On Sun, 30 May 1999 12:01:37 -0400 "M.Lieberman" <mkl@snet.net> writes:
>> I'm befuddled, but that's not unusual. The support member that
>the
>> radiator mounts to in a TD can be installed in either of two
>orientations.
>
>Had the same problem. IMHO the wide V goes closest to the engine; the
>shorter, rounded one is forward.
>
>Even though I made notes before I removed mine and saw what I thought
>were the marks in the original paint, I had second thoughts when I
started to
>put the thing back together.
>
>The problem was that the owners manual (and the workshop manual) has a
>drawing of the steering rack ( in the part discussing lubrication) with
the oil
>nipple. The front flange of the radiator mounting plate does look like
the wide V
>forward to me.
You can add the Parts Book to that list. I have an original parts book
with the large fold-out illustrations, and it is very obvious that the
wide V is shown forward. Ditto the Moss catalog illustration, FWIW.
>However, later in the steering gear section, there is a photo
>which shows the rack being removed. What you see is the aft part of the
radiator
>mounting plate and it is clearly a wide V.
Unfortunately, in that picture, a license plate backing is obscuring the
front of the piece to confirm that the narrow V is forward. It is
possible that the shop manual, etc., all used a very early version of the
TD (perhaps even a prototype?) and that particular part may not have been
made the same way on production cars.
>Why the radiator mounting holes are not in the middle
>of the bar is another question for which I have no answer.
This question came up somewhere else, perhaps the MG Enthusiast's BBS
(can't search the archives right now). The offset makes a difference
when it comes to installing the bonnet. Someone was having problems
lining up his bonnet and he was informed that he had this piece
backwards. I don't remember all the ins and outs of the discussion, but
the result was that I installed mine with the big V forward. I have a
late TD parts car, which may or may not have been messed with, that has
the small V forward and the bonnet seems to fit fine! I hope we can
resolve this before I get to the point of installing the radiator on my
restoration! Maybe the factory used this as a fitting device and
switched it back and forth depending upon how the bonnet would line up on
a particular car.
David Littlefield
Houston, TX
'62 MGA MkII
'51 MGTD
'88 Jaguar XJ-S
|