Toledo Man

How could Mr. Pearson not enter? According to his Blog, he's entering his Vitesse. Andy, I remember Glynn from when he was editor of the TDC's club mag. Glad to hear that he's finally tied the knot with Anne-Marie (I remember her too).

There's also another celebrity in the shape of Simon Goldsworthy the Triumph World editor. How could I forget out very own Olympian (Chris)?

Use a decent quality engine oil that won't break down when doing a run such as the RBRR. I've read about lesser oils not being up to the job of 2000 miles non-stop. Put it into daily use as soon as you can.

Car SOS is one of the better car programmes. I was surprised that Tim Shaw was his co-presenter but they seem to work together quite well.

The 1500fwd has a single HS4. I can find out what needle was used. Toledos used AAK, AAW, ABF & ABQ if that helps.

I presume you're referring to HS4s. This conversion is worth doing. I've done it on my Dolomite 1300 and I also used the Dolomite 1500 exhaust because the bore is slightly larger and the manifolds are matched to each other.

I should have it somewhere...

Undamaged Mk1 handles are difficult to come by. You can always fit a Mk2 door handle. This is what I ended up doing with Becky II.

Undamaged Mk1 handles are difficult to come by. You can always fit a Mk2 door handle. This is what I ended up doing with Becky II.

Warped discs are caused when you keep your foot on the brakes when the car is stationary such as when queuing at traffic lights. With the front brakes applied the discs cool down unevenly and they get warped. The best way to prevent this is to use the handbrake more (wasn't this taught to us when we had drivng lessons?). Strangely enough, I discovered this little pearl of wisdom from the former editor of Triumph World (his name eludes me at the moment) who answered a question from an Acclaim owning reader with the very same brake problem. If you haven't done many miles you should be able to reuse your replacement pads with the new discs but they will need bedding in all over again.

The ignition timing is 5 degrees BTDC for manual car and 12 degrees BTC for Trio-matic cars. There are 3 timing marks on the crankshaft pulley. From left to right they are 11 degrees BTDC, 5 degrees BTDC and TDC. It is best to check the ignition first and there's not much you can do apart from replacing all the parts (plugs, HT leads, dizzy cap & rotor arm) and the ignition timing. If you are local to me then I'd give you a hand. The condition of the spark plugs will tell you what the mixture is like. If the mixture is fine then the plugs should have a biscuit coloured deposit on them.

Clive, you forgot to mention that the 1850 auto has a 3.27 diff.

The pads need to bed in so they match the profile of the disc. It typically take a couple of hundred miles for them to bed in and be gentle with the brakes while you bed the pads in. When you changed the pads, did you take the top off the brake fluid reservoir? This will allow the level to rise when the pistons in the calliper are pushed back in. Did you use copper grease on the back of the pads where they come into contact with the callipers? This will help to stop squealing. You also need to put copper grease on the bolts so that the calliper moves freely. When I change the pads I press the brake pedal after I've done each side to push the pistons back out. Have you forgotten to do this?

Lloyd, did you see anybody from the TDC. I was unable to make Stoneleigh due to other commitments. I'd like to get some Dolomite panels remade (front wings are definitely off the agenda for the forseeable future) and this looks like a realistic prospect.

Lloyd, full outer sills for the Dolomite would be a good place to start. I've noticed that Rimmer Bros sell them for both the Dolomite and 2000 for similar prices. If you can get Dolomite ones done for a similar price to your 2000 ones then we could be on to a winner if the other things fall into place. The signs are looking good on those sills though. I'll try to get to Stoneleigh if I can. Keep up the good work.

Your car doesn't look like it needs restoring. Just put it into daily use for a month and see how it goes. This is the best way of doing a shakedown. Is it possible to fit electronic ignition? This will improve reliability no end but keep the original points and condesner should it completely fail. This has happened to me on my Dolomite and I keep a set of points and a condenser in the glove box just in case it happens again.

How about the Stag fastback or the TR4-based Fury? Probably not worth risking the RBRR in such unique cars.

Isn't the RBRR do-able with a 948cc Herald? If so than a Renown should be able to complete the run. Dirk, you should give the car a good shakedown (using it daily for at least a week) before the run. I wouldn't recommend finishing the restoration the night before the run is due to take place like some previous entrants have done in the past (I won't mention any names). Or you could just enter an Acclaim and save youself all the grief ;D

Lloyd, I've e-mailed you about Dolomite panels. I'll act as a go-between for the Triumph Dolomite Club in my capacity as a member and I'll get this brought up at their forthcoming AGM which I'm going to be attending. This would be a win-win situation for both parties and is a possible solution for a long-standing panel supply for Dolomite owners. Another bonus would be that you could supply CT members too giving an extra income stream and doubling the chance of getting enough orders.

Have you topped up the dashpots? I recommend using ATF in your dashpots.

Tim & Colin, at least Jim has got rid of most of the rot. It'll be plain sailing from here.

One of my Dolomite friends on the TDC forum is offering an Acclaim for sale... I'm a bit loath to post a link in case I'm violating the forum rules.

Is this the NHS we all know and "love"? On a more serious note, it is good news he's being treated so quickly.

There's an article on the subject in Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daytime_running_lights It was introduced in the Scandinavian countries where there's not much daylight in winter and some idiots in Brussels have now made it compulsory across the rest of the EU. I can understand it in the Scandinavian countries but the benefits of DRLs are much less in places such as Spain, Italy or Greece where there is more daylight even in the winter. Getting back to the original topic, having done a bit of searching, it will be compulsory in Switzerland from 1st January 2014 to have dipped headlights switched on at all times or DRLs if they're fitted. You don't have to have them retrofitted but I can see where you're coming from with the TR7 (less drag and less power consumption). A much cheaper option would be to replace the sidelight bulbs with LED bulbs (I want to do this with my Dolomite) but I don't know if this would be acceptable in Switzerland. Going slightly off topic, I am amazed at how many drivers use their lights inappropriately. In bright sunshine drivers have their headlight blazing but at night there's drivers with just sidelights on and I've even see drivers with NO headlights on at all! My partner's son-in-law who is ex-Army has his headlights on all the time. Apparently, somebody in the army was involved in an accident and the other driver claimed they didn't see them so from that point, all army vehicles have to have their headlights on at all times so they can be seen.

If you want to do a decent job on your wheels DON'T hand paint them with silver Hammerite. The stuff is useless and chips off. You're better off with the pound shop rattle cans (I especially recommend the grey primer). Just clean, prime and paint the wheels. Check out the episode of Wheeler Dealers Trading Up where Mike Brewer smartens up the steel wheels on the Saab when he is in Sweden. Another tip I read in Classics Monthly was to get some cheap playing cards and wedge them between the tyre and the rim (working around the circumference of the rim) and this had the effect of avoiding getting overspray on the tyres. Powder coating the wheels is an option and gives a nice finish but as Barry McGrath found out with Rupert, it needs to be removed where the wheel nuts come into contact with the wheel because there's no friction with the powedercoated surface and the wheel nuts work loose.