Mark

The best tyres I can ever remember buying were for my old 1500 Spitfire years ago which were Yokohama A008 185 60 13 on 6" steels. They lasted well and were very very grippy. So since then I have bought a couple of sets of Yokohama's, the last were for the GT6 last year which were Yokohama Adrive 165 70 13. I had previously fitted a set to my Mk3 Spit which was sold. Seem to be hard wearing and plenty of grip in the wet. I did buy a set of 185 70 13 Firestones fitted to 51/2" steels on the Vitesse a few years ago but that cars still not hit the road. The Mk1 MX5 that I run had a new set of Pirelli tyres on it when I bought it, and again have plenty of grip and really holds the road wet or dry, a lot down being an mx5 I think. Not sure how Yokohama's are generally rated though. Off subject, but a bought a manual tyre changer a couple of years ago, a couple of tubs of tyre soap and a bag of valves of eBay. Fed up with being over charged for swapping tyres about, Once you get the technique there no looking back. Mark

If you find you have a spare set you wish to sell let me know how much you want. thanks Mark

Hi all Just toying with the idea of having a go at making my own manifold. Are the flanges available from anyone? Shouldn't be that difficult to cut some out of plate if necessary, but would be better if they where laser/water jet cut. Mark

Sounds great Nick. My old Vitesse averaged 25mpg on carbs about 15 years ago. I would love to achieve those mpg on my Vitesse once up and running but don't think it's possible without injection and ECU. thanks Mark

Really nice looking Vitesse. Real old school. Just love the look, arches, deep dish steels, great stance. What's the performance like with the fuel injection? I intend to do this on mine at some time in the future but will use PI throttle bodies as I have a set. Did you band the standard Vitesse wheels? thanks Mark

The new Rad arrived the other day that Martin informed me about in this thread. Looks to be well made, with a 60mm core Surprisingly heavy and comparable to the original. I just have to work out how to fix some brackets to the sides. I would prefer to do it myself but I only have Mig welding ability and never tried to weld aluminium.

Hi Martin Thanks for that info, much appreciated. The Sheffield Performance one looks more than enough capacity. Thanks Mark

Hi Martin I can't see any real difference between the £99.99 and the £69.99 Civic Race rads on eBay other than the more expensive one says it's high flow twin core. There is a slight difference in the core size 352mm x 360mm x 42mm vs 350 x 350 x42mm. I spoke to the seller of the more expensive one and he said when you look through the filler cap you can see it has a twin core. Probably take a chance and go for the more expensive one as I can't see a seller marking up the same item for £30.00 more than their competitor. Thanks Mark

Hi John Pleased that you have solved the over heating problem. Do you know if there Is more than one type of Honda Civic Radiator as I fancy fitting one to my Vitesse. The car has been off the road for years and although the original looks ok i want to reduce weight and have a more efficient rad in the first place. I see some referred to as race radiators on eBay and wondered if some are better than others as the prices vary wildly. Whats the fit like and what mods are needed? thanks Mark

My Sip Migmate recently died after about 17years. Wire stopped feeding and after a bit of research pointed to a circuit board with a relay, that if available was around £100 so it was a none starter. Well made machines at that time, weighed four times as much as a modern version. In the end I went for an inverter Mig by Parweld 160. Comes with a Euro torch and a shoulder strap and is very light to carry. It's in a different league to the old welder. So easy to use and get excellent welds, but looks like a toy in comparison. Progress I suppose, Just hope it lasts for the next 17 years. Mark

Thanks Nick for reminding how to upload pics. I have just fitted the new flatter leaf spring along with the coil over set up. I made up some different chassis extension brackets so that the shock and spring are vertical and not leaning left to right due to the offset of the mounting points. I have added another mounting point between the tunnel and the top of the chassis extension to hopefully reduce any stresses on the chassis turret. The coil overs are 150 lb each not sure what the rate of the leaf spring is. Its made of three leaves, each 8mm thick and is 1.5" high measured from the centre. On full droop the driveshafts just start to touch the chassis as the shocks are fully extended so they are not being pulled apart by the force of the spring. I really don't know if this is going to be a better than the original set up but ,something I always wanted to try since seeing it on a race Vitesse years ago. I know there are going to be different forces exerted on the vertical link due to the load being off centre but hope the leaf spring and wish bone will help manage this. Whats your thoughts? thanks Mark

Thanks Nick for reminding how to upload pics. I have just fitted the new flatter leaf spring along with the coil over set up. I made up some different chassis extension brackets so that the shock and spring are vertical and not leaning left to right due to the offset of the mounting points. I have added another mounting point between the tunnel and the top of the chassis extension to hopefully reduce any stresses on the chassis turret. The coil overs are 150 lb each not sure what the rate of the leaf spring is. Its made of three leaves, each 8mm thick and is 1.5" high measured from the centre. On full droop the driveshafts just start to touch the chassis as the shocks are fully extended so they are not being pulled apart by the force of the spring. I really don't know if this is going to be a better than the original set up but ,something I always wanted to try since seeing it on a race Vitesse years ago. I know there are going to be different forces exerted on the vertical link due to the load being off centre but hope the leaf spring and wish bone will help manage this. Whats your thoughts? thanks Mark

Hi all its been a while since I uploaded any pictures and need to be reminded how. Do I need a photo hosting site and then link the image or can I upload directly? thanks Mark

Sorry I don't have his details. I was thinking of getting a price from him myself but was unsure if he still produced his manifold.

Thanks for all the replies. Out of the two that are available I would go for the Moss one. Just got to get used to the idea of spending £600. Presume this would also work on the 2.5 which I have waiting on the side lines for future development. I was about to buy a full cage for my MX5 for track day use, that may now have to wait. Got two weeks annual leave so steaming into the Vitesse at the moment. thanks Mark

I checked and Moss do a mild steel manifold £439 for the manifold + £155 for the Y piece/collector in mild steel. Don't know enough about the design or any performance gains at this stage to justify the £600. I'll have to give them a call. Could look at getting one made of have a go myself, but ideally buy one of the shelf. Thanks Mark

Hi all. What 6-3-1 extractor manifold would you recommend for my MK2 Vitesse . Only aware of a couple available. Interested in best performance and not worried if mild steel or stainless steel. Thanks Mark

Hi Nick I know what you mean about going low, not practical with speed humps etc. For some strange reason I have lowered nearly every car I have owned, just done the same to an MX5. I just love the look of cars when sat low. Good to know that the shocks probably won't pull themselves apart. I'll have to give the single leaf/coil over shock a bit more thought. I need to pull my finger out and get this car on the road (eight years and counting). From now the other projects are on hold until its finished. Mark

Its a Mk2 rotoflex. I have TLD sliding splines and a flatter spring Tony prodced. This is probably sensible for a car mainly used on the road, but I can't stop playing and was seriously thinking of going with a single thick leaf. I have some short AVO shocks with adjustable spring seats and was going to add some springs. This would allow me to adjust ride height. I just need to work out the length of the leaf spring eye to eye. I was going to go with an original fitted length of 1064mm but 50mm high from the centre. The Mk1 vitesse is 1048 fitted and wondered if this would produce more negative camber.The shocks are very short, as the car is going to sit low. I have yet to check, but have a concern that when I jack the car up the shocks are fully extended before the half shafts come againts the chassis. This is going to in effect, try and pull the shocks apart unless I can sort out a bump stop. Another reason i was considering a single leaf. Mark

Hi All Trying to work out ride height and camber for a rear spring and can't visualise why when you load up the spring it induces negative camber, but if the spring is being flattened, presumably the spring length increases eye to eye so I would have thought this pushes the top of the upright outward causing positive camber? I know this is not the case as the flatter the spring the more negative is camber is produced. Actually just thinking, is it because the spring is fixed in the centre so the length doesn't increase, as it does when adding weight to a spring placed on the floor? Any help, clarity appreciated. Mark

There is no ball to cut off.

Not sure how it works but the Parweld XTI 160 inverter mig I purchase states an output current range of 50 - 160A. I had no trouble welding coke can thickness sheet metal, producing really neat welds. I think with an inverter mig you have infinite settings and a lot more control than the transformer type. I paid just under £500 with a spool of wire. I was told that the transformer welders are being fazed out in the UK and Europe due to the cost of production and the amount of energy they use. The three dealers I spoke to said they thought inverter migs were superior machines.

No. This welder has a burn back setting meaning the wire stays energised for a determined time once the trigger is released. This leaves a the desired amount of wire protruding from the end of the torch. This is perfect if doing repeated tack or plug welds. When burn back is set correctly you don't get a ball on the end of the wire.

Hi all Removing the front engine plate to be replaced with the aluminium version and peeling it away from the block revealed a thick red gasket. I soaked it with WD and most of it came off in large pieces. The remainder will require scraping etc. I thought it unlikely but did a search to find out what it was made from incase it contained Asbestos. According to this site that sells them they originally contained Asbestos.http://www.wishboneclassics.co.....itfire-gt6-tr250-tr6 I have probably sraped these off in the past without a second thought. Any tips on the safest way of getting the imbedded remnants off? I am probably going OTT as I would have thought keeping it wet would prevent fibres becoming air born. Whats your thoughts. Thanks Mark

My trusty 20 year old Sip Migmate 130 turbo finally died the other day. It's been a great welder, but they don't make them like that anymore and technology has moved on. I was going for a big traditional welder on wheels that can take a full size Argonshield bottle when somebody mentioned about the relatively new inverter mig welders. A bit of ringing around and I have gone for a Parweld XTI 160M 160 Amp. Similar in size to the Migmate, a bit smaller, but much lighter and comes with Euro Torch. I just visualised a big welder on wheels would be a better welder, with spot timer etc. getting more for your money. The Guy in the shop set it up for me to have a go. He said it would be miles apart from an old Migmate which is the only welder I have used. I had a play with it and it is just chalk and cheese. I didn't realise how crude my old welder was. Welds are perfect on paper thin to thick material, surface rust didn't appear to effect it either. I only used it for a couple of minutes and was amazed. Its easy to vary the width, penetration of the bead with burn back control so no need to cut the wire back every time I stop. For years I struggled to get nice neat welds but did't appreciate what a massive difference the hardware makes. Time will tell but having just brought it home I am over the moon. Can't imagine it lasting 20 years though, but it does come with a two year no quibble warranty.