Nick Jones Posted August 10, 2018 Share Posted August 10, 2018 That's great news JC. Legally on the road very soon! Ref the wheel centering, with the possible exception of the TR7, all Triumphs with the 3.75" LCD (and indeed all others except the Acclaim) are designed to be stud centric rather than hub centric. So in theory the fit over the hub spigot doesn't matter. Indeed, the standard roto hubs have no spigot at all beyond the brake drum face. In practice this seems to work reasonably well with the standard steel wheels but not always so well with aftermarket alloys. On my PI particularly, with KN Minator alloys I had to be careful to evenly tighten the wheel nuts as much as possible before putting any weight on the wheels or they'd run slightly off centre and cause vibrations. So centering rings are a good idea I think. My 100+ alloys also have centre holes that are larger than the spigots, but only by about 2mm, which makes centering rings a bit difficult! Looking forward to hearing that you are officially on the road! Nick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
triumphlux Posted August 13, 2018 Author Share Posted August 13, 2018 Went to the car registration administration and they accepted the TUV papers without any discussion. On the V5 the new power is written down and all the other modifications are dealt with the TUV papers. Afterwards MoT time and again no trouble at all, so car is legally on the road for the next 2 years for keeping your finger crossed that the car will make it ps : I realized that I started the restoration 10 years ago JC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldtuckunder Posted August 13, 2018 Share Posted August 13, 2018 Eighteen Pages Later! Enjoy youv'e earn't it Alan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin Posted August 14, 2018 Share Posted August 14, 2018 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yorkshire_spam Posted August 14, 2018 Share Posted August 14, 2018 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMH Posted August 14, 2018 Share Posted August 14, 2018 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Jones Posted August 14, 2018 Share Posted August 14, 2018 Yeee haaa! Now get out there and drive it....... Nick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
triumphlux Posted August 17, 2018 Author Share Posted August 17, 2018 Thank you all Did a few longer runs this week and its fairly positive now. It drives really well, engine temperature stays mostly in the middle of the gauge and the fan cools then engine well down when standing, even at temperatures above 30 degrees. The steering rack needs to be changed as it definitely has to much play, but I have a rebuild on from Fitchetts in stock. The brakes have a really good bite now the Mintex pads are run in, BUT I seem to have the same problem as Nick on his sons Spitfire …. the pedal goes nearly to the floor before the brakes bite! When I push the pedal half way down one time before I brake they are fine !!?? I also pushed the car harder on one or two occasions and I can say that the back end gets unstable when you lift of at full charge in 3rd gear up a hill in a long bend (playing with a Mercedes AMG GT ° JC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
triumphlux Posted August 20, 2018 Author Share Posted August 20, 2018 Worked on the brakes and changed the steering rack, much safer and better to drive now with a nice precise Triumph steering And showed the car off at a small meeting on Sunday, the look on peoples faces when I start the engine is too good (the Herald 12/50 badges ore now on the bootlid …) JC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Jones Posted August 21, 2018 Share Posted August 21, 2018 Great looking car! Love the way it sits. And the right noise too........ Perfect. Nick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sprint95m Posted August 22, 2018 Share Posted August 22, 2018 On 8/21/2018 at 8:31 AM, Nick Jones said: Great looking car! Love the way it sits. Yes I concur with Nick's opinion. Ian. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
triumphlux Posted August 22, 2018 Author Share Posted August 22, 2018 Thanks guys, but it actually sits to low at the front and I'm sure the handling would be better if its sits slightly higher at the front. So my question is which rate of springs do you use on the Vitesse? I have the uprated ones from Bastuck which they sell for the Spitfire AND Vitesse …. And yes, the noise is really nice and above 5.000 revs its ADDICTIVE JC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Jones Posted August 22, 2018 Share Posted August 22, 2018 JC, You may remember this thread..... http://sideways-technologies.co.uk/forums/index.php?/topic/7064-front-springs-dampers/ The short answer to your question is that I'm using 350lb springs with a 10.5" free length. Bought them from Faulkners in Chichester. http://www.dfaulknersprings.com/ Run with Koni adjustable dampers set about two clicks up from fully soft and it's pretty much perfect for me. Could maybe run a little harder with a saloon if you wanted to. Nick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
triumphlux Posted August 24, 2018 Author Share Posted August 24, 2018 Thanks Nick for the details. Springs are ordered. JC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
triumphlux Posted September 3, 2018 Author Share Posted September 3, 2018 Springs fitted to the car and the handling is transformed ! The car shakes less and is well equilibrated front to rear. Also corners MUCH better then before. I also fitted the LED driving lights and they help a lot to be seen AND be respected by other road users. And drilled holes in the wings to fit mirrors, which make the car a lot safer. Especially if you want to overtake Luckily our old cars are very narrow otherwise it would be extremely dangerous to drive fast on country roads nowadays. Over here you find more and more people driving in the middle of the road Lots of county roads have no middle line and every 5th car drives in the middle of the road, yesterday a lunatic overtook cyclists in a bend and I just managed to squeeze trough the remaining gap ….. Safe driving and be alert all the time JC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
triumphlux Posted November 22, 2018 Author Share Posted November 22, 2018 Well, the car got some use during the last 3 month We had an excellent ride through rural France and took the Dieppe-Newhaven Ferry to go to the Goodwood Revival. The cars, the people and the weather were absolutely great. We spent some really good time together. The The Vitesse ran well and the only problem was the handbrake which was set to tight. And excessive oil loss from the gearbox ... JC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
triumphlux Posted November 22, 2018 Author Share Posted November 22, 2018 The weekend after was the 6h Meeting at Spa where I posted already in another thread. Then using the car in the excellent autumn weather we had for weeks. And we even took part in a navigation night rally, but he Vitesse is too big and heavy for these very small and muddy roads …. JC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Jones Posted November 22, 2018 Share Posted November 22, 2018 Thanks for the update. Car looks great. Nick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Posted November 23, 2018 Share Posted November 23, 2018 Great looking car, all the hard work has paid off. Mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Jones Posted November 23, 2018 Share Posted November 23, 2018 If a little Vitesse is too big and heavy.........?! Not that many choices are left, though I guess you do still have the Spitfire and at least one Mini.......... Nick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
triumphlux Posted March 8, 2019 Author Share Posted March 8, 2019 Sorry Nick, didn't notice your answer until now ... The Mini got used for a last rallye in December last year : Meanwhile one late winter night in February while returning from the pub, the gearbox simply blocked itself Car is now on the lift to take the engine out and check the damage. JC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
triumphlux Posted March 8, 2019 Author Share Posted March 8, 2019 The season start is as wet as the end of the season last year. But the car runs great and its good fun to have it on the road again. The only thing that needs sorting for now, is the speedo which does not work. JC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Jones Posted March 8, 2019 Share Posted March 8, 2019 Good luck with the Mini transmission..... Maybe it has got itself in two gears at once? Or is it still possible to select gears? At least the Vitesse is working Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
triumphlux Posted March 9, 2019 Author Share Posted March 9, 2019 Thank you. Selecting gears is not possible, the gearchange is blocked. It might be a broken shaft or diff …. JC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Jones Posted March 9, 2019 Share Posted March 9, 2019 My friends (you have met Duncan) suffered a number of “interesting” gearbox failures during their hillclimbing days. Too much money spent on getting max power from the engine without matching investment further down....... and then the oil pump would eat the gearbox shrapnel..... Eventually straight-cut everything, special bearings, limited slip diff. Didn’t break anymore...... but the noise..... Then the CVs started breaking and even the shafts.... Minis! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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