CGT Major Service
Discussion
According to government figures, at the end of March 2017 there were 31.1 million cars licenced for use on the roads in Great Britain. The latest period for which figures are available on How Many Left is Q3 2017 and this shows 42 CGT licenced and a further 23 SORN. The peak numbers of CGT on the road in UK were 57 in 2008 with just 2 SORN. But whichever way you look at the figures the CGT is quite a rare beast on the UK roads.
Speaking with Andy Keywood and Stacey at Reading today, they reckon around half the UK cars are actually driven and the remainder sit in collections, perhaps only moving when collected for an MOT or routine maintenance.
My car is in the former category and as a 2006 car was just coming up for its 3rd major service. Checking its service history showed that it had had one engine out service at 4 years and an engine in service at 8 years. Cue another engine out service.
There are two main reasons why it makes sense to take the engine out. Firstly, it makes any adjustment of valve clearances that much easier and secondly an accurate reading can be taken of the clutch. There is plenty has been written about the clutch and instances of ones burnt out in 1000 miles not unheard of. With my car mileage standing at 41.5k miles a new clutch was clearly something that might have to be considered. The engine has to come out anyway to do the clutch so perhaps no time like the present.
Reading maybe the only place that can work officially on the CGT but that monopoly doesn’t stop them providing an absolutely superb customer focussed service. The guidance and advice they give is second to none and a source of considerable comfort when deciding what is best for these rare thoroughbreds.
There was plenty of salt on the roads in early March so a collection the order of the day. Kris who does all this work is a maestro at easing the CGT backwards onto the trailer. Cap duly doffed.
It is around 12 hours work to drop the engine so it was early the following week that I got a call to come down and have a look.
When you look at the engine in situ in its carbon fibre cradle is looks big enough but only when it is out of the car do you get a better idea of the scale of the thing and the myriad of intricate details.
By the time I got there the gearbox had been split off and the clutch was clearly visible. The reading taken at several places was 29.4mm. Now to understand the significance of that you need to know that new the clutch is 31mm and at 28mm it is finished. The wear pattern is not linear. The first mm going quite quickly then for many miles the readings stabilise in the 29’s. It is at this point that Reading expertise comes into its own. Whereas I might have thought let’s do it while the engines out, the technicians both said leave it and it will be fine for miles to come. Thanks Paul and Darren.
Though in the end the engine out decision hadn’t been necessary for the clutch, the exhaust valves were slightly out of tolerance and needed shimming. Careful work and you need to remember whether to add or subtract, kind of analogous to wheel offsets if you see what I mean.
One interesting little item is that the manufacturer puts a padlock on the gearbox casing. Not even Reading are allowed in there.
Other than that all the other wearing parts seems to be in good order. The car is still on the original discs and pads and though in the past it was never a track car, the fact they are only 10% worn gives credence to the idea that ceramic discs can last a long time when used thoughtfully.
Although the lower part of the car had a Paintshield film applied when it was new, I did have in mind adding Xpel to the bonnet and top of the wings which in my view still looked pristine, my idea being to preserve them as they are. However, Reading thought that though the paint was still pretty good the film would tend to sink into the few minor pits and we could finish up with a worse result. So the options were to either paint the wings and bonnet and then apply film then and there, or leave it to pick up more marks, and paint and film at a later date. Reading advice – leave it as it is for now. Check.
So this afternoon in glorious Spring sunshine I was back in the car with plans for a May trip to Switzerland very much on the agenda.
Speaking with Andy Keywood and Stacey at Reading today, they reckon around half the UK cars are actually driven and the remainder sit in collections, perhaps only moving when collected for an MOT or routine maintenance.
My car is in the former category and as a 2006 car was just coming up for its 3rd major service. Checking its service history showed that it had had one engine out service at 4 years and an engine in service at 8 years. Cue another engine out service.
There are two main reasons why it makes sense to take the engine out. Firstly, it makes any adjustment of valve clearances that much easier and secondly an accurate reading can be taken of the clutch. There is plenty has been written about the clutch and instances of ones burnt out in 1000 miles not unheard of. With my car mileage standing at 41.5k miles a new clutch was clearly something that might have to be considered. The engine has to come out anyway to do the clutch so perhaps no time like the present.
Reading maybe the only place that can work officially on the CGT but that monopoly doesn’t stop them providing an absolutely superb customer focussed service. The guidance and advice they give is second to none and a source of considerable comfort when deciding what is best for these rare thoroughbreds.
There was plenty of salt on the roads in early March so a collection the order of the day. Kris who does all this work is a maestro at easing the CGT backwards onto the trailer. Cap duly doffed.
It is around 12 hours work to drop the engine so it was early the following week that I got a call to come down and have a look.
When you look at the engine in situ in its carbon fibre cradle is looks big enough but only when it is out of the car do you get a better idea of the scale of the thing and the myriad of intricate details.
By the time I got there the gearbox had been split off and the clutch was clearly visible. The reading taken at several places was 29.4mm. Now to understand the significance of that you need to know that new the clutch is 31mm and at 28mm it is finished. The wear pattern is not linear. The first mm going quite quickly then for many miles the readings stabilise in the 29’s. It is at this point that Reading expertise comes into its own. Whereas I might have thought let’s do it while the engines out, the technicians both said leave it and it will be fine for miles to come. Thanks Paul and Darren.
Though in the end the engine out decision hadn’t been necessary for the clutch, the exhaust valves were slightly out of tolerance and needed shimming. Careful work and you need to remember whether to add or subtract, kind of analogous to wheel offsets if you see what I mean.
One interesting little item is that the manufacturer puts a padlock on the gearbox casing. Not even Reading are allowed in there.
Other than that all the other wearing parts seems to be in good order. The car is still on the original discs and pads and though in the past it was never a track car, the fact they are only 10% worn gives credence to the idea that ceramic discs can last a long time when used thoughtfully.
Although the lower part of the car had a Paintshield film applied when it was new, I did have in mind adding Xpel to the bonnet and top of the wings which in my view still looked pristine, my idea being to preserve them as they are. However, Reading thought that though the paint was still pretty good the film would tend to sink into the few minor pits and we could finish up with a worse result. So the options were to either paint the wings and bonnet and then apply film then and there, or leave it to pick up more marks, and paint and film at a later date. Reading advice – leave it as it is for now. Check.
So this afternoon in glorious Spring sunshine I was back in the car with plans for a May trip to Switzerland very much on the agenda.
Edited by lowndes on Friday 6th April 07:13
If I had the money, this would be the car. Great write up and pics.
gred said:
Having been to the 'back room' at Reading several times, it's always sad to see so many of these fabulous cars just sitting there, doing nothing, not even on display in a home collection.
In my defence, Reading are kind enough to keep my car there as I simply don't want the hassle of keeping the car in and around London but last year apart due to unforeseen circumstances from march till november the car is used reasonably regularly. The intention at the moment very much is still (assuming the weather doesn't go completely to pots) to take the car to the ring in late april too......Gassing Station | 911/Carrera GT | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff