1986 Caterham BDR, a new old car

[Wayne Stambaugh]

4 minutes ago, MV8 said:

You guys are having too much fun.

 

I doubt you have foam. Foam is an accessory for racing tanks but can cause more problems than it is worth, breaking down (from age or incompatibility with the fuel used) and clogging the fuel filter. I'd rather have slosh. I suggest removing the tank and fuel level sender to wash out the tank. Check that the float arm moves freely (not heavily rusted), the float still floats, and the resistance value changes smoothly and gradually with the arm position.

 

I agree on the foam baffles. I have worked on some dirt track cars and had problems with them. I have a bore scope that I can check the inside of the tank with and I’m thinking he drained this car wnen he put it up. There is no smell of old gasoline so maybe the tank will be okay. I’m going to install the carter fuel pump you recommended before I run the engine as well as a filter. Did I mention the car has less than 40 miles on it.

[MV8]

I thought you said 40,000 miles. I chuckle a bit when I see sales adverts that state "ran when parked". "mechanic's dream" is another side buster.

[Wayne Stambaugh]

31 minutes ago, MV8 said:

I thought you said 40,000 miles. I chuckle a bit when I see sales adverts that state "ran when parked". "mechanic's dream" is another side buster.

Actually the odometer is showing 31 miles. The way I have it figured, he drove it around the his block about 20 times. 

[MV8]

Wow! It sounds like he bought it for an investment as a very special cat. Most are not by comparison. I'm guessing you could get $35k or more as a non-runner if it were to be auctioned, but I understand if that is not on the table and it is just a fun car to be driven.

[Wayne Stambaugh]

1 hour ago, MV8 said:

Wow! It sounds like he bought it for an investment as a very special cat. Most are not by comparison. I'm guessing you could get $35k or more as a non-runner if it were to be auctioned, but I understand if that is not on the table and it is just a fun car to be driven.

I have watched this car since he bought it new and have always wanted to experience it. I encouraged him to finish it and I think he just ran out of steam. After removing the engine yesterday I can see the devotion an passion you have to have to own it (work on it). It would be easy to put things off knowing the time and effort it would require. My wife can sell it when I’m gone and maybe she will benifit from it when she does. My plan is to keep it in the garage until I die or can’t drive. I think working on stuff like this helps keep you young. 

[Wayne Stambaugh]

12 hours ago, Wayne Stambaugh said:

I have watched this car since he bought it new and have always wanted to experience it. I encouraged him to finish it and I think he just ran out of steam. After removing the engine yesterday I can see the devotion an passion you have to have to own it (work on it). It would be easy to put things off knowing the time and effort it would require. My wife can sell it when I’m gone and maybe she will benifit from it when she does. My plan is to keep it in the garage until I die or can’t drive. I think working on stuff like this helps keep you young. 

[Wayne Stambaugh]

Forgive my ignorance while navagating this forum. I really don’t understand everything I need to know yet.

 

Minutes ago I separated my engine and transmission. I reinstalled the shifter and the transmission is still stuck. I removed the top cover and the transmission even looks like its only got 31 miles on it. I am not familiar with this T9 Ford 5 speed. I have never been inside one before. I have attached a couple pictures so you can see how clean it is. I think this my be the reason the project was halted. If John jambed the transmission and couldn’t get it to move he may not have had the courage to tell anyone and he put the car in the corner and covered it up. He may have just not had the horse power to pull the engine and transmission, fix it and reinstall it. I’ll see what kind of manuals I can find on the T9 and try to work throught it. I have done MGA, MGB, Ford Model and and Ford Flathead V8 transmissions but never a 5 speed. Ford’s transmissions were almost all about the same from 1928 to 1952, then everything changed.

[IamScotticus]

This probably won't work but pop off the speedo gear cover and remove the plastic drive gear (you probably won't be using it going forward).

 

Try freeing the selector locking pin.

 

 

 

 

Edited November 6, 2023 by IamScotticus

[Wayne Stambaugh]

Worth a try! I may wait until I have a manual to do anything at all.

[IamScotticus]

There should be some guides on the downloads section here

 

And buy a Haynes Sierra repair book.  Those usually have a T9 transmission section.  Not sure which year to choose.  start with the case numbers to determine which car.

 

That selector rod front end is a known point of water ingress.  I suggest there may be some rust issues there.  maybe not.

[Croc]

8 hours ago, Wayne Stambaugh said:

 I’ll see what kind of manuals I can find on the T9 and try to work throught it.

 

 

Seek and you will find in our site downloads section

 

https://usa7s.net/ips/files/category/31-gearbox/

 

 

 

I keep adding materials to this USA7s technical library as they are found by members or myself.

[MV8]

I suspect you are in 5th or reverse since 1-2 and 3-4 are in neutral. Rotate the input shaft and watch the output to determine what gear it is in. There is a plunge action at the shifter to defeat the reverse lockout to engage (lump inside hole aligns with notch in side of shifter shaft). Some more info: https://usa7s.net/ips/topic/14314-gear-shifter-biased-to-5th-gear/page/2/

[Wayne Stambaugh]

6 hours ago, IamScotticus said:

There should be some guides on the downloads section here

 

And buy a Haynes Sierra repair book.  Those usually have a T9 transmission section.  Not sure which year to choose.  start with the case numbers to determine which car.

 

That selector rod front end is a known point of water ingress.  I suggest there may be some rust issues there.  maybe not.

no rust, absolutely new inside. Rust was one of the number one things I suspected but thankfully that not the case.

[Wayne Stambaugh]

59 minutes ago, MV8 said:

I suspect you are in 5th or reverse since 1-2 and 3-4 are in neutral. Rotate the input shaft and watch the output to determine what gear it is in. There is a plunge action at the shifter to defeat the reverse lockout to engage (lump inside hole aligns with notch in side of shifter shaft). Some more info: https://usa7s.net/ips/topic/14314-gear-shifter-biased-to-5th-gear/page/2/

 

It’s doubtful that I’ll be able to get it on the bench tonight to do a closer investigation but I will see if I can determine what gear it’s in and with the help of the information here try to figure out what is wrong. I have never experienced this with a manual transmission before. I sure hope it’s not characteristic of the T9 Sierra and I seriously doubt that it is. Thanks MV8 for the link above, I’ll check it out. For the sake of saving time, if this turns into a complete tear down I would be interested in finding a reliable shop to get it done quickly.

 

MV8 for the link.

 

 

[MV8]

You have a PM.

[Wayne Stambaugh]

6 hours ago, MV8 said:

I suspect you are in 5th or reverse since 1-2 and 3-4 are in neutral. Rotate the input shaft and watch the output to determine what gear it is in. There is a plunge action at the shifter to defeat the reverse lockout to engage (lump inside hole aligns with notch in side of shifter shaft). Some more info: https://usa7s.net/ips/topic/14314-gear-shifter-biased-to-5th-gear/page/2/

 

Thanks again MV8, I’ll check it out.

[inchoate]

There's actually some stuff on youtube.  I found this video informative.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11OUPwT_dYY&ab_channel=StephenMorten

 

there's a part 2 as well.

 

Edited November 7, 2023 by inchoate

[Wayne Stambaugh]

Thanks Inchoate, I’ll take a look at the videos. This working for a living is killing my Seven time. Hopefully I can get back on this thing Friday. I’ll post whatever I find. Thanks for the link!

[Wayne Stambaugh]

Would it be appropriate to replace the oil return hose and the smaller vent hose coming down from the head on the left front corner of the engine with silicone hoses? While the engine and gearbox are out of the car, my goal is to replace any rubber parts that could cause oil leaks when I start running this engine. I understand BDRs often tend to leak oil various places.

[MV8]

In general, no for the oil lines, but I've used pushloc hoses (they have no external clamps) many times for remote oil filters and coolers. They last a long time. You can get what you need on ebay for the hose ends and hose. It's also possible to cut the crimp ring off what you have to replace the hoses with the appropriate rated rubber hose, then fit crimp rings to reuse the existing fittings but it looks like yours are kinda beat up in the pics.