Ian Perry

 

This is mine - another gusset brown small saloon, this time a 2-door Toledo with the scary orangey tan interior. Bought last year from one Angela Cotton on the Isle of Wight, the car's amazingly clean - just a bit of the usual rot around the headlights. The old girl came with repair panels for the inner headlamp mounting panel, but I'm trying to convince myself I don't need to take the wings off to make it all sound and solid. Under the bonnet is the standard original 1300 OHV engine, but I have an unleaded head ready (ish) to go on, then a stainless steel manifold and downpipe and a pair of HS2s. To make the most of that, it also needs a Spit III profile cam, so that's next on the shopping list. I'd love an overdrive box but that's not very original either... I've done RBRR 2 or 3 times already, but that was about 15-20 years ago - again in a 2-door Toledo. I'm sure JOG and LE are still there... I've been a race and rally driver for 30+ years, my navigator and another driver mate are planning to come along, though my GF Hannah is also talking about coming. Four up might be a struggle, who do I say "no" to???

Davemate, Surely doing RBRR would be a great reason to stay? Apart from the lovely people on here (myself not included, I'm horrible, but everyone else is lovely)? Don't go!

Scrapman, you're a new entry at number 32, "Team PI" and Wedgwood Blue 2.5PI Mk1 Saloon.

Re the three free entries - absolutely right, well done them. I THINK mine's gone through, just waiting for the entry list to load up so I can see if we're in. The payment has gone through as I've received an e-mail. YES!! Woohoo, we've flown in at number 25, pop-pickers, Flat Mouse Racing and "brown Toledo" - that scintillating hit all the way from 1973...

I'd guess at "test" entries or something like that? Mine's frozen at the page where you state how much experience you have. "waiting for response from server" but nothing's happening.

You know, you can go off some people very easily

The list for Molly the Tolly is currently over two pages. Engine Replacement oil pump and/or PRV and/or warning light switch to cure the apparent low pressure when warm Recon unleaded high-compression head Pair of HS2 Spit III cam Dolomite Club stainless extractor exhaust manifold and new mid- and back sections Rolling-road tune Repair to leaking radiator Gearbox Lots of prayers Possibly overdrive - if I can sell both daughters Brakes Replacement of servo with one that works Electrics Fitment of spotlights, fog-light, reversing lights Fitment of relays in headlamp circuit to protect column stalk from burnout Bodywork Fitment of MGF seats Fitment of new fascia with rev-counter as well as normal cluster Replacement of N/S front wing, repair of rust in O/S front wing and front panel, headlamp mounting panels Other Bribery/blackmail of mates to sign up to do the Run Apart from that, it's all good...

The RBRR was one of the main reasons for joining CT back in the dim and distant past when I was last a Triumph owner, and when I bought this Toledo one of the major reasons was to give me a means of doing it again! Really looking forward to this.

Sujit - love it! I now have a pair of MGF half-leather seats in their 'light tan' - and down the road there's a specialist independent cobblers who can do me a darker tan dye for the leather - I'll just have to be careful where I splash it to miss the fabric :-o I cut the brackets off the bottom of the runners and welded a couple of simple crossbars on, through-bolted to secure the seats into the original mounting holes. They slide forwards a long way which for the moment at least means I am not worried about modifying the seats to tip forwards. The installation, however, has two problems; 1 - The seats are a long way forward even on the last notch of the runners - I'm not the longest-legged person in the world and though I fit in OK, my planned RBRR18 co-driver is a lanky streak and won't be comfortable leading to 2000 miles and 48 hours of moaning. But apart from serious floor modifications I can't see how to get the seats further back. 2 - the seats are a very tight fit against the tunnel. I couldn't easily get bolts into the runners to go through them (as per the originals) so have drilled and bolted on the crossbars instead, but this has pushed the seats closer to the tunnel than comfortable which makes lining them up/bolting them down a real pain in the proverbial. I could try getting some cap headed bolts to go through the runners (a socket to fit the conventional hex head is too fat to reach through the runner) but access with an Allen key to the back inboard mount would be difficult to say the least. I will probably put the original seats back in for a bit, so I can mess about with the mounts and dye these seats, and hopefully take the car to the West Berks Classic Vehicle Show at Newbury College (13th August, anyone?), so not a rush but any bright ideas will be gratefully received! (also any suggestions on how to fit two full-size greyhounds into a 2-door Toledo...) The seats

Ah, I misunderstood. Yes, at least as far as I know, the Toledo is 4-synchro! (albeit a bit weak on 1st and 2nd). I'll have a rummage under the gearbox cover and see what I can find. Wiring a switch and feed to the back of the car should be straightforward enough if it isn't already there. The car's a very late 1972 model (registered on 20 Dec 72), if that means anything

Hi Scrapman, and thanks for coming back to me. I was hoping that where the car doesn't have a reversing light, there's just a blanking screw to close off the mounting hole. Ho hum...

I'm struggling to remember the details, but I'm fairly sure that it's possible to fit a reversing light switch to the 3-rail gearbox found on Toledos and presumably some Spitfires, Heralds etc. Does anyone have definitive information please? MOY doesn't have a reversing light, but it would be useful. The Repair Operations Manual says that it was an optional fitment so I assume that it was a fairly straightforward job to fit (the loom might even have some or all of the necessary wiring...) VM TIA

Have you got a paint spray that actually replaces missing (worn away) bits? The carpets are a bit threadbare, in places all the way down leaving just the hessian backing :-o

Thanks, folks - TBH I was hoping that something like the liquid shoe polish would do the trick. Comparing that with spray/bush paint, I was hoping that there would be something that soaks in a bit, as that should be pretty robust. Good point about being a little sparing with it, the stuff spreads like billy-oh whenever I use it on my shoes!

Hi all, MOY's interior looks a bit tired and I'm just looking at prices for a new carpet set to replace the very threadbare/torn original, but while I'm on it I was thinking about the slightly uneven door cards, 3/4 panel cards and parcel shelf. The four cards themselves are pretty much irreplaceable; thankfully they aren't scratched or torn, but they are a bit faded in places and I wondered if anyone has any experience of trying to dye/re-colour the vinyl material? Grateful for any thoughts...

Heh - yep, that's where I'll be heading this week. Of course I could always change the colour of the interior! It's only... Full carpet set Door cards Rear 3/4 panel cards front footwell side panel cards Rear parcel shelf Back seat as well as the front seats!

Hi Iggy, thanks for this. I am looking at MGF seats, the only problem with them is they don't tip forwards. The mechanism looks very similar to the ZR seats, so it might be possible to modify the MGF mechanism to make it tip forwards like the ZR seats do The only fly in that particular pot of ointment is that all the MGF seats I've seen advertised so far are blimmin' miles away :-o Mmm, Alfa seats look nice, but the only ones I've seen so far are priced at £ohmyGodhowmuch??? They say you aren't a real petrolhead until you've owned an Alfa. So far I can't even afford a seat from one!

Hi and thanks for responding. I've not yet seen any gingery tan MX5 seats, but they do seem to fit the bill in every other respect. Most of the ones I've seen look a bit like Mr Blobby rolled out flat, with an integral head restraint as part of the backrest. They do another version though with a separate head restraint which would (IMO) look slightly better in the car. But f they are the right colour I guess either of them would be ok Hmm, just seen a photo of that colour seats - yes, you're absolutely right, not at all bad (notwithstanding the fact that it IS gingery tan, possibly the most hideous interior colour of them all 🙂  ) Cheers...

My newly-acquired Toledo has rather tired front seats and I would like to find something to replace them. Two problems: 1 - It's a 2-door car, so the front seats need to be able to tip forwards to let people into and out of the back 2 - The interior is "tan" which is a very orangey brown, so finding something to match (or at least, not look glaringly bad) will be "fun" I want something supportive, with a head restraint; one objective for the car is the 2018 RBRR so they have to be good for 48hrs continuous occupation. A design that has a separate HR looks (IMO) inherently more authentic, but then again I wasn't planning installing full harness so a seat that fits the bill in every other respect would be ok. Any suggestions, anyone?

Mmm, interesting. I do hillclimbs and sprints in a Rover 25 (yeah, boring, I know, but...) and as I run in the Roadgoing Series Production class, I don't have to have a HANS. Having discussed this with various competitors and marshals, I confess I'm not as yet convinced as to the value of a HANS, most 'offs' seem to involve more sideways than forward motion at point of impact with anything solid, and the HANS doesn't do a great deal to help with a side impact. So I feel it's more about the MSA covering its backside in the event of a competitor being killed or seriously injured. There is also the fact that to fit a HANS I'd need to replace my helmet, harness and the seat, as well as buying the HANS itself, and that would pretty much wipe out my year's budget at a stroke. My residual worry is that with the advent of the new "standard car" class, the existing "roadgoing series production" class will be dissolved and my car (it was built as a road rally car so has a cage, decent suspension etc, but still has original glass and interior) will therefore have to run in the "modified series production" class where everyone else has monster power, mega lightweight bodies and HANS is mandatory. Which will be the point where I am priced out of motorsport and retire - very, very angrily. Now, where're my pitchfork and flaming torch?

+1 for a cancer charity. One of the past RBRRs I did was for Macmillan who do fantastic work for families living with cancer.*** Lost both my father and grandfather to renal cancer, GrandD didn't even make it to 60 (I never knew him) and Dad was 63 when he went. If I make it to 31/12/2027 (my 64th b'day) I'm going to have THE biggest celebration... *** But the fact remains that whatever the charity, there are thousands and thousands of people who do amazing things for other people on the back of minimal (and always inadequate) funding. Whatever the charity, it will be a massively deserving cause.

If struggling for space, you could of course team up with others already here in the UK to make two teams of three out of a team of two and a team of four. Stick together throughout the route, solve each others' problems and swap round between the cars as you want. You'll find everyone on the RBRR is uber-friendly (and not in a private hire taxi sort of way). I did RBRR a couple of times in the 90s but then stopped owning Triumphs for a bit - now back in the fold and looking forward to the 2018 event