Your wedge, your plans for it?
Discussion
How far do you want to go with increasing your wedge's oomph?
I've been thinking a lot the past couple days about my wedge.
The first week was a gloriuous thrilling experience, then all
of a sudden the quirks of a wedge came at me fourfold. Four
electrical nusances in less that 2 weeks of ownership sort of
dropped my jaw. I asked myself what I'd gotten myself into.
Seeing an entire inch of water on the floor after a 20 minute
hard rain blew my mind, and made me scared to start it up lest
the in dash wiring was dry and nothing would get fried.
Oh the joy of wedge ownership...
I'm pretty stubborn and wasn't going to let some car get the better of me
so I decided to hell with fixing it, I'll improve it.
Consider these my plans for now..
I've got several long term goals over the following weekends and years... in order of importancy to me...
1) Change the oil.
2) fix my headlight pods. You can grab both pods and gently
move them by hand at least 3/4 of an inch freely with no resistance.
When I hit a bump or they are buffeted by the wind, they bounce around.
You can see a flickering effect on relflective road signs in the distance...
this is due to them shaking about... no other car I've owned with pop-ups
suffered from this... and headlight aiming is more crucial in North America.
Our brightness standard is 50% brighter than yours... google it if you don't believe
me.
I'll be taking the motor and mechanism from an rx-7 FC and fabricating their
placement to work the lights instead. I've owned 3 rx-7s all with pop-ups
and all worked and remained adjusted at all times over the 3 years I've owned them.
Of course the factory pods will remain the same, I'm simply going to replace/remount
the motor and arm, and hopefully, the bloody puke-us, err lucas circuitry behind it
as well.
As it stands right now, I have two different healight motors. I discovered this while under
the car adjusting the left light pod and comparing it to the right. With two different motors,
no wonder they don't remain synced in down or up position adjustment.
3)Replace the fog lights only one works, the other looks rusty and they need
the overhaul
4) Replace all hoses, braided stainless steel preferably, or else silicone.
This would include coolant hoses, the flexible brake line, any oil cooler hoses,
and vacuum lines to, in silicone.
5) Swap the Lucas ignition coil for something dedicated for high performance,
to wit: MSD Blaster coil, and make the ignition controled ala MSD. I've already
got two MSD blaster coils and and MSD 6A still in the box.
6) Get an aluminum rad made with the same mounting and replace the rad. If possible,
seek out a same sized fan with a larger cfm.
7) Take my pulleys to a machinist/millwright friend and get him to make me
pro bono, a set of 10% underdrive pulleys that causes less hi-rev water
cavitation this allow for better cooling. They will be made out of aircraft
grade aluminium to reduce engine interia...every once counts. The alternator
will also spin slower allowing more power to the wheels.
8) If and when the cluth goes, take my flywheel to my machinist friend and have the
important dimensions replicated in aircraft grade aluminium. I swapped my 28 lb steel
flyweel for a 12 lb aluminium replacement on my rx-7 and it is a worthy upgrade, the
engine response is vastly improved, as is shifting speed since the engine drops it's revs
to the next gear up faster. The flywheel would have a steel fiction plate attached to it.
9) Make a proper cold air intake box that seels to the underside of the bonet so under-bonnet
ambient heat isn't warming the
charge.
10) Re-wire the entire car ground up because all these electrical faults suck. Where possible
borrow circuitry from more reliable cars.... like my 3 rx-7s.
11)Replace my VDO gauges with modern white faced models and reveneer the wood in the car.
12) Get the leather replaced.
13) Body off paint, chassis work, suspension work, spray.
She is a good car despite her faults, but I can improve her greatly.
The wedge pisses me off, but I'll show it who's the boss.
I've been thinking a lot the past couple days about my wedge.
The first week was a gloriuous thrilling experience, then all
of a sudden the quirks of a wedge came at me fourfold. Four
electrical nusances in less that 2 weeks of ownership sort of
dropped my jaw. I asked myself what I'd gotten myself into.
Seeing an entire inch of water on the floor after a 20 minute
hard rain blew my mind, and made me scared to start it up lest
the in dash wiring was dry and nothing would get fried.
Oh the joy of wedge ownership...
I'm pretty stubborn and wasn't going to let some car get the better of me
so I decided to hell with fixing it, I'll improve it.
Consider these my plans for now..
I've got several long term goals over the following weekends and years... in order of importancy to me...
1) Change the oil.
2) fix my headlight pods. You can grab both pods and gently
move them by hand at least 3/4 of an inch freely with no resistance.
When I hit a bump or they are buffeted by the wind, they bounce around.
You can see a flickering effect on relflective road signs in the distance...
this is due to them shaking about... no other car I've owned with pop-ups
suffered from this... and headlight aiming is more crucial in North America.
Our brightness standard is 50% brighter than yours... google it if you don't believe
me.
I'll be taking the motor and mechanism from an rx-7 FC and fabricating their
placement to work the lights instead. I've owned 3 rx-7s all with pop-ups
and all worked and remained adjusted at all times over the 3 years I've owned them.
Of course the factory pods will remain the same, I'm simply going to replace/remount
the motor and arm, and hopefully, the bloody puke-us, err lucas circuitry behind it
as well.
As it stands right now, I have two different healight motors. I discovered this while under
the car adjusting the left light pod and comparing it to the right. With two different motors,
no wonder they don't remain synced in down or up position adjustment.
3)Replace the fog lights only one works, the other looks rusty and they need
the overhaul
4) Replace all hoses, braided stainless steel preferably, or else silicone.
This would include coolant hoses, the flexible brake line, any oil cooler hoses,
and vacuum lines to, in silicone.
5) Swap the Lucas ignition coil for something dedicated for high performance,
to wit: MSD Blaster coil, and make the ignition controled ala MSD. I've already
got two MSD blaster coils and and MSD 6A still in the box.
6) Get an aluminum rad made with the same mounting and replace the rad. If possible,
seek out a same sized fan with a larger cfm.
7) Take my pulleys to a machinist/millwright friend and get him to make me
pro bono, a set of 10% underdrive pulleys that causes less hi-rev water
cavitation this allow for better cooling. They will be made out of aircraft
grade aluminium to reduce engine interia...every once counts. The alternator
will also spin slower allowing more power to the wheels.
8) If and when the cluth goes, take my flywheel to my machinist friend and have the
important dimensions replicated in aircraft grade aluminium. I swapped my 28 lb steel
flyweel for a 12 lb aluminium replacement on my rx-7 and it is a worthy upgrade, the
engine response is vastly improved, as is shifting speed since the engine drops it's revs
to the next gear up faster. The flywheel would have a steel fiction plate attached to it.
9) Make a proper cold air intake box that seels to the underside of the bonet so under-bonnet
ambient heat isn't warming the
charge.
10) Re-wire the entire car ground up because all these electrical faults suck. Where possible
borrow circuitry from more reliable cars.... like my 3 rx-7s.
11)Replace my VDO gauges with modern white faced models and reveneer the wood in the car.
12) Get the leather replaced.
13) Body off paint, chassis work, suspension work, spray.
She is a good car despite her faults, but I can improve her greatly.
The wedge pisses me off, but I'll show it who's the boss.
Edited by brap_brap on Tuesday 22 May 04:38
Mike,
Ambitious plans there. Keep one very important fact in mind....never badmouth a British car where it can hear you, or IT WILL STOP WORKING AT A MOMENT'S NOTICE!
My headlights on my 1987 do the same thing you describe. I'm thinking about having the pods replaced with fixed lights under a clear plexi screen on both sides.
As for water collecting on your floorboards after a rain, well...it's a TVR convertible and they leak. Drill a couple of holes for drainage. When it starts raining, just reach down and pull your floor carpets up, put them on the parcel shelf behind you, and wait for the water to drain out of the holes. Aarchaic but effective. Ask any of our club members who went to 'Out of the Woodwork' 2005 where it rained 6 inches on Saturday. We literally had members bailing out their cars at the hotel.
So, don't despair, just tackle the issues one at a time and enjoy the car.
Ambitious plans there. Keep one very important fact in mind....never badmouth a British car where it can hear you, or IT WILL STOP WORKING AT A MOMENT'S NOTICE!
My headlights on my 1987 do the same thing you describe. I'm thinking about having the pods replaced with fixed lights under a clear plexi screen on both sides.
As for water collecting on your floorboards after a rain, well...it's a TVR convertible and they leak. Drill a couple of holes for drainage. When it starts raining, just reach down and pull your floor carpets up, put them on the parcel shelf behind you, and wait for the water to drain out of the holes. Aarchaic but effective. Ask any of our club members who went to 'Out of the Woodwork' 2005 where it rained 6 inches on Saturday. We literally had members bailing out their cars at the hotel.
So, don't despair, just tackle the issues one at a time and enjoy the car.
You can do some simple things to stop the water coming in. That is to say I have managed it on mine. Not sure if its a 100% success with all the cars. Water proofing the hood for one. Stops the fabric acting as a sponge and allowing water to seep in although the trade off is water flying in when you want the window open a tad because the heater blower is naff . All seals in good nick and a good fit. Little flaps in place at the roof hinge. Flops over the top of the seal when the roof is lifted.
Next bit is what has been done to mine and I am not suggesting you do it in case it back fires........
Each door seal at the bottom. Just after the vertical becomes horizontal, 2 inch or so cut out. Any water that gets down the seal might pool and dribble over into the car. These cut outs allow it to flow out and stop the dribbling. Dribbling is better left to the driver......
Next bit is what has been done to mine and I am not suggesting you do it in case it back fires........
Each door seal at the bottom. Just after the vertical becomes horizontal, 2 inch or so cut out. Any water that gets down the seal might pool and dribble over into the car. These cut outs allow it to flow out and stop the dribbling. Dribbling is better left to the driver......
taimar78 said:
Mike,
Ambitious plans there. Keep one very important fact in mind....never badmouth a British car where it can hear you, or IT WILL STOP WORKING AT A MOMENT'S NOTICE!
I can believe that. Ambitious plans there. Keep one very important fact in mind....never badmouth a British car where it can hear you, or IT WILL STOP WORKING AT A MOMENT'S NOTICE!
taimar78 said:
My headlights on my 1987 do the same thing you describe. I'm thinking about having the pods replaced with fixed lights under a clear plexi screen on both sides.
I've thought of that too using rectangular lamps, not my round ones, but OTOH, I think a pair of projector lights would really look cool.[edit] You know what I think would be cool? The fixed lamps like you say, with lexan or similar
over top, but make them sunk in under the surrounding bodywork the same thickness of the lightpod's
exposed skin. 1/8 inch maybe? You could stick on a patch of Velcro in each corner of the cover and pod skin and stick the skin over the lexan in the daytime to make it look original.
I like that idea a lot because I don't really like a square cover for lights... too 300z/Fairlady
like. Cover's look good on a griff, but to me, would suck on a wedge. That's why I don't like the
look of Wheeler's white 1-of-a-kind job.... hate those headlights.
taimar78 said:
As for water collecting on your floorboards after a rain, well...it's a TVR convertible and they leak. Drill a couple of holes for drainage.
I had a hammer and a screwdriver at the time... I did one hole for now.taimar78 said:
So, don't despair, just tackle the issues one at a time and enjoy the car.
I was starting to despair TBH, but to hell with that. I can make this a much bettercar than it is. At least more reliable. All my bloody wires going to the relays are black.
WTF? Decipher that!?! Most of them relays make no sense to me. A relay to open the boot... huh?
IOW, one bloody switch causing another switch to close... why not just do it with the first switch?
The circuits in the car that are low amperage will be more directly wired.
Can anyone recommend the carbon fibre plenum I've seen on other cars? Does it really help?
How about aftermarket variable rate springs? If the wedge had the springs my 7 has, the wedge
would be a whole different ballgame.
Edited by Brap_Brap on Wednesday 23 May 06:03
I was going to sell it, but as I'm looking to buy a sea kayak (16-18 feet long) I'll need to keep it to pull a trailer (in design stages!).
Of course I have the Transit, but lifting a 50 lb boat onto a roof rack 8 feet off the ground is not my idea of a laugh.
Besides, I think a TVR & kayak will be as cool as an Esprit with skis
Edit cos link shagged
Of course I have the Transit, but lifting a 50 lb boat onto a roof rack 8 feet off the ground is not my idea of a laugh.
Besides, I think a TVR & kayak will be as cool as an Esprit with skis
Edit cos link shagged
Edited by Wedg1e on Friday 25th May 19:24
Wedg1e said:
I was going to sell it, but as I'm looking to buy a sea kayak (16-18 feet long) I'll need to keep it to pull a trailer (in design stages!).
Of course I have the Transit, but lifting a 50 lb boat onto a roof rack 8 feet off the ground is not my idea of a laugh.
Besides, I think a TVR & kayak will be as cool as an Esprit with skis
I see a cunning plan....... if you can fill the holes in, seal the doors.... hack saw for the sharp end and blunt end (not a nautical cove so the terminology escapes me)....Of course I have the Transit, but lifting a 50 lb boat onto a roof rack 8 feet off the ground is not my idea of a laugh.
Besides, I think a TVR & kayak will be as cool as an Esprit with skis
Edited by Wedg1e on Wednesday 23 May 20:27
my wedges only needs some regular service (oilchange, valve clearances, brake pads and tyres...) and lots of sunny days to enjoy it....
and when i´ve plenty of time i will fit some trailingarm staybars and some new arb and tierod bushes....
...but i will never have plenty of time, when the sun shines so much like in the last weeks!!
and when i´ve plenty of time i will fit some trailingarm staybars and some new arb and tierod bushes....
...but i will never have plenty of time, when the sun shines so much like in the last weeks!!
Brap_Brap said:
tvrleigh said:
Hi brap_brap,
If and when you get
When, not if.If and when you get
Like I said, these are my plans over months and years.
I'm not trying to do this all by the end of summer. It's a big job.
Gassing Station | Wedges | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff