Absence of ......

Another afternoon's work and the front subframe is now bolted back on the car as well as the front struts bolted up.

All that is needed now is to get under the car and bolt the drag struts back up which is something I have done before and never like doing as it means I am lying under a car on axle stands.

Anyway, all of this work for the absence of - well not easy to see in these photos but there appears to be an oil leak from the sump plug area conspicuous by it's absence! If this continues I will be very pleased. :-)

Replacement sump now in place

At last I have managed to swap the sump on the 2000.

I have had to lower the entire front suspension though which was a real pain. All to stop an oil leak around the sump plug (hopefully) - mind you it was quite a leak and we had taken a spare 7 1/2 litres of 20/50 on the 10CR to make sure we got round!

Here's the suspension lowered from the car -you can see the nearside rebuilt strut from Chris Witor leaning out of the wheelarch.

Here's the sump off the car as there was at last enough clearance with the subframe lowered.

I cleaned the interior of the "new" sump with Jizer and rags and then refitted it although it appears there's a missing sump bolt! Was it there originally I wonder?

I just got the strut and drag strut back in place and then changed the oil filter and put fresh oil back in the car which I hope stays there and doesn't leak!

Next will be a patient repositioning and bolting up of the front suspension, get the oil level right in the car and check for leaks. After that I will turn my attention to the new radiator.

Two small things

Two small things have made a big difference to my Rover.

The car has the original Rover radio as can be seen here but there are cover plates or end caps missing at either side of the radio. This exposes the fixings and I have really felt it spoils what is very  nearly a perfect car.

So, when I bought the spare wing I also spent about £2.50 on new caps. Here they are in the original Rover packaging.

This is how the radio looks now with the caps fitted. Two small things but very satisfying!

I also gave the car a quick wash and had time for a quick photo of it's rear end - looking good!

Sump and wing

I have started on replacing the sump on PMW. This isn't because I think it was damaged during the "wild boar" incident although it might have been, it's because I want to try and stop the leak around the sump plug area. It might seem a bit extreme but I think it's the brazing of the insert in the sump that is the problem, not getting the oil to be retained via the sump plug itself.

Anyway, a second hand sump from Chris Witor is my solution and here it is pre and post painting.

 Getting the old sump off without removing the engine is a bit of a challenge mind you. As was trying to undo the sump plug which I think I over enthusiastically tightened trying to stop the oil leaks. At the moment the oil has been removed via a pump down the dipstick tube and all the sump retaining bolts removed but I will return to the attack shortly to actually get it off and the repainted "new" one on with a new gasket.























Meanwhile, if you check the last post on here it shows the wing arch repair panel which is on order. This has a delivery time of about 3 months and a cost of £220 ish.

Well, compare and contrast the situation with Rimmer Brothers having a sale on at the moment where a complete off side front wing for my Rover is £30! I don't actually need one but then 30 years ago there could have been wings freely available at cheap prices for Triumphs and how many people bought them??

So, I have bought a wing and it's now up in my loft. I'll probably never need it but it won't lose value either.

Arch repair on order

Last obvious bit to order sorted - thanks to Lloyd Reed who has organised remanufacture of panels I ahve now placed an order for an off side wheel arch repair panel.

The wing is kinked out a bit and the wheel arch which had had a repair is split so this should certainly do the trick.

Not pictured is a fixing kit for the electric fan which arrived this week.

I think the next step will be to replace the sump which I don't think is actually damaged but has always leaked from around the sump plug area so a £20 replacement seems a worthwhile gamble. I'll see about then having the one I take off checked over and maybe repaired.

Such a small thing

I took the radiator off PMW today so that I can replace it with a new one I aim to get this week.

From the picture you can see the damage which really seems quite small for the consequences that followed.

 I then moved on to removing the diff as we had suffered a whine from it at 2500 RPM and one of my codrivers has kindly offered to get it reconditioned.  It was a bit of a struggle outside in the cold but I managed it. I didn't take a photo of the diff but here is damage to the spare wheel well and the exhaust is hanging low as the "bobbin" has pulled off. I wonder if this is further damage from one of the wild boars or maybe in transit somewhere on and off the back of transporters.

Back home

At last PMW is back home.

With a few £ from the insurance company I can now assess what I need to do to get the car fixed and back on the road.

At the least it needs a radiator and a repair to the offside front wing as can be seen in the photos.

The hole punched inthe radiator as it was pushed back into the pulley is visible here

Panel has been pulled back out by someone

Damage to offside front wing