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Monday morning found us over near Sheffield for work on Mike’s car that we’d last seen a few years ago for clutch replacement. He’d had a fail with the latest MOT on a couple of things.

We replaced the rear brake lines, and had taken along a CAT and Lambda sensor, as one of the issues was with the emissions. On code reading found that only a new Lambda was needed. So a shorter day for us and a cheaper bill for Mike. Good to see him again briefly between his work calls.

Tuesday morning Jon went back over to Sleaford for some further work on Alex’s TF 160. The VVC plunger was leaking oil quite badly so both plunger gaskets were replaced along with a preemptive oil-cooler bypass, at Alex’s request. I didn’t go this time, so the pic is from when we went over in July.

On Wednesday morning we headed over to Whitley where it was great to meet John for work on his 2003 TF 135 (paint code LQW).

Full cambelt service carried out, which was well overdue, having last been done in 2008, plus replacement of the underfloor coolant-pipes for stainless. Bit of a nippy one so were pleased to have John’s workshop to work in.

This morning we headed down to Wolverhampton, where it was great to meet Tim and his wife Sharon for work on their 2005 TF 160 (in paint code CQC) with only 17k on the clock.

Tim hadn’t been using the car over the past five years, and had been stored in his garage, with periodical runs up and down the drive to keep things moving. He decided it was time to think about getting it back on the road. He’d attended the Triumph show at Stoneleigh earlier in the year and on chatting to a few people they had recommended he get in touch with us, so big thanks to those who recommended us.

Cambelt service was carried out this morning, along with preemptive head gasket replacement as he just wanted to have peace of mind knowing it was all done for him and Sharon to enjoy days out in the car again into the welsh mountains and surrounding areas. A very nice example, we wish them lots of fun!

From there we headed over to Pelsall, just outside of Walsall. Jonathan had recently purchased a very nice example of a 2003 TF 160 and very unfortunately on his run back home the car lost power and had ground to a halt. So he asked if we could go over and assess the damage and discuss the way forward.

So this afternoon, on our investigation, we found that the alternator belt had given way and had subsequently taken out the cambelt. We stripped the engine down and found that 15 valves were bent, but the worst one being that one of the valve heads had snapped off and beaten the living daylights out of the cylinder head and had punched a hole in one of the pistons. Big ouch!!

But it’s nothing that can’t be sorted, plus it’s too much of a decent example to let go to scrap, therefore a plan discussed with Jonathan and the car will be delivered to our workshop for the repairs to be carried out.

Now on a very slow trawl back up the country, made worse by some biblical downpours. That’s us done for this week, family day tomorrow. Have a cracking weekend everyone, hope the weather isn’t too dismal wherever you may be. – https://ift.tt/Q42iygu

Workshop week apart from a local one on Thursday morning…

Steve drove over from Keighley on Sunday to leave his TF 160 with us. We got cracking with the investigation of an oil leak on Monday morning and a couple of other things that he wanted sorting on his, always very tidy, MG. Now ready for him to collect tomorrow.

Mike drove down from Sunderland on Tuesday morning, in his 1998 MGF 143 (paint code MBB), for initially just a head gasket replacement, but then found that the cambelt service was overdue, so this was carried out for him too. Before he brought it to us he’d previously changed both coolant sensors, then once firing it up, although not over heating on our diagnostics, the gauge was heading over to the red zone. We tried a new sensor but that also came up with the same, so we tried a secondhand old sensor, which worked perfectly.

Good to meet Mike and have lots of chats while we worked, bit of a longer day than anticipated, but glad to have him all sorted.

John had his 2002 TF 160 (paint code JFV) delivered to us that afternoon from Durham, and we got cracking with this one on Wednesday morning.

Head gasket replacement and cambelt service carried out, along with replacement of the Lambda sensor, all four of the cam oil-seals and a couple of other things done to get this one all sorted for him. We look forward to meeting him, on Sunday, when he comes down to collect.

On Thursday morning we nipped over the Humber bridge to Barton-on-Humber as Jez’s MGF 120 mpi (in paint code HAM) had suffered from the proverbial. We replaced all the gaskets, along with two of the cam oil-seals and a set of new HT leads as the ones on the car had done their time. The car had undergone a previous head gasket replacement and had been fitted with a Mk II elastomer, after years of trouble-free motoring it developed symptoms and on his inspection found coolant to be pouring out between the block and cylinder head, so was in no doubt as to what had occurred.

Thanks to Jez for the heated garage to work in, what luxury! An early finish and such a beautiful afy I decided to walk home from there. We’ve got his TF 1.6 booked in for preemptive head gasket replacement, next spring, ahead of his holiday over to France in the car with his wife.

That brings us to today, Friday. Steven drove over to us first thing this morning in his 2003 TF 135 ‘Cool Blue’ (paint code MBB) for an oil change, gearbox oil change, clutch slave-cylinder replacement and flush through of the old clutch fluid.

Great to meet Steven and have interesting chats, he’s owned many cars over the years, including MGBs and a MGBGT including a TD, back in the day. Hope he enjoys his weekend visiting relatives in the area, and we look forward to seeing him again next year for the minor service. Thanks to him for the coffees and other bits too that he brought along for us.

Good to see Gary again who drove over, from Pudsey, in his 2001 MGF Trophy 160 today, for a check up on the suspension that, he says, isn’t feeling the best, especially on uneven surfaces, as in ‘bouncing’ down the road rather than absorbing any bumps. The hydragas units were approximately at the correct ride-height and had plenty of bounce left in them, although it still had very old and tired shock-absorbers. It was decided that a new set of dual-acting shock-absorbers would be better suited.

A couple of last minute cancellations, but at least we were able to fit in a few others that were patiently waiting for a slot, resulting in a productive week with lots of great people and their fab MGs.

Bit of a chilly week, but at least it looks to be a milder weekend ahead for most. So on that note have a great weekend everyone near and far. 🗺️ – https://ift.tt/w8HUor6

Butterknowle, near Bishop Auckland was our last visit of this week, and what an enjoyable days work it was too.

We’d previously taken away the cylinder head from Ken’s TF 160, that had suffered from a blown out spark plug, subsequently stripping the threads, obviously with the engine still running it had bashed the end of the electrode in, so Jon helicoiled the hole and refitted the plug.

This morning the cylinder head was refitted along with cambelt, water pump, tensioner and other service items. Car up running with a very smooth and quiet engine.

Mervyn came over in his LE 500 (number 394) for us to carry out a full cambelt service.

Really great to see Mervyn and Ken again and have a good chat. Thanks to Mervyn for bringing along the Tunnock’s!

It was so good to have some other lovely company too in the field opposite, Roo and her field mates, just beautiful.

We’re on our way home and not too far to go now. Hope everyone has a great weekend wherever you may be and those in the vicinity of storm Bert, stay safe. – https://ift.tt/O2qpkJX

Brrr chilly start this morning -5.5 🧊

But we were pleased to see the sun out and it had warmed up a bit when we arrived at Bramley near Rotherham, where it was really lovely to meet Steven, who had fairly recently bought himself a 2004 TF 160 (in paint code JFM). He’d fancied owning one, having previously owned two MGFs in the past, so spent a bit of time searching for the right one.

He’s done a load of work to the car, with a new Daytona with the quad tail finishers, a set of roll-hoops, he had a tonneau cover made to match the interior and many other things to get it up to the spec he wants. It’s certainly another cracking example, he’s got himself a good one.

The car had been regularly serviced and cared for by the previous owner, but he couldn’t see any record of the head gasket ever having been replaced. On our inspection today we found there was the tell-tale tab sticking out between the cylinder-head and the block, so it has been done in the past and fitted with an MLS. The car wasn’t showing any symptoms and was running like a dream so it was decided to leave as it is, Steven was more than happy with the ‘if it ain’t broke don’t fix it’ opinion. We gave the car a good look over as he’d asked, plus we ran our diagnostics, on which nothing untoward came up.

Date arranged for the spring next year to carry out a brake upgrade and the minor service.

From there we headed over to Conisbrough to check out what was happening with the clutch on Mark’s 2003 TF 1.6. As we suspected the slave-cylinder had blown, so this was replaced and the grotty old black clutch-fluid bled through with fresh. Mark took it for a quick spin and was pleased to have his clutch fully working again.

Great to see Mark as always and have a quick chat, thanks to him for Jon’s huge bacon butty and for the offer of some rather dubious vegan bacon for me, I politely declined his kind offer, Mark wasn’t at all surprised or offended! 😆

Bit of a shorter day than expected, which was nice, plus a cheaper one for Steven, who’s put a really nice post on our page, following our visit. I was lucky to take advantage of a beautiful sunset walk home.

Not sure what the forecast is tomorrow, but at least we know we have a very big shed to work in. – https://ift.tt/SixEpA9

A snowy one for our first call of the day in South Cockerington, near Louth this morning, where it was really good to meet Roger and Elizabeth for work on their 2004 TF 135 (in paint code FAR). They’d moved to the area about 12 months ago and were wondering who to use for the servicing etc having always used the lovely Jason Swinyard over in Oldham at MGTastic. Thanks also to one of our customers, Julie, over in Grimsby who recommended they get in touch with ourselves.

Full cambelt service carried out with no issues, all the major bolts having been suitably copper greased. The car is in super condition and we look forward to our return next year for the minor service. Big thanks to them for the cuppas and biscuits and, more importantly, a garage to work in, keeping us sheltered from the elements.

From there we headed over to Brigg, where we met Darren for hydragas fill on his fairly new acquisition of a very tidy looking year 2000 MGF 1.8 (in paint code CAQ). Great to meet him and have a chat, still plenty of bounce left on the suspension, and on a quick inspection he’s got himself a good one, in what he describes as something for him and his wife to enjoy some fun days out in.

Weather was a bit too brisk for a walk back over the Humber Bridge to home, but the sunrise this morning from it was beautiful.

We haven’t had a lazy last few days, we bought ourselves another doer upper, a TF 160 from a lovely chap in Richmond. We will get this one turned around, along with some others in the new year. That’s the plan! Plus we’ve also bought ourselves a bargain of a run around, rather than using the van all the time, a BMW X5, at least we can pick up family members for days out and use it for tip runs etc.

Hope everyone has stayed warm and safe on what has been a quick jolt into winter weather 🥶 – https://ift.tt/SixEpA9

Day 4 of 4 (originally 7) – heading to the South East (ish) with some stops along the way and our last away trip of the year…

A departure from our digs in between Chatham and Gillingham, this morning, to head a few miles along to Rochester for work on Gerry’s 2002 TF 160 (paint code LEF) that he’s owned for about a year, having bought it from a chap in Bournemouth after a search for the right one.

Underfloor coolant pipes replaced with stainless steel ones, initially booked in for soft-ride-kit too, he’s still having a think about it. Gerry wanted us to give the car a general check over and wished to discuss a few things.

When we fired the car up we noticed that it was slightly lumpy, on code reading found another duff Lambda sensor, but the symptoms didn’t fit 100%. Although it was running lumpy, it was too even. We replaced the Lambda sensor and then checked further for another cause. Possibly thinking it could be one tooth out on the cam. After removing one of the short cambelt pulleys that side was found to be all good, but the main belt exhaust-cam pulley had a severely crushed roll pin. This, therefore, put the exhaust-cam out by half a tooth, bit of a theme this week. Though this was probably due to the fact that the bolt holding the pulley on wasn’t tight! If left like this any longer it could have caused catastrophic engine failure. Once replaced all the timing marks matched up perfectly, resulting in a much smoother engine.

Coolant cap replaced as the one on the car failed the pressure test, alternator splash-guard was missing so new one fitted, a few missing and wrong bolts etc replaced and she’s all good to go!

A pleasurable days work in Gerry’s company and having a good natter while we worked, he’s got himself a cracking car.

So we’re now on the long haul back home. The inevitable big hold up for the Dartford tunnel, but hopefully won’t be too late back. A successful last trip away of 2024. – https://ift.tt/BpXLsVc

Day 3 of 4 (originally 7) – heading to the South East (ish) with some stops along the way and our last away trip of the year…

We left our fab digs in Little Thetford and headed down to Royston, where it was lovely to meet Jonathan who asked if we could come and investigate an issue he’d been experiencing with his 2001 MGF mpi 120 (in paint code JBH).

On idle the car was massively hunting flicking between 500 and 1500 rpm. Part of the problem was a faulty Lambda sensor, the other part of the problem was that someone had been adjusting the throttle body stop, this usually has a small cap on it and should not really be messed with.

We replaced the Lambda sensor and as he had a new aluminum 48 mm throttle body we fitted this too, and problem happily resolved for Jonathan, and no other error codes coming up.

From there we headed over to Biggleswade to take a look at what was occurring with Barry’s 2004 TF 135 (in paint code HFF).

Some time ago he had experienced a loss of power with the car, and after that it wouldn’t start at all. He’d had two new fuel pumps fitted, fuel filter, plugs etc etc all to no avail.

Unfortunately, we hadn’t been able to get down to see him before today. So we set about with our usual investigations, such as checking the ECU for codes, nothing really relevant found, the crank sensor and cam sensors were fine, so after testing the fuel pressure and finding that there was absolutely none, we set about trying to remote power the fuel pump, while we could hear it working there was no actual output from the fuel pump. We decided to remove this from the fuel tank to see if a pipe had come off, as it was though to be reasonably new, however once we removed the cap off the top the sender-unit it was found that the seal that was meant to be around the lip had dropped into the tank when it had been fitted, when trying to remove the complete
sender-unit it was actually in pieces and with some of the parts missing!

As it was so badly damaged we had to dismantle the rest of it while it was in the tank as it wouldn’t come away in the usual fashion.

Once all the bits were finally removed from the tank the fuel was direct wired and found to be faulty yet again.

The whole sender unit and pump housing will have to be replaced, as well as the pump. Once this is all done we will get on with the other main issue of finding the reason for the pump wiring not being powered.

Poor Barry, not only is he very poorly, having just come out of hospital he also has a very poorly car. Pump duly ordered, we have a couple of sender units on stock so a date to be arranged to get this sorted for him. Hoping Barry makes a full and speedy recovery and that we get the car fixed soon too, feeling a bit sad for Barry right now. It was great to meet him and Lucy though and have a chat before we headed off on our way. We look forward to seeing them again soon!

Now wending our way round the M25, through the Dartford tunnel and on to our next destination for the night.

Good to have such decent weather again, too. – https://ift.tt/365IZ9x

Day 2 of 4 (originally 7) – heading to the South East (ish) with some stops along the way…

A nice short commute this morning into Ely where it was good, as always, to see Philip, this time for work on his new acquisition, a 1998 MGF 143 (in paint code JRJ). He’d bought the car knowing that it had a few issues, including the inevitable head gasket failure, and hadn’t even heard it running, but thought he’d take a punt on it, given that it’s a VVC with not a massive amount of miles on the clock, plus it was a bit of a bargain.

So this morning we set about with our investigations. We had a spark, we had fuel, someone had fitted new HT leads, so we checked that they had been connected correctly for the firing order, we then discovered that the timing was completely out, the exhaust-cam was three teeth advanced and the inlet-cam was three teeth retarded. With concerns that there may be valve damage we set about taking everything apart.

A Mk II elastomer gasket was fitted, and there had been quite a bit of heat in there, as the cam-cover gasket was completely delaminated. However, we were very pleased to find that the valves were all in tact. We found that three of the roll pins on the cam timing cogs were severely damaged and crushed too.

New roll pins fitted, everything put back together, including carrying out the cambelt service and she fired up nicely on the first turn of the key. Excellent timing just as Philip was walking back up the drive on returning from work. Really pleased for him to have it running. We look forward to our return in a years time for the cambelt service on his other MGF.

Big thanks to Philip for the cream cakes, which Jon enjoyed back at the digs, while I made the most of the good weather and remaining daylight with a lovely walk back, along the banks of the River Great Ouse, what a beautiful spot. – https://ift.tt/365IZ9x