Mitch et all:
Hey guess who went for his first ride yesterday, in a fully restored TR6. ME!
After I got the carb back from rebuilding (the float problem fixed), I
primed the carbs, pulled the choke and connected the battery. I pushed
it out onto the driveway and started it up. It took a few seconds but
it came to life. Yippe.
The night before, I finished the carpet and the duct work for the
heater and gave up on the two or three electrical problems I'm still
working on. I checked the plugs and ignition, and guess what 4 of the
plugs were loose. I must have forgotten to tighten them from when I
put the marvel mystery oil in last year! The steering wheel fits, but
the hex nut won't go on the end of the shaft. So I just pushed it in
place for now. I'm very careful, not to pull on the wheel right now.
I pushed it outside and blue and a little black smoke erupted and the
car settled at 2K RPM. BTW- Margo taped the initial start and me
pulling away into the street. Choke worked fine, and the car idles at
1K RPM, but there is a ton of missing going on. And I don't have clue
on what to do at this point to fix it. Next stop will be Joe Curto's I
think.
I did get it out of the driveway and started on my first "Around the
block" ride. It has lots of power from the start, it felt great. But
the steering was loose, and the whole car was squeaking, inside! I
think thats due to the center console out for tranny access. I will
also tighten down the chassis bolts and exhaust later after a few trips.
The left steering mount has become loose, so I'm replacing the whole
thing with the aluminum mounts. I've already stripped the U-bolts
once. The clutch needs to be bled too, it engages way too late, almost
at the floor. Also the brakes need to be bleed again. They take way
too much time and pressure to engage. Tranny shifted smoothly, but a
distinct wine came from the gears. I should pull the top plate to
check the tranny fluid. The overdrive did not work, as expected, so I
brought it back to the garage.
The second time out, I was headed to a gas station when a heater hose
let loose and sprayed antifreeze all over the header and chassis,
steam came up into the car. I fixed it on the side of the road with a
guy from the neighborhood who stopped by to take a look. The clamp
came loose. I Picked up 50/50 antifreeze at the station and filled
with car with hi-test. I headed home and opened it up on the small
side streets to my house. When this thing hits a bump, it makes the
whole car shutter, really bad!! And when I hit a dip, I was almost
thrown out of the car. There is way too much negative camber, and the
springs are settled too much. The rear end it just way out of
whack. I'm sure the car would be great for the track right now, the
way it sits low, but this is a street car. Also I have Mitch redlines,
so handling is suspect as it is. Just wanted to let you know how it went.
BTW-I wasn't that nervous on my wedding day, when I pulled into the
street and pressed the gas pedal, it was heaven, just as exciting as I
knew it would be, and the sound of that engine was TR6 porn.
Thanks to everyone on the 6-pack list for making this project so
amazing. From 1000 pieces to a real British sports car in 18
months. And the help here has been over the top. This machine is
becoming a family heirloom; I can't see myself ever selling it.
GH
--
Gene Hart
genehart@att.net
1973 TR6 CF10918 U
My first test run completed since driving it into the garage in Feb '03.
Thanks patient & loving wife.
(c)(201)981-3327
________________________
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