Hi fellow LBC lovers,Just my 2 pennies worth...sorry it's a bit long...
In 1993,I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to co-drive a concours
Vitesse/Sports Six Convertible 3500 miles from LA up to Vancouver
Island,BC,and back taking in the VTR convention and many scenic sights along
the way,wonderful stuff and although the owner,an LBC lover of many years had
prepared the car to a very high standard,the tools/spares in the
boot(trunk),were sparse to say the least!
The trip went almost without fault,on the way north from LA,with almost all
the TR3's in our convoy overheating,and stopping under freeway bridges to
cool down,the vitesse however,took it all in its' stride,even the 117 degrees
in northern CA,more than I can say! with
jet-lag/tiredness/non-acclimatisation leading to heat-stroke,(human
overheating).The car was quiet magnificent,although the incorrect clutch
friction plate & stretched handbrake cable lead to some rather awkward
moments on the streets of SF...when we had to stop at red traffic lights at
intersections...Up through the beautiful Yosemite we drove,and down the other
side,dropping some 2,000 feet in half an hour,struggling to put up the
hood/soft-top a task abandoned due to difficulties caused by the fitment of
the TR4 fuel tank over the rear axle,the pitch-dark,and the rattlesnakes,then
on to Las Vegas,along the switchback desert roads,with the star-filled night
skies entertaining us with meteor showers,(now pleased the hood was left
down),triumph-motoring memories that will live with us forever,midnight,and a
gas stop at coalville,a run-down,fifties truck stop approaching LV,a hissing
noise from the rear tyre,caused by the valve having been cut-thru' by an
alloy wheel trim! Emptied the boot to find,one small bottle-jack & NO
handle.By now,tyre/tire was flat as,well,a very flat thing! couldn't get
bottle-jack under chassis,too dog-tired to lift the car up by hand! What to
do? Lo,the appearance of a small blonde irish lady with a noteably large
chest and an escort of six very big USAF crew all dressed in black,from a
local,(area 51 or something?),airbase,she kindly suggested that they lift up
stricken LBC to enable changement of flattest tyre!
They vanished as stealthily as they had appeared! Problem solved,onwards to
LV,arrived 3.30am,Next morning,11am,98 degrees,LBC decided to stall in motel
parking-lot,we decided the points/contact-breakers worn down,found the
carefully packed spare 3 sets in the boot were lucas,however the distributor
was delco,(or it may have been the other way around-I forget),so we carefully
'repaired' the points to remove the heavy pitting etc,that worked,but the car
ran really badly,on 4? of 6 cylinders,ambient temperature still rising,(ours
too!),we stripped-down,cleaned out and rebuilt the original/rebuilt
carburettors,several times,some corrosion and much dirt found
therein,everything more or less OK again,off we set,to drive the remaining
500+/- miles back to LA,without any more problems.
Except to ponder why the remainder of the emergency spares kit consisted of
one emergency space blanket and a small plastic purple elephant?
The moral is obvious,no matter how well prepared your LBC,take sufficient
useful emergency spares & suitable tools to save-the-day!,especially when
touring long-haul...and then you don't have to worry about reliability...
**In the 'Self-Help-Book' distributed by the Triumph Sports Six Club,There is
a section,written by me,entitled:Driving Triumphs in Europe,but I feel much
of it may be of use to all drivers of LBC's worldwide. I suggest you carry
the following:cylinder head gasket,with diagram of stud tightening
sequence,manifold/header gasket,thermostat gasket,exhaust flange gasket and
brass nuts,distributor gasket,water pump to cylinder-head gasket,fuel pump
gasket,fan belt,set of spark plugs,gapping tool,radiator hoses and clips,two
inlet and two exhaust valves,two valve springs,distributor
cap,rotor-arm,contact-breaker points,condensor,petrol/gas pump rubber
diaphragm,full set of spare bulbs,flasher/indicator unit,ignition switch and
key,dashboard light switch,pair of heater hoses and clips,hose bandage,bottle
of radweld,length of carburettor/petrol hose,throttle cable,auto-electric
screwdriver/probe,long length of medium thickness electrical
cable,clutch-friction plate/alignment tool,clutch/brake master cylinder
repair kits,pair new UJ's,circlip pliers,tube of silicon instant gasket,a
tube of superglue,and a tube of liquid weld-for those blown core-plugs on the
block,4 spare wheel nuts,box of assorted fuses,selection of various
nuts,bolts,clips etc,insulation/duct tape.
That may sound a lot,but you can get it all inside a metal power tool box
from your local hardwear store.Inside the lid of that box you should tape an
list of current spare part no's and their equivalents by alternative
manufacturers.
Don't forget jack,jack handle,wheel nut wrench,water,engine and gear oil,and
a full container of brake/clutch fluid,gas-can,workshop manual,first aid
kit,spare spectacles,a maglite tourch,your own tool kit,tow-rope,a good
inflated spare tyre,a foot pump,and a tyre pressure gauge-the one on the foot
pump is no good! and lastly,a flourescent yellow over-jacket with reflective
stripes is a life saver,OK it doesn't look 'kewl' but if you're terminally
inconvenienced,who cares how you look?
Enjoy the rest of your life,Drive a Triumph!
Leon F Guyot TSSC International Liaison Secretary
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