In the pre-dawn darkness I reached out and gave the choke knob a little tug and felt smoothness settle over the car. Needs about two flats down on the mixture nuts. Last night’s test run was cut short by a loose connector on the headlight dip-switch. I should make it from Monterey to Redding in…
Cleaning, Prep, Machining and Assembly WHAT YOU CAN CLEAN YOURSELF The rule with engine building is clean, clean, and then clean some more. Items that don’t move, like valve covers, front and rear engine plates, lifter covers, timing covers, distributor bases, etc., you can clean yourself. First, scrape off old gaskets as much as you…
Retirement came with a couple of unexpected realizations: I was in a good position to adopt a dog, and having prepared for retirement meant stocks left me by my mother were uncommitted. For many years my 1959 Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud I was my only car since as a San Diegan I could ride my Harley…
by R.L. Corn I decided to call my brother-in-law who is a Master Mechanic and an owner of several vehicles from across the pond. In minutes, we found a break in the condenser wire. Unfortunately for me, none of the boxes on the front porch held a new condenser—another call to Moss Motors. At this…
by R.L. Corn We all do things that make our lives more complicated. Life is difficult enough without expensive, time-consuming projects that raise the blood pressure—and yet, here I go again.For the tenth time in my life, I bought another sports car from the country of England. I stepped into that long line of non-mechanically-minded…
by Graham Robson By 1965 I had settled into my dream job at Britain’s Autocar magazine, ready to drive new cars, describe technical developments, and to report on the most prestigious International rallies in Europe. Nothing, it seemed, could now surprise me—or could it? I was wrong. When the phone rang from BMC’s ‘works’ competitions…
by Calvin Sikstrom My MGB Time Machine looked great next to an Austin Mini at the Show-and-Shine. Main Street was closed, and a volunteer helped me back into a spot. More than a hundred cars lined both sides of the street for several blocks. The sky was clear.The sun was hot. Cold Lake’s Main Street…
by Robert Goldman Dorothy’s little boy Robert never expected to sell auto parts for a living. He expected to manufacture and sell restaurant salt and pepper shakers (I’m not joking). But circumstances change. As evidenced by the attached black and white photo, in June of 1977 the kid was dressed by his mom, had no…
by Graham Robson March 15, 1961—a special date for Jaguar enthusiasts—it was the moment when the new E-Type met its public for the first time. It was the day almost every other sports car in the world suddenly looked dowdy, when Jaguar realized to their joy that they would have real problems in meeting all…
by Dennis Wheeler In 1969, I was 15. I had run the typical teenage gamut of go-carts, small Honda motorcycles and doin’ wheelies with our MTD lawn tractor. A few of us hung out on Detroit’s Woodward Avenue observing the street machines often racing on cool Friday nights. My uncle Glenn would stop by our…
