Mick Day

This may be the clue that leads to a duff alternator. As said before test the voltage with a voltmeter across the battery with the engine running. Should be 13.8 to 14.4v. If not then the alternator is US. Can be rebuilt. The battery? Well often if the alternator isn't charging properly the battery will cycle between partial charge & no charge. In essence the battery dies & it needs replacing. However the alternator is the root cause & needs some attention.

Steve Greenald, Track n Road, 07774-773824. Located just a few miles north of the Dartford tunnel may be able to help. He's mapped many Caterhams & can handle Emerald & other ECU's.

I would think the sender varies the resistance. The VDO sender on my 1994 K series had a 1/8 NPTF thread Edited by - Mick Day on 19 Feb 2008 20:09:20

Sounds like a fantastically useful bit of kit Roger. On the subject of dry sumps I've been lingering on Porsche discussion forums. Whilst we Caterham owners may have up to two scavenge pumps in our dry-sump systems the latest 911 Turbo variant has 8! ""In comparison to the 8 oil pumps on the 911 Turbo (996), the new 911 Turbo features an additional extraction pump in the crankcase, resulting in a total of 9 oil pumps. These break down into 8 oil extraction and one oil delivery pump: 2 oil extraction pumps for the turbochargers, 4 oil extraction pumps for the cylinder heads (2 per cylinder head), and 2 extraction pumps and one delivery pump in the crankcase." here

HFF217 from Halfords or GFE7020 from CC.

I don't think you'll have a problem as I modified my injection tank to remove this breather. I only have a breather in the neck of the filler & it's no problem.

If the engine was running fine when you bought the car, & until recently, then it must have been something that's recently changed . Let's assume the jets are OK for the performance of the car. So it would be worthwhile stripping the carbs completely & giving the whole thing a good clean in carb cleaner. Jets can become blocked. When was the fuel filter last changed? Pay particular attention to the float heights as well. When I adjusted mine the idle, performance & progression was much improved. Refurb kits are about £25 each. Although the following references relate mainly to down draught Webers the principle is still the same with side draught. 40DCOE2 here here here Redline Weber here Edited by - Mick Day on 16 Feb 2008 13:26:33

I had a Triumph Spitfire in the 70's & I was forever replacing leaky clutch master cylinders.

I have a copy. Send me a Blatmail & I'll send it to you.

An A-frame, or A-arm, is a term used in the USA for a wishbone.

You will need VVC size cams.

Hi Rob I would just ask around among friends. I'm close enough to TSK so would get him to do it. I had my new Subaru's bumper painted by a local guy recommended to me. Excellent job & can't see the join. Maybe pop into a small independent garage & ask where they would go? Or pop it in the post to TSK. Mick Edited by - Mick Day on 11 Feb 2008 16:25:23

I would assume hiting it with a bloody big hammer..............................................................but as it's aluminium you only need to hit it gently!

The throttle pedal has a bronze bush which can stick. Charging uphill in France overtaking a line of cars, full thottle & come to lift off & nothing happens. Had to hook my foot underneath the pedal to slow down. Anyhow had a look & it seemed ok. Did it again a few times so back in the UK stripped it down & lubricated the bush.

Miles *wavey*Welcome aboard. There used to be a URL to this sort of thing but it appears to have been taken down. However I have a suitable wiring diagram so if you would like to send me a Blatmail I'll forward it to you. just click on the little mail icon above my post. Mick

Hi Neal *wavey*Welcome to the madhouse that is Blatchat! I've had a K series, in various guises, that’s been used on track with a wet sump & sticky tyres. For most of that time it ran with an oil/air separator (aka Apollo tank). This helps to remove the air from the oil, as a K series with shallow sump tends to induce air pick-up. There is also some foam in the sump, which is said to help reduce surge. However the perceived wisdom is to remove it & carry out a small mod to the sump gasket to improve drainage. The foam has been known to break up & block the oil pick-up. There is no baffling in the sump (other than the foam). A baffle arrangement can be obtained from Hellier. I ran with this, no foam, an Apollo tank & a modified gasket for some time, & when the engine was stripped for a major upgrade the big end bearings were in good condition; I was lucky! However for road use I would suggest you need no more. Incidentally there is no dynamic problem with a N/S or E/W engine installation. In the Caterham N/S mode there just isn’t enough ground clearance for a standard sump. The standard K series sump is deeper around the oil pick-up & this is fitted in the Elise. Why a properly baffled sump wasn’t made I don’t know. Dry sump systems come in at around £1500. Caterham have 2 offerings: 1 with the oil tank in the bell-housing & 1 with a remote oil tank. The bell-housing tank is very neat packaging; both use the same scavenge pump & rely on the internal oil pump for pressure. Pace supply sump & a 3-stage pump for duel scavenge & pressure. A remote tank is required but it is possible to mount a tank in front of the engine. This is what I have. Hope this helps. Do a search, as there’s plenty in the archives. Mick

I don't understand this. This must mean that there is a different spherical bearing for wide & narrow track. My original narrow track originally had no spacer. New bearings were fitted & we used the spacer as apparantly this introduces a certain amount of anti-dive (IISTR). I now have wide track with the spacer. Edited by - Mick Day on 3 Feb 2008 10:50:57

There are 4 relays in the MFRU for: fuel pump; lambda sensor; starter solenoid; injectors, charcoal cannister, & IACV. You want a beefy switch as an ignition switch that will not corrode in a short space of time. 40 amps is more than man enough especially if you wish to wire other circuits through it. Edited by - Mick Day on 1 Feb 2008 13:29:29

40 amp ignition switch from Demon Tweaks

Check it once the engine's warm/hot & running.

Makes the Rover K series quite simple then. 😬

As far as the geometry is concerned there is no difference in the lower wishbone, other than it may have a spherical bottom joint rather than a trunion. The difference is in the upper wishbone which allows for camber change on the upper joint.

I have some pics of my shortened input shaft against a ruler. Let me know if you need a copy.

You mentioned in an earlier post you had an Apollo. Flywheel: If you're using your original 1.4 flywheel & retaining the same ECU then everything will be OK. However if you're using the flywheel from the new engine with the same ECU there could be problems. You could of course run the new engine with it's ECU/flywheel (if you have them) but you would need to rewire the injector/coil side of things. Why? Well the earlier flywheels have a different tooth pattern to the later flywheels plus the later injector/coil wiring was different. AFAICT you're using the original flywheel with the original ECU so the ECU will know no difference & there will be no problem. As long as you have a catalyst that's in working order you stand a good chance of passing the MOT. The ECU will know no difference & will fuel/time as before. However the bigger injectors & the increase in cc may affect emissions. To be honest your going to have to make a leap of faith here & maybe get a programmable ECU if all else fails. I would suspect most people have fully kit/componant built cars so are only relying on visible smoke tests. My conversion in 2000 was fraught with problems as we were trying to run the new engine complete with new flywheel/ECU but with the original engine loom wiring & coil. Caused many a headache. Good luck Mick

Hi Bruce Exciting time.......... I remember the 1st time I took my engine out. Had a good friend to hold my hand & he loaned me his crane. Thanks Adrian! 1. Can't answer on the emissions but all the charcoal canister does is take "fumes" from the fuel tank breather. Remove it & do the mod here for the fuel tank breather. 2. I've seen Caterham do this in their workshop. 3. Remove the engine bay diagonal bars if you have them. Take out the rad as it stops you swinging the engine into it! Take off the exhaust & starter motor. You will probably be able to keep the alternator but if you don't have removable bars you may have to remove it. You can remove the engine with an Apollo in place. Difficult but I did it. No need to remove the steering column. 4. I use 2 ratchet tie down straps around the engine. Works well. 5. Never done this. 6. I've taken my engine out 3 times & have always split gearbox/engine. Remove all bolts from bell housing to engine (don't forget the ones into the sump) & with the engine mounts removed & the engine supported by the crane push on the clutch pedal with your hand & the engine will pop off the input shaft. With the engine out of the way remove reverse light connection & speedo drive. If possible drain the gearbox oil. Undo the big central bolt through the gearbox mount & gently manhandle the gearbox out. The prop will drop out the back. It can be done single-handed but it's easier with help. It's actually very easy but double-check everything before you do it. Also remember to label all electrical connections before you start. Good luck Mick