Iron Fist in a Green Velvet Glove

Well - I picked up 'Green Lightening' (named by my 9-year-old) from the transmission shop on Friday (3 days ago)

All (and I do mean all) is forgiven.  What a great ride.

Turns out I have the Borg-Warner type 65 gearbox, instead of the more common type 35 - which is a good thing.

She just wooshes along, emitting a fairly throaty V8 growl from its twin pipes.  Noticed a slightly disturbing lack of response from the brakes when I started out today - but only once - I'll check the level shortly.  Also had to top up the power steering by a small amount (the manual says to check it every 1,000 miles anyway).

Second gear is a real stormer, good for at least 70 mph (112kph) which dispatches hills, slower cars and pretty much anything with disdain and aplomb.  I love it.

Now I have to work out the heating (possibly stuck in the on position) and the aircon (which at least needs regassing) and I will have a very usable car.  I had forgotten how little room there is for passenger's legs in the back, especially when the driver is a well-proportioned 6'4".

Can't be many 4-door 2-seater grand tourers can there?  Only the Brits eh?

A new life for the Marina

Well, I did say I was thinking of replacing the Marina with a car with working air conditioning - and I said it had to be a Leyland product to preserve the integrity of the title of this blog.  Well pat me on the back, I nearly managed.  Introducing my new 1974 Rover 3500.  (The aircon is all there, but needs regassing)

Consequently the time has come for the trusty Marina to move on.   My previously mentioned experience of driving the Marina (vinyl seats and all) in 48'C+ for several hours will be etched on my memory for some time yet.

I have sold the her to a lady in Sydney whose first car was one, and wants something to complement her Mini. 

The online advert pictures came up well, so I have included a few here.

So - my 'new' car - had "to keep me both looking and feeling cool through out the next few months.  It also really needed to be a Leyland - given that the Rover P5 was made a few years before Leyland subsumed Rover.  After all, I can't go renaming my blog just like that - what would all you avid readers do if I undertook such an impulsive rebranding exercise?"

Exactly.

After quite an exercise of analysing what I wanted / needed and could afford, followed by a lengthy search and a bit of analysis of current prices, the impact of the recession etc, I settled on a Rover 3500 P6.  Bought it sight unseen too, with the aid of pictures and a large slice of trust.

It was be put on a covered truck and shipped down to me from Brisbane. So - still a Leyland car AND a Rover to boot. Saves car club fees :-)

I managed to drop the Marina off and collect the P6 on the same day, so was quite pleased with that.

Unfortunately, the P6 had no petrol, so I stopped to fill it up.  Takes a long time too, because of the shape of the filler neck and the shape of ULP nozzles.

Then the car wouldn't start - flat battery.  Called RACV and they told me the battery was flat.  Ah well.  Waited an hour for the battery man who fitted the new battery and then told me the alternator stuffed.

Ah well, again.  The drive home was great, and other than battery, completely incedent free.  I deposited the car at the garage for its roadworthy (like a UK MOT test, but it is a state government responsibility, so it has to be done when a car moves interstate) - and also asked them to fix the alternator.

On Friday, I took it for inspection - she passed and I was able to register her.  Phew!

On Sunday (we were busy on Saturday) I went for a blast in the hills.  Was awesome, although towards the end I noticed a bit of a shriek (when I turned off the stereo) and wondered if the fan belt was slipping.

It has been almost 20 years since I let my old 3500S go and I was not going to let a bit of a shriek spoil my multi-faceted trip down memory lane.

Perhaps I should have...

I drove the car to work on Monday and as I got to the centre of the city, I started having some problems with the automatic transmission.  I was having to pull it right back to 2nd and sometimes 1st just to get the car to move away from the lights - oh and the shrieking was getting worse.

It was raining and I wanted to check out what was happening, so I parked in the multi-story.  I was locking the car (parked on a slight slope) when I noticed the steadily expanding puddle of automatic transmission fluid seeping its way towards the car next to me...

I took a deep breath, decided there was nothing I could immediately do about it and went into the office, nervously trying to calculate the parking fee if I had to leave it there overnight.

I rang the nice transmission people at Fluiddrive in Box Hill (they had been recommended by the Rover club) and agreed with them to bring the car in.  WOrked for an hour or so and then went back to the car, checked the transmission fluid level (which oddly enough looked fine) and set off for Box Hill.

I did loose transmission twice, but once I'd given it a rest, it came back.  Frank, form Fluiddrive shot out of his office like a sprinter when I drove in - but that was because they had just finished a P6 V8 this morning, and he thought the car was coming back.  Encouraged by the fact that he actually recognised the model by ear, I explained the problem.

He hoisted the car up and confirmed I had a serious leak - then suggested we should take the car out to see what else might be amiss.  He also commented on the fact that the car had had the engine rebuilt. (Even more encouraging.)

About 8 minutes later, amidst clouds of toffee-smelling smoke, he gently informed me that the problem was more serious than a simple gasket leak.

We waited a while and limped back (another 2 stops).

A day later, the transmission is out and stripped.  The problem seems to have been water.  The transmission fluid is cooled by a heat exchanger that sits in the main radiator.  It seems that this has corroded, and because the water in the radiator is at a higher pressure than the transmission fluid, water enters the gearbox and subsequently corrodes everything within reach.

So not just a $1,500 gearbox overhaul, but a $300 to $400 radiator rebuild as well :-(

Not quite how I envisaged my first week with the car - but wear and tear should be expected in something this age (1974 - so 35 years old).

With the battery, alternator reconditioning, gearbox overhaul and radiator rebuild, we are looking at an outlay of about $2,500 (Australian) since I picked the car up.  If we add purchase, transporting the car form Brisbane (about 2,000km) and registration costs, I have hit $6,800 already!!!!

Cheap for a great car, but a fair bit more than I planned for, or prepared my better half for.  I guess I'll be catching the train to work for a few months to redress the balance.  Ah well once more.

On a very slightly more uplifting note, it seems that the rapid differential leak on the other Rover (the P5 only needs about $20 in parts and a bit of labour to fix. 

Here is a picture of the diff.  The shiny nut is the filler nut - topping it up is an exercise in fighting claustrophobia AND extreme gymnastics.  I'll be glad when I can get it fixed finally.  (Just need to find the time to drop it off.)

Burbling through the Winter

I know I call this blog "Living with Leyland", but arguably I shouldn't, because I'm not really using the Marina while I ponder its future - and my Rover was built in 1963, 4 years before Leyland subsumed the Rover Motor Co.

But why would I change the title now - when so many devotees of my blog have become comfortable with it?  (This is known as self-deprecating dead-pan humour, just in case the slightly derisory tone and raised eyebrow do not translate too well to text)

Well - I knew Rover started as a bicycle manufacturer in the late 1800's, but here's something I did not know, (courtesy of Wikepedia):

Starley's Rover (bicycle) is usually described by historians as the first recognisably modern bicycle. The words for "bicycle" in Polish (Rower) and Belarusian (Rovar, Ро́вар) are derived from the name of this company.

For no reason at all - that makes me feel obscurely proud.  Must be hard to market a luxury car in Poland that is called 'Bicycle' though.  Perhaps that is why the marque is effectively dormant now...

So anyway, as an avid reader of my blog since its inception, you will be aware that I bought the Rover in late February 2009 (6 months ago) with less than 45,000 mikes on the clock (44,667 to be precise).  I have driven over 5,000 miles in it since (8,000 km) and it has almost got to 50,000 miles.  Basically, this means it has probably traveled more miles in the last 6 months than it did in the previous 10 (possibly 20) years.

I have carried out a number of bits of 'renovation' work - and improvements to the state of engine tune (some conventional, others not) have meant that it now runs beautifully smoothly - and surprisingly economically for such a big, heavy car.  I had thought I was getting 23 mpg - but i think this might have been due to a calculation error.  Over the last 3 tanks, I have consistently managed 19.5 mpg (which is about 14.5 l/100km) on premium unleaded.

The old automatic gearbox (a Borg Warner DG) still leaks about a litre of fluid every 600 miles and the electrics remain a little eccentric - but on the whole ownership and driving has been rewarding and fun.

The diff ran more-or-less dry last weekend so had to crawl underneath to top it up.  I guess when I finally stump up the small fortune required to recondition the gearbox, I'll also get the diff seals redone.

It is a lovely, relaxing car to tour in, but the boot is 2/3 full of tools, cans of oil and other fluids, so there is not a lot of practical luggage space left.  Perhaps a boot rack would set it off nicely...?

Most weekends I try to get out into the Dandenong ranges with either of the kids or the whole family, if possible.  Tourist traffic and the winding, hilly roads tend to mean that the best speeds are between 30 and 55 mph (50 and 90 kph) - which is a great sweet spot for the particular transmission and engine combination of this model.

I think the age of the suspension and the fact that it runs on light truck radials (instead of the original crossplies) means that it rides a bit more harshly than it otherwise might - but still, it is a comfortable and solid car on the road.

It s also surprisingly practical to commute in - as long as the temperatures stay below 30'C.  My run to work is a 40-mile round trip in to the centre of the city in a range of road conditions - up to 70 mph (100kph-ish) if I take the tollway option - or suburban and urban stop-start if I don't.  Usually I choose the stop-start - so I'm pretty pleased with the 19.5 mpg.

I replaced the wipers this weekend - so now a bit more of the screen is smeared during rain.  Maybe there is an adjuster I can work on - it shouldn't be this bad!

I think before the summer gets here, I should probably replace the Marina with a car that has working airconditioning.

So - my 'new' car - has to keep me both looking and feeling cool through out the next few months.  It also really needed to be a Leyland - given that the Rover P5 was made a few years before Leyland subsumed Rover.  After all, I can't go renaming my blog just like that - what would all you avid readers do if I undertook such an impulsive rebranding exercise?

Finding anything with working airconditioning that fits my very modest budget, will certainly be a challenge.

Anyway - it's Sunday, so am off to Church.  More later.

Marina in a Marina...

An old school friend of my sister-in-law turned up at her house for a visit the other day. So two old school chums from the '70s get back together 10,000 miles from their Alma Mater. We all popped round too - they don't live too far away - and this particular chum also knew my wife

Chum's name is Marina - and yes, I could not resist, and good sport that she is, she gladly humoured me. Here she is - Marina in the Marina.

Depending on how long she is here, we might visit a Marina (boats n sea n stuff) - then I can get Marina, in the Marina, at a marina.

Hmm.

There is possibly a streak of insanity emerging here, but then, what sane person would willingly own and drive a Leyland Marina in the 'naughties?

Still can't decide whether to spend the $800 -ish to recondition the steering rack and fix the back brake - although not having the $800 in the first place is a fairly limiting factor...

I also think I've cured the oil leak onto the exhaust pipe by ignoring it, - I've checked the levels and all seems good.

I'll check again this weekend...

Thanks Marina :)

Pyjamas in the Tailpipe

Funny one this. I'd been moaning to the redoubtable Edward that the Rover exhaust was very noisy - principally because the previous owner had fitted a tail pipe from a 3.5 litre P5, which has two exit pipes on the rear muffler.

The 3 litre P5 should have a single exit pipe, and run very quietly (silently according to the contemporary test reports).

Incidentally, despite the new plugs, plug caps and leads, there was still a bit of a misfire too - probably carburetor-related.

Edward rang me and pointed out that the internal plumbing of the rear muffler/silencer box was simply 'one pipe in and two out' - so if we blocked off one of the pipes, I might (effectively) end up with a more-or-less standard system. "Try it with a rag first, to see how it runs, then if it is ok, we can simply weld in a metal disk to block the pipe." He suggested the right-hand pipe for some reason and said something cryptic about the old Rover engines liking a bit of 'back pressure'.

Always ready to fight the dark forces of automotive truculence with unexpected weaponry, I packed a once-faithful (and appropriately empty) pyjama leg into the right hand tail pipe - packed it in as hard as I could, then cut off the excess.

After starting, the car did indeed run quietly. And very smoothly. I took it up the street and back with no signs of trouble.

This was 10 days ago. The pyjama leg is still as well packed in as ever after over 300 miles - so no pressure is forcing it out. The engine is now as quiet as it probably was when new - thanks to the new plugs, leads, etc - and the exhaust is really quiet too - even my wife commented - and she rarely shows more than a passing indifference (understandable really - once she shows any interest, I start talking cars...)

But there are two more surprises. When I got the car, it was doing woefully worse than its original 17 mpg (imperial) or about 16 l/100km. I could tell. I was too scared to even measure the consumption, I just knew it was horrific.

However, after the various improvements (valve resetting, plugs, leads and the pyjama leg) I felt more confident.

You see, the remaining misfire all but disappeared (first surprise), and the old girl now pulls happily and cleanly from about 15 mph in top gear, so driving has become more relaxed. The engine is 'quantums' smoother and quieter - and I seemed to be filling up less.

SO I measured over about 250 miles (400km) of a lot of freeway and some urban driving - my normal stuff (see pic). I was very pleasantly surprised (second surprise). My 1.7 tonne, 120 hp Rover and I were returning a bit under 23 mpg (still imperial) or 13 l/100kmh, by my calculations.

All things considered, pretty good. A case of my pyjamas helping to save the planet. I know it isn't VW Golf diesel territory, but then I am helping the planet by not causing yet another unnecessary new car to be manufactured - which, by all accounts, puts me way ahead of the Golf owner!

And anyway, I don't drive as far as he does...

Speaking of saving the planet - here is a Rover P4 (actually about the same age as my P5) awaiting some resuscitative surgery from Edward before being recommissioned. I like these cars - used to have one in the UK. This one is nothing to do with me - but I thought I'd show you a picture

Happy Motoring!

Too Many Sparks

There was always a bit of a misfire on the Rover, but never anything to worry about. Just the odd hiccup now and then, and a strange inclination to hesitate if I suddenly asked for more speed whilst cruising above 50 mph.

Then all of a sudden I had a major misfire. The old girl still went, but managed at the same time to convey the strong impression that it was all too much effort...

Lifting the bonnet whilst the engine was running allowed me to see the very strong spark bouncing between the plug cap and the rocker cover - at least the problem was easy to see. I called my new friend Mark - local P5 guru and he suggested that the Bakelite plug cap was probably cracked.

So I limped the car over to his place - and he produced a spare one - we (he) fitted it - and off I went. The car ran beautifully for about 11 1/2 minutes - and then started the same tricks again. A quick look 'under the hood' revealed that the same plug cap was sparking to the rocker cover again.

Sheesh!

As it was, I was on the way to see Edward, who had done the top-end fettle (valves etc) because there also seemed to be a leak from the rocker cover gasket. Got there, and Edward happily fixed the leak (the gasket has slipped slightly inside during fitting) and also provided a replacement plug cap.

About 2 km up the road, it all started again - same misfire, same plug cap. Conclusion that we all came to was that the original Bakelite was perhaps not really standing the test of time - and that it was probably best for the car to replace the leads, caps and plugs with modern ones - silicone, rubber, stainless lead cores and multi-point spark plugs.

The redoubtable Edward cheerfully obliged.

The plugs came a few days later than the leads - but just the leads and plug caps made an enormous difference. Very smooth, quieter and much better low-speed puling power than ever I can remember.

Then came the plugs (each has 4 points to spark from instead of just one) and I had high hopes. They were realised - at least for a while. Even smoother 'cleaner' power. Then, to my surprise, the misfire partly returned. Generally, the engine is running at least 50% better, when either at a steady speed or under hard acceleration, but when I 'part' accelerate, either at low revs or up hill, I sometimes get a misfire.

The improvements in spark technology seem to mean that the misfire is not threatening to rip the gearbox and engine off their respective mounts (as it seemed before), but it is still significant. And frustrating. And a bit of a mystery. Perhaps I have dirty fuel - who knows. I'll experience it for a few more days and then have another chat with Edward - to see if we can work it out. Ho-hum.

Still continuing to to top up the transmission fluid on a weekly basis.

The Marina is much as it was - no misfires, but an oil leak from either engine or gearbox that means oil drips on to the exhaust pipe under the cabin, so once warm, there is a bit of a burnt oil smell. This may fix itself once the gearbox mounting rubbers are replaced - or it may get worse.

Watch this space.

Half of me wants to get rid of of the green beast and get something just a tad more glam, but the other half does not -and anyway - who'd buy it?

I drove to work in it last week and just as I switched the engine off in the carpark, there was a loud metallic PING. A quick check revealed that the rhs chrome wheel arch trim had pinged out and was now gracefully sitting 6 inches away from the bodywork at the top, but still attached by screws at the bottom. So I pulled it off. Never really liked those things anyway.

More later - bye for now - by the way, if you want to comment or say "hi" please do.

Conrad

Dealing with Decay - a day in the life of...

Ho Hum

So, the trusty Marina now has working wipers and the dash panel lights are working again (I found a replacement second hand switch for a mere $35 - even managed to fit it myself).

Unfortunately I now know it will cost me the best part of $800 to have the steering rack removed and reconditioned (read re-bushed) and to get the brakes fixed. This will put the total expenditure on the car so far at about $2,500 - which is almost 3 x what it is worth - with all the work and new bits done so far. Most of the expense is in the labour required to remove the steering box - something a competent home mechanic could do quite easily - but I am not one of those...

Causing me to think very seriously about the logic of continuing with it - but then, the flip side is that I have a reasonable and reliable car - all for about $2,500 - and I KNOW which bits won't go wrong any more, because I will have replaced:

* tyres
* Windscreen
* Window winders
* dash-light switch
* fuel cap
* rear axle/diff
* steering rack seals
* gearbox mounts
* clutch and brake fluid
* windscreen wipers
* bent wheel

And I have bought it a substantial steering wheel cover

All I need to do now is fix the heater and it will be hard to fault. Well, for a 35-year old Marina, anyway.

If I try to think of it as an MGB with a more practical body, it becomes quite desirable in a pea-green, goat-in-sheep's-clothing kind of way. (Pic of MGB in exotic location to compare with a pic of Marina at our local exotic play park...)

They are, coincidentally, both the result of an Italian body design clothing British componentry...

Beauty is, after all, in the eyes of the beholder.

Then there is the Rover. The heater works and the steering rack is fine. I have spent well over $1,500 on it since buying it - mainly on replacing the windscreen, front and rear window rubbers and having the top-end tuned twice.

Here it is being an every day commuter car. Well, sitting in a car park between commutes - I don't yet know how to photograph myself driving without getting a speeding ticket.

b-u-u-t, it still has the automatic gearbox in need of a $5,000 overhaul and a slightly worrying intermittent misfire. Plus the electrics are quite obstinate from time-to-time. Mind you, my previous experience of elderly Rovers is that they will continue to function quite well despite a myriad of ills, so I feel as long as I keep the fluids topped up, things should be more-or less ok.

Oh - AND it needs a new driver's door and a fairly serious respray to about 7 body panels. Only yesterday the swivelling switch/catch for the driver's-side quarter-light window 'exploded' (it has a spring in it) in protest at being used.

How about this - to check the auto gearbox fluid levels, you have to lift the carpet off the transmission tunnel, remove a very perished rubber bung from the tunnel just under the parcel shelf, and use the short dipstick to check the level whilst the car is idling, in gear (low) with the handbrake on!!

The gearbox fluid is a special one, and a sort of watery blood colour. The dipstick is very shiny, which makes it quite hard to see where the level is.

Filling it up is quite awkward, because of the limited space between the parcel shelf and the transmission tunnel. Is slightly tiresome having to do it at least once a week...

The leak is inconsistent, and sometimes the box practically empties in 2 days. All a teensy bit irritating.

And then there is actually driving it. 45 years ago, relatively few British cars were sold with automatic gearboxes. The dear old Rover has TWO gear levers.

So how does it work? For normal driving, you select 'D'. Nothing odd about that, except the selector goes P-N-D-L-R (where 'L'= Low gear), in stead of the now ubiquitous P-R-N-D-2-1 - in other words, 'R' is in a different place. You can not select second gear manually.

As you pull away, the car starts (by default) in second gear, only briefly selecting first if you completely mash the pedal to the floor, and (also by default) the upchange to 3rd occurs at about 30kph. You can stretch this out by stepping much harder on the pedal, or really get it to hang on by mashing again.

OR... you can use the other gear lever, which is like an indicator stalk next to the main gearlever. Once flicked, the car starts in first, holds it for a while, jumps to second, holds it for much longer and then jumps to 3rd at about 70 kph. Generally if you are going up hill, it holds the gears for longer anyway. This second lever is called (I think) the 'kick-down switch', but I might be wrong about that, because I think the last centimetre of accelerator pedal travel is also called the kick-down switch. Hmmm.

The car is set to upchange at very low revs - because it was always meant to be a sedate and gentlemanly motor car - also the engine, whilst it can rev a bit, is probably best when it doesn't.

Having said that, the overall gearing is extremely low, with the engine revving (I calculate) at 3,000 revs at 62 mph (100 kph), which,by modern standards is quite a high engine speed for the actual road speed. Although it is revving quite fast, it is very smooth and does not feel like it will break - even at an indicated 85mph (about 137kph) it just seems to keep going (4,200 rpm)

Then there's the lights. Apart from the fact that they are quite moody about whether or not they will come on, there are THREE separate switches for the lights. None of your all-in-one column switches here.

• Switch 1 - a dashboard toggle switch that turns on the light system (sidelights only if nothing else is switched on)
• Switch 2 - a single action indicator-type switch (on or off) that turns on the headlights. This is on the right of the column, behind the indicator switch
  
• Switch 3 - a floor-mounted foot-operated dip switch to the left of the brake pedal which turns on main-beam
• Switch 4 (did I say 3 switches? tut) is headlamp flasher, which you get by pulling the indicator stalk backwards (I'd had the car 2 months before I accidentally discovered this blissfully logical device)
• Switch 5 sits under the instrument binnacle and turns on the spotlights.

Switches 2, 3 and 5 only work if switch 1 in 'on'.

So - you think you are ready to drive it? Don't forget - no power steering (1.7 tonne car) and you need to fill up the gearbox first :)