TR7 V8 dead

[Cheesy Lemon]

 

Me and my DHC V8

 

 

 

From the night i took delivery of her (Oct06), i've had nothing but trouble. Upon delivery the driver door mirror fell off on its way to me and one of the windscreen wiperblade rubbers came off and the the metal arm scratched the screen.

When the guy was leaving, i went to put my new TR in my garage (it was dark and raining) the headlights wouldn't turn on and lift (faulty/corroded switch).

Upto this day, i have spent around £1200 on her, just on engine problems and a couple of electric faults, what is p*ssing me off is my baby looks standard, even the spax suspension feels bouncy(adj rears), the interior could do with renovating, needs wide alloys (i wanted the 5 spoke MGF), has no stereo, jeez there's loads of stuff needed to turn her into a great looker. Ok she aint that bad, the body and underside are in great shape, the paint work looks above average.

Anyway on Saturday i took her out for a drive, and ended up going onto the M25 round to the M11 and down to the A406, big mistake (i always drive her hard and fast on motorways), The ign light came on and the temp started to rise quickly, then there was a huge puff of grey/white smoke coming from under the bonnet and from the back, i slowed the car down then the engine started rattling like a goodun, lost 80% of power, then in a great big cloud of smoke and a fluid discharge on the road the engine stopped. I'm no mechanic, so take her to garages for 98% of the work, this time i know this is MAJOR, can anyone give me an idea what an '82DHC V8(3.5 holley) is worth with a knackered engine ? like i said the body and underside is great. I need to sell this car whether i get it fixed or not, i drive too fast especially with the roof down, that V8 on twin stainless tubes sounds beautiful !!!! I could never take her to my local SCRAP dealer that would be sacrilage, please someone advise me what to do, i have no money at present to fix or get another engine, struggling with the mortgage, trying to sell my property with only 4 viewings in 6 weeks and no offers !!

I think all i can do is stick her back in my garage and leave her there until i have the money, and just dream of the day i get it sorted

[88V8]

she aint that bad, the body and underside are in great shape, the paint work looks above average.

Anyway on Saturday i took her out for a drive, and ended up going onto the M25 round to the M11 and down to the A406, big mistake (i always drive her hard and fast on motorways), The ign light came on and the temp started to rise quickly, then there was a huge puff of grey/white smoke coming from under the bonnet and from the back, i slowed the car down then the engine started rattling like a goodun, lost 80% of power, then in a great big cloud of smoke and a fluid discharge on the road the engine stopped. I'm no mechanic, so take her to garages for 98% of the work, this time i know this is MAJOR, can anyone give me an idea what an '82DHC V8(3.5 holley) is worth with a knackered engine ? like i said the body and underside is great. I need to sell this car whether i get it fixed or not, i drive too fast especially with the roof down, that V8 on twin stainless tubes sounds beautiful !!!! I could never take her to my local SCRAP dealer that would be sacrilage, please someone advise me what to do, i have no money at present to fix or get another engine, struggling with the mortgage, trying to sell my property with only 4 viewings in 6 weeks and no offers !!

I think all i can do is stick her back in my garage and leave her there until i have the money, and just dream of the day i get it sorted

Sad, not a nice feeling.

 

But, for the sake of stopping immediately the ign light came on and fitting the new fan belt you should have been carrying (my guess) you melted the engine.....

Man, forget garages, you need to get along to evening classes and learn spanner skills if you want to run a classic car.

 

As to its value, if it's really rot-free you should have stampedes after it, advertise it here in the Trade section, or put it on eBay, after all Rover engines are cheapcheapcheap and a straight swap is a doddle.

 

Ivor

[TR8IAN]

I would think by not stopping when the light came on you have done a fair amount of damage to the engine - not worth repairing. But get to know the guys and girls at the local area groups - for chingford you have the choice of several groups Essex, East Saxons & North London all of these have members with similar cars so there is lots of expertise for you to call on.

 

Its also worth having words with Simon at Robsport because he is just up the M11 near Duxford they specialise in TR7&8s and has always got engines available.

 

Not the end of the world.

 

Cheers

 

Ian

[Guest Wayne S]

As the other's have said, sounds like your fan belt snapped. The stops the alternator (hence the red light) and the pumps being driven.

 

Net result of carrying on is that you cooked the all aluminium engine. Standard procedure for this is swear, clutch in, ignition off coast to gentle stop and put on your spare fan belt which should always be in the boot

 

Also as other have said, all classic cars will cost you a fortune if you rely on garages and most things on a TR can easily be done at home. If it was my car, I would pop it in the garage and save up for a new engine. Pop on eBay and a 3.5 with cyl head will be about £300. Transfer things like carbs across which will be ok.

 

Then buy a crate of beer, hire a hoist and invite some like minded mates round and in one day you will have the old engine out and the replacement back in ready to plumb and connect up. My 2 litre blew up on me coming back from Le Mans 2 years ago, its roughly the same weight as the V8 and it took me 2 weeks of evenings after work and one full weekend to build up my replacement, clean everything, paint bits I usually couldn't reach and drop the other engine in, sorted.

 

ITS NOT THE END OF THE WORLD!

[malcolm]

well I agree with Wayne. If you have a good solid car you're most of the way there. All you need to do is source a good 2nd hand V8. The engine swap needs a hoist (local hire shop) and a weekend with some spanner handy mates. I'll change an engine for a case of beer :0)

 

Don't give up!!

 

Malcolm.

[Cheesy Lemon]

Sad, not a nice feeling.

 

But, for the sake of stopping immediately the ign light came on and fitting the new fan belt you should have been carrying (my guess) you melted the engine.....

Man, forget garages, you need to get along to evening classes and learn spanner skills if you want to run a classic car.

 

As to its value, if it's really rot-free you should have stampedes after it, advertise it here in the Trade section, or put it on eBay, after all Rover engines are cheapcheapcheap and a straight swap is a doddle.

 

Ivor

 

THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR HELP AND ADVICE,

Ivor, you are right, it was my fan belt snapping and the water pump stopped so have only overheated. She actually started up today and run normally, i need to get a new belt, top up the water and bleed it and she how she runs for a while. S+S PREPARATIONS (STEVE) S+S TR specialists website have been very very helpful and would like to thank him very much.

I still may have to sell my Girl as financially she is crippling me almost as much as the mortgage. And eventually will get another one but with the better engine and in tip top condition (maybe a Grinnall).

I'll try to keep you all updated on the situation, and thanks for taking the time to read and reply to my plight

[Cheesy Lemon]

Sad, not a nice feeling.

 

But, for the sake of stopping immediately the ign light came on and fitting the new fan belt you should have been carrying (my guess) you melted the engine.....

Man, forget garages, you need to get along to evening classes and learn spanner skills if you want to run a classic car.

 

As to its value, if it's really rot-free you should have stampedes after it, advertise it here in the Trade section, or put it on eBay, after all Rover engines are cheapcheapcheap and a straight swap is a doddle.

 

Ivor

 

THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR HELP AND ADVICE,

Ivor, you are right, it was my fan belt snapping and the water pump stopped so have only overheated. She actually started up today and i run it long enough to put back in the garage, i need to get a new belt, top up the water and bleed it and she how she runs for a while. S+S PREPARATIONS (STEVE) S+S TR specialists website have been very very helpful and would like to thank him very much.

I still may have to sell my Girl as financially she is crippling me almost as much as the mortgage. And eventually will get another one but with the better engine and in tip top condition (maybe a Grinnall).

I'll try to keep you all updated on the situation, and thanks for taking the time to read and reply to my plight