SRF
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If you want any measurements or photos just ask, I have the rear tub off so access is good.
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I have just fitted Halogen lights to my Mk1 Vitesse, outer ones. They do stick out a bit more than the originals. I don't think my chrome rings are as wide as yours. The fitting procedure is, fit the black bowl first, if you are replacing the originals make sure the wire inside the bowl to attach the new lights is the correct one. Then position the glass level and the correct way up, the chrome ring fits over three small screws. The screws are different distances apart so the ring only goes one way only. When in position turn the chrome ring to lock it into place and tighten the small screws. The steel surround is a bit tight to fit over the new lamps. If you are after originality you will be disappointed, but the light is far superior than the old headlights. I'll post a picture later today.
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Thanks for this very valuable information, 15" wheels don't seem to be a good idea. My next plan is to change the diff. Again some 3.63 ones are advertised around the £100 mark, so with the cost of a rebuild it becomes rather expensive. I have managed to get the innards of a 3.63 diff and I wondered if it was a practical to change the gears in my diff. I am not sure if this is a job I can do or whether an expert would carry out such a conversion. Again any advice is gratefully received.
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Quite often I have seen 15 inch alloy wheels advertised, They are supposed to be the same PCD as my vitesse. It is my intention to replace my wheels with alloys soon. Has anyone any experience of these bigger wheels, the increase in size would help with the vitesse low gearing.
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That does sound expensive. I stripped down a Viva engine once with an unidentified noise. I was beginning to despair at finding it when it was found to be a partially seized small end bush and gudgeon pin. Having heard the noise my first suspect would be the cam shaft or timing chain areas. I could be wrong but it seems slower than big ends or pistons.
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I don't intend hi jacking this post, but I also intend changing to a 3.63 diff and will use the original rear housing. I have managed to get part of a 3.63 diff. I have removed the crown wheel and pinion and if I have the nerve I will swap them over in the spring. If I see sense over Christmas I may take my own diff and the 3.63 Crown Wheel and Pinion and have it re conditioned by an expert with the 3,63 ratio. Has anybody ever done a differential????
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I don't want to go too far off topic, but for penetrating fluid a brand called Plus Gas is very good. Also I find Automatic transmission fluid or power steering fluid are excellent as well.
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I decided to swap the pinions over. As I said I don't have a tool to compress the large spring, so before I made one I tried a couple of carefully placed vice grips on the old one the pinion then came off quite easily. There are couple of ways the spring is retained I have seen pins used and a key hole type washer. On mine it is held on with a snap ring which is held in place by a recess in the end washer. It was a bit fiddly but it came off. If anyone attempts this be aware the snap rings can fly. One of mine did and I still haven't found it. The pinions are a straight swap and when I refitted the starter it worked perfectly. One little tip is when I removed the gearbox to replace it I reversed the bolts in the starter so the nuts are on the engine side. It is still a bit of a fiddle but it saves having to remove the cover inside the car to refit the starter.
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I have the option of sending it back and having a 10 tooth pinion fitted, but because all the records they have show that the correct pinion for my vitesse should have 9 teeth, I will have to pay for the pinion and carriage both ways. I was just wondering which pinion is correct, before I decide what to do. The one on the old motor is in very good condition so I may consider changing it over if I can rig a spring compressor.
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i have just bought a replacement starter motor. the new one has 9 teeth on the pinion and is very noisy. my old one has 10 teeth on the pinion. The supplier ssys either 9 or 10 teeth both fit, is he right
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I have decided to upgrade my diff. Is there any way I can tell which diff I have at present. I have looked at James web site but for some reason mcafee won,t let me go there again. I am considering a 3.63 because the 3.27 are hard to find. Can anyone tell which models had the 3.63 please.
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Cheers both, from your site James it's about 5mph. Which differential has a 3.27 Nick. I don't intend doing a lot of open road driving and certainly no motorway stuff I am not going down the O/D or 5 speed route. My mates Spartan has 1500 Spit running gear and he rarely uses his O/D.
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The downside of having a non overdrive Vitesse as everyone knows is the high revs at cruising speed. Can anyone tell me whether changing to a 3.63 diff would make much difference. Also it is a long time since I rebuilt a diff, my Haynes manual has no information. Has anyone any experience of a rebuild and any advice, especially how to set the pre load.
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From information gleaned from this forum I have sorted the non cancelling indicators. The clip on the column was 180 degrees out.. with the steering wheel off it was easy to see. It was just a matter of disconnecting thr joint at the steering rack. Then turning the shaft that goes through the steering so that the bump on the clip is in line with the indicator switch. Reconnect the rack line up the steering wheel. Job done.
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It passed with flying colours, just scraping through on the handbrake though. I haven't replaced the cables yet and the rear lever is not quite at the right angle. I might consider fitting longer levers at the brake back plate. My only other minor problem is the indicators don't cancel. I am fired up for the next stage if it would only stop raining. I want to have the bonnet, boot and doors blasted, but I need to have a good dry day to get them home on my trailer before they have a chance to rust again.
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The reason I checked them was because after fitting my new box! I thought it still sounded a bit droney when I drove it up the driveway. I think the engine was touching the steering rack, as well as me not fitting the rack so that the steering column was clear of the bulkhead. I have ordered some extra shims so I will try a couple each side first. My MOT is booked for 1.30 pm tomorrow. The last car I restored a Rover P4 broke down on the way to its first test. It had been laid up for years, faulty brand new condenser!!!!!! now on electronic ignition. I will probably convert the Vitesse soon. I would love to give it a good long test drive before the test, but the plod have No plate recognition vans in our area, so its not worth the risk.
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Thanks Nick, "you are the go to man"
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After refitting the gearbox, and working on the car, I noticed that the sump of the engine is very close if not touching the new steering rack. When I fitted the rack I used the solid alloy mounts. I had to loosen one engine mount and raise the engine slightly so that I could remove and refit the rack. I also noticed that there were shims between the mounts and the chassis. They are similar to the shims used to alter the camber of the steering. Can anyone tell me how much clearance there should be between the sump and steering rack? are the shims correct or a bodge and will new mounts make any difference. thanks
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Just had a look at a 13/60 wiring diagram, Mark and you are absolutely correct. So there must be a break in a wire somewhere. To be honest if the jump wire from the battery to the coil does work, I think it is getting past the ability of a novice to trace this fault, The wiring system including the ignition switch needs a full test. With the best will in the world I don't think advice via a forum will suffice, it needs hands on attention by a competent person. It's a shame I live for far away I am sure this is a simple fault that just needs finding.
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Check your fuses, the tests seem to be correct. A previous suggestion was to connect a wire direct from the battery + positive to the ignition side of the coil. Years ago this was called hot wiring and was the way many cars were stolen Do this and do the flick test.
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I have just seen that you live in North Yorkshire, We collected a gearbox from Bedale on Saturday, If I had known earlier we could have given you a quick visit. Unfortunately we are 2 and half hours away. Is there no one on the forum closer who can give these nice people a guiding hand???
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First, check the meter is working properly by connecting it to the battery positive to positive and negative to negative.. Which ever side of the battery is connected to earth ie the car leave the meter connected to that. With the ignition turned on test the wire to the coil. With the points open test the voltage to them. What is happening with the points flick test. Just to repeat, take the cable coming from the centre of the coil disconnect it from the distributor cap. Hold it close to a metal part of the engine. a pair of insulated pliers or a pair of rubber gloves should stop you getting a jolt. With the points closed, ignition turned on, flick the points open with an electricians screwdriver. There should be a big fat blue spark coming from the end of the thick cable. If there is no spark and as long as you are getting 12 volts to the points there is a fault in the points, coil and or condensor Some distributors have a little earth wire connecting the base plate make sure if you have one it is connected ok. The points you fitted were they a one piece set? of did you fit the fixed part first. If they are the second type make sure you fitted the insulating washer before slipping the moving part onto the fixed post. Another test you can do if your meter has a continuity function is to remove the wire from the points side of the coil, with the ignition off, connect the meter to this wire and with the other end still on the earth side of the battery open and close the points. You should only get a continuity reading or bleep with the points closed.
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The reason you are not getting a spark at the battery terminal may well be that the points are open. You will only be getting a spark if the points are closed. A word of warning when the battery is working hard or being charged it gives off hydrogen gas a careless spark near the battery could cause the battery to explode. To go any further your need a tester. Halfords amongst many do one<a href=""></a> http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_10001_catalogId_10151_productId_211131_langId_-1_categoryId_25521. Just to explain. The ignition system has 2 voltages low tension 12 volts and high tension 1000s of volts. When you feed 12 volts to the coil (low tension) it passes through it and then to the points. The action of the points opening and closing causes the coil to discharge a High tension voltage through the thick centre cable. If the cable is held close to earth, (the metal parts of the engine) a big spark occurrs. The condensor is connected to the points this basically stops the points producing a big spark and damaging them. This is a very simple description of the low tension side of things and I would concentrate on checking this out first. You can move onto the HT distribution side of things later. So with your newly acquired tester, Make sure that you have 12 volts coming from the ignition switch to the coil, with the key turned on. If you have, then test that you have 12 volts coming from the coil to the distributor points. As I said in my previous reply. With the points closed and with the ignition turned on. Check you have a spark coming from the centre cable that comes from the coil by holding it near a bare metal part of the engine and flicking the points open with an electrical screwdriver. There should be a small spark from the points. A big spark indicates a faulty condensor. Until you get a big spark from the centre cable coming from the coil when flicking the points open there is no point in going further. Condensors are my pet hate. They can't be easily tested in a home situation and even new ones can be faulty. Another check worth doing is to make sure the points are fitted properly. I am confident you will get to the bottom of the problem.
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You really need to know if there is a spark at the plugs, either take a spark plug out, reconnect the cap and lodge it against a metal part of the engine. If you have a spare spark plug use that and just attach a plug lead. Get someone to spin the engine with the ignition key whilst you look a the contacts on the plug. You should see a big juicy spark. Be careful of touching anything to do with the ignition whilst the engine is turned over. You can get a nasty jolt from the high tension electric. If you have a spark, there are only a couple of other reasons the car won't start. The first is lack of fuel or as has been suggested the fuel is old and has lost its potency. The next is compression, from your You tube film the engine is rocking as though it has good compression. Another check is to put your finger over the plug hole whilst the spark plug is out you should feel air rushing out as the engine is turned over ( remember to keep the plug lead away from your hand or you will get a shock from the ignition system). The last thing is ignition timing. This is the least likely cause and means that the spark at the plug is happening at the wrong time as the engine is turned over If there is no spark at the plug, take off the distributor cap, make sure the points are closed, remove the lead from the centre of the distributor cap. Rest this lead close to a metal part of the engine and with the ignition turned on take an electrical screwdriver and flick the points open. You should see and hear a spark between the centre lead and engine part. If you have a spark then there is a fault with the rotor arm, distributor cap, or HT leads. If no spark then there is a fault in the low tension side of the ignition system. First make sure there is a 12 volt feed to the coil with the ignition switched on. If there is then replace the points condensor and the coil. I you haven't a spark I would seriously consider changing all the ignition parts ie coil, condensor, points, distributor cap, rotor arm Ht leads, plug caps and plugs. A couple of notorious items in the system are the condensor and rotor arm. Even new ones are sometimes faulty. I hope this isn't too technical and helps you find the cause of your non starter. After 45 years of messing with engines I haven't met one that could not be started eventually.
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I have the same set up on my vitesse John, My screws are course sheet metal self tapper type screws. I am going to fit riv nuts when I replace them.