10/10/12
Today, the radiator went in & all the cooling hoses.
Then all the fluids, oil in the gearbox & engine & water. The sump plug
still has a small leak which meant that I took it out & used a thinner
washer & more plumbers’ tape. Then
the battery & the motor turned over without any strange noises which was
good. I then put the plugs in & the
distributor & ignition leads. Had a go at starting & no go. No petrol
so I blew & sucked the fuel lines & there is fuel after the pump. I had
to spend a lot of time with the leads as I had not numbered them & had I
done that it would have saved me an hour. I was thinking that the rotor moved
clockwise & arranged the leads that way. After many goes at starting, I
then read that the rotor went anti-clockwise. It soon went with the leads in
the right order. What a silly old bugger! Again, you think you know how it is done
& then the simple things like this can be so frustrating! However, large
amounts of oil were coming from the filter, not unexpectedly. I was not sure
what to do but found the original Motorcraft type on eBay, so I bought it. In
the meantime, I used my largest set of stillsons & managed to tighten the
filter up quite a deal & it doesn’t seem to be leaking. After a few more
turns she fired up & sounded pretty quiet. No obvious other leaks! I then
had to refill all the oils & water & did some adjustment on the clutch.
The gearbox works & reverse actually has spring mechanism so all seems good
so far. The exhaust manifold has a small leak & I will need to tighten that
in the morning but everything seems pretty good which is a relief.
12/10/12
I couldn’t do too much yesterday because of the weather but
today, I redid the exhaust pipe to the manifold & it has a very small crack
so I put some exhaust putty on it & retensioned it. It started well & then cut out. It didn’t
seem to want to start & the quick way it was turning over suggested that it
might be the cut out switch from the coil was on. Some of the connections from
the distributor to the coil via the switch were a bit iffy so I redid them all.
Then it fired up really well & again sounds really good. It was time for a
short drive around the streets near home & all seemed good. Having synchro
in first gear takes getting used to but it went up the mountain & pulls
strongly. It seemed to be running a little hot but possibly needs more water.
Again, I am pretty pleased at how it is going.
Looking back, what were the observations of this
little exercise?
1.
The engine crane started all of this and it was
well worth the price paid. It is an extremely useful bit of machinery and meant
that this aging guy with a not so good back didn’t do any heavy lifting at all.
I like the way it folds up & takes little space in the garage. Also, when I
am finished with it, I can sell it, possibly for the same price as I bought it
or a profit! Anybody want one?
2.
Don’t believe everything that seller’s tell you
when buying a car. I was informed, when buying this car, that the original
owner had just spent a lot of money on reconditioning the engine. What a lot of
crap!
3.
I should have done this much earlier. It just
takes times to get motivated & I was a little apprehensive about my level
of skill but with the help of my learned neighbour, I was able to do all the
engine work. My last attempt at engine reconditioning was in 1967 when I put
new pistons & rings in my FE Holden. From memory, I had a lot of trouble
getting it to run because the timing was way out. Having no timeline also is a
great help. In other words, I could take my time & tried not to be rushed
into finishing it.
4.
Good tools are essential. I had most things but
a new piston ring compressor made everything much easier. The price of tools is
much cheaper than in previous years so it pays to have a good tool kit.
5.
I possibly should have taken the engine &
gearbox out as one unit but the height under my house is a bit restrictive so I
took the safe option. I was able to use a low trolley & the crane to remove
the gearbox so it wasn’t a big drama.
6.
Just make sure you drain the oil before you
remove the gearbox. I knew that it would drain out the rear of the gear box
when I lifted it but I made an absolute mess of the garage floor. There was
gearbox oil everywhere so much so that I had to clean & hose the floor but
then the strong smell of the oil was around for days. There was also a lot of
advice from the household cleaning expert. A big mistake! I will remember it for next
time, if there is ever a next time!
7.
The Karcher is very useful for cleaning the
garage floor & also for cleaning engine parts, the block & sump.
8.
Autobarn at MacGregor have always been very
helpful to me with getting parts. Barry, the parts man, had located the correct
rings (+60 thousand) & a new clutch with two phone calls & had them at
their store the next morning. Very good service!
9.
The cost of reconditioning the gearbox was way
beyond my anticipated cost. All I wanted was the synchro on first to work but,
as with old cars, it wasn’t as simple as that. In addition to all the normal
new bits, one of the main shafts needed machining at both ends & that cost
a few green ones. Also the fact that I had to source the synchro rings
indicates that some parts a little hard to get.
10.
The availability of the synchro rings and the
speed at which they arrived from England was a big recommendation for Burton
Power. This where the power of the internet meets the need of the classic car
restorer. Who would have thought that when these Capris were built, would we be
able to sit in our homes, search for what we want, order & pay for it &
it arrives by a courier a few days later? To be here in four days was
outstanding. I would certainly recommend them for the hard to get Ford parts.
11.
Gaskets, seals & cables, including postage,
are much cheaper bought over the internet from the UK.
12.
Oil filters
for the earlier 1600 Kent motors can be a problem as they can leak badly if not
tightened. There is a ridge on the oil pump which prevents some brands of
filter from fitting properly. I have found that the Repco or Motorcraft filters
fit best.
13.
Check carefully when fitting new parts. The old
clutch assembly was held with three bolts whereas the new part was a six bolt
job. On looking carefully at the flywheel, there were six threaded holes where
the new assembly would fit so it was clear that someone had taken a short cut
on a previous clutch repair.
14.
Just be certain which way the distributor rotor
turns or take plenty of pictures of where the ignition leads go. I have put the
distributor cap together with leads on many times but, this time, for some reason,
maybe age & stupidity, I got it mixed up. After changing leads &
mucking about for about 45 minutes, I realised my error & with everything
the correct way about, it fired up first shot.
15.
For a normal radiator water additive, I would
not use Bars Leaks. May be it is to stop leaks but the water looked like mud. I
drained & flushed it all out & used a normal additive which, at least,
looks a lot better, and the car is running at a suitable temperature.
16.
Finally, check for leaks. I had three minor
ones. The sump plug (oversize), the oil filter & the rear gearbox seal. A
little more tightening & some special magic silastic had solved these &
I am pretty pleased with the result.
At the moment, the car is running really well so I am
pleased with how it all worked out and I will probably do the same to my white
XL sometime this year.
