Re: VWX 317L - Hilda, Lesley's Imp - New MOT

colin rooney · Post by **colin rooney** » Tue Sep 17, 2013 8:42 pm

From the work you done I would go for 4 grand or above

col

Dave Dickinson · Post by **Dave Dickinson** » Tue Sep 17, 2013 9:04 pm

My insurance is with Peter James and I was allowed to put my own valuation on my car (up to £15000). You can get a club official or ACO to give you a written valuation if you want documentary backup. WWW would be a good time to do this!
Dave

impmann · Post by **impmann** » Wed Sep 18, 2013 9:10 am

Those market values in PC are utter crap - and always have been. I know how they are "calculated" - Classics Monthly used to publish similar when I worked there, and I hated the BS of them - and the science behind it really doesn't stand up to to any scrutiny. If I could buy a concours Stiletto for the price in PC right now, I would... believe me.

Lesley - my Imp, which is not concours but merely VERY good (restored properly, no bodges) is insured for £5500. And I think its under valued, as I'd struggle to find a car as good for that cash - as 99% of the 'restored' Imps that come up for sale need restoring again to put them right.

Therefore, I would advocate Peter James Insurance - as they worked out cheapest for me, but more importantly, offered the best service.

Dom · Post by **Dom** » Wed Sep 18, 2013 10:07 pm

This wouldn't help you in anyway, but while on the subject of how much is an imp worth, i think that Good condition vans/huskys are worth allot more, possibly 6-9K ? Opinions ?

67cali · Post by **67cali** » Wed Sep 18, 2013 10:26 pm

This unfortunately proves that the cheapest quote is not necessarily the BEST quote. Sadly, unless you are really anal and check all the documentation and small print before you sign up, you never usually find out how good your insurance is until you go to make a claim. And even when you do try and check the policy documents before signing, many insurance companies will do whatever they can to refuse to give it to you until you sign.

Dave ' Linwood ' Lane · Wed Sep 18, 2013 10:27 pm

Dom wrote:This wouldn't help you in anyway, but while on the subject of how much is an imp worth, i think that Good condition vans/huskys are worth allot more, possibly 6-9K ? Opinions ?

Vuskys insured for 6k , but then it is modded and battered

philgsmith · Post by **philgsmith** » Wed Sep 18, 2013 11:45 pm

Thanks for the comments. I contacted the insurers today and they say that they will accept an Imp Club valuation so Graham A will be doing this for us. If we have any problems we'll cancel the insurance and go elsewhere. We chose them because they offered the best deal for agreed value an unlimited breakdown, the latter being the deal clincher.
I was thinking of a value of £4 but after talking to some members and Tim's comments this may be too low.
Lesley

philgsmith · Post by **philgsmith** » Sat Sep 21, 2013 6:31 pm

Now we're going out to celebrate. Might be a little worse for wear tomorrow!
We'll post the latest photos of Hilda tomorrow.
Lesley

sammy the sturgeon · Post by **sammy the sturgeon** » Sat Sep 21, 2013 6:36 pm

Wooo Hooooo,
big milesone passed there
well done ---really well done
Paul

GURNSIMPS · Post by **GURNSIMPS** » Sat Sep 21, 2013 6:51 pm

AWESOME THE BOTH OF YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!YEEAAAYYYYEEEEE!!!!!!!
I had a real go at mine today and maybe mot tuesday?????????????

impmann · Post by **impmann** » Sat Sep 21, 2013 7:04 pm

Wonderful news!!!

67cali · Post by **67cali** » Sat Sep 21, 2013 7:31 pm

philgsmith wrote:I was thinking of a value of £4 but after talking to some members and Tim's comments this may be too low.
Lesley

Yes, way too low.

colin rooney · Post by **colin rooney** » Sat Sep 21, 2013 9:14 pm

Its very hard to put a value on a car you don't know or only know from pictures my guide of 4grand was just a start point but it would seem i under priced the value of imps , going by what others say ,any glad you got it sorted now enjoy it

col

chris d · Post by **chris d** » Sun Sep 22, 2013 7:15 pm

great news
another one on the road
now for your next one

saver and enjoy
chris d

philgsmith · Post by **philgsmith** » Mon Sep 23, 2013 12:47 am

The past week has been traumatic to say the least but we've ended up with a roadworthy car at

last.Philip took Friday off work and we thought we had enough time to get everything done easily but

we ended up working 12 hours on Hilda.If she hadn't passed on Saturday there was no way we'd have been

able to get the neccessary work done before the WWW as Philip is working in Birmingham next week until

Wednesday.

Philip had booked a mobile tuner to get Hilda running properly.We had just run out of time and he

wanted to make sure all was ok.The tuner wasn't happy with the way Hilda was ticking over and decided

to strip the carb. He found several bits of crud in the jets, obviously causing lumpy running. He rebuilt it

but we had to use a piece of clear fuel pipe between the reservoir and the main body.

Having installed it, it then started to leak and at this point we thought we'd have to cancel the MOT.

The tuner was a great bloke and he was going to try to source some pipe and come back on Saturday morning

to fit it. It's amazing the effect Imps have on people! Eventually we found an alternative piece of pipe as a

short term measure.(Roy Blunt is going to give us a piece of the proper piping). The tuner ended up staying

with us for over four hours so this put us back a bit to say the least.

We had decided a while ago that we wanted to install inertia reel seat belts and contacted FDTS, a

company recommended by an Imp Club member in the non Imp specialist section of the forum. They were

really helpful and the service was brilliant. We sent them measurements of what we needed last weekend

and the belts arrived on Tuesday which was fantastic. So far so good. However, when we went to fit

them after the tuner had left, we could see that they were too short. We hadn't allowed sufficient

length of webbing. We had rushed things and measured it at the end of the day last Saturday. So we had

problem number two - no seat belts. Therefore we had to resurrect the old belts. I'd cleaned them up

by putting them in the washing machine during the week just in case - good job too!

The sealed beams were working but it seemed as if one of them was brighter than the other, so we ordered

new halogen units last week. These were installed without any problems and they're now working properly.

All was now going well but then we had problem number three. We had orignal wipers and wanted to refit

them. We replaced the rubbers but then one of the retaining tangs broke. We thought it may be ok but

when we tried the washers, the wipers left an area of the screen uncleaned. We knew this would mean a

fail but it was now gone 9pm and there was nothing we could do about it. We were both gutted and

resigned ourselved to taking Hilda to the WWW on a trailer.

On Saturday morning we thought we'd try to see if we could find a wiper from a local motor factors on

our way to the car. We thought it was a long shot. We found what we thought might fit and bought it.

We were in luck as it fitted. It doesn't match the original as it's black and it wobbles a bit but we

didn't care at this point. We'll try to find an Imp one to replace at some point.

We decided to take Hilda to a garage at the bottom of Philip's parents' street for the MOT. We hadn't

used them before and weren't sure how they would deal with an old car. We needn't have worried. When

they put her up on the ramp they found that one of the rear break pipes had a slight leak. This was

quickly sorted out. They then felt there was too much play in the kingpins so they pumped some more

grease into them. We took the oportunity to have a good look at the underside and take some photos.

Although we'd stripped this back to metal, we'd never had the chance to have a good look at the

underside as we'd been working with the car on axle stands.

I wasn't convinced she'd pass as the brakes felt weak compared to my Mini's which are really sharp. We

were really surprised when they said she had passed as we were convinced that they would find

something that we'd missed.I felt like hugging the mechanic when he told us she'd passed but he mightn't

have liked it! The pair of us couldn't stop grinning for the rest of the day though.

We've spent the rest of this weekend completing a few of the remaining tasks. I'd ordered replacement

door seals from East Kent Trim Supplies. They had 2 sorts, one stated for an Imp with an oval profile

like the one I'd bought on Ebay and no 138, with a v shaped outer profile which had been recommended

by members on the forum. This was the one I ordered. They weren't cheap but the doors now shut.

Philip managed to get the rear window to shut by using the longer catch he made during the week and we

fitted the chrome surround. We had to redrill the holes as the fasteners were slightly too big.

Once we're back from the WWW we'll be fitting the new seatbelts and Philip will be planning the

upgrades he wants to make to the car over the winter, namely installing an alternator, the CD player,

fitting the BMW doughnuts, upgrading the brakes and hopefully making her go faster.

I'm going to tax the car tomorrow and we'll then bring her home.

We took a lot of photographs today and I thought I'd do some before/after ones first:

Before: Hilda as she was when we brought her home in Jan 2011.

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And what was hidden beneath.

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After

Interior before:

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After

We haven't made many changes to the engine - HE radiator, new air filter, Accuspark electronic
ignition and that's it for the moment.

Hilda's first trip will be to WWW next weekend.

Lesley.

imporium · Post by **imporium** » Mon Sep 23, 2013 10:17 am

Lesley, fancy buying the very naff ebay ones which dont work, toooo big !.. ..when the right ones for you, original spec, were on the bench when you popped in..

....Malcolm

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Mon Sep 23, 2013 10:46 am

Have followed this thread with great interest

, what a fab restoration you have done

The car looks stunning and I like the square rev and fog lights on the rear, well done

It's a great feeling when the mech says it's passed the MOT.............sad I know

bks974c · Post by **bks974c** » Mon Sep 23, 2013 10:47 am

Well done, looks very nice.

Now enjoy it after all your hard work

Scott

andy · Post by **andy** » Mon Sep 23, 2013 12:27 pm

Congratulations Fantastic job cant wait to see it on Thursday.

philgsmith · Post by **philgsmith** » Mon Sep 23, 2013 12:36 pm

Hi Malc,
I bought the door seals in March 2011 when we were going to put her straight back on the road before I knew much about where to source things, so that's my excuse!
Lesley

Post by **Lars Hagermark** » Mon Sep 23, 2013 1:08 pm

Well done!

Hope you'll have a nice WWW for a starter and then many many more happy miles with Hilda.

imporium · Post by **imporium** » Mon Sep 23, 2013 1:43 pm

philgsmith wrote:Hi Malc,
I bought the door seals in March 2011 when we were going to put her straight back on the road before I knew much about where to source things, so that's my excuse!
Lesley

no probs, any odd bits needed for WWW? front of car looks a bit high to me ? or not settled yet ? malcolm

Post by **Cally** » Mon Sep 23, 2013 4:01 pm

Nice job and nice to see another Leeds/West Riding registered Imp on road and in fantastic shape.

I've always been somewhat reluctant to do updating, apart from such things as alternators, or even remove originality features eg small long since done body slight body damage.
Began to change my mind and looking to fit a few bits and am looking at original looking inertia belts and a few things I've collected but not had time to fit or had not yet worked out to fit without them looking out of place/'too modern'
I have planned to bolt some period cloth reclining seats into our Stiletto but was up to now persuaded not to

Seeing Hilda has given me extra impetus now

GURNSIMPS · Post by **GURNSIMPS** » Mon Sep 23, 2013 6:47 pm

Gurns Hat is off to the pair of you,is this REALLY the same car I looked at a few years ago when I brought the rear panel over,you have done a fabulous job fair play.

philgsmith · Post by **philgsmith** » Mon Sep 23, 2013 8:48 pm

Thanks for all the great comments.

Neil - yep it's the same one, and it's got the transom that you gave us.

Back to tonight - Lesley drove Hilda home from my dad's - about 10 miles, with a steep hill at the end (Gurns - Kendon Hill you know how steep that is...), she said that Hilda was pulling really well until she got to the top of the hill .After 50 yards on the flat the power seemed to blip and from then on she could rev the car but it didn't pull at all. She managed to limp it home on the flat and a bit down hill.

When I looked in the engine bay there was no petrol in the filter and it didn't seem to have anything getting to it. The pump seemed very hot so I'm thinking starvation.

Second problem - the petrol tank sender seal seems to be leaking (car was on a bit of a side slope).

Third problem - yes Malcolm, front does seem high, I've thought that all weekend, but the left front looks even worse now. I was hoping it would settle with a bit of road use, it was OK on the road, but putting it on the drive seems to have made it worse. Nothing seems out of place though.

So looks like Hilda will be on the trailer on Friday after all - good job I didn't cancel it today.

So the questions are what 's going wrong guys??

Phil

impmann · Post by **impmann** » Mon Sep 23, 2013 9:13 pm

Phil,

Get the tracking checked - that can cause the front to ride up.

Conking out - have you got a rotor arm/condensor from the Distributor Doctor? If not buy one FROM HIM. Check that there isn't something blocking the tank outlet - take the sender unit out and have look inside (don't use a ciggie lighter for extra light... I honestly know someone who survived doing just that).

You will need to debug the car - whenever you restore an Imp, there will be a debugging period. You just need to remain positive and look for the light at the end of the tunnel.

Good luck

philgsmith · Post by **philgsmith** » Mon Sep 23, 2013 9:37 pm

Hi Tim

We've got a Accuspark electronic ignition module, so no condensor, and the rotor arm is also Accuspark - new just before we started the restoration so not used. I've heard that Distributor Doctor has the best.

The tank was cleaned with tank sloah and sealed with Rustbuster tank seal so I'm hoping there isn't any crud in there. I'll have a look with a torch.

Debugging - get enough of that with IT systems in work! I always expected some problems, which was why we weren't intending taking Hilda far. These things bring you back to earth?

cheers

Phil

Post by **Lars Hagermark** » Mon Sep 23, 2013 10:52 pm

philgsmith wrote:These things bring you back to earth?

Literally if you have to change the fuel line.

Hope it's a lot less problematic.

Peter Hurst · Post by **Peter Hurst** » Tue Sep 24, 2013 8:26 pm

philgsmith wrote:Hi Tim

The tank was cleaned with tank sloah and sealed with Rustbuster tank seal so I'm hoping there isn't any crud in there. I'll have a look with a torch.

cheers

Phil

Sounds like fuel starvation
When I got my Chamois back on the road after quite a few years lay up I had a couple of fuel related issues that cause me to break down on its first propper long drive. Firstly despite cleaning tank and fuel lines after about twenty miles car slowed to a stop with lack of fuel. Found fuel pump full of fine sediment and after a good clean was off again. Happened again but pump clean so blew back down fuel line until heard bubbling in tank and off I went when all reconnected. Kept happening on and off and realised tank outlet was blocking. In making sure the fuel gauge sender was fully sealed I used some gasket goo and a blob had fallen it to tank and that was blocking outlet!
Could you be having similar issues?
Running or not looking forward to see car at Pandy. I should be there in Chamois but going for MOT retest day before. Just failed on no rear near side braking as had seized rear wheel cylinder. Changed the other side before going to Perth so at least both sides consistant in failure time lasting 6 years from new. Problem is that car left for months at a time not being used

ganderson888 · Post by **ganderson888** » Tue Sep 24, 2013 8:56 pm

On a lighter note Phil, when I was swopping the ancillaries during my on going engine swop I thought I'd give the fuel pump a good clean out while it was on the bench.
I took the top cover off and found a load of crud and a whole cheesie log (Wood lice) under the brass gauze!

I wondering how it got in there and when as the car's been on the road over 4 years now and has never suffered with fuel starvation?

BTW you're car looks fab, hope you get this gremlin smoothed out soon.

Regards
Graham

Post by **Cally** » Tue Sep 24, 2013 10:14 pm

Tank gasket leaking a bit? Could be a bit of gasket has got in tank and suction is holding it over tank outlet?

Had such a problem with my first Imp. Took sender out to look in tank after getting starvation issue and what was in tank but a bit of a sender gasket! Think previous owner was culprit as there was still a full gasket around sender!

Cleaned out bits and never had any more problems

welshrover · Post by **welshrover** » Wed Sep 25, 2013 1:05 am

looking great its a credit to you .

ImpManiac · Post by **ImpManiac** » Wed Sep 25, 2013 1:52 pm

That is fabulous news, Phil and Lesley!

I am really happy for you both!

The running issues you have described will almost invariably come to light when a freshly restored car goes back on the road.

Take heart in that. Once the gremlins are ironed out of the car, though, it should prove to be a lovely, reliable little classic car.

I hope you get the car to WWW under its own power but either way, have a great time!

IM

philgsmith · Post by **philgsmith** » Mon Sep 30, 2013 4:41 pm

Thanks All,

Philip got home from Birmingham at 8.30 last Wednesday evening and we ended up siphoning 20 litres of petrol out of Hilda and into the MGF as the fuel tank gasket had failed and petrol was leaking badly out of it. This managed to strip some of the paint off the petrol tank and the area surrounding the wheel well. Just another job to add to the list!

Hilda went to the WWW on a trailer and came home under her own power. We arrived on Thursday evening with the caravan then picked up the trailer and Hilda on Friday morning. As soon as we got Hilda off the trailer her engine cover was up and Malc was working on her with the help of a few others. Needless to say that within 10 minutes she was running properly. We weren't happy with her brakes so after the Saturday run Philip adjusted them with the help of Ken Dunkley and again a few others. This was the story of the weekend! We needed to fill Hilda up with petrol but the bonnet wouldn't open. After numerous adjustments, Noddy had a look at it on Sunday and it now opens but will need more work to get it right.

We took Hilda out for her first run on Sunday and it was a great feeling.Roy and Dawn Blunt followed behind just in case. They've both been brilliant over the past few weeks.We didn't keep up with the other Imps on the run as I was driving her rather gingerly at this time but thankfully we had no problems.

I have to say this is what makes the Imp Club great. Everyone is willing to help when someone has a problem.

We'd both like to say thank you to everyone who helped us with advice on the weekend. It's really appreciated.

Also thank you for all the kind comments you made about the car.The highlight of the weekend for us was when Hilda was voted best Chrysler Imp. This was the icing on the cake.

Building Hilda has been a great experience and she's not finished yet. Is an Imp ever finished? (I don't think so!)

This post is a bit like the Oscars with all the "thankyous". The final one has to go to Philip. He's worked on Hilda in the cold and damp with a slipped disc, ear infections etc for the last two and a half years and has supported me all the way although he didn't used to like Imps! Hilda wouldn't be here without his efforts.( He's going to fall off the chair in shock when he reads this, but he deserves it!)

Lesley

Bobbycham · Post by **Bobbycham** » Mon Sep 30, 2013 6:59 pm

Another two happy customers , great to read and see your efforts , car looks fabulous really ready to be enjoyed and tinkered with , Happy motoring, and look at all the admiring looks you get (car gets)
WELL DONE
Bob

ImpManiac · Post by **ImpManiac** » Mon Sep 30, 2013 10:43 pm

Yours is a lovely example of an Imp and it deserved praise for the hard work that you've both put in to it. WELL DONE INDEED!

You will work through the inevitable gremlins that cars throw up when you put them back into service. Then you will be able to really enjoy Hilda.

IM

philgsmith · Post by **philgsmith** » Mon Sep 30, 2013 11:57 pm

Please do not under estimate Lesley's contribution to this project. I didn't do all of the work by any measure. She did most of the paint and rust removal as she has a pathalogical hatred of rust and in the process killed 3 115mm grinders! The upholstery was all her effort, and on a home sewing machine too.. head lining, carpets, wheel painting, cleaning and painting loads of ancilliaries and small items, plus passing me spanners, sockets and so on... and helping sanding filler and primer coats - so it really has been a joint effort.

There are a few gremlins to sort, but the engine is running smoothly and the brakes are now pulling up pretty well (we're getting used to the "old" technology). We've been out in the car again tonight just for the fun of it.

Phil

philgsmith · Post by **philgsmith** » Mon Oct 07, 2013 9:20 pm

Well after a great WWW away we were back to work on Hilda on Sunday. A couple of problems had occurred last weekend so it was time to solve some of them. Hilda now has Monte shocks instead of the old ones so she looks a lot better as the front end was sticking up in the air looking rather silly previously.
We also fitted a new speedo cable - which isn't working. The dash is making a ticking sound ( not a bomb I hope) so it may be that it's not quite connected. Philip wasn't convinced that it was on properly. The new gasket had been fitted to the petrol tank so we can no longer smell fuel and the tank can be filled.

We still don't have lights on the right hand side of the dash , one bulb is missing and the indicator light doesn't work even though the bulb worked when tested. This is a job for next weekend. Philip has also fitted an in line fuse in the main live feed to the front.

We still need to readjust the bonnet. It's opening and closing ok but still needs work.

We re measured for the inertia reel belts. FDTS have been great as they are going to change the belts free of charge even though it was our mistake. Hopefully we can fit these next weekend. I'll probably put their contact details at some point.

I'm enjoying driving Hilda and getting reacquainted with 70's style driving. It's a great feeling and I can't stop smiling. She's getting plenty of attention when she's on the road with people smiling and pointing which is rather nice.

Thought we'd take a picture of our two mid life crisis toys on the drive.

Lesley

Post by **Cally** » Mon Oct 07, 2013 9:47 pm

Re Speedo cable - check cable comes through loom directly behind speedo , if it pulls to one side this can make cable to speedo connection difficult and prone to cable snapping. Make sure the clip on speedo cable is fully seated on speedo > ticking sounds like square on top of speedo cable is not fully connecting to speedo drive itself
Re dash bulbholder - if you've a spare one change the whole holder. Sometimes connection within these bulb holders that use capless bulbs, deteriorates and substituting a known good holder will restores working warning or dash lamp. Failing that check you've got a good connection onto printed circuit

philgsmith · Post by **philgsmith** » Mon Oct 14, 2013 9:37 pm

I think we have a problem !!
A bit of an explanation is required, but we think we know what the diagnosis will be at the end.

The previous weekend we did some work on Hilda - Lesley has already posted some comments.

What she didn't say was that on the way home, again about 1/4 mile from home, the temperature gauge suddenly dropped

to cold.

After working away from home for a few days I had a look - I was sure that the cable on the sender had become

dislodged. I wasn't far wrong - the blade connector on the sender fell off in my fingers!

So we contacted Uncle Malcolm who sent one out in the post on Friday and it arrived Saturday morning... I still cannot

fathom how 1st class post really means next day delivery when Malcolm sends something.

Anyway, it rained on Saturday and with no garage/cover at home I hoped for a dry Sunday.

Sunday came and it rained, but I had to replace the sender as we wanted to take Hilda to the Area meet at the Unicorn

in Cardiff on Wednesday.

So in the rain I started the job, having to drain the coolant to get the hose in front of the sender off to enable a

socket to get over the sender. (I had already sprayed release oil on the sender twice on Friday and Saturday). The

sender yielded and was unscrewed quite easily.

So I screwed in the new one and nipped it up tight with the socket. Replaced the hose and clamped it down. Replaced

the bottom hose and refilled the radiator. Allowed air to escape and topped up.

We started the engine and it ran nicely, warming up and the temperature gauge rose to a normal position.

The coolant in the radiator dropped slightly and I topped it up.

Then blue smoke started to blow from the exhaust - maybe not a problem since the car was a bit nose down on the drive

and it doesn't have an oil drain, see the last picture posted, but it was more than I was happy with. Then the smoke

turned white and I was really not happy !!.

After about 30 seconds the smoke then disappeared and the engine just continued to run normally. Reving the engine

didn't seem to make any difference or produce more white smoke.

I opened the radiator cap expecting a loss of water - no, still at previous level and hot but not boiling. I didn't

look at the temperature gauge (wish I had).

In all we ran the car for about 15 minutes. It was still running and reving well without sounding any different. We haven't

driven it yet so we don't know how it pulls etc.

By this time I was wet through and so we packed up, went in the house and dried out and tried to ignore the problem.

I've just checked the water level - it hasn't moved and doesn't look like it has oil in it.

The oil is about 3/4 level and looks pretty clean - no evidence of oil and water mixing (I've seen examples in Rover K

series engines and that looks like runny pooh or hot chocolate!).

There is no water seepage around the sender unit or the hose that I removed.

So my diagnosis tells me it's a head gasket problem. Not sure why - maybe due to air trapped in the head. Hoping that

parking on the drive didn't contribute as we don't have anywhere truly flat.

So what do you reckon guys?

I guess the trip to Cardiff is out of the question now. Pity really as it would have been Hilda's first meeting.

Phil

bazzateer · Post by **bazzateer** » Mon Oct 14, 2013 9:56 pm

Phil,

Could just be condensation in the exhaust etc burning off, it's know to get a bit cold and damp in Welshland apparently

Next time you start it take the rad cap off and rev the engine manually looking at the water in the top of the rad. If you get lots of bubbles when you rev then it probably is the HG. If you just get the odd 'burp' it's probably just a few airlocks being released. Have you got a compression tester? If so check the compressions in all four cylinders, if not - borrow one!

Good luck.

philgsmith · Post by **philgsmith** » Mon Oct 14, 2013 10:44 pm

Hi Baz

Think it's more than condensation as it was running for a few minutes before the blue and white smoke started and there was quite a cloud of both. I'll start her up tomorrow night and check out the radiator as you say. We'll then also see if we get more smoke.

No I don't have a compression tester - something I've always wanted, so may get one - seem pretty cheap on Ebay - with an Imp and MGF to look after it may come in useful!

cheers mate

Phil

impmann · Post by **impmann** » Tue Oct 15, 2013 8:46 am

If the gauge looks 'right', there are no bubbles in the rad and it runs well... I *wouldn't* say its a gasket failure. The smoke could be anything, from condensation to some muck in the petrol - or as you say some oil getting past the guides.

Unless you have an active symptom of HG failure (the big one being bubbles in the rad) then it won't be that. And remember, HGs don't just "go" on Imps, there is a reason for them failing - fix the reason, and you get no more gasket failure.

philgsmith · Post by **philgsmith** » Tue Oct 15, 2013 8:58 am

Hi Tim

All the cooling system is new, but we didn't open up the engine so don't know what had happened previously etc.

We'll have another look at her tonight, but I didn't notice a stream of bubbles in the header. I was expecting some air release because of refilling coolant.

I think we'll try and get her on more level ground and take her out and see how she runs.

Phil

impmann · Post by **impmann** » Tue Oct 15, 2013 8:59 am

Hi Phil,

Take the car for a proper run before you condemn anything - in my experience tick over doesn't really show much up.

philgsmith · Post by **philgsmith** » Tue Oct 15, 2013 9:11 am

Tim

I'm a pessimist ! Not fazed by a HG though - we did the MGF 2 years ago and that makes the Imp engine bay look cavernous! At one point Lesley was kneeling on the engine (in the car) trying to slide the VVC timing belt on while I held the sprockets against the spring load - fun..

We'll take her out tonight - looking a nice day her today so hopefully it'll stay that way rather than the rain of the weekend.

Cheers mate..

RoyBlunt · Post by **RoyBlunt** » Tue Oct 15, 2013 2:10 pm

Phil,
Hope your run went OK. I don't think you have a H/G problem. I've got a compression gauge - will dig it out and bring it over on Wednesday evening.
Roy

philgsmith · Post by **philgsmith** » Tue Oct 15, 2013 4:45 pm

Roy - some of us are at work!.... Going out in her tonight. We can discuss tomorrow mate. I have ordered a comp gauge, due to arrive later in week.

cheers

Phil

67cali · Post by **67cali** » Tue Oct 15, 2013 7:45 pm

I have to agree, it doesn't really sound like a head gasket to me. From my own experience, I once over filled the oil and water and when taking it out for a spin it let out an almighty cloud of smoke as I shot across a set of traffic lights and I really worried but there was no problem and the engine is still running in a car today without a HG change in over 15 years.

philgsmith · Post by **philgsmith** » Tue Oct 15, 2013 8:58 pm

Well guys we took her out for a spin with a bit of uphill (we do live in the valleys after all!) plus some open fast road and she performed perfectly after the first few minutes when seem just seemed cold and a bit lethargic. The temperature went up to about half way and stayed there. I opened the rad cap and there were no bubbles or anything untoward.

So we are happy, if still confused by Sunday's smokey session.

The left front suspension seems to be a bit noisey since fitting the Monte's - I'll have to find a way of fitting some retainers (Lesley doesn't want me drilling the wish bones - and I'm not that keen either) - sounds like the rubber top mount rubbing (maybe the spring moving in it slightly).

I didn't bother with the speedo - it's too dark and I dodn't fancy fiddling up under the dash.

So Hilda will go to her first area meet tomorrow.

Many thanks for all the comments and suggestions over the last day or so. We've parked her at the lowest point on the drive and tried to get her as level as possible so hopefully that'll help keep oil away from the no 4 pot.

Phil