Countdown to Wiscombe

Well, our little Imp has had a transplant and is now a 930cc.  Isn't it funny how your brain can so easily switch from thinking a 1 litre engine is small, to thinking 'wow! 930cc, feisty!' - it's all relative.

Having started the winter engine change project back in October, our collection of engines has grown from one (the original) to four.  We bought a second hand 875cc Sport engine + spare, but couldn't get it running very well, and spent some time choking on exhaust fumes even with all the garage doors open.   

We then bought a 930cc engine which was supposedly built for hill climbing and had only been bench run.  "Perfect," we thought, "it's tricked up and can go straight in."    We toyed with the idea of trying to get the Sport engine going properly before changing them over, but then decided to just put the 930 in so we had more time to drive it around before our first event at the end of April.

Well... it turned out to not be quite so ready as we thought.  We knew it needed an alternator, since we'd be using for every day driving and not just competition, so we got a second hand one sold as 'working ok'.  The plug leads looked a bit iffy and didn't fit very well, and we discovered that the distributor cap had a massive crack in it so had to be replaced. 

Having got the engine fitted we spectacularly failed to get it started, and with about 5 weeks to go until Wiscombe Hill Climb we decided to give it to our local mechanic to have a look at, as we were running out of time.  Just to frustrate this plan, having put on a new brake master cylinder we then had trouble with the brake bleeding, and it took us at least 2 evenings of pedal pumping to get the brakes in a fit state to be able to tow the car down to his workshops.

The alternator turned out not to work ok so we got a new one, along with new plug leads.  Our mechanic managed to get the engine started but it was running extremely rich, so the next thing was to get the correct jets etc. for the carbs.  Our bank balance was rapidly shrinking and our stress levels rising, but the good news was that it passed the MOT! 

The car now ran and had been fiddled with, and after two and a half weeks without it we went and picked the car up. We then discovered that both carbs were leaking fuel when the engine wasn't running.  Adjustment of the fuel pressure seemed to fix that (fingers crossed), but the car was a complete b*** to start, although once it did start, it ran like a dream!

Head-scratching ensued. Plugs were cleaned, and a new battery has just arrived that should cope better with the higher compression. The next job is to adjust the timing to stop it pinking. Oh and the head gasket is weeping a bit of oil so we've ordered a gasket set.  What did I say about the bank balance?  It's currently on the downhill stretch of the roller coaster.

So, it's now two and a half weeks until Wiscombe and every day involves either working on the Imp or spending money on it, or both.

It's worth it for the huge grin on our faces when we drive it!

The next step

Well, the Imp is currently engine-less!

The 875cc standard has been taken out, and the 875cc Sport is about to go in.  A parcel of Weber jets and springs and things arrived today, so that will keep Alex busy!

 

The next deadline is the MOT which is due in March, plenty of time, right.....?

Plans for 2013!

Happy New Year! 

Over the Christmas break we sat down with diaries and event calendars and worked out the events we want to do in 2013, it's looking pretty full on. There are a couple of championships we can do - the Assoc of Central Southern Motor Clubs and the Assoc of South Western Motor Clubs.  They overlap a lot although the ASWMC championship has more events and includes some way down in Cornwall of course, which is 4+ hours for us.  

We plan to do most of the events at Wiscombe Park but also want to try some different venues so will be doing as many as we can; though we will probably use a trailer for the ones a long way away, for peace of mind apart from anything else! 

I have renewed my MSA licence and the next thing is to get Alex sorted out with his licence, and suit, helmet etc. - for those we are going to Race Retro in February which is anyway a fantastic show and we haven't been for a few years.  As an added bonus the Imp Club and the British Women Racing Drivers' Club both have stands at the show so we will be able to go and see them.

At the moment the Imp is in our garage having some work done on the engine, and things like an electric fuel pump fitted.  It seems a long time until April and the first event, but I'm sure that it will come around quicker than we think!

12 Car Nav

by Jenny

This wasn't strictly an Impish adventure, but it was because of joining Woolbridge MC that we decided to try their 12 Car navigational rallies, but in our VW Golf.  That car rather than the Imp partly because we have at least a 1 1/2 hour drive to get to/from the start, and because it's winter!

These take place in the depths of Dorset/Devon/Somerset and involve tortuous routes down tiny lanes, about 50 miles which takes a couple of hours.  We had our first go at it last night, with me driving and Alex navigating, and succeeded in completing the whole thing without a single argument, which most people would think was an achievement in itself!  Not because we generally argue (we don't), but because it is the type of situation that could easily raise the blood pressure.

We were of course using the Beginner's instructions, and we also got 15 minutes before the start to look at them and start plotting them on the map.   They were good in that they involved lots of different types of instructions - spot heights, tulip diagrams, herringbones and directional. 

After all the rain we've had recently, and the fact that there is a lot of farmland around there, some of the roads were thick with mud and there were a couple of floods.  In one village we met some contractors with large tractors who seemed to be there solely to spread mud on the road, including one lump the size of a very large badger....  by the end of the route I was glad we'd done it in the Golf and not the Imp, it looked as though it had been offroading, and I'm not sure how well it would have fared in the couple of floods.

The route was designed for an average speed of 24 mph and part of the scoring takes into account how far away from this your speed is (faster or slower); there are time checks along the way as well as at the end.  Also there are code boards along the way with letters on which you have to record to show that you were there, these are normally placed in areas where you might easily cut off a corner or go the wrong way. 

Apparently we ended up 4th overall, but we're not sure yet whether that means out of everyone or just the beginners/novices; we will see when we get the full results.

So, all in all a good first go at navigational rallying!

Winter break

Now that we are in between hill climb seasons we've been looking towards next year. Alex thinks the 875 Sport engine should be able to go straight in without him having to take it apart which is good. He's been investigating the new carbs and reading up on them since we've never had Webers before. The Imp is certainly proving educational as well as fun! 

Alex has taken it up to Newbury for the weekend and reported that it's going well though still the odd tick-over issue. We're not going to worry too much about that though since we'll be changing the engine soon; we're just waiting for some info on the clutch and flywheel requirements.

On the 7th Nov we are doing our first navigation rally with Woolbridge Motor Club over in Dorset/Devon which is quite nerve wracking... We're not planning to use the Imp though, as we have a 2 hour drive just to get to the start!

Shopping!

By Jenny

Just back from a weekend's camping and shopping, not IN the Imp, but FOR the Imp. The final collection consisted of:

One Imp Sport engine 875cc
One standard spare engine 875cc
Twin Weber carburettors and manifold
Montecarlo springs front and rear
New handbrake cable
Brake kits
Replacement dash from which we can take a temp gauge. At the moment we just have The Light of Doom.

So that's a few things for us (well mostly Alex let's face it, while I'm studying) to work on while waiting for hillclimbs to resume in April!

XLB's biggest fan

Whenever we are working on XLB, Django's preferred spot is on the back seat and he will pester and get in the way until we relent!