The Triumph Dolomite Club - Discussion Forum

Hi All
I had a brown Dolly 1850 auto when I was 19 in 1982 and managed to write it off by ditching it and then rolling it (had fun though!!)
To relive the youthful desire for a manual version, I've managed to find and buy a Tahiti blue 1850Hl with O/D here in the Emerald Isle
Took me ages to find one close to home and thanks to Dan Brown for his patience while I ummed and ahhed over one of his but eventually found this one on DoneDeal and snapped it up. (and then drove it 200 miles home without any issues!!!)
Originally from Hull area with the reg of YAG xxxS (cant remember exact number but will edit this when I get home in 2 months)

I'm looking for a bit of advice and a few spares which will need to be sent to Ireland!!!
Advice first
1, Clutch bites really low and gears grind if not well matched, esp reverse, would this be master, slave and new hose? or do I need a clutch and thrust bearing? and if so, whats the recommended parts
2, Overdrive not working, electrically Ok but solenoid had damaged seals, is it best to get a recon or a seal kit
3, suspension is tired, whats the recommended shocks and bush set-up
4, should I go for rubber carb mounts or the club solid ones

Spares wanted
Front pulley for MegaJolt trigger wheel (is this generic to a few BL cars or just dolly 1850)
Front subframe
At some stage a sprint conversion is planned so I guess I'll need a sprint engine, subframe, box, o/d and diff as well

For sale, full set of seats, light brown, some marks but not bad, pics when I get home, collection from Mayo or possible delivery to Uk on October

I hope this is OK to post as I've just joined club and need to pick everyone's brains a bit
Cheers Jed

Welcome (back) to the madhouse!

We all have plenty of advice to give, ask away!

I was gonna be cocky and put "all advice is free and all worth what you pay for it" but I decided not to in case it offended someone!

On the decky clutch, check all the hydraulics thoroughly and replace bits as need be. Sometimes the clutch itself will be at fault,(ask Bruce Jones) but the hydraulics are cheaper and easier to get at - so start there!

Overdrive recons are getting pricey nowadays and a lot of the work is not for amateurs. First make sure the solenoid is doing something, there is enough oil in the gearbox and it is the correct sort.
Moving on from this, it is possible to drop the O/D sump, clean the filters and replace a few of the O ring seals within. Much more than that is best left to professionals! But one further thing, a member on here recently bought a car with a non working overdrive, which turned out to be missing the 3p woodruff key that holds the O/D pump drive eccentric to the mainshaft! Which made him an awful lot of work for a moments carelessness!

Shocks and suspension bushing is very subjective and largely depends on how the car will be (ab)used. I think well of Gaz ASP shox and only part polybushing. But that's just an opinion!

I'd go for solid carb mounts, purely because the quality of modern aftermarket rubber ones is generally cr*p!

Megajolt, everyone I know who is using Megajolt have either adapted or made their own trigger wheels and sensor brackets. I believe a BMW one is a popular choice.

Do you want an 1850 subframe as well as (later on) a Sprint one? I will have an 1850 one available soon, but getting it to Ireland might be expensive!

Steve

Steve
Thanks for the prompt reply
A couple of points which I did not make clear (based on you answers and reading my post !!)
Overdrive I think is OK, solenoid is the bit with damaged seals, so should I get new or recon solenoid or just the solenoid seal kit
Suspension, looking for firm ride, car is for FUN
Front pulley is the bit I need for megajolt as i have a ford trigger wheel already and will machine the pulley to fit it but want to keep my original as well
Subframe, yes interested in the 1850 one (whats the difference between 1850 and sprint ones?) I'll be over to Uk in Oct, hopefully with trailer to collect stuff

cheers again

So run a current through the solenoid and see if it throws, if so, just reseal it and go from there! Solenoids are expensive these days too!
Many folk here will tell you that full polybushing is too much and I agree with them! I settle for poly in the rear of the rear lower trailing arms, the axle end of the upper rear arms, the subframe end of the front tie bars, the rack mounts (add at least 1 solid rack mount, Shaun Roche of this forum does a very nice single L/H solid mount/ polybush for o/s kit) and the lower steering column bush. Use Superflex bushes, as supplied by Chris Witor, they are not the cheapest, but they ARE the best and Chris gives a discount on them to TDC members. You CAN put poly in the front subframe mounts for a more rigid feel to the car, at the cost of potential extra noise/vibration. Suspension wise, the 1" lowered and stiffer springs from Rimmers are a good bet, matched with Gaz shox with adjustable spring platforms for total control of ride height/geometry and stiiffness. And that's enough for a fast road car. And very similar to what I am running on my road/track Vauxhall powered Toledo - it works for me!
One thing you've NOT mentioned is brakes! Stock Dolomite brakes are barely adequate for a road car, if you want to give it some beans on a regular basis, go for the famous Trackerjack conversion, you won't regret it!
I don't have a spare 1850 front pulley myself, but I;m sure an ad in the wanted section will find you one in short order.
1850 and Sprint front subframes differ only in the extra engine mount brackets fitted to the Sprint derivatives. Which means you can cut the mounts off a Sprint frame and it will be an 1850 one. Going the other way is much more difficult and probably not worth the bother of trying, as Sprint frames are still fairly plentiful 2nd hand. I should have the 1850 frame here by the time you come over in October!

Steve