I don't know Jim:
Last year I drove my TR6 for the whole summer. It was dry and warm so no
nasty weather for months. At the end I drove the TR exclusively. My 1991
Buick Regal 2-door sat in a protected corner of the driveway for 2 months
without moving.
At the end of the season while it was still warm, but the rainy season was
coming in, I went to start up the Buick. No go at all. It turned out the
Engine Control Unit (ECU) and the electronic distributor-less coil pack had
packed it in just sitting there. Without the internal warmth generated by
frequent use they had probably filled with condensation and rusted. The
brakes were screwed up and half the gauges in the dash were lit up with red.
I had to have the car dragged away and dropped a bundle getting her going
again. That's because the entire suspension was due for a refit and the
brakes are on their 4th set of rotors and the second set of new calipers. Oh
yes I forgot to mention that the shocks were done because the cost-optimised
rubbish they sold me at the last dealer-installed maintenance has steel that
rusts in damp air. That surface rust sanded the seals upon restart and
necessitated replacement since all the oil/gas whatever escaped.
To contrast. My TR6 typically sits unheated in a garage for 5-6 months in
Montreal's high-humidity cold winters. I do not put in fuel stabilizer
because I always forget. If I remember (usually by January) I take out the
battery. In the spring, I put the battery back in (or charge it if I
forgot), pump the priming lever on the gas pump a few times until the carbs
are full and then start the car. It usually takes about 5 seconds to start.
The car is on it's second set of rotors and original everything else. Of
course she has had a full rebuild of the engine etc, but the ancilliary
components are almost all original (clutch, MC and rear brake cyls
excepting). Never even heard a noise from the shocks upon starting driving.
My garage does not have a concrete floor (yet). It is a bucket and sometimes
in the spring when the snow melts I have seen up to 6" of water in there for
a day or so followed by a month of drying out. Drives me bonkers, but
nothing short of this year's project of installing a concrete floor can fix
that. The point is that there she sits year in and out and is very reliable
for starting.
Last year I got dumped at the side of the road by a few rather expensive
automobiles. Standing there with the owner red-faced with embarrasment
swearing "this has never happened before!" and calling CAA/AAA. One time it
was a colleague's new top-of-the-line Range Rover breaking a tiny little
pipe and evacuating the entire cooling system to dump us on the side of the
highway in the middle of nowhere. 4 hours standing there in the very hot sun
being bitten by nasty little green flies. Frankly I am beginning to long for
the reliability of the TR6 on newer cars. Sure she isn't a patch on comfort
compared to a new car, but I'm getting to the point where if I had to swear
by what will actually go, I'll bet on the LBC.
Mark
-----Original Message-----
From: Jim Muller [mailto:jimmuller@pop.mail.rcn.net]
Sent: Monday, June 02, 2003 9:48 AM
To: triumphs@autox.team.net
Subject: Re: Looking for a nice TR6
On 2 Jun 2003 at 9:02, Andy Taylor wrote:
> He is now
> convinced that he needs a '75 or '76 TR6. He is looking for something in
good shape, and
> not requiring more than regular maintenance
Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!!!!!! Ha, ha, eh, eh, eh... (whew!)
--
Jim Muller
jimmuller@pop.rcn.com
'80 Spitfire, '70 GT6+
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