Toyota Celica - Pah!

Why would I want one of them Japanese pretend classics when I have a fully working [well sort of] v8 Beast?! 

It would appear that the distributor was 180 degrees out. And with the assistance of Simon and Ed's timing strobe, the Beast spluttered into life and is now running the best it ever has in the last 3 years. Much also say thanks to a chap named John in Aberdeen with whom I have been conversing via email and a v8 forum.

That distributor is the dogs! We timed it to about 8 dibbles past TDC. Although it is now driveable, it "front fires" from I presume the carbs/filters as opposed to backfiring from the tailpipe. I have taken it to work for the last 2 days and can (sometimes) floor it without any frontfires and now get the great v8 roar. 

I have since spoken to John again, who has set his distributor at 10 dibbles before TDC. He reckons that the frontfiring is because the timing is not quite right, and suggests I try it at 10 dibbles.

The overheating thing has still not gone away though. Could it be the timing? The gauge?

March and April

Pre new Distributor

I have been driving around Offmore every other Sunday for about 5 mins before putting it back again as it was spluttering and backfiring and overheating. I was a little brave the one day though and sat in the car port with the temp guage at 3/4 waiting for it to blow up. It didn't. Looks like 3/4 might be the running temperature?

Post new Distributor
It doesn't start any more!

New Distributor

... will be ordered this week. The Beast started first time today and spluttered around the block and back a couple of times before going back to bed. If a new dis doesn't sort it then it's bye-bye time. And Paul, if you are still reading this crap, sorry for taking the piss with the temp loan of yours, it will be returned very soon!

S & S Preparations

I have just emailed them for much needed assistance. If they weren't so far away, I'd let them keep hold of it, but as I can barely get the 2 miles to work without it getting to exploding temperature, I do not think that would be a good idea.

T R D C

Monday last, the boys at the club suggested two things that may be the cause of the spluttering: timing and needles. The needles thing was because big K&Ns suck in lots of air and thus the needles need to be tapered to compensate and thus flush through more fuel. Another £20 "investment" required ...

Twiddling The Distributor

There wasn't too much time available this weekend for a great deal of playtime with the Beast. I took it out of the garage to make some room for a clear out and had no real intentions to mess at all. But, after revving a few times and shooting even more flames up the road, I decided to have a bit of a play with the carbs - armed with a screwdriver and a bad printout off the interwebnet. I looked at the SUs, had a cup of tea, looked at them again, gave up and then undid the nut holding the disributor in place. A twiddle to the left later and things sound much better! A quick run up R Road was completed without a splutter nor backfire. Groovy! Although between last weekend and this, the fans have decided to stop. Ungroovy!

Thanks Be To Guy

I have been a member of the TR Drivers Club since I (stupidly) purchased the Teabag off Guru Ed back in 1989. Typically, I have received much ear with regards to the "Driver" part of the TRDC, wishing therefore that it was named TR Owners Club instead. I degress. Recently, now that I am an owner and almost a driver, I started to attend the local meetings again. It was there that I realised that several of the blokes there are also "Owners" as their TRs are in various stages of death and rebuild, and thus I should not feel bad that the Beast is temporarily deceased.

It was there I also met a bloke called Guy. Guy has had half a dozen TRs, several of which he has fully restored himself. His expertise happens to be V8 engines. He is also the club's Grinnall Registrar. I thus challenged him to give the Beast life! It was thus on Sunday 9th October that Guy and Mrs Guy popped around with an enormous toolbox and heads full of technical know how. An hour later and the Beast was reborn!

I have the points distibutor back in with the electronic one staying firmly on the shelf. Simon and Paul are taking bets on how long it will take me to cock it all up again! I am now on the hunt for another points distributor so that Paul can have his back. (I hope you are a little happier this morning BTW as you appeared not to be looking forward to the drive back down south). The white flag has gone; this bloke sums up the mood perfectly...

Thanks be to Paul

Following various messages of encouragement on here and elsewhere, I decided to give the Beast a last chance. On Saturday, I approached Paul in the hope that he had a spare distributor lying around. He had, but it was one with points as opposed to electronic ignition. Fear not, a trip to Bewdley to his mate Pete was called for

Pete just happened to have a box of Lucas distributors lying around , all in various states of (dis)repair. We transferred the potentially buggered innards of my dis with those from one of the others. I also borrowed one of those ballast resistor box things too. 2 hours later, time to put the plan into action.

Cock! The gear on the oil pump had moved and the dis wouldn't go in. A temporary blip though as Paul created a oil pump mover tool thing from a huge bolt and an angle grinder. The dis was put in. The cables were recrimped and reconnected to the coil and resistor. all connected. The key was turned ... COOOOOOOOOOOOOCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCKKKKKKKKKKKKKK! At this point, you may have worked out that all was not well. We waggled and pulled and disconnected and reconnected but to no avail. That's it then. The Beast is going back on eBay for as much as I can get.

It was at this point that Paul decided to fit the points dis ...

Lager! The Beast lives!