My First Imp (First Sprint this Year!)

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Sat Jul 11, 2015 3:15 pm

12 months MOT this morning courtesy of Phil at Halesowen Vehicle Services

https://www.facebook.com/about/login/#! ... es?fref=ts
One advisory though, front nearside kingpin, only just put 2 reconn ones on

......feel another e-mail to Malcolm coming on

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Fri Aug 14, 2015 8:24 am

Another photo from Curborough last Sunday

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Sun Oct 04, 2015 6:11 pm

I no longer feel self conscious about emitting blue smoke from my Imp's exhaust

617sqn · Post by **617sqn** » Sun Oct 04, 2015 6:16 pm

/\/\ haha

Andy G.

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Tue Oct 27, 2015 9:25 am

With my Imp making its 2nd appearance of the Classic Car Show at the NEC next month

thought I'd better tidy up the rear end a little

Been meaning to do something about it all year and as usual I leave it to the last minute

Never did find out why one of the previous owners drilled eight holes and linked them with slots

oli · Post by **oli** » Tue Oct 27, 2015 1:20 pm

Towbar?

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Wed Nov 11, 2015 8:17 am

Almost ready for the NEC now, rear panel strange extra holes now filled and sprayed

A little more detailing to be done to-day, will post more photo's later

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Mon Nov 16, 2015 9:52 am

Finished cleaning the engine bay a few days before the NEC Classics Show and fitted the new stickers

Great 4 days (1 set up day) at the NEC with lots of interest in my Imp and met lots of people with great stories about their Imps

Thanks to every one who came and said hello, made all the hard work well worth while

ImpManiac · Post by **ImpManiac** » Mon Nov 16, 2015 12:49 pm

Your car looks superb, Martin.

IM

Post by **Lars Hagermark** » Mon Nov 16, 2015 2:51 pm

The car looks very nice indoors too.

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Tue Dec 08, 2015 12:33 pm

Before the NEC show I ordered and fitted some wheel centre caps from Huddersfield Spares

Very pleased with the result, finished off the wheels nicely I thought

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Tue Dec 08, 2015 4:51 pm

Whilst at the NEC I met with Roger Gill who I found out used to own my Imp

Had a very interesting conversation with him about the stunt for the tv programme The Royal. I think he said it was filmed on the Nene Valley Railway and involved an Imp on the level crossing being hit by a train. He provided the two stunt cars and he explained how they filmed it etc. I asked him for some photo's and he duly obliged, here are just a few

Would love to find out more about its appearence in Heartbeat now and if any photo's are around of that

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Mon Jan 25, 2016 6:57 pm

Engine and box out again to-day, a lot easier 2nd time

Remembered to disconnect everything this time

Hoping to cure the engines huge appetite for oil

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Fri Jan 29, 2016 3:32 pm

A bit of advice please

, looking at my clutch plate (6 1/4" dia) it is near to the rivets so need to replace when engine is returned to me. Is it best to upgrade to Malc's 3 piece Mk 2 kit or keep as is and just replace the plate?
Also the ring that fits in the middle of the pressure plate fingers, is it normally in 2 halves and what holds them together

Thanks

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Wed Mar 09, 2016 9:07 am

Good day in the garage yesterday

Carbs, gearbox, starter motor all now refixed to the engine and engine bolted in place

Just need to connect all the other bits and bobs and then hopefully no more smoking

Seems that Ben Boult used crappy piston rings including one piece oil control rings

so it would have never had bedded in and I would have continued chucking in and burning litres of oil

So I now have Deves rings fitted which I'm told by my new engine man are very good

Keepng my fingers firmly crossed

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Wed Mar 09, 2016 9:57 am

Thanks Peter

yes it was a relief when I was told the reason for my smoke.
I just wished Ben would have said something instead of fobbing me off and saying it will be in eventually

Looking forward to driving it again and being able to see who is behind me

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Thu Apr 07, 2016 4:05 pm

A very early morning start to visit the rolling road but well worth it

Imp now starting and running as it should with a lot less smoke

Only revving to 6500 at the moment and have 80 bhp at the flywheel and 53 bhp at the wheels

Sounds good and now need to get some miles on the clock though I doubt if I'll push it to 9,000 once the engine has run in

We'll see

moose · Post by **moose** » Fri Apr 08, 2016 8:30 am

i thought there was only approx 13 % transmission loss on an imp? good to hear it is not smoking anymore, get some miles on it and get on the tracks

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Fri Apr 15, 2016 7:39 am

My old Suzuki silencer was OK but looked a bit tatty so decided to upgrade

Bought a good 2nd hand Suzuki GSXR 1000 silencer from the bay of fleas recently and found it was slightly larger diameter than my previous one

With new fixing holes drilled (4 instead of 3) I was pleased with the ease it was fitted

The only problem was that once I refitted the bumper I was concious of the fact it protuded past it and there could be a danger of burning peoples legs as it gets really hot

I then came across a couple of doorstops in my garage that I'd never used, re-drilled larger holes in them, fitted longer bolts and as you can see from the photo's the problem was solved

The Nun · Post by **The Nun** » Fri Apr 15, 2016 10:47 am

Interesting numberplate light, what it it? if it is one, or a silencer support of course?

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 6:55 pm

Following my 225 mile "drive it" day last Sunday my Imp was sounding pretty rough during the last 30 mile to get back home

Called in a local mobile carb man to take a look and he said 3 and 4 cylinder plugs were oiling up

this was probably due to the lack of airspace near the weber air inlets

So have now ditched the pipercross box air filter and gone for individual gorse trumpet filters

Seems OK on a local 10 mile test drive, watch this space

Dave ' Linwood ' Lane · Thu Apr 28, 2016 7:44 pm

Im inclined to agree with Peter , My Singers engine is currently buried in dust and this happens very frequently .
Im running K & N filters so have noticed no ill effects on the running aspect
This is an old pic of just how cruddy the filters get

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Mon May 16, 2016 6:41 pm

Having the wider wheels on and using the car more on the road now have been concerned about damage from stones etc on my bodywork

So bought some plastic mudflap material from Demon Tweeks and some alluminium strip from B&Q

Made some brackets and cut the plastic to suit, should stop stone chips etc on my lower rear wheel arch

Got some left over so probably do the same on the front

617sqn · Post by **617sqn** » Tue May 17, 2016 7:18 am

For every action, there is an equal and opposite pain I the 'arris, as Dell Boy probably would have said if he'd been on this forum.

Andy G

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Sat Jun 11, 2016 9:21 am

Engine now running with very liitle blue smoke but still not performing as I would like

Had another session with a friend on his rolling road changing jets and settings, a little better by the end

He's now going to order some smaller chokes for me to try.....will get there eventually

Darkspeed · Post by **Darkspeed** » Mon Jul 18, 2016 6:10 pm

Are you tuning the engine with those intake sieves fitted to the carbs or are they taken off when doing the work?

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Thu Jul 28, 2016 3:54 pm

Three and a half hours to straighten out all the hoops on the cooler

I have to say it was quiet therapeutic on a sunny afternoon

Thanks to tarace on here for posting me one out

and thanks to Richard Hammond for supplying one bracket and lending me another so I could copy it

A motorsport friend also made me a pair of new pipes

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Mon Aug 15, 2016 9:13 am

Took my green thing to Sunday's show and shine and won 3rd in class for competition Imps

Mrs PC won best visitors car with her Sprite

A great day out, good to catch up with friends

Thanks to all the organisers and marshals and thanks to everyone who voted for our cars.
Awards now have pride of place

Mark One · Post by **Mark One** » Mon Aug 15, 2016 9:08 pm

Nice work Martin. Congrats to both of you. Who gets to polish the trophies?

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Wed Oct 26, 2016 7:55 am

Always had low oil pressure on my engine once it warms up

Decided to fit a 'Bog Brush' cooler and swap the oil to Valvoline VR1 Racing SAE 20W-50

Have to say what a difference, now running just under 50 psi when engine is warm and just under 25 psi on tickover

Attended a couple of shows recently, probably the last outdoor ones in 2016, and lots of interest and stories etc from joe public

.....Best one was a guy who was told by his Grandad that the Imp was the safest car on the road and when he asked why he said
"Well when you are driving around with 6 gallon of petrol sitting on your lap it makes you a very cautious and carefull driver".
Made me smile

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Tue Nov 15, 2016 12:50 pm

As the organiser of Classic Car Shows, for Owen Motoring Club, I had decided to leave my green thing at home this year and not show it at the NEC

Fellow club members insisited I take it along to the NEC again and of course as usual there was lots of interest in it

Mine was the cheapest car on our stand and got just as much attention as the pristine Escort Mk2 Harrier which has had thousands spent on it

A very enjoyable 4 days, met some interesting people with great Imp stories and was good to meet up with fellow Imp Club members on my stand and theirs

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Wed Jan 04, 2017 2:47 pm

Did an all forward autotest with my Nephew navigating the day after Boxing Day

More of a test to see how it revved and drove in anger, so as long as it's kept it above 3,800 rpm it goes very well

I did one wrong test and hit some cones on others and still finished 3rd in class out of 10 in the rear wheel drive class

The 3 tests were done 3 times

MX5......76 83 73 66 77 93 67 84 97..........(716 secs) 1st
MX5 ......67 92 76 74 87 77 68 87 89.........(717 secs) 2nd
IMP ......74 99 94 72 81 99 80 79 88.........(766 secs) 3rd

ImpManiac · Post by **ImpManiac** » Thu Jan 05, 2017 1:48 pm

Well done indeed, Martin and nephew!

Imps can do really well in autotests, as you have shown, owing to their outstanding agility. Third is a great achievement!

IM

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Tue May 02, 2017 8:04 am

Probably the cheapest car on show there on Sunday at Stratford upon Avon's Festival of Motoring

Never been to this event before, lots of people, loads of classics in five closed roads and again lots of interest in my green thing

Love listening to stories and one chap told me a friend of his worked at Linwood

Every Friday the wives would meet their husbands out of work to take their pay packet from them to prevent them spending it all in the pub that night

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Tue May 02, 2017 8:06 am

Love this photo

Photo bombed by my Wife having a coffee

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Sat May 06, 2017 9:36 am

Following last weekends great Stratford Festival of Motoring I've found a short 3 min film

My green thing is at 1 min 48 secs and Richards is in the background at 2 min 52 secs

http://www.stratforward.co.uk/files/fil ... sd360p.mp4

Dave ' Linwood ' Lane · Sat May 06, 2017 11:29 am

looks a great event - i do love the look of your Imp BTW

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Tue May 23, 2017 8:25 am

Had another fun day with my green thing on Sunday

Competing with my Nephew on the Owen Motoring Club's annual grass auto test at Catton Park (not far from the National Memorial Arboretum).
Only me in the class but finished 17th o/all out of 24

There were doubts that the event would go ahead after all the rain the previous week but the field drained and dried quickly and I was amazed how much grip the Imp had on the Yokohama tyres

Post by **Lars Hagermark** » Tue May 23, 2017 4:57 pm

^^^

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Mon Apr 23, 2018 12:37 pm

Haven't updated for a while, too busy with FB...and I said I would never go on it

Annual 'Drive it Day' yesterday and I did a total of 185 miles from start to finish

106 miles of those were from a road-book route which took us through some scenic countryside around Shropshire and Worcester, car performed well although some of the very steep hills were a challenge with such a cammy engine which requires lots of revving

We started at RAF Cosford and finished at Shelsley Walsh with my Nephew Luke reading the road-book

I think washing it the day before was a waste of time

I've got it booked into a rolling road next month just to see if they can make it a little bit more drivable on the road

Next main outing will be the Stratford show on 6th May and this year I'll be doing the small tour beforehand

yoeddynz · Post by **yoeddynz** » Tue Apr 24, 2018 9:48 pm

Glad you posted up. Its so much nicer to follow a forum thread with nice photos and a good read than it is to look at unlinked random images on FB. By following good forum threads you can become immersed in a writers project and get taken along for the ride

Always great to see the cars getting used properly after they've been finished too!

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Tue Apr 24, 2018 11:46 pm

Well chuffed, made it onto the front page of this weeks edition

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Wed May 16, 2018 7:39 am

I love driving my Imp but with the set up I always have to drive with one eye on the rev counter to keep it on cam when climbing small gradients etc

So a few people have suggested I get it set up on a rolling road to see if this can be ironed out to make it more drivable, so last week I took it to Aldon Automotive at Brierley Hill

He kept if for a couple of days whilst new carb bits were ordered but worth the wait and what a transformation

I can now drive it smoothly up through the rev range with no hesitation around the 3,500 rpm mark

Looking forward to doing some sprints with it now

benwick3 · Post by **benwick3** » Wed May 16, 2018 8:04 pm

I'm assuming that the attachment is for the final result and from your comments you are obviously more than pleased with it. However, based on the information provided I am of the opinion that the result obtained is not taking full advantage of the characteristics of the Fraser B cam. In this context it would have been interesting to have seen the figures continue to 8500 rpm so as to obtain values nearer the accepted main power rev range for the cam.

Whilst the settings reached are expected to provide safe running I feel there is potentially more power available with no loss in drivability. Based on my experience a change to 30mm chokes and 115 main jets along with F16 emulsion tubes and 180 air correctors will further unlock the performance of the Fraser B cam. Similarly whilst I agree with the 10 degree idle advance, with the above settings I have found a maximum advance of 36 degrees to be adequate.

Anyway in this instance just enjoy the improvements that you have obtained. However, when you get to the stage that you feel that you could do with more power then a change to my suggestions could prove beneficial.

Pete Richards

Lotus-e-Clan · Post by **Lotus-e-Clan** » Wed May 16, 2018 8:40 pm

Yes years ago I adpoted Pete's 115 mains/30 choke settings (applied to DHLA's) using GB72 cam (similar to Frazer B) and there was an instant midrange + top end torque increase.

His setting really do work well.

The 28 chokes will restrict the top end power but you probably gain in lower-mid torque. A C/Ratio box helps if you push the power up the rev range too.
Scott has a lot of experience with 28 choke settings IIRC.

Aren't Imp engines great when at full chat! Can't wait to get mine back on the road in june after I return from Whitsun hols.

bks974c · Post by **bks974c** » Wed May 16, 2018 9:55 pm

Indeed, I wanted the car to drive as smoothly as say a sport engine so no reving to set off on a hill, no power until it comes on the cam etc.

I was happy to sacrifice top end to achieve this drivability which I got by going down to 28mm chokes and correctly set up and balanced webers.

Scott

Grahame59 · Post by **Grahame59** » Thu May 17, 2018 7:27 am

Very interesting to see the rolling road printout and glad that you are happy with the improvements. Curious that it produces more power and torque at 2500rpm than it does at 3000rpm though. Is that noticeable in the real world, Martin, as 2500/3000rpm would be used frequently?

Can anyone recommend a RR in the Sussex area? While I'm happy with how my Imp performs I am sure a RR session could improve it.

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Fri May 25, 2018 3:03 pm

Following the rolling road set up I then drove my Imp to 2 car shows the following weekend

Saturday was a car show at Shrewsbury (about 50 miles away) and then Sunday a local one in the next village

I found the car to be a lot more enjoyable to drive on the road and great not having to keep one eye on the rev counter when climbing hills

So my next test was a track day at Curborough Sprint course (near Lichfield) to see how it performs at speed on the track

Again I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it is now to drive and how quickly the engine responds when coming out of tight corners

The visit to Aldon Automotive was well worth it and am now looking forward to my 1st sprint in two years on June 10th, just need to buy new overalls and a crash helmet

pubcrawler · Post by **pubcrawler** » Thu Aug 16, 2018 6:10 pm

I thought I'd better update my forum page for those of you who haven't seen my mutterings on Facebook

I purchased new helmet, overalls & gloves from Demon Tweeks (belated Birthday presents from my good Wife) and then took part in 3 events

My 1st was our club sprint at Curborough, near Lichfield, which is the figure of 8 formation and great to drive and then the second at Shelsley Walsh

Both of these events were learning events as I'm still getting used to driving it in anger and didn't come away with any awards but just a huge smile

My 3rd event was a Loton Park hillclimb near Welshpool and I haven't competed here for many years, I was in a class of 3 which was a regular competitor and his son in an AH Sprite Mk4

Happy to say I beat them and won my class

I've got one more event planned at Harewood and maybe try and fit another Curborough in before the end of the year

I think over the winter I need to get the gearbox ratios changed as there is too much of a gap between 2nd & 3rd but I still want it drivable on the road

Also the rear springs need stiffening but apart from that I have to say how pleased I am with it's performance

Will try and put an article together for Impressions soon as well

bazzateer · Post by **bazzateer** » Thu Aug 16, 2018 8:08 pm

Great stuff Martin.