1. T

    Series 3 Diff Pinion Spacer

    Sorry, yes, you are quite right.
  2. T

    Series 3 Diff Pinion Spacer

    The spacer doesn't change the final position of the pinion as it is a collapsible spacer. The pinion nut is tightened until there is the correct preload across the bearings, and the location of the bearings themselves determines the position of the pinion. All the collapsible spacer does is...
  3. T

    Series three heater matrix blowing cold

    As the heater matrices are in series with each other, and the flat heater is getting hot, this suggests that the water flow is OK, and the problem lies on the air side.
  4. T

    Series 2a cutting out on incline

    The puff of dark smoke suggests the opposite of a lack of fuel. Next time it cuts out / won't start, get the plugs out quickly, and see if they are wet with fuel, .
  5. T

    S2a rocker/arm hangup?

    >>I am going to move the vacuum pickup to the intake plenum directly below the carb mounting and see what happens. Yes, you need to use the large vacuum take off for the brake servo. If you measure near the throttle valve, you are not measuring the full vacuum, and will get misleading results.
  6. T

    S2a rocker/arm hangup?

    Do you still have the problem? i.e., have you checked it since cleaning up the rocker pads?
  7. T

    S2a rocker/arm hangup?

    It might be worth looking into fitting hardened valve stem caps. It all depends how bad the wear ridge is.
  8. T

    S2a rocker/arm hangup?

    I would look carefully at the pads where the rocker contacts the top of the valve stem. If there's a wear lip on this oad, that could stop the rocker returning freely - especially if the rocker geometry has been changed a bit owing to the head skim.
  9. T

    Screw size. Voltage stabilizer

    I don't know about the screw, and the parts manual is no help, but, I would try BA sizes first. For the low reading, a high resistance connection anywhere in the circuit could cause this. A poor connection between the tank sender and earth, a poor connection at the large multi-plug by the...
  10. T

    voltage stabiliser

    Is continuity OK, or does that indicate that my voltage stabiliser might be blown? It's fine. The voltage stabiliser is a bi-metal strip with some wire wound round it. When the strip is cold, the switch is closed, and current can flow. This current heats up the bi-metal strip, and the strip...
  11. T

    These brakes have got me scratchiung my head..

    It's more of a problem with 109 front brakes. The idea is that if you have an air bubble in the slave cylinder which isn't flushed out during bleeding,, then, the best way to deal with it is to push the piston(s) back as far as possible to force the bubble out of the slave cylinder. For 109...
  12. T

    Series 2 RH rear flasher not flashing

    >>(11.9v vs 13.4-14.2 on LH flasher) This sounds like you didn't actually follow what I was saying. Look for voltage drops from a fully assembled circuit. I'll give you another example Imagine that you are checking the starter circuit, and you want to check the voltage drop between the...
  13. T

    Series 2 RH rear flasher not flashing

    The problem is that voltmeters do not load the circuit like a bulb does. So, seeing your multimeter "flash" isn't the same, and isn't necessarily telling you anything. The better approach is to look for voltage drops while the circuit is working. For example, put the positive probe of...
  14. T

    Windscreen hinge pivot bolts

    Yes, the bulkhead should have a tapped thread - those shouldered bolt in the plastic bag look right. There are different shouldered bolts depending on whether the bulkhead is metric or not, but, the general length of the shouldered bolt is about the same.
  15. T

    Crunching still

    Beware the idea of increasing oil viscosity and/or using moly The syncro surface have grooves and features to clear the oil away because the lubrication hinders the friction action of the cone clutch part of the synchro. This is often why you can get the odd crunch from even a modern gearbox...
  16. T

    Series 3 More done today...but not fully successful....

    Were you using the drill in the reverse direction? It needs to be in reverse for the speedo to respond.
  17. T

    Like or dislike

    The mirror is OK for the MOT - there's no prescribed geometry or area, and no requirement for the mirror to avoid the driver being dazzled from behind.
  18. T

    piston ring size - confused

    >>I feel i must be missing something obvious- any ideas? I suspect the missing ingredient in your thinking is a factor of pi linking the diamter and the circumference. The oversize 0.010" piston ring will be 0.0314" longer than the standard one, not 0.010"
  19. T

    brakes not braking

    The nipple being at the bottom is normal on these brakes on a 109, and is not actually a problem. The real problem with bleeding this type of brake is that an air bubble can get trapped in the wheel cylinders, and you have to do something that's a bit odd to deal with it. If you take the drums...
  20. T

    excess pressure in fuel pump mechanism

    The pump should only "pump" on the return stroke, and so, the pressure delivered by the pump is controlled by the strength of the return spring. So, when the float chamber is full, the pump lever will not return.