Ouch!! First run out and busted head gasket!!! :(
Discussion
So, for those of you that aren't yet aware, I was given one of the original 420SE's a couple of months ago by my [now late] uncle. I've finally managed to get some wheels on it, had it looked over by a mechanic to ensure it's safe to drive, and then driven it to a trusted MOT centre... 2 minutes into the test however and the head gasket appears to have failed.
It's definitely something to do with the head and/or gasket apparently as there's HC's in the water tank, and the garage think it's highly unlikely that one of the heads will have cracked.
The guys that were doing the MOT have said they can sort the head gaskets out, including pressure test & skim of the heads, for approx. £350, but not until the new year now [understandably].
Took the RAC bl00dy SEVEN HOURS to come out and recover back to Wakefield from near Chesterfield, which is another thread entirely, but whilst waiting in Morrisons cafe for the flatbed to arrive, I've met a woman whose husband apparently owns several TVR's and used to be involved with racing the 'Thorpedo' with Richard Thorpe @ RT Racing in Sheffield. She phoned a guy at RT Racing for his opinion there and then, and he said they could sort it for about £300
I'm going to email RT Racing for a quote, as I'd obviously prefer it to go to a TVR specialist if at all possible, but I'd like to know if anyone's had any experience with them? Are the prices ok? Is the work ok? Do the initial estimates have a tendency to shoot up as the work progresses? Are they pretty good at getting the work done on time or do things tend to drag out, etc etc...
Apart from this rather large hiccup, and a couple of minor leaks where things just needed tightening up, the car sounded absolutely awesome and seemed to drive ok, although it's quite tricky at very low speeds, but I guess that's to be expected with one of the NCK engines, I'll no doubt get used to it in time...
As always, any and all advice gratefully received. (Luckily I was already 'mentally' prepared for the possibility of having to spend a few hundred on it, as until today it's been sat on axle stands for the last 2yrs or so. Still bl00dy disappointing tho!)
It's definitely something to do with the head and/or gasket apparently as there's HC's in the water tank, and the garage think it's highly unlikely that one of the heads will have cracked.
The guys that were doing the MOT have said they can sort the head gaskets out, including pressure test & skim of the heads, for approx. £350, but not until the new year now [understandably].
Took the RAC bl00dy SEVEN HOURS to come out and recover back to Wakefield from near Chesterfield, which is another thread entirely, but whilst waiting in Morrisons cafe for the flatbed to arrive, I've met a woman whose husband apparently owns several TVR's and used to be involved with racing the 'Thorpedo' with Richard Thorpe @ RT Racing in Sheffield. She phoned a guy at RT Racing for his opinion there and then, and he said they could sort it for about £300
I'm going to email RT Racing for a quote, as I'd obviously prefer it to go to a TVR specialist if at all possible, but I'd like to know if anyone's had any experience with them? Are the prices ok? Is the work ok? Do the initial estimates have a tendency to shoot up as the work progresses? Are they pretty good at getting the work done on time or do things tend to drag out, etc etc...
Apart from this rather large hiccup, and a couple of minor leaks where things just needed tightening up, the car sounded absolutely awesome and seemed to drive ok, although it's quite tricky at very low speeds, but I guess that's to be expected with one of the NCK engines, I'll no doubt get used to it in time...
As always, any and all advice gratefully received. (Luckily I was already 'mentally' prepared for the possibility of having to spend a few hundred on it, as until today it's been sat on axle stands for the last 2yrs or so. Still bl00dy disappointing tho!)
Given!! Lucky bugger! 
RTracing are quite well regarded around these parts, Richard remains one of the few specialists that still cater for the Wedges.
I have dealt with RT a few times, new shocks fitted, ordered bits & pieces etc.
If quoted $300 then that will probably be fairly accurate, problem is once the HG is investigated...what other 'anomilies' will come to light??
Start chasing shadows then - we've all been there!
Now is probably a good time to get the work done as come spring time the smaller specialist inde's become very busy with everyone wanting their beasts back on the road.
Fingers crossed it isn't to bad.
RTracing are quite well regarded around these parts, Richard remains one of the few specialists that still cater for the Wedges.
I have dealt with RT a few times, new shocks fitted, ordered bits & pieces etc.
If quoted $300 then that will probably be fairly accurate, problem is once the HG is investigated...what other 'anomilies' will come to light??
Start chasing shadows then - we've all been there!
Now is probably a good time to get the work done as come spring time the smaller specialist inde's become very busy with everyone wanting their beasts back on the road.
Fingers crossed it isn't to bad.
The heads are extremely unlikely to be damaged; in those days they hadn't worked out the thin-wall casting techniques they use nowadays (and which is why cracked heads are so common). It's about an afternoon's work to whip a head off and swap the gasket; of course they'll re-shim the rocker pedestals to keep the lifter preload correct, won't they 
- unless you have adjustable pushrods or fancy rocker gear, that is.
If you have a reasonable socket set you could do it yourself for the cost of the head gasket...
- unless you have adjustable pushrods or fancy rocker gear, that is.If you have a reasonable socket set you could do it yourself for the cost of the head gasket...
If you're not a mechanical/everything else genius like Wedg1e 
, then RT are well regarded, as already stated, and I too have had lots of work done there. They aren't especially dear, but DO know about Wedges.
Spending a few mins...sorry...HOURS chatting to Richard Thorpe is fascinating in itself.
At this stage of ownership, it might be a good idea to have them give it a good look over anyway, as other things will certainly come to light. At that point it's up to you how much you want to spend.
I must admit that they are not always the quickest in turning the work around,
but so much better to get things fixed at this time of year, and then the car is right for when you really want to be out in it.
, then RT are well regarded, as already stated, and I too have had lots of work done there. They aren't especially dear, but DO know about Wedges.Spending a few mins...sorry...HOURS
chatting to Richard Thorpe is fascinating in itself.At this stage of ownership, it might be a good idea to have them give it a good look over anyway, as other things will certainly come to light. At that point it's up to you how much you want to spend.
I must admit that they are not always the quickest in turning the work around,
but so much better to get things fixed at this time of year, and then the car is right for when you really want to be out in it.
Hey keep yer hands off, I need RT!!!
Thanks for all the advice guys. The tiv is still with the recovery company, this is turning into a complete FARCE! The plan now is for it to be delivered directly to RT for repair Tues/Weds next week.
I just can't believe how utterly crap the RAC _AND_ the 3rd party recovery company have been, I've never experienced anything like it!!!
Thanks for all the advice guys. The tiv is still with the recovery company, this is turning into a complete FARCE! The plan now is for it to be delivered directly to RT for repair Tues/Weds next week.
I just can't believe how utterly crap the RAC _AND_ the 3rd party recovery company have been, I've never experienced anything like it!!!
grahamw48 said:
If you're not a mechanical/everything else genius like Wedg1e ...
I'm far from that, me old mucka. I blame my dad, he had me under cars before I was into double figures... and being permanently skint is a good incentive for learning how things work and what it takes to fix them ...For my money, something like a TVR wedge is the ideal way to learn car mechanics; they're simple, most parts are easy to get at and you don't have to resort to a computer every time a light flashes on. Think of it as Meccano for dads
The money you don't pay so-called professionals will soon buy you a well-equipped toolkit and before you know it, nothing will scare you.
In the 9 years I've had my 390 it's cost me less than £2500, and that includes an engine rebuild. I dread to think how much on top of that I'd have had to pay other people to do all the things I've done myself.
Anyway, I've got the keys to me new workshop now, so there might just be some serious fettling to be done...
couldn't agree more Wedg1e, I absolutely want to be doing as much of the work on it as I can myself to maintain it, the problem at the moment is that I don't have a garage or even any off-road space where I could work on it.
We're planning on moving as soon after the new year as possible, and in the meantime I'll be keeping it in my girlfriend's parents' garage, but it's far from ideal for working on the car in, there'll only just be enough room to fit it in!
Anyway, happy christmas everyone!!!!! I'll update the thread when the car gets to RT and I have more of an idea about how much/long it's gonna take to get it on the road...
We're planning on moving as soon after the new year as possible, and in the meantime I'll be keeping it in my girlfriend's parents' garage, but it's far from ideal for working on the car in, there'll only just be enough room to fit it in!
Anyway, happy christmas everyone!!!!! I'll update the thread when the car gets to RT and I have more of an idea about how much/long it's gonna take to get it on the road...
Ok, so it took the RAC TWO WEEKS to get the car recovered back to RT Racing for me, but it finally arrived there last night.
I've spoken to Richard this morning who says he's pretty certain it's not the head gasket, for a couple of reasons:
1: They've done a compression test on it and they all came back between 190-212psi, which is exceptionally good apparently.
2: The water pump is making a heck of a noise and leaking slightly
3: The radiator has been replaced at some point with the wrong radiator, which doesn't have an automatic temp sensor to cut the fan in, so the fan wouldn't have started.
4: There's only 1 fan on the radiator, whereas there should be 2 apparently.
5: The temp gauge isn't working correctly, so even if I'd known about the manual fan switch in the cab I wouldn't have known it needed turning on.
So, all things considered, he thinks it's just a case of the cooling system being screwed. He did say there's a remote possibility that one or more of the steel liners may have become detached, but he thinks its highly unlikely as the compression is so good.
He's also had a general look over the car, and says it's actually in really good condition, the best he's seen in a long while, so my uncle obviously looked after it as best he could. The only exception to this is the passenger outrigger which needs urgent attention and would cause an MOT fail, but he says the sills can be removed independently on mine which is lucky, as some wedges around that age would need a body-off.
Oh, and there's also an oil leak from the rocker cover as well apparently, whatever that is. God I've got a lot to learn!!!!!!
I am feeling exceptionally proud however, Richards now the 3rd person to tell me how rare a car I've got! It's also very reassuring being told by him that it's in really good nick too
I've spoken to Richard this morning who says he's pretty certain it's not the head gasket, for a couple of reasons:
1: They've done a compression test on it and they all came back between 190-212psi, which is exceptionally good apparently.
2: The water pump is making a heck of a noise and leaking slightly
3: The radiator has been replaced at some point with the wrong radiator, which doesn't have an automatic temp sensor to cut the fan in, so the fan wouldn't have started.
4: There's only 1 fan on the radiator, whereas there should be 2 apparently.
5: The temp gauge isn't working correctly, so even if I'd known about the manual fan switch in the cab I wouldn't have known it needed turning on.
So, all things considered, he thinks it's just a case of the cooling system being screwed. He did say there's a remote possibility that one or more of the steel liners may have become detached, but he thinks its highly unlikely as the compression is so good.
He's also had a general look over the car, and says it's actually in really good condition, the best he's seen in a long while, so my uncle obviously looked after it as best he could. The only exception to this is the passenger outrigger which needs urgent attention and would cause an MOT fail, but he says the sills can be removed independently on mine which is lucky, as some wedges around that age would need a body-off.
Oh, and there's also an oil leak from the rocker cover as well apparently, whatever that is. God I've got a lot to learn!!!!!!
I am feeling exceptionally proud however, Richards now the 3rd person to tell me how rare a car I've got! It's also very reassuring being told by him that it's in really good nick too
_Absinthe_ said:
Oh, and there's also an oil leak from the rocker cover as well apparently, whatever that is. God I've got a lot to learn!!!!!!
A rocker cover sits on the top of each cylinder head, it covers and protects the rockers that connect the pushrods to the valve. Cam makes pushrod go up, rocker rocks and valve opens.The rocker cover gets a lot of oil in it to lubricate the valves etc. and it should run back into the body of the engine. But the rocker cover seals to the cylinder head with a big gasket usually made of cork and held together with only four screws, they often leak but it is not a very serious fault. Even if the leak is onto the exhaust.
Do keep an eye on the oil level, you know how to use the dipstick I assume.
One rocker cover has the oil filler spout on it, the other may have a breather with a little filter on it (configurations vary), one is easy to access but the other needs the plenum taking off, a slightly more complex job.
You can take a bet which one the leak is probably from!
Rocker covers on TVR V8s are often painted to highlight the engine, they can be highly polished - but neither the paint nor the polish makes them faster. NCK ones were often black.
Hope this info helps - and don't be afraid to ask questions on this forum - that's why its here.
Russ
That does sound reassuring James...and Richard really knows his stuff.
Rocker cover (passenger side one) is the the long chromy bit here with TVR written on it, and the chimney sticking out towards the front of it is where you put the oil in, but not right up to the top like women do.
Rocker cover (passenger side one) is the the long chromy bit here with TVR written on it, and the chimney sticking out towards the front of it is where you put the oil in, but not right up to the top like women do.
Edited by grahamw48 on Thursday 7th January 22:12
hehe, cheers guys! I know quite a few of the basics about cars and how they work, but obviously there're some gaps here n there. I agree that it's quite reassuring, I was kinda panicking that the engine may have been damaged etc etc, and obviously I expect it'd be a bit hard to get another one and/or replacement parts I guess? I mean, I know the rover V8 is a very common engine, but I suspect that NCK did some pretty impressive jiggery-pokery with this one
Richard's going to be mailing me a list of things that need doing, and the prices, as soon as he can. So I'll keep you up to date with how things progress. At this point in time I'm just bl00dy relieved to have it in safe hands again; I was starting to worry that the recovery company had taken it for a spin and written it off or something!
I know quite a few of the basics about cars and how they work, but obviously there're some gaps here n there. I agree that it's quite reassuring, I was kinda panicking that the engine may have been damaged etc etc, and obviously I expect it'd be a bit hard to get another one and/or replacement parts I guess? I mean, I know the rover V8 is a very common engine, but I suspect that NCK did some pretty impressive jiggery-pokery with this one Richard's going to be mailing me a list of things that need doing, and the prices, as soon as he can. So I'll keep you up to date with how things progress. At this point in time I'm just bl00dy relieved to have it in safe hands again; I was starting to worry that the recovery company had taken it for a spin and written it off or something!
Gassing Station | Wedges | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff