Carpe diem, Quam minimum credula postero .

Break Down Story Number Five. The Broken Cross Member.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2000/2500 Break Down Story Number 5.by Ron

 

The Broken Cross Member.

 

Early 80’s, Grafton, well to be more accurate, Tucabia which is about ½ an hour east of Grafton. I was building a house on 100 acres out in the bush which was getting close to being finished but the kitchen was not finished. We use to have dinner at my son’s place which was about 10 minutes away in the village of Tucabia.

 

We were on our way home on one of these nights when the car, a MK I Triumph 2000, stopped. The engine was running but it would not move. I could not see any thing outwardly wrong, but as it would not move so there was nothing to do but walk the rest of the way (about ½ km) home. Now the road to our house was more of a bush track than a road so waking along it in the dark with only torch light to guide the way was not a lot of fun.

 

On closer inspection the next day we discovered that the rear cross member had broken where the exhaust goes through it. The hand brake cable also goes through the cross member and that was all that had stoped the rear of the car from hitting the ground. The reason the car would not move was that the considerable pressure on the hand brake cable had caused the left rear wheel to lock up. The car could not be moved so we had to repair it where it was in the middle of the road, luckily no one needed to use the road. Another cross member was obtained from the wreckers and the difficult job of repairing it was done. Luckily the exhaust was clamped on, not welded. So ended another 2000/2500 break down adventure.

 

Stay tuned, same Triumph time, same Triumph channel for the next exciting episode of 2000/2500 break down stories, titled, “The rear wheel bearing”.

 

Yellow Duck Motorsport  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2000/2500 Break Down Story Number 6. by Ron

 

The Rear Wheel Bearing

 

On a rare trip to Sydney in the early 80’s our Triumph MK I 2000 collapsed a rear wheel bearing. We were about 30 Km’s north of Taree and the rear wheel was locked solid.

 

So – after hitching a ride to the nearest phone (about 6 km) at Johns River we arranged a tow truck to take us to Taree.

 

Taree on a wet Friday evening did not present a hopeful picture – how wrong I was!!!

 

1. The motel owner insisted on arranging security surveillance as the car was parked in a nearby side street! Good start.

 

2. Saturday morning – still raining – visit the NRMA agent (Holden Dealership). Can’t fix it, but get it around into the workshop and have a go at it – hang on – this is a huge fully equipped service centre!!! OK. The Triumph consented to move – slowly – and nestled into a ‘Holden” workshop!!

 

3. While dismantling the rear wheel assembly a friendly mechanic strolled over, can I help, he said – so without further ado – the bearing assembly was out and in the press!! Wow!!.

 

4. Better take the truck and go get a new bearing said the mechanic. (I later found out he was the workshop foreman) So, down to the local bearing supplier – Triumph!! Err, don’t think so – hang on he says and carefully checks the bearings numbers – aha! – One from a Holden and the other from a Toyota – the same numbers!!! Wow again.

 

5. Back at the workshop the mechanic has the housing apart and the whole thing was back together, licketty split!!

 

6. Now comes the good bit (can it get any better?) First the mechanic – Bob I think – absolutely refused any money !!! wow again ! ( he did accept a box of ale tho!!!) Then to the management _ ah! what did you use? (nobody checked!!) – Oh $10.00 should cover it – wow I knew I was in heaven (Taree kind) so whenever in Taree spare a wave to the Holden Dealership and the people in general.

 

We did get to Sydney without any further dramas and the Triumph served faithfully until replaced by a Landrover!!! (we did live in 4WD country)

 

So ended another 2000/2500 break down adventure. Stay tuned, same Triumph time, same Triumph channel for the next exciting episode of 2000/2500 brake down stories, titled “the Broken Dizzy Cap”.

 

Yellow Duck Motorsport 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

     

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Break Down Story Number Six. The Rear Wheel Bearing

Break Down Story Number Seven. The Broken Dizzy Cap

Break Down Story Number Eight. The Case of the Run Away TR7.

The Case of the Runaway TR7. A tail of one TR7’s determination to never stay where it was parked.

 

As I am sure all Triumph owners know, owning a Triumph comes with a certain amount of, “good natured banter”, from non Triumph owners. You know the sort of thing, “when are you going to get a proper car”, or “when did it last break down”, etc.

 

It was a normal summer’s day, I was at work and the TR7 was parked in the staff parking area and all seemed good in the world. On my return from lunch my co-workers, with great mirth, started telling me that my car had driven itself about two car lengths across the car park. I of course knew it was a wind up, but I played along. The TR7 was in the middle of the car park and my co- workers were going into great lengths to tell my how it just took of all by itself and then just stopped. Well of course it did, but I knew that they must have jacked it up with a trolley jack and pushed it out into the middle of the car park. I started the Seven up and returned it to its parking spot, but the “good natured banter” continued for weeks.

 

About a month later it happened again, the seven was about a car length out of its parking spot. My co-workers were insistent that it just took off all by itself, but again I was sure that this was attempt to keep the story going, so I just went along with it. I listened to all the theories about what the problem might be but did nothing as this was a practical joke.

 

A few weeks later and it was just before Christmas, most of my co-workers had already gone on holidays and things were pretty quiet at work, but there was a few contract electricians working in the building. The TR7 was parked in the work shop out of the hot sun and I had been called away to work in another building. On my return I found the TR7 parked in a different location, about three car lengths away from where I had left it, and it had blocks of timber under all four wheels.

 

As soon as the electricians saw me they started telling me that my car had driven itself half way down the work shop. I started to think that this was not a wind up after all and that just may be there was some thing wrong with the TR7. The next day with the TR7 parked again in the work shop I saw it happen, the seven did just take off all by its self. I started leaving it in neutral when ever I parked it and had a look at it the next week end.

 

I could not see any thing out of the ordinary but the main battery lead did seem a bit close to the other wires on the starter motor so I loosed the battery lead and turned it around a bit. The TR7 has never taken off all by itself since so I can only conclude that some how, maybe because of the heat, the battery lead was shorting and engaging the starter motor and with the car in gear, it would ‘take off all by itself’.

 

So ended the strange tail of “The Run away TR7”.

 

Yellow Duck Motorsport

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

     

2000/2500 Break Down Story Number 7  The Broken Dizzy Cap. By Ron

 

I had decided to enter the Riverina Run, a two day navigational rally of some 900 km’s, starting in Goulburn and heading south and west, travelling through Hardin with an overnight stop at Yass, and finishing back in Goulburn.

 

I picked up my navigator, Gary Phillips, a Classic Rally Club member, on Friday afternoon as we had decided to stay in Goulburn Friday night ready for an early start on Saturday morning.

 

The plan sounded OK. but ‘Humphrey’ had other ideas, developing a severe case of indigestion on the way down to Goulburn. We managed to hiccup our way to the motel and began a series of exploratory surgery. Points, spark plugs, leads, coil, carburettors, etc were dismantled/replaced/adjusted, without much success and eventually, on Saturday morning we replaced the fuel pump with a new u/beaut electric model. This seemed to be to Humphrey’s liking as all six cylinders were now doing what they do best!!!

 

So we made it to the start in time, completed all the formalities and armed with Director, Jeff West’s magic instructions set off into the great unknown.

 

Gary was an experienced navigator, and just as well, because I was totally confused convinced that ‘north’ was ‘south’ and ‘up’ was ‘down’ even left and right were doubtful!! So – dutifully doing what I was told, we managed to find the right control points and route check boards etc to arrive at the overnight pare ferme (Yass) feeling pretty much on top of it!!

 

Humphrey seemed happy with the new fuel pump and we looked forward to day two.

 

The second day started pretty much OK. – Garry had the measure of the instructions, the weather was great, the roads good so our main concern was locating all the route check boards and answering the many questions.

 

Alas – Humphrey had a different set of instructions!! About 15 or 20 km’s into the day the malady returned! The engine would just splutter and stop!!! – out and under – nothing obvious, checked the fuel, spark etc, reattached leads and bingo! were off and running!! Not for long – about 10 km’s – same performance!!! much head scratching, laced with the odd profanity and so it continued for the rest of the day – we even had the local highway patrol constabulary trying to help – but Humphrey wasn’t buying it. Needless to say we were forced to withdraw from the event and try to make it home!!

 

 Even this was not going to happen easily – Humphrey continued to behave badly until nearing the Bargo exit off the freeway he seemed to decide that a reasonably lit grassed verge would be the place for a nap!!

 

So Garry phoned his friend and fellow competitor, Bob Williams who arrived and picked him up and I phoned Jim, my son, in Wyong for help. By the time he collected some spare bits and pieces and organised my son in law to accompany him it was quite late (about 9.00 pm) and a two hour drive to Bargo!!

 

So here I am, on the side of the road in the middle of the night, in the middle of no where, with a broken Triumph.

 

Jim arrived about 11.00 pm, had a bit of a look at things and for no real reason decided to change the condenser. As he lifted the condenser out he said, ‘hello what’s this’. Underneath the condenser there was a small piece of, what looked like carbon. A quick look in the dizzy cap revealed that the carbon connector in the top of the dizzy cap was broken and therefore it was not making a good contact with the rotor button. We fitted an old second hand Dizzy cap that Jim had bought with him and the engine started up, no worries.

 

We travelled home without further problems. My two MK I’s and my daughters MK I now have a box of spare electrical parts in the boot, just in case. And as all these cars have their batteries located in the boot, we have bolted a spare coil to where the battery once was, so we are covered in case we have any further electrical break downs. So ends another break down adventure.

 

Stay tuned, same Triumph time, same Triumph channel for the next exciting episode of Break Down Stories, titled, “The Case of the Run Away TR7”.

 

Yellow Duck Motorsport