slomove

I did notice the four "middle-row" bolts are missing. That is interesting as I have stripped one out, anyway So I suppose the cover is rigid enough to compress and seal the 2 inner rails of the gasket.... Any idea how much this weighs? Gert

yes, me too. They locked me out for some red tape reasons I can't be arsed to reactivate it. Some support is appreciated. Thanks, Gert

27 Euro plus Euro 22 S&H (comes out to about $66) and for Chrismas....very nice. I may order one..... Are these available for bike engined Sevens with a redline starting at midnight? Gert

This cover IS nice. Looks very much the business. But the ZX1 cover isn't that bad either.... http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/866373866_NoFilter.jpg (That was a $70 polishing job at one of the local bike "bling" places) Gert

Oh, come on Al, except for one or the other curmudgeon we are a really friendly bunch Gert P.S.: In case nobody noticed....the "other forum" was a joke.

If you own a Seven (at least here in the US) it is surely a sign that you are a little odd. Well, let's say out of the mainstream. Maybe there is just no real point to get into a pissing or bragging contest with others who is the odder one That said, there are surely some individuals who take breed and heritage very serious, even for this oddity. I don't. Gert

Yes I agree that could be done as long as you maintain low ground impedance and consider the (theoretical?) problem of voltage transients destroying the alternator when disconnecting. But at the end it comes down to disconnect the battery as closely as possible to the battery post (either positive or negative) plus shut down the engine/alternator to reduce the likelihood of a fiery short when the car is being mangled. Gert

Hi Al, I don't agree. I know that is long traded wisdom in Caterham circles but comparing my life axle car with a few DeDion Sevens I drove (or was passenger in) I must say I did not really feel much of a difference in ride quality. I have no serious complaints about "corner-hopping" or an uncomfortable street ride (believe me one road on PNW2007 was a pothole festival, not to mention some city streets in L.A.) I suspect it may rather be a proper suspension setup that makes the difference, life axle or not. Now you may call me a numb-ass that I don't feel the obvious...... Gert

:iagree: and don't forget when it is freezing cold, snowy and salty back east and the Seven is in deep hibernation....it is prime blatting time in California! So, if anybody comes over here during Winter, let us know! Gert

yes that is the one I had seen before Surely simpler and cheaper. But I think John wanted to have an inconspicuous switch and I wanted to have something that can disconnect the battery safely in a crash, e.g. on track. The problem I am seeing with the manual switches is that you need to route the "hot" 12V lead from the battery to wherever the switch is, possibly through the tranny tunnel into the dash or through a bulkhead grommet in the firewall. In my view that defeats the purpose because that hot lead can short out just as well and cause trouble. The solenoid can be installed right next to the battery with minimal wire run ( Gert

I think that happens when this site scales it down to 640 pixel. In my Firefox browser I can double click to open a separate window for the image and then click into that again to zoom to full size. Not sure about Explorer..... Gert

John, if just for the stated purpose, Painless offers a solenoid version with toggle function, i.e. one trigger button push it is on then another push and it is off again. That would do what you want and it does not need any power. But it would not be acceptable as a cutoff switch for safety purposes. Gert

Yes, I have this for a year or two now. It works perfectly and is IMO much safer in a crash than a manual battery switch with long "hot" leads. Bob is right that you need to turn off ignition separately but fortunately the one I have comes with a professional "big red emergency stop" button that has 2 sets of contacts, i.e. one to turn off the battery solenoid and the other on to turn off the engine. This button is not exactly "unobtrusive" but that is the whole idea. I still have the old ignition switch but don't use it anymore. If you really need an unobtrusive switch you can replace the one in the Painless picture with a DPST or DPDT from Radioshack and wire as shown below. Since the solenoid does not have the load dump resistor that many manual battery switches have (to avoid a voltage transient in the alternator when the battery is cut off) I added a heavy duty diode across the solenoid contacts that dumps any voltage spike into the battery (the aluminum tube under the solenoid in the picture). One slight disadvantage.....If you have the engine stopped and forget to turn off the solenoid the power for the solenoid itself will drain the battery overnight. That happened to me once when experimenting, but never in normal operation because I always use the big red button to turn off the engine. http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/1926295822_RedButtonDash.jpg http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/1035538871_CutoffSolenoid.jpg http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/193459899_SOLENOID.jpg (you may need to click on the picture to see all the lines....) Gert

Nothing hardcore about it....admittedly different than in the family sedan but way more comfy than e.g.a bike vacation trip. I can drive a few hundred miles a piece in my Birkin and get out just as relaxed (or better) as in any other car. Obviously having a lot of fun, great view and fresh air. Caveat: recommended accessories are ear plugs, good driving shoes, a good seat and something to protect from rain. Gert

I have a set of stock Birkin mirrors that used to mount to the screen stanchion (I believe originally from a Yamaha trail bike). That what you are looking for? Gert

Phew, first I thought you were talking about my video.....but I am certain the speedo is not in view. Not that it matters, because I always obey the law. The one and only time I exceeded the limit oh so slightly I was made aware of my infraction by the Washington State police and did not do it again. :nonod: I guess. But I think I still need to work on my lane holding or video editing skills.... Gert

Lada, SEAT and a few others built cars licensed after the FIAT 128 in the 80s I believe Here a 1982 LADA (the wheels look like Mazda's picture) http://hsudarren.files.wordpress.com/2007/04/lada1.jpg and an original FIAT (since 1969) http://www.delest.nl/media/img/DCP_3566.JPG pretty decent family car for the time.....for most European countries, that is. More info here. This is an interesting version: http://englishrussia.com/images/lada_tank.jpg Gert

Well, maybe not such a bad idea.... If the car breaks down you can still get home in style.

Lada?

The windshield of my Birkin was already looking like the lunar surface from all the flying rocks creating tiny pits. Actually, I noticed much of the damage was done while track driving, don't know exactly why. It is beginning to impede visibility and on the PNW tour I had a rock make a dime size shell-crack. Sounds like a new sheet of glass to me..... Now, where do I go to have a custom cut sheet of the laminated auto safety glass made? I don't really want the heating wires anymore. Do I just go to a regular auto glass repair place? Or are there specialty sources? Sorry about the dumb question if that should be obvious. Thanks, Gert

Piece of Cake! Hurry up :lol:

I was kicking around an idea with Dion and Sindy Davis.....A drive on the Thanksgiving weekend to the area of SLO, Morro Bay or Cambria. That could mean drive up Friday, pootle around the nice roads in the area on Saturday, drive home Sunday, maybe with a Saturday night BBQ, some wine tasting or whatever..... Any other takers? Gert From the South? From the North? Saturday Loop?

Mazda, you sure you bought charcoal and not the ceramic bricks for the gas grill? They look almost the same... Gert P.S.: Ask me how I know :lol:

Well, I would not dispute that the world had lost it's mind. However, I guess this nice example of mindlessness is pretty much US-specific. :jester: Gert

Yeah, you are right.....my son is now well beyond that age. But, on the upside such a Rocky Mountains location may be a way for us to partially combine a Se7ens event with family vacation Gert