17 Mar88 Degree Thermostat
I was digging through an original copy of the parts book today and noticed that the 1500 Spitfire had an 88 degree (celsius) thermostat listed (GTS106) not just for the US cars but for ALL cars. It seems that by the mid 70s, the push towards efficiency and reducing emissions had encouraged Triumph to make […]
Read More ...28 FebWhy Carburettors Leak!
Not even Grose jets are infallible, as this photo shows. Had fuel pouring out by the bucketload recently after installing fresh rubber hose (SAE J30R9, ethanol resistant since you asked ;)), because small slivers of rubber move down the system after being cut by the action of pushing the hose onto the metal pipe. You […]
Read More ...23 FebWeaknesses of Triumph’s 1500 Engine
Here’s an article by Deborah Evans that was originally written for the MGOC (later MG Midgets used the Triumph engine) and reposted on the pistonheads forum: In 1968 Triumph became part of BLMC who were intent on cost saving such that in 1970 a major revision was made to the engine with the release of […]
Read More ...21 NovA Post / Hardtop Seals
An interesting feature of the Spitfire in the Heritage Motor Centre’s collection is the orientation of the rubber seals used on the hardtop, door surround and A post. You can see what I’m talking about here: Notice how the two seals extend longer than the A-post, to the point where they’d stick out above the […]
Read More ...18 NovBoot Locks
Parts availability for Spitfires is fairly decent, 30 years after the last one rolled off the assembly line, however don’t be fooled into thinking this is down to the popularity of Spitfires. There are many crossover items for cars in the British Leyland family, so for example Spitfire owners benefit when Mini owners require identical […]
Read More ...18 NovHood Stowage Cover (for hardtop use)
One part I’ve been trying to find lately is a factory option that you could purchase for your hard top. Unlike the normal hood stowage bag, this one fits inside the hardtop and goes around the folded up hood – perfect for those like me that are too lazy or too space-constrained to take the […]
Read More ...05 NovPeriod Licence Plates
Am I the only one who finds it bizarre that people go to such great lengths to make a car original, then put modern plastic number plates on the car? The popular plates seen on our cars are usually either black plates if allowed, or just boring modern plastic ones. Surely though that doesn’t mean […]
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