HOW
TO
BUFF
AND
POLISH
MOTOR OIL 101
OIL ADDITIVES
& ENGINE TREATMENTS
BRAKE FLUID 101
STOPPING COOLING SYSTEM CORROSION
POPULAR MECHANICS CAR CARE
CAR CRAFT TECH
ARTICLES
CAR CRAFT HOW-TO ARTICLES
ADVANCE
AUTO
PARTS
HOW-TO
ARTICLES
11. (07/15/09)
Here is something you gearheads should appreciate:
Machinist's Workshop magazine tested penetrants for break out torque on
rusted nuts. They arranged a subjective test of all the popular
penetrants with the control being the torque required to remove the nut
from a "scientifically rusted" environment. The results are as follows;
Penetrating oil..... Average load
None ..................516 pounds
WD-40 ................238 pounds
PB Blaster ............214 pounds
Liquid Wrench ..... 127 pounds
Kano Kroil ............106 pounds
ATF-Acetone mix....53 pounds
The ATF-Acetone mix was a "home brew" mix of 50-50 automatic
transmission fluid and acetone.
10. (03/06/01)
Prevent rust by keeping the underside of your car clean. Place a lawn
sprinkler under your car and turn it on full blast. Move occasionally
so it will reach all areas. This is a good way to remove all salt and
road grime.
9. (03/06/01) To
avoid streaks, use newspaper to wipe windows dry after cleaning.
8. (03/06/01) A
new blackboard eraser is great for quickly removing the fog from inside
car windows.
7. (03/06/01)
When tuning up your car, set gap on plugs using the widest gap that the
manufacturer recommends, Your car will run better, idle better, and
will give you better gas mileage.
6. (03/06/01)
Clean hard to reach areas (dash, cup holders) with a dampened
sponge-tipped paintbrush.
5. (03/06/01)
Avoid putting air in your tire if the temperature is below 10 degrees.
The valve could stick and let out all of the air.
4. (03/06/01) To
keep a radio antenna from sticking, occasionally rub wax paper up and
down the antenna.
3. (03/06/01)
Keep a few Handy Wipes In the glove box to remove gas odor from your
hands after filling the tank.
2. (03/06/01) If
your engine or transmission leaks, you can make a drip pan by placing
corrugated cardboard or kitty litter in a cookie sheet.
1. (03/06/01)
Oil drips on your garage floor can be absorbed with kitty litter or
oatmeal.
9. (12/20/05) TRANSMISSION SUPPORT MOD - If you
have ever removed the transmission mounts, you know what royal pain it
can be to get to the bolts and nuts. Here is a quick and easy
modification to the crossmember that will make this chore a breeze.
First, slot the holes for the studs on the
rubber mounts (about 2.5 times as long as they are wide) so that it can
be passed over the studs when the mounts are on the box. Second, drill
two holes on axis with the two studs (in the regular position) in the
main part of the crossmember, big enough to get your 1/2" socket
through (about 7/8”). These don't need to be oval, as your extension is
narrower than the socket and you can tilt it over just fine once you've
pushed the socket through. PHOTO
8. (04/15/05) If you can barely see the instruments in your MGB at
night, replace those old, dim bulbs with some much brighter ones from
Radio Shack. The bulbs are RS #272-1133A, screw-base, 220 mA @ 7.5 V.
In the first photo, I have upgraded all of bulbs except the tach. In
the second photo, the tach lamp has been also upgraded. PHOTOS
UPDATE: These Radio Shack bulbs lasted only two
months! I have since replaced them with LED bulbs from autolumination.com
. I purchased their
single LED, inverted lens Super White E10 screw base lamps for the
gauges. Unfortunately, they are no brighter than the original stock
bulbs. I will try the 4-LED cluster E10's soon and let you know how
they work out.
I also bought the
inverted lens Ba7s lamps for the heater temp and air damper knobs. They
are just fine.
7. (2/12/05)
LIFT-THE-DOT POST REPLACEMENT- The posts for the Lift-the-Dot snaps on
the back of MGB tops can be a real pain to remove and reinstall. Their
location makes it almost impossible to get a wrench on the backing nut.
When you are ready to reinstall the posts, replace the hex nuts with
wing nuts. A lock washer or a drop of Locktite will make sure that they
don't back off.
6. (6/19/98)
FUEL GAUGE SENDING UNIT- If your fuel gauge never reads above empty,
the most common cause is that the sending unit plastic float has
cracked and filled with fuel. Insead of spending $50 for a replacement
of the entire unit, you can get a brass float of the same dimensions
from your local Ford dealer for about $10. The part number is
COAZ-9202-B. Thanks Bill Breithoff.
5. (6/19/98)
HEAT/DEFROST CONTROL CABLE - The original control cable that operates
the damper for directing the air coming out of the heater has a
stranded wire core. The after-market replacements I have seen have a
solid core, which is much too stiff. A good replacement is the brake
cable from a ten-speed bicycle. Thanks Cort Musgrave, Jr.
4. (6/19/98)
A-FRAME BUSHINGS - When it is time to replace the stock bushings, get
the V-8 one-piece bushings. To install them, dip them in DOT 5
(silicone) brake fluid and give them a couple of good whacks with a
hammer; they slide right in. Thanks Peter Brauen.
3. (6/19/98)
NON-OVERDRIVE TRANSMISSIONS - The output shaft passes through a tight
seal on the rear half of the transmission case. When you reinstall the
rear case, the gears will be in a bind until you torque up the drive
shaft flange on the output shaft. If you start checking for proper
shifting before the flange is in place, you will swear you reassembled
it incorrectly.
2. (6/19/98)
TURN SIGNAL FLASHER - Tired of your turn signal slowing to a crawl
every time you step on the brakes? Replace the original Lucas flasher
unit with a round generic flasher. They won't fit in the mounting clip
under the glove box, but are one fifth the price and perform much
better.
1. (6/19/98) HARD
TO TURN SIDE WINDOWS - I've tried greasing the window crank gears and
rails with little relief. Spray silicone liberally on the felt window
runners. You could also use WD-40, but I find it attracts more dirt.
Thanks Kevin Gambino.
<TOP>
2. (9/18/04) Long time TR6 owners
already now this, but me being a beginner thought I should share a tip
for other fellow BMNCO beginners with a TR6. The timing cover on the
TR6 is held on by bolts and two very important studs. During my tear
down I only had one stud (which turned out to not even be in the
correct position anyway). When I reassembled it, like I took it apart,
after cleaning all the oil and gunk I started the motor and had a
glycol leak from behind the two bolts on the timing cover directly
below the water pump housing where it bolts to the cylinder head. Very
bad news I thought. Not leaking from anywhere else. I thought the front
engine plug had failed or had a cracked block. So I had to remove the
radiator, steering rack, fan belt, fan, fan extension, crank pully,
timing chain, cam gear, and front engine plate (AGAIN!!) only to find
no sign of a blown plug and no crack. After studying the Moss Motors
catalog I found two very curious sealing "studs" about $0.75 each that
should be in those two positions where I had standard bolts and split
washers. These two threaded holes tapped into the coolant gallery of
the block!
Moral of the story. Yes be diligent in remembering how you
dis-assembled the components...but also be diligent to review your shop
manuals and parts catalogs as you do not know how "smart" the last guy
was who took it apart! Remember, how it came apart is not always how it
should go back together. Thanks M Rankin
1. (7/13/98) TR4A FLASHER UNIT - When I
started working on my TR4A, I noticed the turn signal indicator did not
work. After further checking, I discovered the flasher unit installed
is a generic two prong unit; the owners manual calls for a three prong
unit. The attached drawning is a basic schematic of how I solved the
problem without purcashing a three prong flasher unit. "1" is the
center wire for the turn signal switch, which connects to the output of
the flasher unit under the dash. For the physical placement of the
diodes, I found left and right signal light wires and indicator lamp
wire under the dash, then made the connection near the steering column.
I used crimp electrical splices for the connections and then insulated
each connection with electrical tape. Thanks Dave Dupre.
<TOP>
