G_Man

Thanks for the continued replies.

Quoted Text

I'd swap out that bulkhead bush pronto. I've got a SuperFlex one on my 1850 and it was well worth the money. The one from RB is obviously not fit for purpose. I think the bulkhead bush is the cause of your problem. The TREs seem to be fine as long as you don't have any excessive resistance. I've had the front end of my 1850 rebushed in SuperFlex and it handles better than it did before. I had the subframe, steering rack and top wishbones done last year. The bottom arms, tie rods and bulkhead bushes had already been done circa 2009.

I went to the superflex website to buy the bush and with shipping, it's 29.75 UK pounds which is 55.53 NZ dollars (when I checked exchange rate), so I'll keep looking to see if I can get cheaper postage elsewhere.

Quoted Text

My first Dolomite had a really serious case of not-self-centering... accompanied by quite stiff steering generally. That turned out to be the UJ in the intermediate column coupling.

When I had the intermediate shaft out to fix the flexible coupling, I lubricated the UJ which was only slightly stiff. It's good now.

Quoted from Toledo Man

It would be best to check everything again starting with the tyre pressures then the track rod ends, ball joints (top and bottom), the steering coupling, the bulkhead bush (fit a SuperFlex one if you can) and then the rack istelf. Don't forget to check the front wheel alignment. I'm surprised nobody's mentioned this. Castor can't be adjusted but camber can be adjusted by adding or removing the shims that sit between the subframe and suspension bracket. The only other thing you can check is the condition of the bushes. SuperFlex are the best bushes to buy and are worth the money.

Thanks. Yes, the alignment was checked and adjusted when the new tyres were fitted. I've fitted a new grey plastic 'bulkhead bush' that I got from rimmerbros and it was quite tight so I've reamed it out a bit... but might need to do it some more. I also had to repair the flexible coupling on the intermediate shaft as the rubbers were perished, but I don't think that would have any effect on the steering self centering.

Should the track rod ends be tight or quite loose? Mine are quite tight (hard to move with fingers).

Thanks for the replies guys.

Quoted Text

Like Clive, I think it's got something to do with castor angles, but unless your car has been in a serious accident I don't see why it should be out. You could try disconnecting the tie rod ends and see if the wheels turn freely from side to side.
Tony.

Yes, I've had the rack out a few times and have checked that the wheels turn freely which they do. I might have to go through the process again and make sure the rack is all free and loose as well as the column and steering shaft joints.

Quoted Text

I know the kitcar builders often have an issue like this (through poor design/caster angles) and their bodge to get it trough the IVA (one-off test once the car is built) is to increase tyre pressure and use excessive toe-in at the front.

On a similar note, my toldeo has heavy steering at parking speeds (expected, I guess) but very light and almost lifeless when driving. I have not yet checked the caster angles, but I intend to do so.  One day.
They are not "adjustable" but the way the suspension works it looks like the suspension height will have an effect, or it should be possible to add washers to the front tie-bar/wishbone arm to adjust it one way. To reduce the length will need the welder......

I'll have a look at the "tie-bar/wishbone arm" to see if there's any hope there.

I'm reluctant to take it to a garage and spend $$$ only to have them say they don't know what's wrong.

Hi all,

My Toledo failed it's WOF (same as your MOT I think) for 'steering not self centering' and I'm not sure what to do about it.

Does anyone have an idea what would be the most likely cause of that issue?

I've basically left the car for the past few weeks as I was totally over it, and advertised it for sale. I got one response but the bloke failed to show up to view the car. I now feel that I will need to get it roadworthy again in order to sell it.

It's got new tyres and the fitter did the alignment. I've had the rack out and 'loosened' it up a bit with shims removed / added until it felt freer than it was.

Any advice would be appreciated.

Glen.

Thanks John and Clive, I appreciate your advice.

Glen.

Quoted from cliftyhanger

Very odd! never seen anything like that at all.
I would remove it. But check the connection to the carb is actually working.

If the engine is "breathing" heavily it can pressurise and feed too much air into the carb, upsetting the mixture. A simple workaround (rather than new rings) is to vent the rocker box to the atmosphere (best done via a catch tank, aka coke can), and seal off the carb end.

So check the engine is not breathing heavily.

Thanks for that.

Forgive my ignorance, but how do I "check the engine is not breathing heavily"?

Is it just a matter of removing the hose from the rocker cover and checking for airflow?

What exactly should I be looking for?

Cheers,

Glen.

Hi Guys,

After I got my Toledo I wondered what this little vent thing is that I've indicated with the arrow in this photo...



As you can see, it's a home made looking thing and is attached on top of a short tube off a 'valve' looking thing.

If you follow the hose going from the rocker cover, you come to a tee where another short hose goes to the carb and the other hose continues to the strange vent thing.

Well I went for a drive today and when I got home, and could smell something that was like melted plastic. I looked under the bonnet and found this red blob of plastic on the exhaust manifold along with the grey vent top thing...



Here is a photo from above showing the path of the hose from the rocker cover to the tee and on to the vent pipe...



Should that be there?

From what I've found online, the hose should go directly from the rocker cover to the carb. Is that right?

Appreciate you advice and input.

Cheers,

Glen.

The Toledo is back together and the brakes are soooo much better... they actually work now!  

Thanks everyone for the advice and help.

Glen.

Quoted Text

Hi I don't really think it will make any difference however I think you will be governed by the flare on the end of each pipe as these are probably different between the feed (inlet) and where the bleed nipple fits  regards Terry

Quoted Text

I'm fairly sure, from when I had a Dolomite (never needed to work on the Toledo's brakes) that the flare and thread are the same, but otherwise I agree with Terry, it shouldn't make any difference. If the cylinders were mounted vertically then you'd want to feed in at the bottom and out at the top but since they're horizontal it doesn't matter.

Yes, the flares are the same.

Thanks for the help guys.

Glen.

Gidday,

Another question for anyone that might have knowledge of the Toledo rear brake cylinders.

Should the transfer pipe go from the bleed outlet on the right (driver) side across to the feed inlet on the left (passenger) side?

When I disassembled it the feed from the master cylinder was going to the right hand bleed and out the feed across to the left hand feed. My intuition is telling me it should go out the bleed and into the feed, but sometimes these things are counter-intuitive.

Any advice would be appreciated.

Glen.

Quoted from cliftyhanger

Welcome..

The larger rear wheel cylinders will put about 15% more braking at the rear, not a huge amount and so I wouldn't be concerned.

Are the fronts disc or drum?

Thanks for the welcome.

Since posting, I've searched online and found some info on other non-Triumph related forums that confirms what you say, so thanks for that. Now that I have your confirmation that the 19.05 mm cylinders are ok for the rear, I can get them fitted up and hopefully have much better braking.

My front brakes are discs and I had a real struggle getting the old pistons out of the calipers, but they finally came out and the new ones are fitted. I also fitted a new wheel bearing while I was at it and I'll do the same on the other side.

Another thing, on the rear, there is a small H shaped piece (called a 'plate support' in the Haynes manual) that is on one of the shoes. It's missing on one side so I've made another with a small piece of metal, but the metal is a bit thinner than the one original piece I have. Will that be an issue? I suspect not, but would value your opinion.

Thanks again for your reply.

Cheers,

Glen.

Hi from New Zealand,

I purchased a 1974 Toledo (1500 rear wheel drive) quite recently and joined the forum here to get advice when needed… and I need some now.

Regarding rear wheel cylinders, when searching for part numbers I came across the number 64677871 as a suitable replacement and when I searched that number online, I found a local parts supplier with them on clearance special. I purchased them but they are 19.05 mm bore and have since found out that they should be 17.8 mm.

My question is, will the 19.05 mm ones work in my Tolly or do I have to get the 17.8 mm ones?

The brakes were terrible and I've replaced the pistons in the right hand front already, which were stuck solid. I'll be getting onto the other side soon and figured I may as well do the backs too, which is why I got the cheap cylinders. But if they're the wrong size and I shouldn't use them, I'll wait to get the correct ones and resell the 19.05 mm ones while they're still new.

Here's a photo of my toledo…



Thanks for any help.

Glen.