The Car Thread ... !

[44267547]

Congrats on your purchase. It should be an awesome ride! Looking forward to the pics.

It was delivered two days ago to my performance shop. (I actually decided not to see the car upon delivery, I allowed my performance shop take the delivery initial inspection from the carrier, whom I my trust), and once the vehicle is completed with its modifications, that will be the first time I get to see it sometime late next week. I really want the ‘element of surprise’ for the first time where I get to hear/see it. The good news, no damage upon delivery and the shop said it it’s one mean looking ride! Then next weekend, I’ll be headed to a car show with the Scat, assuming the weather cooperates. Pics soon!

 

[bunnspecial]

Well, I'm potentially on the cusp of buying another "project."

It's another 1970s British Leyland project that fortunately for me is at least powered by a familiar engine. They were imported to the US, although never in big numbers-it's actually a bit of an interesting/exciting purchase for me since it's estimated that there are less than 20 surviving in the US(and probably under 1K in the UK).

It also has the dubious distinction of often making the lists of worst cars ever made

Anyone want to take a guess as to what it is?

 

[Apple fanboy]

Well, I'm potentially on the cusp of buying another "project."

It's another 1970s British Leyland project that fortunately for me is at least powered by a familiar engine. They were imported to the US, although never in big numbers-it's actually a bit of an interesting/exciting purchase for me since it's estimated that there are less than 20 surviving in the US(and probably under 1K in the UK).

It also has the dubious distinction of often making the lists of worst cars ever made

Anyone want to take a guess as to what it is?

Stag?

 

[bunnspecial]

Stag?

I would not own a Triumph

 

[2984839]

Well, I'm potentially on the cusp of buying another "project."

It's another 1970s British Leyland project that fortunately for me is at least powered by a familiar engine. They were imported to the US, although never in big numbers-it's actually a bit of an interesting/exciting purchase for me since it's estimated that there are less than 20 surviving in the US(and probably under 1K in the UK).

It also has the dubious distinction of often making the lists of worst cars ever made

Anyone want to take a guess as to what it is?

Morris Marina (or Austin Marina as it was called in the US)?

 

[bunnspecial]

Morris Marina (or Austin Marina as it was called in the US)?

Bingo!

The one I'm looking at now(the seller had two of them-one is up in the air as to whether or not it's sold) actually had rebadged it as a "Morris" and removed the 1974 "Federal" bumpers as part of a cosmetic attempt to turn it into a Marina TC. If I get it, I'll take it back to fully US spec-Federal bumpers and Austin badging both(the seller still has that).

It's an automatic, which is somewhat less than desirable to me given how sluggish I'd expect a low compression 1800cc "B" engine to be toting around 3000lbs of car even with a manual.

If I get it-and things are looking promising-I'll probably tear into the engine before even attempting to get it running. Alright-I'm lying on that-a B engine that ran 10 years ago should need much to get going-but I doubt I'll waste much time with it before I pull the head for a valve job/hardened seats and probably at the same time will pop out the pistons and rods, get some shallow dish pistons, do a quick in-situ cylinder clean up and cross hatch on the bores with a ball hone, do the center main bearings and the rod bearings, and then of course put it back together with the new pistons and fresh rings on them. That's a quick and relatively easy bump from 8.0:1 to 9.5:1 c/r(assuming everything else is the same as in the MGB engine, which I think at least as that goes it is) and should jump it from ~70hp to the upper 90s.

And all of that work, as cheap as it is, will still cost more than what I'm probably paying for the car

 

[2984839]

Bingo!

The one I'm looking at now(the seller had two of them-one is up in the air as to whether or not it's sold) actually had rebadged it as a "Morris" and removed the 1974 "Federal" bumpers as part of a cosmetic attempt to turn it into a Marina TC. If I get it, I'll take it back to fully US spec-Federal bumpers and Austin badging both(the seller still has that).

It's an automatic, which is somewhat less than desirable to me given how sluggish I'd expect a low compression 1800cc "B" engine to be toting around 3000lbs of car even with a manual.

If I get it-and things are looking promising-I'll probably tear into the engine before even attempting to get it running. Alright-I'm lying on that-a B engine that ran 10 years ago should need much to get going-but I doubt I'll waste much time with it before I pull the head for a valve job/hardened seats and probably at the same time will pop out the pistons and rods, get some shallow dish pistons, do a quick in-situ cylinder clean up and cross hatch on the bores with a ball hone, do the center main bearings and the rod bearings, and then of course put it back together with the new pistons and fresh rings on them. That's a quick and relatively easy bump from 8.0:1 to 9.5:1 c/r(assuming everything else is the same as in the MGB engine, which I think at least as that goes it is) and should jump it from ~70hp to the upper 90s.

And all of that work, as cheap as it is, will still cost more than what I'm probably paying for the car

I'm honestly pretty shocked you could find one. As you said, they were sold in small numbers in the US and it's not like they have a reputation for quality and longevity.

They also have a tendency to be hit by falling pianos, so be careful where you park.

 

[bunnspecial]

I'm honestly pretty shocked you could find one. As you said, they were sold in small numbers in the US and it's not like they have a reputation for quality and longevity.

They also have a tendency to be hit by falling pianos, so be careful where you park.

Like I alluded to, the current estimate is somewhere between 10 and 20 surviving in the US.

Actually quite a few of them got parted out for other more popular/desirable BL cars from the era. All US market ones came with a single carb(SU HIF-6) 1800 B engine. The exhaust portion of the manifold is the same relatively free flowing "double Y" that was used on 62-74 MGBs, while the intake portion looks a lot like what's used on 75-80 MGBs with a single ZS-175 carburetor(and that carb will bolt right on to it). The exhaust manifold on late MGBs is terrible-it makes a 180º turn with a radius of about an inch to go into the catalytic converter(which in turn sits right under the carb) really chokes up the breathing on the later cars-the Marina manifold makes a relatively invisible modification to 75-80 MGBs that opens up a LOT of low end power and I've heard of California guys(and others in states with a visual inspection) getting them past less-than-vigilant smog inspection stations.

The manual transmission is straight out of the Triumph Spitfire and GT6, so scrapped Marinas provided a ready supply of replacements for those ever-popular cars. Meanwhile, the BW35 automatic was available as an option for the MGB-it was not officially imported to the US, although I know reliable accounts of new ones that were bought here. By some accounts I've seen, roughly half of the ~9000 MGCs that were made had a BW35(I've driven an MGC GT with one-it's actually quite a nice cruiser, and fits well in a car with a ~700lb cast iron lump hanging over the front axle in a body designed for a ~400lb engine that sits entirely behind the axle and thus isn't as nimble). Thus, Marina automatics often made their way either MGCs or for those who wanted an auto MGB.

And yes, I know Top Gear is responsible for a whole lot of them meeting their end in the UK.

 

[jbarley]

My daughter and son-in-law purchased a new set of wheels for me as a fathers-day gift, maybe they're trying to tell me something.
Actually I can only blame myself, as I had mentioned on more then 1 occasion I'd like to be proactive and surrender my license before having one of those "seniors" road accidents.
Gotta love the wind in the face though, sorta reminds me of an earlier life.
Now if only I can find my "leathers"...
Excuse the picture condition, amazing what 60 odd years in a wallet will do to a photo.

 

[A.Goldberg]

Anyone looking at or purchased a new Wrangler?

I’m a little confused on FCA’s engine choices here. There’s the old 3.6L pentastar V6 as the standard option and a new 1.4L 4cyl Turbo that’s actually a mild hybrid. It’s $1000 more, less HP, more torque, roughly the same performance (perhaps actually slower), and maybe 2mpg improvement per the EPA.

My sister is looking to buy a new Wrangler Unlimited and she asked me about the engines. Frankly I can’t see why you’d upgrade to the turbo due to the extra complexity and cost (albeit $1000 is pretty negligible).

 

[bunnspecial]

Closing in on a deal on the Marina.

I can't believe I'm actually going through with it, and I still have to figure out how the best way to get it here.

Hopefully getting it running won't be too big of a deal-if I end up going to get it-which looks likely-I'll probably pull the plugs and get some MMO in the cylinders before I get it home-hopefully a few hundred miles on a trailer will shake and jostle it around enough to get things a bit more free. Once it's home, I can run through a quick tune-up and depending on just how bad the 10-year old gas is might pull the carb down for a cleaning(and of course drain/pump the tank). I suppose it's a consequence of having another car with the same engine, but I can throw a new cap/rotor/points/plugs without having to buy anything . Worse comes to worse, I even have a spare(Chinese) distributor that I can drop on until the original gets rebuilt. Of course, it will get an oil change too-probably with whatever cheap junk(meaning Wal-Mart Supertech) I can find before filling it up with my preferred but moderately expensive VR-1 20W-50.

Given that the car ran 10 years ago and there's next to nothing that can go seriously wrong with the engine, I can't imagine it taking me more than a few hours of work to have it driving around the block. At the same time, I'm afraid to say too much .

Of other note, this will be a BIT of an adventure for me since I can take apart and put together an HS-type carburetor in my sleep but have no experience with HIF type carbs. Fundamentally they work the same, but they're a bit more of a mystery to me since a lot of what you can observe(and diagnose) on an HS is "hidden" inside the HIF. I have a pair of HIF-4s off an MGB sitting in the garage-I'll most likely take one of those apart before I dig into the much more valuable and expensive HIF-6. The good thing about an HIF type carb, though, is that you don't need special tooling to fix throttle shaft wear.

It should be interesting to see what happens...I'm a member of a UK-based forum that prides itself in somewhat bottom of the barrel cars, and @LightBulbFun is pretty well convinced that I'd "win" at least for a short period of time with a US spec(meaning smog choked) Marina with the comically large US bumpers and an automatic . I'm tempted to drop in a manual, but was chastised on said forum for that idea...

 

[0388631]

My sister is looking to buy a new Wrangler Unlimited and she asked me about the engines. Frankly I can’t see why you’d upgrade to the turbo due to the extra complexity and cost (albeit $1000 is pretty negligible).

If she still practices in the city you told me about, then the turbo may come in handy due to thinner air. Though it being a Jeep, why not just buy a Subaru or anything more reliable? That said, if I were truly looking at Jeep myself, it would have to be a lease. Too much BS involved post-warranty with modern Jeeps.

DT got some kind of Jeep, but I believe he leased his to avoid the headache down the line.

Sorry, that was a Dodge Durango RT.

 

[Huntn]

After watching Mad Max: Fury Road, my next vehicle :

https://madmax.fandom.com/wiki/The_Gigahorse
The Incredible Gigahorse
​

A chop shop’s dream job to build a bunch of most cool vehicles for an apocalyptic future.
https://madmax.fandom.com/wiki/Category:Mad_Max:_Fury_Road_vehicles

Ford Falcon XB GT Coupe 1973
https://madmax.fandom.com/wiki/Ford_Falcon_XB_GT_Coupe_1973_"V8_Interceptor"


Chevrolet 5 Window Coupe 1934
https://madmax.fandom.com/wiki/Chevrolet_5_Window_Coupe_1934_"The_Nux_Car"


The Peacemaker
Howe and Howe Ripsaw EV1
https://madmax.fandom.com/wiki/Howe_and_Howe_Ripsaw_EV1_"The_Peacemaker"


The War Rig
https://madmax.fandom.com/wiki/Tatra_T815_"The_War_Rig"


The People Eater’s Limo
https://madmax.fandom.com/wiki/AM_General_M814_"The_People_Eater's_Limousine"​

Here’s How They Built the Beastly Machines for Mad Max: Fury Road
https://www.mpaa.org/2015/05/heres-how-they-built-the-beastly-machines-for-mad-max-fury-road/

 

[44267547]

Ford releases Shelby GT500 HP/TQ ratings:

760 HP And 625 TQ. It’s the most powerful Ford ever created, which also surpasses Camaro ZL1 And Corvette ZO6 . I also believe the top speed is governed at ~180 MPH. (I didn’t expect the GT500 to come in at 760 HP.) Overall, really impressive Car both aesthetically and Performance. Awesome times we still live in amongst all the EV transitions.

https://jalopnik.com/the-2020-ford-mustang-shelby-gt500-has-an-earth-shatter-1835645776/amp

 

[0388631]

I wouldn't mind electric assisted power to push HP limits up. Think LMP cars.

 

[scubachap]

Closing in on a deal on the Marina.

I can't believe I'm actually going through with it, and I still have to figure out how the best way to get it here.

Hopefully getting it running won't be too big of a deal-if I end up going to get it-which looks likely-I'll probably pull the plugs and get some MMO in the cylinders before I get it home-hopefully a few hundred miles on a trailer will shake and jostle it around enough to get things a bit more free. Once it's home, I can run through a quick tune-up and depending on just how bad the 10-year old gas is might pull the carb down for a cleaning(and of course drain/pump the tank). I suppose it's a consequence of having another car with the same engine, but I can throw a new cap/rotor/points/plugs without having to buy anything . Worse comes to worse, I even have a spare(Chinese) distributor that I can drop on until the original gets rebuilt. Of course, it will get an oil change too-probably with whatever cheap junk(meaning Wal-Mart Supertech) I can find before filling it up with my preferred but moderately expensive VR-1 20W-50.

Given that the car ran 10 years ago and there's next to nothing that can go seriously wrong with the engine, I can't imagine it taking me more than a few hours of work to have it driving around the block. At the same time, I'm afraid to say too much .

Of other note, this will be a BIT of an adventure for me since I can take apart and put together an HS-type carburetor in my sleep but have no experience with HIF type carbs. Fundamentally they work the same, but they're a bit more of a mystery to me since a lot of what you can observe(and diagnose) on an HS is "hidden" inside the HIF. I have a pair of HIF-4s off an MGB sitting in the garage-I'll most likely take one of those apart before I dig into the much more valuable and expensive HIF-6. The good thing about an HIF type carb, though, is that you don't need special tooling to fix throttle shaft wear.

It should be interesting to see what happens...I'm a member of a UK-based forum that prides itself in somewhat bottom of the barrel cars, and @LightBulbFun is pretty well convinced that I'd "win" at least for a short period of time with a US spec(meaning smog choked) Marina with the comically large US bumpers and an automatic . I'm tempted to drop in a manual, but was chastised on said forum for that idea...

Fantastic... Personally I've got a soft spot for the Princess but there you go... You probably know this but the Marina was superseded by the Ital so those bits might fit too. I also assume you know about these guys - Rimmer Bros. Probably most of their stuff is for cars bit more, ahem, desirable but you never know...

 

[quagmire]

Rumor has it Camaro being killed after 2023.....

 

[0388631]

Maybe for a hybrid performance or a new body. I doubt they'd kill the actual car. The retro pony car movement is still fairly strong. I like the idea of a hybrid car. Petrol and electric combination. None of that prissy 25 minute charge stuff. I'd love a nice full size sedan with a large inline six or V6, maybe a V8, twin scroll turbo or perhaps a V8 in a hot twin turbo setup with a 300-500 HP electric system power motor helping the 400-500 HP petrol engine.

It'll happen one day. I know it. I'd rather drive that than a fully electric car that puddles around after you push it too hard in the twisties we have here. My opinion on electric cars isn't biased and I hold nothing against them on account of Elon Musk being an annoying ****.

 

[bunnspecial]

Still working out details on the Marina, but I'm pretty sure it's a done deal-I just need to get a non-running car that most carriers don't even list in their drop-downs from Delaware to Kentucky! Fortunately, I hope resurrection won't take long.

In the mean time, I've been exchanging some emails and spent some time on the phone with "The Marina Man" down in Arkansas. He was a BL dealer back in the day and sold them new, and managed to cough up a brand new factory service manual(along with a driver's handbook) that he only wants a token amount for.

Also, I decided a few weeks ago to put a new alternator on the MG. There was nothing WRONG with the old one, other than the fact that at idle with a few accessories(such as headlights, turn signals, and windshield wipers) I'm exceeding the idle output of the stock 35A alternator(at idle, it will do ~15A). There are a lot of options out there, including Bosch and AC Delco alternators-the Bosch is a drop-in but expensive, while the Delco requires a bit more hacking than I really want to do.

I'd planned to fit a Lucas 18ACR, which is rated for 45A(and 20A at idle) and was stock on later MGBs. This has the advantage of being more or less drop-in(the more or less part is where the saying "the devil is the details" comes into play). Someone else clued me in to a new production 60A alternator in an 18ACR body, which is what I bought.

Actually fitting it was MOSTLY straight forward aside from a trip to the hardware store since the new one needed a nut and bolt to hold the tensioner in place(the old one had the bolt threading directly into the body). That was easy enough. I threw a new V-belt on for good measure-the old one only had ~10,000 miles on it so I probably didn't need to change it, but the old one went in the trunk as a just in case spare(I have two other back there-always figure I can save another MG driver's day if nothing else even if I don't need it myself). As a side note, not that it's a huge deal, but having to set the initial tension on a V-belt and then redo it after it's stretched/worn in a bit is a pain vs. just letting the tensioner take care of it as on most serpentine belt systems. Still, though, it's also nice that even a high quality(Gates) belt is ~$15 vs. $50+ for a typical serpentine belt.

Getting the alternator mounted was only half the battle, though. Somewhere along the way, BL switched from a "5 wire" plug to a "3 wire" plug on the alternator. I honestly don't know enough about what's going on with it to understand what everything does. My car had the 5 wire plug, but reading the instructions and dissecting it showed that one of the plugs simply wasn't used(no wire ever) while for whatever mind-boggling reason one of the other wires quite literally loops back on itself(i.e. both ends are connected to the same terminal). The "3 wire" plug is actually 2 wires, as two are electrically the same and connect more-or-less directly to the battery(via the starter relay) and most MGs only have one wire here. The additional wire is used for field excitation/the system status light.

In any case, I cut the old plug off and attempted to solder on the replacement I bought. It may have been the Hakko battery powered iron I use(although I've never had issues with it in the past, and it was melting solder fine), or maybe just crummy metal in the Chinese plug, but I couldn't get the terminals on the plug to "wet" with solder. I tried crimping and more or less got them to stay, but then realized that the wire was too short for how the plug needs to be turned to connect to the alternator. So, in other words, I've found myself in a situation where I'm "an inclined plane wrapped helically around an axis."

Amazon fortunately comes to the rescue-one of these is on the way
https://www.amazon.com/Alternator-Pigtail-Harness-Bosch-Alternators/dp/B01M16TAO4

 

[0388631]

Going to repaint it or not? Near factory colors or something lively like sweet mint green? Which I believe was available on the Bug.

 

[44267547]

Quick Teaser video from Dodge on the ‘new Charger wide-body’:

[Side note: I love their marketing style compared to the other Pony competitors.]

 

[bunnspecial]

Going to repaint it or not? Near factory colors or something lively like sweet mint green? Which I believe was available on the Bug.

It will need a paint job eventually. I'm pretty sure the current dark blue is a factory color, although not the original factory paint. From the pictures, the color looks like what was called "Mineral Blue" on MGs-I'm not sure if other BL products used the same color names.

The other one I could have bought, but decided against, is a lovely 70s yellow color.

 

[0388631]

It will need a paint job eventually. I'm pretty sure the current dark blue is a factory color, although not the original factory paint. From the pictures, the color looks like what was called "Mineral Blue" on MGs-I'm not sure if other BL products used the same color names.

The other one I could have bought, but decided against, is a lovely 70s yellow color.

Buttercream yellow that's more tint like than pastel?

 

[vipergts2207]

The 2020 widebody Charger is now official. That Frostbite blue looks incredible.

https://www.allpar.com/news/2019/06...-for-the-2020-dodge-charger-srt-hellcat-45133

 

[bunnspecial]

Buttercream yellow that's more tint like than pastel?

According to the BL color chart from the years I can find, the color is probably "Citron." It's kind of a lemon yellow color.

The color that I'd GUESS you're thinking of is what's called "Pale Primrose" on MGs, and again from color charts probably other BL cars. I think it went away at the end of the 60s. I didn't care for it until I saw it in person, but then realized it actually looks halfway decent at least on MGB GTs...here's an old photo of mine parked next to a friends '68

The one I'm buying I'm pretty sure is "Tahiti Blue"-or at least was originally(like I said, it's been repainted, but is blue under the hood and inside the door jams)