> When I changed the interior color of my 1971 XKE from blue to red the only
> It ought to be noted that there are a number of different vinyl-dyeing (sp?)
> applications that apparently do a very good job without re-upholstering
> (though I admit I've haven't needed to try them yet).
About a year ago, I went and changed the interior of my MG from that
awful Autumn/Harvest Gold (?) ie tan colour to black because I had just
bought a black carpet set and wanted everything else to match. Seeing
as the seats, door panels and kick panals were still in good condition,
I decided to use a vinyl dye instead of replacing all the panels.
At first I was skeptical about using it, because I thought it would not
last. I bought a bottle of Black from Eastwood Classics (??) in PA,
and after cleaning the panels very well several times, using alcohol and
a nail brush to clean in the grain, I started brushing on the dye. After
putting on 4 thin coats, I was somewhat amazed on how well it looked.
I was still a bit skeptical because I didn'i think it would last very well.
That was last year, and today they still look good, even in the high
wear area. There were no brush strokes visible, the dye did a good job
of covering the old colour and it has stood up to wear and tear
very well.
So I think that if you buy a good quality dye, have the patience
to clean the surface VERY well and be meticulous about applicaion,
I think that vinyl dyes work.
By the way, I did not dye the seats, and instead bought some cloth
seat covers. The headrests however were dyed and still look good.
> I'd been assuming that the switch had just died. But now that there are
> two high current things broken, I"m starting to wonder. I don't trust
> my 4A wiring diagram -- does anyone know if the headlamp current might
> be wired through the key switch?
I doubt it, most older Brit cars that I have worked on, have the lights
wired independant of the ignition switch, I have not worked on any
Triumphs so this may not be the case here.
> Set out to drive Sarah (my TR4A) tonight and discovered that the
> headlights don't work any more. Everything else does, though -- just
> the headlights. The 'main beam' indicator is on.
Trace the wires coming from the back of the headlights to where they
are crimped on to those black connectors that Lucas use. Take out the
wires from the connectors and clean them with some emery paper. You
will porbably find that some corrsion has set in and they only need
to be cleaned off. I don't think that the main lights are fused, so
that is something less to check ! Also while you have the wires out
of the connectorsm look inside to see if any of the round crimps may
be broken.
As I said above, I am not too familiar with Triumphs, so this may
not follow in your case.
Gerry
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