So, some progress on the car and some advice sought (for real this time).
Thanks to Derek for his fantastic help with the spares. I was able to fit new seals in the master cylinder and replace all the flexi hoses (two of which had collapsed internally). One of the solid brake lines was past saving, so I made up a new one (luckily it was the nice, short, easy one, RHF) so the car now has a brake pedal. I also 'Daz'd the fuel tank (thanks to Scotty for that!) and re-plumbed the replacement fuel pump that the previous owner had fitted for a temporary supply. So the car was ready for its first journey in my ownership. 20 feet up and down the drive.
Now, I knew I was buying something that would need a lot of welding, but was hoping it might be mechanically 'ok' at least, so I could knuckle down to fixing the rust.
Here are some observations, and please, if anyone can provide any input I'd be really grateful for some armchair diagnoses. The last time I owned a car with an A-series engine was back when I was 17. My first car was a very tired Austin 1300GT. Nothing since then, so I really know very little about these engines.
1) After fitting a new battery, the engine starts first turn of the key. With the bonnet up and listening from there, it sounds reasonably happy on tick-over and also when revved. A noticeable rattle from the front, I'm guessing this will be the timing chain in need of attention? I can't hear any knocking from the bottom end, but read on (if you wish/dare).
2) When I tried my little jaunt up and down the drive it felt like the engine was much more harsh from inside the car when revved (though okay at tick-over). It was as if the whole vehicle body was being rattled with it. I was worried at first that the engine has some deep down wear that I just couldn't hear from simply putting my head under the bonnet. But then I wondered if perhaps I've got some issues with the mounts (engine and transmission) which are transferring and amplifying the engine vibrations inside the car. Does anyone have experience of this kind of wear and how it might sound?
3) The clutch is very slow to engage. When you let the pedal up, there's a long wait as it gently engages. Once engaged it seems to provide drive okay and doesn't seem to be slipping (but haven't really had a chance to check it out that well). Certainly the slow engagement seems the most noticeable issue with it. You can let your foot fully off the pedal and then wait for it to engage. Maybe just needs a bit of use? Maybe the slave cylinder is sticking? The car has been stood a long time I believe.
4) When the engine has warmed up and the thermostat opens, water starts to pour out the radiator overflow. I'm guessing this could be a combination of a silted up bottom half of the radiator and bottom hose, plus maybe some damage to the radiator cap?
5) I've sat in the drivers seat several times since getting the car, but today, on the first powered trip we took together, all the seat webbing straps snapped and dumped my backside on the floor
. This probably amplified the issue described in item 2
.
My main concern is item 2 - just how the engine sounded from inside the car when revved. I should add that the last time I drove something from the 60's was back in the 1990's, when I ran a series of Renault 8's and 10's as my daily drivers. But of course, these cars were thirty years younger at the time than the Austin is now, so maybe I'm expecting too much? But it's all I can refer to for comparison. They also had the engine in the back, which helps make it feel more 'remote' I guess? And lovely, squashy French seats of course
. As I say, I'm just a bit concerned as to whether the harshness of the engine noise from inside the car is a pointer to some serious wear in the engine (not great when I really wanted to get on with the welding) or if maybe (hopefully) it just points to some goosed engine/transmission mounts?
If anyone has any pointers on any of these observations, I'd be really grateful for input. Thanks in advance!
And thanks again to Derek for the parts and Scotty for his posts about cleaning out a gummed-up fuel tank with Daz!
(PS - if you were thinking of giving me advice on item #5 - yes, I know, I should cut down on all the pies
)
