cars, but the TR6 doesn't handle so well. 165HR15 Michelin XAS is the best tire for a TR6. Triumph fitted 165HR15 Michelin XAS to its TR6."

 

Though that I should add it to the debate for others like me looking to replace their tyres.

[Scissor platform lifts]

Hi Bill,

 

I also decided on the scissor lift option, if I had more room I would have gone for the posts with the fingers that are placed under the car. ( Sorry can't think of the correct technical name.)

I am using the mini tilting lift supplied by AJ Autos and usually advertised on eBay at around £450. Normally the lift is stored and slid under the car when required for use. However I do not have a garage wide enough to be able to do this so I made a central part of the garage floor lower and store the lift in position. This involved making wooden covers that the car drives over and which are removed if the lift is to be used.

The system works well, but as already said it is not ideal for working at the centre of the car. This lift also tilts which is how I use it most of the time.

I can't attach any pics at the moment , but could try when I get back to my pc.

[Diesel fuel filter!]

I recently picked up a replacement fuel filter from my local auto parts supplier. They matched the part no to a Fram filter. ( Fram C1191PL.) They also remarked that this filter is used on Diesel engines. I thought nothing of this at the time, but have since read in my dated Haynes manual. " It is important that the correct filter element is used and for petrol filtration as the action of petrol on an element designed for diesel oil causes it to break down."

Has anyone used this Fram filter? Does anyone have any other experiences?

[Lower wishbones polybush fitting/strengthening plates]

I think I understand what you are saying. The brackets that hold the lower wishbone to the chassis have to be removed from the the chassis to fit new bushes because if left in place there is not enough room to fit the bolt through the bush. However the chassis has had strengthening plates welded where the rear brackets are attached, which block access to your bracket attachment bolts.

If I have guessed right it is because I came across in similar problem on my car last year. I solved it by drilling access holes through the strengthening plates that had been welded on. Sharp drill bits recommended as the plate was v hard.

 

I do not recall the replacement bushes having different ends.

 

Hope I have not completely misunderstood you, and that this helps,

 

Ashley

[TR6 wheel]

Hi Robin,

 

I have the same wheels on my tr6. I am not very keen on the rostyle trims so mine are fitted with the standard black centre trims. Most people don't notice that there is a difference until I point it out.

Personally I think that they look great, and have no intention of changing them.

I believe that they were fitted to the cars made upto Sept 1969.

Good luck with the restoration.

 

Ashley

[Limited fuel to cylinder 5]

If you remove the number 5 injector with the engine running is it spraying a cone of fuel?

If not, hold the injector so that it points upwards and with your thumb push against the needle ( this forces the needle up and out of it's seating) with your other hand have a rag to catch the fuel. Hopefully this will clear the injector. If it does'nt, push down on the needle base surround. This should cause the pressure to back up in the pipe from the MU to the injector, after a while there should be a drop in engine revs. This drop occurs because the other injectors are running to rich and will prove that the non-return valve at the banjo bolt is working.

 

I have recently had problems with injectors and was show this by a TR specialist.