So your car is all jacked up and the rear brakes are in a million pieces! Okay, make sure that you have plenty of cold beer and now, let’s get that bad boy back together. This is the opportune time to clean up that backing plate, which at this point can be easily removed and…
The following Tech articles are the creations of Mike McPhail. They were originally written for the members of the car clubs Mike is active with: the Gulf Coast Austin-Healey Club and the Hill Country Triumph Club. With thanks to the two clubs and to Mike, the articles are available here (with more to come!). These tech tips…
Maybe after this we can get that little car down off the jack stands…maybe. I think last time we gave up on the back brakes and it’s time to move forward and rebuild the front calipers. Remove the front wheels to gain access to the disk brake calipers. Afflicted with CRS? Do one side at…
It took three “Pint Projects”: Rear Brake Disassembly Rear Brake Reassembly Front Caliper Rebuild …but now all four wheels have as-new brakes! Not so fast. What about the other stuff? Brake boosters may need some attention, and a brand new one will almost certainly improve braking. Some styles of booster can be rebuilt at home,…
Whew! Let’s do something a little bit less ambitious this time. How about a new fuel pump? Of course, you don’t just replace the pump for the hell of it. The obvious scenario is that the damn thing won’t pee a drop, so you swap it for a new one and bada-bing, it’s a done…
Memorial Day weekend usually signals the start of summer in this part of the country, and warm weather can be expected. If you drive a post sixties little British car, then you shouldn’t have much trouble with overheating as long as: 1) your cooling system is full of 2-to-1 mixture of water and antifreeze 2)…
When remembering the outstanding scientists and inventors of yore, several great names immeadiately come to mind: Edison, Bell, Tesla. But then, there is Lucas…the Prince of Darkness. This man is singularly famous for turning electrical science into a black art. When it comes to Lucas electrics, it’s really all about preventing the smoke from escaping…
Last time we talked about the amazingly simple wiring scheme used on British cars. Armed with this valuable knowledge, we can now put it to practical use. “Oh yeah, like what?” you might ask. How about bleeding the smoke from the system? What? Alright then, it’s settled! The device used for allowing excess smoke to…
While we are on the subject of Lucas electrics, let’s take a look at some of the components. A vital, but often neglected item is the distributor. This hard working gadget often performs faultlessly for decades, but may very well be in need of servicing. The distributor is a fairly simple mechanical device that has…
Dragons live forever, but not so little boys, or should that be: distributors live forever but not so generators? Your pre-1968 LBC almost certainly has a Lucas generator, and it has probably been through the ringer…two or three times! This is another fairly simple device that can be nursed along almost indefinitely, so get hold…
