MG Sports Cars

Jim:

See emails re: steering wheel.

Re: struts. I liked Rick's mounting and it seemed it was going to work, but didn't have time to mess with it, esp. with the wrong surge tank.

Re; wiring. Sorry about the bullet. :) Must've been one of those 12ga... :p Anyway, white/black sounds like the tach wire (?), esp. with a ring terminal on it. Front of the intake manifold you have temp sender (should be green/blue, but Steve did something to get the gauge to work, so....?). Also, when it left here both the Alt wires were off the back of the unit. One of those is white/BLUE. You'd have to ask him about the wiring around the alternator. I would presume TACH, as Steve was messing with it. (My two cents: it's the TACH. It's never worked right, it's not GOING to work... :p )

RE: wiring diagram. If it didn't go with the "list of things to do", then I probably still have it in the folder. We did NOT update it as we went, however. There are about three circuits NOT used ("remote start switch", this sort of thing) and we added in a brown wire (yes, actually BROWN!) to power up the compressor from the starter.

Everything else is as per AAW diagram/colours.

M

Jim,

I am using the heater fan from a 80's Hyundai Pony. 2 speed, and really puts out the air. You need to cut out about 1/2 from the mounting plate and also from the bulkhead. Mounting holes on plate also need to be repositioned.

Also I have a 16" wood wheel that I made one cold winter, it is thick, if you like it that way. I would be glad to contribute it to the project if you think it's not too big.

Take a look at the pictures and let me know

Photo's attached

If already covered, I apologize, does this car have a collapsable column ? If not, consider an aftermarket colapsable hub with quick disconnect ? Quick disconnect will make ingress/egress a breeze and help prevent theft of the car. I used a "Formuling France" set up on my race car and it worked well. Cheers, roverman.

Sounds like the 14-1/2" LE wheel would be the best choice, followed by the standard 15-1/2" mark-II or later wheel. In addition I'm going to have a look at the gas pedal, as it is too high and is a big part of the problem.

Anyway, I got the plumbing all sorted out and finished up and just need to add some coolant. To get the air cleaner tray on I had to shorten the temp sender about an inch and that took just a bit of creative machine work so now there are some linkage issues to work out, but since I'll be working on the gas pedal anyway, why not.

Richard, can that blower be installed without cutting the hole larger in the firewall, or does it extend through the hole? I'd like us to be able to pull off this mod without removing the heater box to do it, even if we have to give up a little flow.

Thanks Art, but it's not getting in and out it's driving position.

JB

"Sounds like the 14-1/2" LE wheel"

If the LE wheel was 14.5" it would still be on my car. Check your email, Jimbo.

Jim,

You could just cut out the front mounting panel and not do the firewall. You would lose some flow but probably would still work.

I have attached a photo of how much I had to remove from the front panel.

Richard

JIm,

Re Hyundai heater fan.

The squirrel cage is 1/4" wider than the standard cage and it fits inside the heater compartment with about 1/2 " between its outer edge and the back of the heater compartment so yes, you can fit it without removing the heater.

Richard

Jim, careful on wheel selection, there were at least 3 or 4 different spline designs over the MGB lifespan and they are not interchangable. That LE wheel wouldn't fit the early spline anyway.

Bill is right. And rather than messing about with swapping for a later style column, perhaps we should do an 'all-call" for WHAT aftermarket wheel of a proper size (sounds like 14 or 15") have people installed on their 62-67 MGB's? Get those people to send pics, what they paid, where they got it, etc.

Maybe there is some cheap "Grant" wheel that looks okay for less than $100, etc.

$.02

M

Bunch" of Grants pictured in Jeg's, 13-14". Cheap !

Spline is 5/8" (.620) x 36 spline. Can anyone confirm what hubs fit this?

JB

OK it looks like our best bet might be to change to a later column. I'm pretty sure I have at least some parts on hand but don't know the spline size. I'll check tomorrow and if we're lucky I may be able to mix-n-match parts and fit a later hub.

Put the car back together and did a couple short test drives today. I had to find a clip for the air valve blocker on the carb. It was back to running only on the primaries, but trust me, that was enough. Anyway when the secondaries open it really does wake up that big motor. Goes from too much power to JEEZ! in nothing flat. Surprisingly even traction from both tires given the open differential, as it gladly laid two even stripes up the driveway. I did get a little wheel hop though which was a surprise. I don't know if it was a fluke as so far it's been the only time it's done it. Anyway I think Carl is right in being concerned about the life expectancy of that T-5, and we'd be smart to get Steve to begin getting the 2004r I gave him ready as a replacement. There will be some cost involved with that, but at least it will hold up behind this engine.

Anyway the strut change worked out great and works well. Rick we may be good with these, I remember we swapped struts with somebody at Townsend whose were getting weak so as not to stress the glass. As long as they don't lose any more pressure we'll be fine I think.

The throttle cable support bracket has been modified for the 4th (5th? 6th?) and hopefully last time. Good thing too as very little of the original remains. It has a nice organic shape now though, not that anyone will ever see it hidden under the air cleaner tray. I bent the gas pedal so it will go closer to the floor and that helped with the steering wheel problem, but it still sort of feels like you're driving a tractor. That wheel seriously has to go.

I should be able to get some photos tomorrow.

JB

Sorry, still no pictures but maybe tomorrow. We're still in Thanksgiving mode around here, kinda laid back and lots of great food, I hope everyone out there enjoyed the holiday as much as we did.

I took the car over to Fillmore's drive in this evening, knowing full well that with the cooler weather and the drizzle that it would be deserted. And it was. But I got to go for a short drive and I agree with Steve, the more you drive that car the more you like it. It is just so understated. That may seem an odd thing to say about a car with big flares and a shaker hood, but it's just got such mellow manners. I jumped on the freeway for an exit on the way home and it wasn't until I got off that I realized how quiet the car is at speed. Max was right to install a sound system. Now if I could just get it to power up.

The BCCGC cancelled their Dec. meeting and I was informed that their christmas party is for members only, which I haven't been for a few years, so unless Eddie Cole can get me in (anyone have his phone number? PM me if you do please) it looks like they won't be seeing the car for awhile. But there are several businesses locally to whom I owe a visit with the car, so I will start with them and maybe run across some events I can take it to.

Oh, and the mods to the gas pedal helped quite a lot but there's a little more work to do there to get smooth movement.

At this point I'm thinking a work weekend some time in January should let us tidy up most of the remaining tasks on the car, but I'm going to need a pledge of support from a few of you who can come to help out.

JB

I got back late yesterday. I do have a complete '76 steering wheel, hub, & horn button. Needs to be cleaned up, but would work if it'll fit the steering column. I also have a complete steering column from a '72 or a '74 (not sure which). I didn't have a chance last night to check the spline count but the steering wheel was 15 1/2" diameter. I'll check the spline tonight & verify if it fits on the extra column I have.

Jim,
I can come up in Jan and work. My brother is having hip replacement some time in Jan, so that might be a problem. Early in Jan would be better for me.

Steve

JIm:

re: Sound. Well, as you'll note on the List it still needs an antenna. But we powered up an iPod and were cranking that at the shop!

The fuses (except maybe for the new 30A?) are all tell-tale-- they glow RED if they are blown! Uh... you sure you just haven't hit the "source" button or something? :-)

RE: steering wheels. Reminder that the dash light switch is in the left side cowling. Also the column switches have all been "adapted" to the new harness. (I think Tim adapted an OE harness, which is now looking to be Genius... :) )

IF swapping columns, remember to line up your Indicator cancel with the tires being straight! On that column ('72?) it should just be a moveable clip, but on other cars/years, it's set to the column shaft itself. Just be aware, etc......

You should have caught this one before, Boss. Pretty dumb to be going back and redoing steering columns and wheels at this stage.... :-p

Live and learn. :)

M

Don't worry Max, before Jim does anything drastic we have an option. I'll buy a new wheel and installation kit, just needed to know what year the coulumn was. It appears that it's a 69. That way we wouldn't disturb the wiring or dash fit. I thought the black leather with the satin aluminum spokes would be best for the car, what do you think?

Steve noticed there was a problem with leg clearance, I just identified the causes. Anyway, if you guys think a new wheel is the best answer it's fine with me, certainly it'd be easier than changing out the column. But Carl thinks a 14" wheel is too small. Here's a thought. Kelvin has offered to help with getting a matching hub and says a TR6 or early Spitfire wheel is a direct fit. We'd need a proper horn button of course but that could be worth looking into. Bill, any chance you could call Kelvin and see what's up with that?

The radio doesn't power up. I don't think it matters if the lights are on or not, though I haven't tried to turn on the radio with the lights on. I could try that if you think it'd work but it doesn't make much sense to me. Anyway there's no indication of power on the radio. I haven't looked at fuses yet, or any of the wiring, mainly I guess because the overall appearance is not exactly confidence inspiring. I'm not complaining mind you. I greatly appreciate all the work that went into getting the wiring installed. I just think it needs to be tidied up a bit.

Max, is the connector for the speedo sender still there in the box the gauges came in? The sender is there in the transmission but there's no pigtail. I don't have a clue what connector it would use. The pigtail should have been there. I'm guessing you guys didn't run any wires down to that area to hook up the speedo sender, would that be correct? If you can find the pigtail you could send me that along with a couple of appropriate wires to hook it up with if there was something in the kit designated for that. I think Rick said he used a pink wire. ;-)

On the alternator, there is a brown/yellow wire coming out of the plug and a matching brown/yellow wire in the harness but they are unplugged. There is a white/blue wire from the plug with a ring lug and I'm guessing it was hooked to the big terminal on the alternator. It is disconnected. Do you have the sketch for the alternator wiring that identified the plug connections? One should have been to the indicator light and the other should have been a sense wire that went independently to the battery, but of course if they were switched it would not work. Am I to understand that you guys fixed it by disconnecting it? I thought you guys knew what you were doing :-p

From all indications I will be going into the back of the dashboard to hook up the speedo at least. Steve said there isn't enough wire to pull out the guages so it sounds like the dash will have to come back off. That means everything will need to be fixed at one time, including loose instruments, the choke cable that is hard to pull (doesn't seem to work) and the tachometer that doesn't work. Max, do you have the directions for hooking up the tach and speedo? Nothing came back with the car. I'm going totally by guesswork here. I'm inclined to think that the easiest way to get a solid tach signal is going to be to install the MSD and programmable advance box, and use the MSD tach output. Thankfully the instructions for those came back with them. Steve and I identified the connections and the install looks straightforward enough once I find a suitable location. Might help with dialing in the timing advance too. I see we have two wires coming out of the distributor. Anyone know what we have in there?

JB

I sent Kelvin an e-mail asking if he could arrange any sort of a discount on the 15" Tourist Trophy wheel that Moss sells, but no reply yet. I'll go that way if we have to have a 15" wheel, but personally most MGBs run a 14" aftermarket wheel just fine but perhaps with the extra weight up front and wide tires we need the extra leverage. The Moss wheel is almost $100 more than the one from VB, enough to warrant some questions for sure. I sent Carl a message asking his opinion on a 14" wheel as well.
We'll get it sorted out before Christmas for sure Jim, just want the Roadmaster to have something in it's stocking on Christmas morning.

Jim,
wires in back of alt. They are disconnected because with the attached the battery went dead. It works as a one wire and self excites.
I ran a blue wire from the temp gauge to the sender and left the green one in place.

Steve