Re. Gumball Rally Movie. You were close Mike, it was Michael Sarrazin at the
wheel of the Cobra:-). If you watch the movie closely, you will see that the
Cobra's nose is seriously bashed in towards the end of the last reel. It
miraculously fixes itself for the final scenes.
Re. TR7 reputation. I had a '78 TR7 Coupe in the early 80s. The problems
were:-
1. The built quality. BL shifted production from Canley to Speke, where they
had no idea how to build cars.
2. The gearing. The four-speed was drastically undergeared. I blew my engine
up, trying for 100mph.
3. Oil pressure indication. This was very slow on the pressure gauge I
fitted. When the engine blew, I still had oil pressure-for about 20 seconds.
4. Brakes. These were poor anyway but after I had fitted a Dolomite Sprint
16 valve engine, the best way to slow the car down was to lift the headlamps
as air brakes. Fade was a big problem and only mega-expensive Lockheed
racing brakes were available at the time.
5. Rot. My car was only four years old but needed (deep breath) sills,
doors, all four wheelarches, a rear deck panel, floorpan edges, bootlid edge
and repairs to the rear suspension pick up points.
6. Cylinder head. On the original engine, the head gasket liked to sound off
frequently. The TR7 engine has five(?) studs which are not at 90 degrees to
the head. Leyland introduced beefed-up studs on later cars but you also need
to replace them every time the head's off and follow the torque pattern and
figures meticulously.
7. Heater pipes. These gave me a wet leg when they went rotten. I was able
to replace them with copper but the manual might have read, ' To gain access
to the heater: Step One, remove car.'
I wouldn't have another TR7 but they do have their good points, like being
comfortable and reasonably roomy. Watch out for these points and the car
will serve you well.
Cheers, Dave Hill
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