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PostPosted: Sat Apr 16, 2016 2:06 pm 
Most of you have probabaly seen this car by now since I've owned it over 2 years but I've never said much about it until now.

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I originally bought it off eBay and collected it from Lancashire having been sat around 10 years. Apparently it orignally had a 240hp engine and nitrous kit fitted but unfortunately when i bought it i got a smokey standard lump. The seller was vague as he wasn't the owner (a friend of) but i was told it was orignally built for rallying and competed in the early 2000s. It did have a lot of spare sets of wheels and engines at that time but they were either lost or sold along the way through various owners. When i bought the car it was dark red and cream (rhubard and custard!), it looked very odd.

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It had;
- LSD
- Princess 4-pot calipers and vented discs.
- Koni shocks & springs
- Spitfire fuel tank
- Bucket seats
- Fire extinguisher system
- Brake & fuel lines inside
- Full polybush kit
- KN Minator wheels
- Oil cooler
- 2" SUs
- Seam-welded shell
- Air horns
- Battery box in the boot
- Solid gearbox and O/S engine mounts
- Battery cut-off
- Full 2" Exhaust
- Weld-in roll cage with door bars

That's all i can remember at the moment. For what it had, i got it very cheap. Over the next year or so i made quite a few changes such as fitting GAZ coilovers, an oil cooler thermostat, electric fan, 7J Weller 8-spokes, wideband AFR gauge, accurate oil pressure and coolant temperature gauges, Dellorto DHLA45s on a 48mm bore manifold, electronic ignition with uprated coil, cap, plugs & magnecor leads.

Having got the car running good enough on the road i had it on a dyno. My god was it smokey but the first pull was over 150hp which shocked me on a standard head (although it did go very well). The end result after a lot of ignition advance and playing with jets was 165hp at the fly! I think this is somewhat high since all dynos read differently but i was happy with it!

What followed this was my first track day, which lasted 3 laps at Combe (last year). I ended up in a cloud of smoke inside the car with little compression on 1 cyl, headgasket i thought (as you do) and the following day set about stripping it. What actually happened was the piston melted in cyl 2.

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The cause, well. I put it 98 octane in for the dyno day and normal for the track day, lesson learnt! Never use more than 36deg max advance! Having totally striped the engine it was clear that the bores were knackered which explained the smoking and the jackshaft bearing was also grooved, the head also got warped. Luckily i had another block so i put the internals into that with a hone and new pistons and fitted a rebuilt head. Little did i know how crap the block was until now.

The engine went in and performed even better but it was quite noisy. I've lost count of the amount of times ive stripped the head and timing gear to find the noise but never found anything. Process of elimination of checking everything left me with piston slap. Stupidly i never measured the bores when building the bottom end since i rushed it to get it back on the road and now i have tappy piston skirts. Today i am actually planning on removing the engine and sorting the bottom end and keeping it as a spare. What's replacing it is a fresh rebuild i have just bought with a ported head, Piper 270 reground cam, vernier sprocket, ARP rod bolts, new AE pistons, balanced bottom end, lightened flywheel, skimmed head etc. I will also be fitting an electric water pump because i have rebuilt so many standard ones. Hopefully this engine will take me under the 1:27 barrier at Castle Combe! I will be having it dyno'd asap so watch with interest.

Last year i also had a problem with the rear wheel bearings having rediculous end float. I tried new bearings and different amounts of spacers but nothing worked. In the end i thought there must be a problem with the driveshafts or diff so i got Ken Clarke to have a look and he confirmed that the diff was wrong. It had, what we think, is a TR LSD fitted which doesn't have the essential driveshaft retainer meaning my driveshafts could move laterally. Because of the cost of LSDs and the fact i own a Skyline with a welded diff which i like, i thought I'd get a standard axle and try welding the diff. Since then, it has been perfect. I have absolutely no complaints with it on road or track. No excess understeer or oversteer and you can see that from my track videos, even my passengers have been surprised. I even recommend it as an alternative since LSDs are about £1000 these days (if you can even find one). Please note however, if you do it, make sure you have a competant welder and be prepared for a bit of skipping below 5mph.

Although the current engine is loud and tappy it does perform well and has seen 2 track days this month. Apart from running hot (95deg+ revving to 6300rpm) and the odd water pump leak it has been fine. There are 2 onboard videos on YouTube from the track days if anyone is interested.

I thought I'd make this thread and try and update it as i make further modifications. The plan for the car at the moment is just track days but i am thinking about entering it into a suitable championship in the future.


Last edited by Dolly-Nut on Sun Apr 17, 2016 8:37 am, edited 3 times in total.

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 Post subject: Re: 2-Door JJB923K
PostPosted: Sat Apr 16, 2016 3:23 pm 
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Location: Shetland / here & there
Good read! Could probably look through your past posts but I'm feeling lazy, Sprint engine?

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Current fleet: '75 Sprint, '73 1850, Daihatsu Fourtrak, Honda CG125, Yamaha Fazer 600, Shetland 570 (yes it's a boat!)

Past fleet: Triumph 2000, Lancia Beta Coupe, BL Mini Clubman, Austin Metro, Vauxhall Cavalier MK1 & MK2, Renault 18 D, Rover 216 GSI, Honda Accord (most expensive car purchase, hated, made out of magnetic metal as only car I've ever been crashed into...4 times), BMW 318, Golf GTi MK3 16v x 3


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 Post subject: Re: 2-Door JJB923K
PostPosted: Sat Apr 16, 2016 3:26 pm 
Quote:
Good read! Could probably look through your past posts but I'm feeling lazy, Sprint engine?
Of course!


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PostPosted: Sat Apr 16, 2016 4:00 pm 
Nice to read a bit more info about the car. I remember watching it on ebay as the car was local`ish. I didn`t mind the original colour though lol. Great read :D


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PostPosted: Sat Apr 16, 2016 4:29 pm 
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Location: Shetland / here & there
Don't like to assume, all of my GTi's were valvers as it suits my driving style (I like an engine to sing) but apparently there are some that like 8 valve bottom end torque... :)

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Current fleet: '75 Sprint, '73 1850, Daihatsu Fourtrak, Honda CG125, Yamaha Fazer 600, Shetland 570 (yes it's a boat!)

Past fleet: Triumph 2000, Lancia Beta Coupe, BL Mini Clubman, Austin Metro, Vauxhall Cavalier MK1 & MK2, Renault 18 D, Rover 216 GSI, Honda Accord (most expensive car purchase, hated, made out of magnetic metal as only car I've ever been crashed into...4 times), BMW 318, Golf GTi MK3 16v x 3


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PostPosted: Sat Apr 16, 2016 8:22 pm 
Todays progress
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Tomorrow i will be preparing and painted the engine bay (black) to tidy it up. The inside will follow at a later date.

I also have a bigger oil cooler on order to help control temps and I'm trying to get hold of the club for a water pump bung.


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PostPosted: Sun Apr 17, 2016 10:13 pm 
Today i set about adjusting the float height of the Dellortos since they were off the car.

I also stripped the engine bay and started to stonechip it just to neaten it up a bit.

Then some light port work to the manifold happened which i am yet to finish. I'm making sure they're all evenly shaped and removing as many rough edges as possible. I thought I'd start doing the waterway too since i had time.

I've also ordered a lightweight LUK clutch cover, poly rack bushes and a bigger oil cooler this evening.

Image Image Image Image


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PostPosted: Mon Apr 18, 2016 7:36 am 
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Location: Halifax, West Yorkshire
Dan, did you order the Super Flex bushes? They're the best ones money can buy. I had a pair fitted to my 1850 last year when I had a replacement rack fitted.

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Toledo Man

West Yorkshire Area Organiser & forum moderator
Meetings take place on the first Wednesday of the month at 8.00pm at The Old Brickworks, Wakefield Road, Drighlington, Bradford, BD11 1EA

1972 Dolomite 1850 auto (NYE 751L - Now for sale)
2003 Volvo XC90 D5 SE (PX53 OVZ - The daily driver)
2009 Mercedes-Benz W204 C200 CDI Sport (BJ58 NCV - The 2nd car)
1991 Toyota Celica GT (J481 ONB - another project car)
Former stable of SAY 414M (1974 Toledo), GRH 244D (1966 1300fwd), CDB 324L (1973 1500fwd), GGN 573J (1971 1500fwd), DCP 625S (1977 Dolomite 1300) & LCG 367N (1975 Dolomite Sprint) plus 5 Acclaims and that's just the Triumphs!

Check my blog at http://triumphtoledo.blogspot.com
My YouTube Channel with a bit of Dolomite content.

"There is only one way to avoid criticsm: Do nothing, say nothing and BE nothing." Aristotle


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PostPosted: Mon Apr 18, 2016 8:01 am 
Yes, £15 from eBay. It's what i also used for the front roll bar. It's annoying me how they're purple and the rest on the car are yellow though :lol:


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PostPosted: Mon Apr 18, 2016 12:42 pm 
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Location: Halifax, West Yorkshire
As far as I'm aware all Super Flex bushes are the same colour apart my front tiebar ones which are red.

_________________
Toledo Man

West Yorkshire Area Organiser & forum moderator
Meetings take place on the first Wednesday of the month at 8.00pm at The Old Brickworks, Wakefield Road, Drighlington, Bradford, BD11 1EA

1972 Dolomite 1850 auto (NYE 751L - Now for sale)
2003 Volvo XC90 D5 SE (PX53 OVZ - The daily driver)
2009 Mercedes-Benz W204 C200 CDI Sport (BJ58 NCV - The 2nd car)
1991 Toyota Celica GT (J481 ONB - another project car)
Former stable of SAY 414M (1974 Toledo), GRH 244D (1966 1300fwd), CDB 324L (1973 1500fwd), GGN 573J (1971 1500fwd), DCP 625S (1977 Dolomite 1300) & LCG 367N (1975 Dolomite Sprint) plus 5 Acclaims and that's just the Triumphs!

Check my blog at http://triumphtoledo.blogspot.com
My YouTube Channel with a bit of Dolomite content.

"There is only one way to avoid criticsm: Do nothing, say nothing and BE nothing." Aristotle


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PostPosted: Mon Apr 18, 2016 8:51 pm 
Mine has a mix of brands. As long as they do the job though...


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PostPosted: Tue Apr 19, 2016 10:29 am 
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I've seen your onboard videos, nice driving 8)

From the videos, the car is indeed behaving itself nicely. Do you have the standard 3.45 ratio in your (welded) diff? Did you manage to mount the new track-tires in time for this track day and what's the verdict on them?

Keep up the good work :thumbsup:

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Ronald
Club Triumph Holland - Dolomite Registrar




www.triumphowners.com/tahitisprint


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PostPosted: Tue Apr 19, 2016 3:53 pm 
Quote:
I've seen your onboard videos, nice driving 8)

From the videos, the car is indeed behaving itself nicely. Do you have the standard 3.45 ratio in your (welded) diff? Did you manage to mount the new track-tires in time for this track day and what's the verdict on them?

Keep up the good work :thumbsup:
Yes standard diff ratio. Personally i think 3.45 is fine for Combe. A twistier track might benefit from a 4.1

I didn't try the track tyres as i didnt want to put too much pressure on the diff/shafts. I will try them next time after I've toughened the back end a bit. It remained on the 175/60 Lanvigator budgets :lol:


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PostPosted: Tue Apr 19, 2016 3:59 pm 
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Here are some pictures of the last couple days.
A bit of downpipe port matching and some of the new engine which just arrived. Everything looks in order so once I've checked which tensioner it has fitted (and changed it if it's Rolon!) it will be going in the car, hopefully at the weekend.

The head ports are much bigger so I'm probably going to have to open the manifold up a bit more on the mounting face. I've removed the water pump ready for the electric one. The block is an issue 2 so very early but all the water passages have been enlarged. It also looks like it has ARP bolts on the big and mains and the crank has a grind mark on the front web so hopefully that has been balanced. Some meat off of the big end caps has been removed too which would indicate balancing. Oddly only 1 conrod is new which might explain what happened to the engine previously. The pistons and bores look fresh and it clearly has new longer valves due to the reground Piper cam. Also I've never felt a flywheel so light i can easily throw it around with one hand. Hopefully the lightweight LUK clutch cover will be here tomorrow to mate to it.


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PostPosted: Fri Apr 22, 2016 11:45 pm 
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Posts: 183
Hi Dan

This looks a great little car. :D

Please could you let me know the part number and where you sourced the light LUK clutch cover?

Cheers

Tom.

_________________
1979 Carmine Dolomite Sprint
1974 Saphire Dolomite Sprint (Soon to be tastefully modified)
2005 Mystic blue BMW M3
2004 Mystic Blue 330d
2001 Peugeot 206 Hdi180


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