Author Topic: A big THANKYOU & my 126's Big Day (Read 3553 times)

Lina · « **on:** October 25, 2011, 06:43:48 PM »

Firstly, I must say a massive THANKYOU to 1973/126, otherwise known as Lad, and his partner Lynette!!
I took the trip out to pick up a gearbox and ended up spending one of the most enjoyable afternoons chatting away with them. I went away feeling delighted that getting this silly little car in my life has led me to meet such lovely people! Thanks guys!

Just waiting for the new rubbery bits to arrive in the post and the g/box will be going in over the weekend.

Meanwhile, it's the Big Day tomorrow - MOT. So far, I've got all new tyres, headlights a little better aligned, king pins greased and as of today, a brand new windscreen installed

Anything I CAN check, I have - all lights work, brakes as well as I can test them, steering, etc. I'm as nervous as I was on my son's first day of school!!

Obviously, to give a good impression, I was t-cutting and polishing over the weekend, only to park under a tree at work today that dripped sap all over it!! D'oh!

Anyway, sorry to've been quiet for a while - work's been bonkers! Hope everyone's well!

Lina

dajwid · « **Reply #1 on:** October 25, 2011, 06:52:01 PM »

Sap on the roof is an automatic Mot fail in Essex

Lina · « **Reply #2 on:** October 25, 2011, 07:52:28 PM »

Noooooooooooooo!!!

lol

Amateb8 · « **Reply #3 on:** October 25, 2011, 09:49:44 PM »

I think you have got everything covered. Good luck!

Lina · « **Reply #4 on:** October 25, 2011, 11:41:26 PM »

Thanks! You lot will be informed as soon as I'm at a PC after Showtime!

1973/126 · « **Reply #5 on:** October 26, 2011, 07:47:05 AM »

It was great to meet you too! It`s always nice to meet like minded people.

Good luck with your MOT!!!

Hopefully you`ll get the gearbox sorted soon.

Lina · « **Reply #6 on:** October 26, 2011, 03:04:40 PM »

It's a Fail... BUT, not by a lot...

Front brake imbalance by an unacceptable 35% rather than the 25% that is a pass. So offside front brake cylinder is suspected.

Rear offside brake was initially not doing anything at all, then suddenly it freed off and was okay... then seized on! Again, brake cylinder suspected.

But... that was all!! I've had cars fail with a list as long as your arm, so only this, is really not too bad

Looks like the gearbox will have to wait another weekend while these brakes are sorted - anyone free over the next few days to lend a hand?

Rusty's Uncle · « **Reply #7 on:** October 26, 2011, 03:59:40 PM »

Unlucky Lina but on the great scale of things it's no big deal as you say. The little cars do suffer with the brake cylinders if they are not used regularly. Best to use a 12mm socket or ring spanner on the two brake drum bolts. Brake cylinders are held on with 2 10mms hex head screws, again socket is favourite. Also if you have a 10mms brake pipe union spanner it is useful. It is like a ring spanner with a small section cut out so you can slip it over the solid brake pipe and get a good purchase on the union. You probably know all this already but thought I would just chip in just in case you leapt in there with a set of open enders as I found out the hard way that that can lead to more problems

Look on this not as an MOT fail, more an opportunity to get some nice clean brake fluid in the system

Lina · « **Reply #8 on:** October 26, 2011, 06:21:41 PM »

Oohh Rusty, thank you for your belief in me!!

Actually, this is a steep learning curve - having never had a 126 before and the last time I really worked on cars was in the 90s!! I am an advice-sponge, so keep throwing it at me!

I'll see if I can pick up one of those brake hose spannery things tomorrow on my way to pick up the shoes and cylinders.

Interesting thing came up about the shoes and cylinders... I'm still umm-ing and ah-ing about the age of my vehicle (waiting to hear back from a nice bloke at Fiat on that one), but I'm putting it's date of manufacture around '77. The guy at the Motor Factors in Colchester said there were two types of shoes and cylinders on his system, so I needed to measure the brake drums and the bore of the cylinders... Thing is, it was raining, see?
So I opened up the manual (not-so-trusty Haynes!) and looked it up. Nearly went for the wrong ones, but I recently discovered I have rack and pinion steering, not the box, so had to head to the supplement section, post-August 1977, when they upgraded the steering as well as the rear brakes to a little larger.

I'll be picking up the shoes for drum diameter 185mm and rear cylinder bore of 19mm, front cyl bore 23.81mm. I REALLY hope this is the right pile of bits for my car!

The cylinders were SO cheap - like three quid each, I've decided to change them all round as well as the shoes. So, yeah, it's good the brakes did what they did at the test - forced me to do a bit of safety work, which hurts a LOT less than brakes failing at 50mph...

Otherwise, the nice guy called Bruce that did the MOT is a bit of a fan of 500s and 126s (hence I chose him!), obviously had a GOOD look round the car, and thinks I'm very lucky to find one in as good condition as mine - yes, it's a bit battered round the edges, but otherwise sound. The windscreen guy yesterday was also impressed at how little rust there was in those corners that see the worst rot around the windscreen. I was too when he pulled the screen off! He made sure he really sealed the new screen in well, too.

Anyway, thanks again!

Rusty's Uncle · « **Reply #9 on:** October 26, 2011, 09:17:07 PM »

All of the brake cylinders from the early 500s right up to the Bis have the same mounts , off the top of my head there are 4 different bore diameters but just fit the bigger ones on the front & you will be OK. If the shoes are not contaminated with leaking brake fluid & are half OK then it might be worth leaving those in as they will be bedded into the drums and will probably give a better reading on the test

Lina · « **Reply #10 on:** October 26, 2011, 10:14:05 PM »

Hey, thanks

I've ordered an all round set of shoes and cylinders as I believed that if one side is gone, best to do both sides, for even braking. As both front and back o/s have gone, I'll do the lot. But with what you say, I'll take it the long way round for the re-test and jam the brakes on a few times to settle in a bit.

Also, I've heard on here that to re-adjust the brakes on these darlings you can ~~slam it into reverse~~ place it gently into reverse and go relatively fast backwards then brake hard to readjust the brakes? Is this true or an Urban Myth? If so, might've been worth doing that before the test? What do you think?

Darrell · « **Reply #11 on:** October 27, 2011, 11:32:09 AM »

Yes it is true, the strange sprung washers on the shoes are the 'adjusters' and they move when you do this.

I like your crossing out of the slamming, looks like you going to get-on with the 126 gearbox just fine, remember no first till the wheels are 100% stopped

Lina · « **Reply #12 on:** October 27, 2011, 07:45:03 PM »

Flip!!

All versions of manuals are telling me I need a brand new spindle nut for the front hubs whenever I undo them (i.e. tomorrow morning!). The car's up on axle stands and I've got the shoes and cylinders on my dining room table, ready to be put in in the morning - but I don't have these nuts!! Grr. Guessing this is the same story for the rears. Can one of you lovely, helpful people tell me what size nutty thing I need so I can beg the Motor Factors for a handful of them first thing tomorrow?? A**e!!

Sorry, Darrell, thanks!

I'll do that before retest

!

1973/126 · « **Reply #13 on:** October 27, 2011, 08:14:29 PM »

Lina you don`t need nuts

That`s only for the early models with the wider PCD wheels and only on he front. It`s a pain in the ....

Good luck with the brakes tomorrow. I`m sure you`ll be fine. Don`t forget to use some copper grease on the necessary bits.

Lina · « **Reply #14 on:** October 27, 2011, 08:24:50 PM »

Lad - again, saving my skin!!!

Thankyou!!! Only thing I'm now still concerned about is the brake lines and how to plug them while I'm doing this - don't have a clamp. Either I get the clamp, invent one, or let the fluid run out with the idea of giving it new fluid anyway. Any ideas?

Thanks again!!!!