The trip was mostly sunny and I have the cheek burns to prove it. The B
performed flawlessly after having not been driven at all for months before.
After scraping the rust off of the points, it started and ran great. I left at
3AM Sunday and arrived 11PM Sunday with only 3 1-hour cat naps. The B is now
safely parked south of the rust belt. Woohoo! Next weekend, the van and the
other B.
Some thoughts on questions:
Brakes - Make sure the metal brake line along the differential housing hasn't
been flattened by a tow truck driver (who we've all learned should be tipped
:-)). Wheel cylinders can rust solid and don't do anything, but this usually
makes the pedal harder. If the rear brakes are fine but aren't adjusted up,
the pedal will be low. If you're replacing the rear rubber brake line, replace
both front ones also. Replacing only one brake line is like replacing one
radiator hose and not the other one--the increased pressure holding ability of
the new one makes the old one promptly blow out. All of the hoses and both
rear rear cylinders should be less than $200. I don't know about you, but my
life is worth at least that to me.
A/C on a B - The MGB didn't come with A/C. I understand there was a common kit
put on by dealerships, but with everything installed aftermarket, it would be
different every time. I was under the impression that the extra pulley on the
water pump was for the smog pump. If you have one long belt running
everything, it sounds like a PO put on a longer belt. You can determine this
with pulley offset. Pulleys need to line up so that there is no sideways
deflection or there will be premature belt wear. Look and see if the mounting
of the smog pump pulley has been changed so that it lines up with all other
pulleys. Also, look at a replacement belt for your car and see if it's the
same length as what you've got. If you mount the A/C compressor below the smog
pump or below the alternator and run it off the extra water pump pulley, you
shouldn't need an idler pulley because both directions are a straight shot with
nothing in the way.
Rats - Lure your neighbor's cat into your garage and install a cat door for
continuing access. If you do this, don't put out rat poison and make sure
there isn't any accessible antifreeze.
That's everything I know.
Denise Thorpe
xyzabcde@earthlink.net
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