2025-08-23 More investigations and completions

I am waiting on some suspension parts, which should be here on Monday.  At least that is what UPS is saying 😏

Washer Pump 

One item listed was to replace the washer pump because supposedly it wasn't working, and it is needed for the safety check, and dusty roads 🤣  Should be simple enough. Now I had tried to order the replacement from Rimmers, but they are out of stock until the middle of September.  I realized I had the same pump in the Spit6, and it is not going to be needed for the moment.  Great, steal from there and use it here.

Installed the new pump, which, in my opinion, is mounted in a stupid place LOL.  On the firewall under the overhang.  

Then tried to test the replacement.   This is about pressing one of the stalks on the steering column.  Nothing!!!

Crap, it is deeper, Lucas Prince of Darkness is showing up!  

Okay, out comes the multimeter to trace back the power.  Test one: Make sure the ground connection works.  A surprising number of issues in LBCs are the result of bad grounds.  That was good.  Now make the connection to see if there is any power coming through the connection.   All hooked up and press the stalk, no, press again, press, oh, a small voltage.  Press ten more times and got a full 12v reading.  So the stalk was a little corroded, go figure 😏 time to squirt electrical cleaner into the column and up the stalk.   The connection and voltage appeared to strong.  Well good.  Put the pump back on, and it came to life.  But would not move the washer fluid.  Time to "debug" this.  

There are two anti-flowback valves in the line, one by the outlet of the pump and one where the fluid line comes out of the fender and goes into the bonnet. Both of them are stuck, so no fluid could get through.  Okay, new valves and a new line are arriving on Monday, and then they can be replumbed.

   

The control valve is on the left and the original pump, on the right.   While it still worked, it was not very strong, so the new one is a good upgrade.  

Third Brake Light 

A couple of days ago, I installed the new third brake light.  Now, to connect it to the other wiring.  This included tapping into the brake light wiring to power the bar.  The one thing I do not like doing is hacking the OE harness.  Making cuts, etc.  Instead, make a mini harness to tee the brake signal to the third light.  

The blue connector is for the harness, and it plugs in.  The white connector is for the harness up to the third brake light.  The pink connector plugs into the existing taillight assembly.   Black is obviously the ground for the third brake light.  

All plugged in, and the cover goes back on.  

Harness tied up against the boot lid before being routed down the hinge like the wiring for the license lights and convenience lights.  

Now we have the third light.  Yes, it looks like crap due to sunshine, but it needed to be done.  

Valve Cover

I picked up a silicon valve cover gasket from Alexander Racing Enterprises

Triumph TR7 Gasket, OEM Valve Cover

I have these gaskets on the TR3a and the Spit6 and love how they prevent leaking.  I know, an LBC not leaking oil?!?!?!  

If I am going to install one of these gaskets, then I need a clean and nice cover 😁  So let's start with

This is the baffle that is spot-welded in place, and underneath is the mesh.  Any cleaning must include getting that mesh out and cleaning it

I started a thread on FB about the best way to do this.  It seems not to use a media blaster since there is a mesh, and the media would be trapped.    I agree.   So time to crack open the panel and get the mesh out.  This was easier said than done because the steel is thick, something like 16 gauge.  

And the mesh looked like this.  All oily and full of crap 

Into the sonic cleaner for about an hour, and they came out perfectly clean.  Wish I had taken a picture 

Now, after the media blaster, washing, and then the ends went into the sonic cleaner to make sure any crap is gone.   Then a once-over with cotton swabs and parts cleaner.  One more sonic trip.  The end result

Now to put the mesh back in and bend the 'cover' back.  Off to the final finish.  Step one: clear coat the Triumph name section.

Now curing overnight before the next step

Misc

I really didn't like the native steering wheel and, well, vanity upgrade.   Replaced with an aftermarket one

Old

New

2025-08-18 Back to Basics

Air Pump

When I ran the engine after the cleaning, there was a squeal from the air pump.  One option was to remove the air pump etc, from the engine.  This is reasonable, but it raised a concern. The air is pumped through the exhaust outlets, as seen in the picture

The concern is that one of these connectors, which looks like a brake line connector, will snap off. Now, that would suck!!  

Option two: cut the belt driving and just leave it in place. So that is the best option right now.   Running the engine now, the squeal is gone, but still an uneven idle and still a little rich.  

Spark Plugs

As I have been told for years, there are three things an engine needs: air, fuel, and spark.  We have fuel, we have air, because I swapped out the dry K/N filter for an OE paper one.  Time to verify the condition of the plugs. When I test drove it, I pulled plug #1, and it was black rich.  Going from left to right, #1 - #4

A closer look 

Plug #1

Plug #2

 

Plug #3

Plug #4

Plug #4 is the closest to the best-running piston.   Note: The fibres on the plug are from the cloth that was used to wipe down the tips.  

Checked the gap on the plugs, according to the manuals, it is supposed to be either 0.024" or 0.025".  The reality is slightly different....

Yeah, they are all over the place.  Okay, time to clean them up, regap, and reinstall.   So, brush and clean them in the sonic cleaner.  This is what the cleaner looks like before the cleaning

Well, after the cleaning cycle, this is what the jar of the plugs looked like...  

Then spray with parts cleaner to get any leftover crap out.  Regapped to 0.025" 

To make it a no-brainer painted the wires with the cylinder number :) I suspect I may replace them in the future, but right now, they make my life a little easier.

Conclusion 

Did it make a difference?  That is the real question.  Try this video

This is sooo much better.  Need to run it for 20 minutes and recheck the plugs to see if any difference they made.  But I did notice, it smells less like unburned fuel :P More to come.

2025-08-17 First Steps

After picking up the '7 and making room in the shop decided to do some initial inspection and some minor items.  Unpacking the first box of Rimmers parts, verifying and laying out the parts.

Some items that got done, mostly minor 

- Engine degreased

- Third brake light installed 

- Checked the interior 

- Trunk light

Engine

The first thing that needed to be done was to wash the engine.  The valve cover is leaking ( new silicone seal coming tomorrow ).  But overall, the engine came out reasonably clean.   As can be seen, this is an unmolested original.  The air pump is still present!  The heater pipe from the exhaust to the intake box is there.

After the degrease and washdown, this was bubbling like crazy when the engine was running :P 

After washing, the engine is running.  I think the air pump is the source of the "squeal."  

Also added a can of Sea Foam and some 91 octane fuel.  The electronic ignition box had a suspect ground wire ( that got fixed ).  It is not running a lot smoother than when I started a couple of hours earlier.  

Third Brake Light 

One of the problems with these cars is that other drivers cannot see them!   The last thing I want is to be rear-ended.  I installed a third brake light on the Spitfire, so it makes sense to have one here.  Once again, got the same one since I liked the Spitfire one

Guoord High Mount 3rd Stop Brake Lights, Compatible with 92-99 Chevy C/K Suburban Blazer Tahoe/GMC Yukon Jimmy/Hummer H2/ Bravada Third Center Cargo Reverse Rear LED Brake Light Bar Taillight (Smoke)

Step 1

Figure out where the light will be mounted. Again, using the experience from the Spitfire as a reference, I decided the boot lid is the best place.   Tape it up!

 

Find the centre line, and then I brought the mounting line from the front of the lid 5".  This cleared the lid bracing will not interfere with the hood, etc, when open.  The wires are easy to route, but a new harness needs to be made to wire into the brake light.  

Step 2 

Drill!  This light needs three holes: one for the wires and two for the mounting screws.   

The wires come with a cone grommet that makes a perfect seal.   Make sure to debur the holes for a clean install.  The light comes with a self-adhesive foam gasket that needs to be installed on the bottom of the light.  Then mount it 

Result 

Installed.   

Conclusion 

I have not made the harness yet; that is the next step to finish it up.  But I like this because it doesn't look out of place.  It does stick up 6" in the air, like I have seen some aftermarket ones.  Does it mean I drilled three holes in the boot lid? Yes, and I am okay with that for safety.  

Interior 

Took a closer look at the interior and made a list of items to address, but there are some items of note

- The clock works! Yes, more than being correct twice a day. LOL 

- The radio is the factory-installed AM/FM 

- The odometer is not working, but the speedometer is.  So it is internal to the gauge :(   Probably the spiral gear is stripped. I have seen that before

- The handbrake needs to be tightened up 

And now this ( should be noted that the aerial is broken off at this point ) 

Trunk Light

While installing the third brake light, the trunk was opened and closed many times.  But here was no light!   Took the cover off the bulb was missing.  Hooked an LED panel to test, and the circuit is good.  Looks like some LED panels, again like in the Spitfire, and going to get mounted and hooked in.       

No real critical stuff got started since I am still waiting for parts to come.  Not a bad first day.