1850HL not really a restoration

[Toledo Man]

Start a wanted thread for your non-return valve. Mad Mart sorted me out when I had to replace mine a few years ago and that is still going to this day. Just keep on with it and your enthusiasm will return. I'm using mine more these days and I try to get something done on most days.

[AlanH]

The starter motor is very temperamental, it is always fine from cold but if the engine is hot it will fail to turn over, I hear the solenoid clicking but no motion from the starter.

I have had this problem.

Sometimes if I get out of the car for 10 mins. or so it won't start when I get back in. I can usually keep flicking the key until it starts.

However I've found that if, when I get the problem, I connect up another battery to mine it will ALWAYS start.

My battery (an 015) is new and I keep it charged up. I think that it could be down to the connections. I have checked and cleaned them but I still get the problem. The starter motor has been out and checked over by an auto electrician.

It may be worth try connecting another battery if you can. I would be interested to know how you get on.

[Karlos]

I Fabricated some brackets today to fit a Saab 9-3 2.0T radiator to the 1850. I am using all the original mounting points on the car so that the car can always be put back to original spec. First I removed all the mouldings from the radiator and all the existing mountings. Using some stainless tube cut along the centre line I created 2 channels to clamp to the sides of the radiator itself. Then I fashioned some mounting brackets and welded them to the channels. Got it all done and went for a test drive, all seems well, no leaks.

Now for the other problems, the clutch pedal is doing nothing for about 60% of its travel. Gears are crunching all the time so it seems like the slave cylinder is past it. There is also a strange squeek/squark sound when I drive over a bump or hit a pothole. Not sure what exactly is causing the noise, needs looking at somehow, any advice welcome!

[Toledo Man]

The first thing to check should be the bushes. If you have to replace them use Super Flex. They're worth every penny. The Club have some Super Flex bushes in stock and Chris Witor can supply the rest and offers TDC members a discount on these bushes.

[MIG Wielder]

I
Now for the other problems, the clutch pedal is doing nothing for about 60% of its travel. Gears are crunching all the time so it seems like the slave cylinder is past it.

A common problem on the 1850 is the failure of the clutch fork pivot point . But yes, check the hydraulics first. Its cheaper and easier. Just to give an idea, my 1850 has 7/8 in of movement at the slave cylinder push rod. If that measures O.K. on yours it is probably the clutch fork. I think the part is compatible with the Vitesse.
How is the starter problem ?
Tony.

[Dolly-Dimple]

Really interesting that ^ wasn't previously aware, good to bear in mind

Kind Regards

Russell.

[Karlos]

Hi Tony, thanks for the heads-up on the weak spot of the clutch fork pivot point. I'll check again on how far the push rod extends when the pedal is pressed. Not had much chance with the starter problems as I haven't driven anywhere other than up and down the road twice.

[Karlos]

Had a good look at the operation of the clutch this evening.
Pedal travel is excessive and the actual movement of the push rod in the end of the slave cylinder is only about 6-8mm.
I have removed both the slave and master cylinder. On removing the master I saw that the thrust pin that goes through the pedal and the end of the master cylinder push rod is very worn too.
However the most significant fault is in evidence as seen here and that is due to a fundamental component being missing:


Thats right! There is a significant lack of clutch fliud!
The slave cylinder shows signs of leaking, general corrosion and contamination:


I have a seal kit for both so I'll clean them up, replace the seals and re-fit. I'll also have to order a new thrust pin and split pin for the clutch pedal. Anyone know where i can get one?

[Jon Tilson]

Sadly clutch slave cylinder repair kits are of variable quality.

I try and snap up anything old stock in a Girling box on ebay. A lot use the same bore.

Clean the bore up with a roll of 1200 grit wet and dry and brake fluid and use a bit of red rubber grease under the end cover.

1850's are a doddle to bleed as you simply have a bit of fine bore tube from a cracked open bleed screw going back to the reservoir.
Cycle the fluid round a few times and the air all vents out from the open reservoir...

Jonners

[Karlos]

Got it all sorted yesterday. Thanks, that's a Top-Tip* Jonners, of cycling the fluid if you have a clean system and no old fluid in it (like I have).
The starting problems I was having when the car was not cold (solenoid clicks but starter motor does not turn), may have been put to bed. MIG-Weilder sent me a relay and additional wiring that has so far proved to be a great improvement in starting the engine. I'm still testing but so far it has it is proving to be a cure for the starter motor issue not turning issue.
Hope I haven't spoken too soon, but I have done about 70 miles of different driving and have not yet had the problem occurr:
A few trips of 12 miles, 1 of which was stop-start. 1 trip where the engine cut out twice at traffic lights (carbs need tuning) fired up again straight away.
4 short journeys to local shops/ pick up drop off.

[Karlos]

After fitting the relay into the starter solenoid circuit I haven't had a single occasion of the starter failing to turn. The fix from Tony (Mig Wielder) is just great. Reliable starting is so nice! I recommend this mod to all 1850 owners.

Today in between down-pours I managed to look at a couple of things on the car that have been waiting for about 5 weeks to deal with. This weather is really awful, I really do feel for the people in the flooded regions, it has rained and rained it seems every day since the beginning of December.

So I had about 1 1/2 hours to replace a torn exhaust rubber hanger. I got the car up on ramps at the front and axle stands at the rear. Getting the car onto the ramps is a pain as the ramps will often move forward instead of the front wheels going up them. Tried a number of things like a 4" wide strip of carpet wrapped around the bottom rung of the ramp and leading out along the ground under the front wheels, also tried putting the ramps onto old rubber car mats. The ramps still shoot forward, but I eventually got up onto the ramps after a lot of faffing.
Fixing the hanger was easy enough, it took longer the get the car in the air than anything else.

I also fitted a high level LED brake light, a simple job of fixing the lamp to a plinth and then fixing that onto the rear parcel shelf. I got the lamp for £3.50, I'll take some pics when it is light and not raining! It's reasonably neat, it peeps out of the rear window just above the rear window seal at the bottom, that's why I needed the plinth to get it high enough. I bought some stop/tail SMD lamps off ebay but didn't like the colour, even though they were the 'warm' ones they made the brake lights look too orange. Maybe i should have got red lamps instead the the warm white ones. So I have gone back to the original bulbs.

[Toledo Man]

I bought some red LED stop/tail bulbs for the Astra. I later found out that they weren't working properly but when I put them in the 1850 they worked exactly as they should. The warm white bulbs should be fine with the coloured filters but we should bear your experience in mind.

The starter relay mod is interesting. Tony should share this with us. I assume it is spliced into the live feed from the ignition switch to the starter motor in a similar way to the headlights

[Karlos]

It seems I have an over cooling issue. I swapped out the thermostat and the rad cap a couple of weeks back, they made no difference. In fact the new rad cap is lame it is too short and doesn't seal into the bottom of the neck of the expansion tank. I bought it from AceParts on ebay - should have known better, I was looking for a cheap option and I got a cheep result - a cap that doesn't fit!
The thermostat was a spare NOS item I had, it could be rubbish to, I didn't actually test it before replacing the original. Anyway that's a quick job for the weekend to whip it out and do a test in a pan of water on the cooker. I do have a large aluminium Saab 900 radiator fitted, but I didn't think that would cause over cooling as the thermostat should be regulating the temperature regardless of how good the radiator is at dissipating heat.

Where are proper fitting caps available from?

Any further ideas as to why the needle never gets above 1/4-1/3 on the gauge are of course welcome.

[GTS290N]

Radiator cap here:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Polished-Stai ... OC:GB:3160

[Toledo Man]

Oh bollox! I've just bought a new cap from a local motor factor. Beware of Ace Parts. I've used them before. I bought a set of 501 LED bulbs for the Astra's sidelights and they only lasted 8 months. I bought some decent ones and they're still going strong to this day.