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Now there's a bright
idea
Automatic
Owners:
Does your
transmission 'CLONK' noisily when engaging Drive or
Reverse?
If the answer
is "yes", first check the engine idle speed followed by a check of
the down-shift throttle cable adjustment. If this 'clonk' persists,
it may be necessary to dismantle and clean the valve bodies together
with checking the strainer, alloy suction pipe, O-ring and pump at
the same time. However a likely cause which the workshop manual
omits is the possibility the large nut on the output shaft is loose.
Access to this is gained by removing the extension housing
(speedometer drive). It is not uncommon for this nut to work itself
loose.
Bearings:
Have you
discovered a shiny bare metal area caused by the tyre rubbing
against the body when removing a rear wheel?
The rear
pivot bearing on the suspension of the Mk ll is a Slipflex, a rubber
bearing and not as good as those used on the Mk l, that is a tapered
needle roller type.
On Mk ll's
that have seen considerable use, the Slipflex bearing wears causing
the tyre to rub against the body due to the pressure exerted by the
Hydrolastic unit which tries to push the rear radius arm
sideways.
When this
happens it will be more than likely that the Slipflex bearing will
need replacement, however ... here is a tip worth trying
first.
Jack up the
car and remove the rear wheel; you can now get to the 15/16" pivot
bolt.
Try
tightening this bolt, nine times out of ten, a couple of turns can
be had - and this does seem to reduce the side play in the pivot
bearing. I have done this several times in the past and it extended
the time in which to effect a repair or to seek a good second-hand
one.
Many Mk ll
sedans with Slipflex rear suspension bearings often get a bad lean
in on the rear wheels. Providing the bearing is OK, the correct .5
degree camber can be restored to the wheel by inserting appropriate
shims between the body and the suspension cradle. These can be
inserted without de-pressurising the suspension, merely slacken the
four mounting studs, remove the outer two in turn to insert the
shims. 1/16" aluminium sheet is very good material for making the
shims. This negligible cost of repair can save a very costly
replacement of the Slipflex bearing. Even with new bearings a set
can very soon occur which puts you back where you
started.
Brake
Cylinders:
If you didn't
know already, Mk ll PBR rear brake cylinders are no longer
available.
A similar
one, suitable for the 1800, is from a Chrysler Valiant, however the
thread is different and longer, which would warrant altering the
brake line to the hub.
The other and
better alternative is to have your old cylinder fitted with
stainless steel sleeves. These sleeves will still take the standard
size hydraulic seals.
Clutch Pressure
Plate:
Mk l clutch
pressure plates have a weak thrust area, which self destructs and
should be replaced with Mk ll or exchange units. Clutch master
cylinder push-rods can be usefully lengthened to keep the pedal out
of the carpet (¼" optimum).
Conversion of 1800 from
Automatic to Manual:
Those of you
who have had an automatic in which problems occurred or anyone now
experiencing problems, where perhaps there is loss of a particular
gear or even a complete loss of drive, have you wished for a manual
drive car?
Loss of drive
is most commonly attributed to a broken drive plate. This is
relatively easy to replace as the motor can be removed without too
much trouble. The gearbox must be supported firmly and, following
removal of the engine mounts, radiator, exhaust manifold and
ancillary items, the crankcase bolts and nuts can be removed
together with the four bolts attaching the drive plate to the torque
converter, accessible through the starter motor housing. When ready
to remove the engine, first lift it about an inch (1") at the
radiator end then move engine to the right an inch or two in order
to clear the torque converter boss from the crankshaft
spigot.
If loss of
drive is not a broken drive plate, then suspect a broken drive shaft
or HyVo chain, either of which involves some expensive repairs. Now
is the time to consider what to do and whether it is worth
converting your car to a manual.
Provided the
engine is in good condition the answer is "Yes". How do you go about
it? Ideally the best way of going about it is to obtain a complete
old manual power unit where the engine is worn out (preferably one
you know mechanically) - for example, if the gearbox was good, was
the clutch OK, are the gear change cables working OK, are they
frayed or leaking oil?
The next
thing to do is clean up the old power unit (invariably covered in
thick grease), then pull the whole thing apart. Before substituting
the (automatic) engine, the steel bush located in the end of the
crankshaft must be removed and replaced with a bronze clutch shaft
bush, which is larger. Removal of this bush can prove difficult but
a good tip is to fill the hole where the bush is fitted with grease.
Insert a loose fitting metal dowel into the bush, then hit it with a
hammer, the bush will pop out due to a hydraulic-like
action.
When
re-assembling, here are a few things to look out for:
1. Ensure
the four lay-gear thrust springs and gear selector rod lock-plate
are correctly located before bolting the adapter plate to the
engine/gearbox.
2. Check
the flywheel ring gear. If badly worn it can be
reversed.
3. It
is wise to renew the clutch release bearing and perhaps the clutch
drive plate if more than one third worn.
4. Replace
the clutch shaft oil seal.
5. The
speedometer unit from a manual car should be used as it differs from
one fitted to the automatic. Sources say the difference in
speedometer readings after converting from automatic to manual is
caused by the different differential ratios: 3.88 (auto) to 4.19
(manual).
6. Finally,
don't forget to make sure the dipstick is the manual (longer)
one.
If you are
unable to obtain an old power unit, a list is compiled below of all
the components needed to make the conversion:
* Gearbox
complete with gear change cables and control box (gearlever housing)
and cable-change housing.
* Change
auto (blank) cover plate for the manual cover plate (hole for
gearlever).
* Substitute
(auto) brake and accelerator pedals for the (manual) clutch, brake
and accelerator pedals.
* Clutch
master and slave cylinders c/w hydraulic line.
* Adapter
plate bolts to end of engine/gearbox.
* Flywheel,
clutch pressure and drive plates.
* Flywheel
housing c/w clutch fork and release bearing.
* Idler
and primary gears, clutch shaft and primary gear cover.
* Bronze
bush for the crankshaft.
* Manual
(longer) dipstick.
* Manual
engine tie-rod (longer than the automatic).
By leaving
the auto gear change mechanism on the dash in place, it is still
possible to immobilise your car by selecting any position other than
'P' or 'N'. This isolates power to the ignition switch.
Cooling
System:
Most of us
flush out the cooling system at least once a year (disconnecting the
radiator hoses, flushing and back flushing the radiator) but how
many of us flush out the engine block and, more to the point, know a
plug exists for this very purpose? It is situated directly beneath
the oil pressure switch adjacent to the distributor. Often this plug
is neglected and in most instances, upon removal of the plug, sludge
will be found behind it. This can be cleared using a length of soft
wire poked up and around the angled passageway inside. This usually
works and it is surprising how long it takes for clear water to flow
from this outlet. In extreme cases when the passageways cannot be
cleared it will be necessary to connect everything else up leaving
the block plug out and running the engine until the pressure builds
up, forcing the buildup of sludge out. Take care to do this in a
safe area and stand clear of the outlet. Flushing the block can make
a critical difference on a hot day and will prevent any overheating
problems.
Crankshaft
Bush:
A variation
on removing the steel bush in the end of the crankshaft on the
automatic engine is to tap the bush with a .5" SAE thread. With the
aid of a suitable stud, a large socket, washer and nut, the bush can
be extracted.
Constant Velocity (CV)
Joints:
When you next
service the CV joints on your Landcrab, check for excess wear in the
inner and outer ball race tracks in the hub. If you look carefully
you will see that wear will be in the form of a small indentation on
one side of the ball-race track. This of course, results from the
constant pressure applied by the drive in forward motion. It is
suggested that following inspection and renewal of the six steel
balls, you fit the previously left side to the right side of the car
and vice versa. This ensures the constant pressure of the drive will
occur on the opposite unworn side of the ball-race
track.
Exhaust
Clamps:
No doubt you
have, at one time or another, had oodles of fun fitting the exhaust
clamp to the manifold and exhaust pipe. As you know, one needs three
hands and triple jointed fingers to accomplish this task. A solution
is at hand. Fit the two bolts into one half of the clamp and tack
weld the hexagon to the clamp. This allows easier fitting of the
other half of the clamp, with the added bonus that the nuts can be
tightened without the bolts turning.
Exhaust
Leaks:
Should you
experience a noisy exhaust leak around the exhaust clamp, first try
tightening it up. If this doesn't rectify the leak, remove the
exhaust clamp and place each of the two halves of the inner clamp in
a vice and nip them up a bit. Make sure the whole of the clamp is
covered. The effect of this is that the V is narrowed a bit (this
tends to spread over the years) and, on reassembly, the gas leak
should be eliminated.
Flooding
Carburettor:
If
dismantling, checking the needle and set, float and float level fail
to rectify the fault, the trouble may be the fuel pump over
pressurising.
This problem
can be solved by fitting extra gaskets (in addition to the existing
gasket and block) between the fuel pump and crankcase.
While on this
topic, if you experience intermittent and erratic running (with the
engine even dying) while driving around the speed limit for some
time, you would not be blamed for thinking there was a fuel problem
or a blockage, or the fuel pump was at fault. These symptoms do
suggest a fuel problem. However, before pulling down the fuel pump
or carburettor, try replacing the ignition coil as this could well
be the problem, especially after running for an hour or more when a
faulty coil will get overheated and breaks down.
Flywheel Ring on
Automatics:
When the
flywheel ring gear becomes worn after lengthy service, it will be
found increasingly difficult to start the engine due to the starter
motor teeth not being able to engage in the worn ring gear. When the
engine is switched off and comes to rest, the crankshaft and
flywheel nearly always stop at the same position. Normally this is
the time for some expensive repairs, not to mention the
inconvenience. Not on the automatic Landcrab, the solution is very
simple. The flywheel ring gear on the automatic is bolted to the
torque converter and not to the engine. By removing the four bolts
from the converter plate, turn the engine through 90 degrees and
replace the bolts. The starter motor is now able to engage on better
and less worn teeth.
Front
Seats:
The front
seats of the Mk l differ from the Mk ll. Apart from being
slightly wider the seat base rests on a criss-cross of Pirelli
webbing, whereas the Mk ll rests on a metal seat pan. After many
years, the Pirelli webbing perishes and becomes hard and brittle.
Replacement can be obtained from Clark Rubber, about 10 ft or 3
metres (which is tight) - 6 pieces cut to 21 inches (53 cm) and 6
pieces cut to 17 inches (43 cm) for the two seats. The job of
replacement is quite easy and takes about an hour per
seat.
Fuel:
A useful tip
worth remembering, is that if leaded fuel is unavailable and you are
forced to use unleaded petrol, add 4% of diesel to the fuel. This
should minimise any damage to the engine, but don't expect any
sparkling performance.
Fuel
System:
When did you
last clean out your fuel system? Like most of us, you've probably
never given it a thought. Here's how you can do the job very cheaply
and effectively.
The idea is
to fill your tank with a 20% proportion of high octane unleaded fuel
once in a while.
The advantage
is the high octane unleaded fuel has a very high level of detergent
additives included to clean fuel nozzles in the fuel injection
systems of the cars, which use this type of fuel. The 20% proportion
is not sufficient to do any damage to valve seats (being unleaded
fuel), but does wonders in removing sludge and fuel gum even after a
short run. Remarkable results can be obtained using Shell Ultra High
fuel, but other brands would probably have the same
effect.
Gear change
cables:
(For Aussie
1800's or if you know someone in Australia)
Tasman/Kimberley
cables will fit the Austin 1800. These cables are heavy duty
compared to the original 1800 cables and thicker. The cable ends
also have a larger diameter and will NOT FIT into existing 1800
cable change housings. Tasman/Kimberley cables have extra long
ferrules at each end, unlikely to ever leak. These cables are 1"
shorter in length than the 1800 but it makes no difference and they
fit ideally.
Note: The
cable assembly must be replaced entirely.
Gear change
removal:
Should you
have occasion to remove the gear change cables, control box and
cable change housing from the transmission, it can be done without
disturbing the exhaust system. Simply remove the gear change lever
along with the six nuts, which secure the top half of the control
box. Next remove the four 7/16" bolts securing the control box to
the heat shield, and the ower half of the control box and cables
will slide down at an angle between the heat shield, exhaust pipe
and handbrake cable. |
1 Inch = 2.54 cm, 1 Foot =
30.48 cm, 1 Foot = 12 Inches
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