ISOA Tech Tips - 2001
Last updated November 24, 2001
The tech articles on this web site are written with the understanding that you have some
mechanical and/or electrical knowledge, and that you know and assume the risks and
responsibilities involved in working on your own car. If you decide to make a modification
to your car based upon one of these articles, you assume total responsibility and risk for
those modifications. In no event will ISOA or any of its directors or officers be liable for
any direct, indirect, incidental, or consequential damages arising out of your making
modifications to your vehicle based upon the contents of an article provided in this web
site. It's your car, and it can affect the health and safety of yourself and others - work
and drive safely and wisely! To put it bluntly, if you don't know what you're doing under
the hood, then you shouldn't be there.
Quick Index
Build a Mixture Monitor
Are you running too rich at idle? Too lean when accelerating? Will you
pass your next emissions test? For under $100 you can build a dash mounted air/fuel ratio
monitor that can help you answer these questions.
Cars equipped with electronic fuel injection usually have an oxygen
sensor (sometimes called an O2 sensor or a lambda sensor) as part of the exhaust system.
In response to the hot exhaust gases running past it, an oxygen sensor acts like a battery
and generates a voltage which varies from 0-1 in rough proportion to the air/fuel ratio.
That voltage signal is generally routed to an engine management computer which ultimately
converts it into cleaner air, but we happen to know that the same signal can be subverted
into providing additional performance and a warmer climate.
Oxygen sensors come in many different styles depending on the make and
model vehicle they are for. Most of them are the same once you snip the fancy connector
off, although you should select a 3-wire version for your Triumph. Single wire oxygen
sensors rely on the heat of the exhaust to keep them at operating temperature (they do
not work when cold). Three wire sensors have a built in heating element. One wire is the
output signal and the other two go to the 12 volt heating element.
To install your oxygen sensor drill a hole in an exhaust pipe as close
to the headers or manifold as possible and then weld on a fitting with 18mm threads. Some
vendors sell weld on fittings designed for this job but an 18mm axle nut will work just
fine if you grind it to fit.
There are a few different air/fuel displays on the market. The unit I
chose has a bar graph made up of 10 LEDs. Besides cost, its main advantage is the ability
to get a rough reading by glancing at the colors that are lit up while keeping your other
eye on the road. The least expensive indicator is any voltmeter that you already own. An
analog meter will be easier to read than a quickly changing digital display. To make it
all work just provide power to the gauge, connect up the output from the O2 sensor, and
warm up the engine. The actual wiring diagram will depend on the year and model of your
Triumph. ISOA members should feel free to call (1-847-482-1673) or email
erik@ISOAquackenbush.com
me with questions about a particular installation.
Any auto parts store can sell you an oxygen sensor for use with your own
voltmeter. Mail order outfits like J.C. Whitney
http://www.jcwhitney.com and Summit
Racing http://www.summitracing.com
sell displays and fittings.
By Erik "Iceman" Quackenbush - March 2001
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Hydraulic System Rebuild for Beginners
Part 1A: Clutch Master & Slave Disassembly
This is part 1 of a series that will give some basics about rebuilding
your hydraulic systems in your Triumph. This is a generic discussion so consult your
service manual for specifics. Fortunately the clutch master and slave arrangement are all
relatively the same for all of the Triumphs. They are made by Girling and use hydraulic
fluid of the same name. Girling systems use natural rubber seals which is why you DO NOT
use DOT 3 or DOT4 brake fluid in place of the Girling fluid. If you do substitute, then
fluid leaking and loss of hydraulic action is inevitable. DOT 3 & DOT 4 are petroleum
based fluids and cause the natural rubber to deteriorate. This is why your brand new fluid
looks "black" in your master cylinder if you used the wrong stuff. I personally
prefer and converted over to DOT 5 silicone and currently use this on the Spitfire, Stag
and the TR7. DOT5 will work in Girling and Lockheed brake systems. Coverage of hydraulic
fluids and subsequent debate over each will be covered in a different article.
Tools and Supplies: Since this is the first in the series, will discuss
some of the tools and materials you will need. These tools and supplies are consistent
across all of the rebuilds. A far as cleaning materials, disposable shop towels, an aerosol
can of brake cleaner, some scotch brite and a wire brush are needed. Depending on the type
of retaining rings used, you will need a snap ring plier, needle nose pliers and a brake
cylinder hone. The hone is a specialized tool and if you ask nicely, can be borrowed from
some members.
There are different size hones and most have similar characteristics.
They have 3 abrasive blocks attached to a spring loaded system that causes them to expand
outward. The force at which causes the blocks to expand outward is adjusted by turning a
thumbwheel controlling the tension on the spring. This assembly is then connected to a
flexible shaft which you hook up to an electric drill. The drill should be capable of
rotating at a relatively slow pace as there is no need for high speed drilling when you
hone cylinders.
Master Cylinder Disassembly
We'll start with the master cylinder rebuild. Open the bleeder on the slave cylinder and
with a old coffee can underneath it, you should be able to pump the majority of fluid out
of the system and with luck have most of it dribble into the can. Next, disconnect the
hydraulic line as well as the actuating rod from the clutch pedal. Remove the two bolts
securing it to the fire wall and bring it to the bench. Since every well equipped
workbench has a vise, clamp it down with the actuating rod facing upwards like in the
photo.
Move the rubber dust boot away and you will see is a retaining ring
that is holding the actuator rod in place as well as the piston that is right behind it.
This retaining ring is generally made with the ends of the ring turned upwards. A suitable
needlenose pliers would be enough to squeeze the ends and rove the ring. If there is a
snap ring there, then use those pliers. At this point the actuating rod will be removed
as well.
If it has been quite awhile since the cylinder has been serviced, don't
count on the piston falling right out. First clean as best you can around the opening of
the cylinder. Use the brake cleaner and a towel. A trick I have found that works pretty
good is to take a punch or screwdriver and push the piston down slightly, then quickly
lift the punch away. The spring tension on the piston should start the piston upwards.
You may have to do this several times, but eventually enough of the piston will expose
itself to grab and pull it out. Squirt brake fluid or WD40 (you'll be doing adequate
cleanup later) down the opening if you seem to be making little headway. As I said, it
may take a few times, but it'll come out. You can put the filler cap on and hit the
hydraulic line connection with compressed air, however sometimes "more power"
launches the piston across the garage and over to bounce across the car. Put the piston
and rod off to the side as we will be cleaning, inspecting and rebuilding those later.
The next step is to clean up as much of the old fluid and gunk from the
master cylinder. Once clean, you can do a visual inspection of the condition of the
cylinder walls. What you are looking for is corrosion or excessive wear on the walls.
As long as you do not have real deep pitting or gouges, the hone will take care of this.
How to tell you to "hone" a cylinder is a tough thing to
describe. It is very easy to set the hone tension too strong and while it will certainly
take out and gouging and corrosion, you run the risk of making the walls too rough. So make
sure you set the hone towards the "light" end of tension. While it make take you
longer to clean things up, at least you won't be ruining things in a quick manner. With
the hone attached to the drill, spin it at the slowest speed. While spinning, move the
drill up and down with slow strokes. The idea is to provide equal "time" of the
hone along the entire length of the cylinder. If you were to keep it in one spot too long,
then you run the risk of radially gouging that area. Nice and slow, with little spring
tension. Eventually you will smooth out the cylinder walls and you should see a very very
fine cross hatch pattern (from the up and down motion). Pull the hone out every so often
as the abrasive stones will collect material from the cylinder walls. You can generally
wipe this off or use one of those fine detail brushes to clean them. Take your time as you
will be doing this routine several times. Once everything looks smooth, thoroughly clean
the cylinder and wipe it out with a rag to make sure there is no dirt or contamination
eft. The paper towels you use should be fairly clean after wiping it out. After I get it
wiped out, I run a patch of fine scotch brite pad through the length a few times. Then
wipe things out one more time. Remember to make sure that the reservoir is cleaned out
also!
Slave Cylinder Disassembly
With the slave cylinder in the vise, remove the rubber dust shield. This will expose a poor
excuse for a retaining clip as many times it's just a loop of spring wire. Remove this clip.
We really can't use the punch on the piston trick with the slave as the return spring isn't
very strong. However, unlike the master, you can use a thin rod coming in from the
bleeder/hydraulic line end and gently push the piston out. Don't force it as you may ruin
the return spring.
Inspection, cleaning, honing, cleaning is the same routine we did on the
master.
Next Month we will do the piston inspection and seal replacements as
well as the final assembly of the master and slave.
By: Joe "Stagmeister" Pawlak - March 2001
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Electronic Ignition
Part 1
I have a complex electronic ignition system in my TR-6 so I'll cover it
a piece at a time. This month I'll look at the Pertronix Ignitor. The Ignitor is a complete
electronic ignition that fits underneath the distributor cap. It replaces the points and
condensor with a sleeve that slides over the distributor shaft and a magnetic trigger that
fits in place of the points. The sleeve contains 6 magnets which rotate along with the
shaft. The magnetic trigger senses each magnet as the sleeve rotates and fires the coil
at the appropriate time. Pertronix also makes sleeves for 4 and 8 cylinder cars and they
make both positive and negative ground trigger modules to suit most applications foreign
and domestic.
Installation is simple. First remove the distributor cap, rotor, and
points. Then slide the magnetic sleeve over the distributor shaft. Now screw the pickup
module down in place of the points. The read and black wires coming from the trigger module
replace the single wire that goes to the coil. The black wire goes to the coil in place of
the old wire, and the red wire is tapped into any switched 12 volt source. Once you put
the cap and rotor back on and set the timing you're done!
With an Ignitor installed you'll never have to change or adjust your
points again. Dwell time is electronically controlled. The Ignitor is less sensitive to
uneven wear of the distributor shaft. Unless you have a brand new distributor your timing
will be more accurate and your engine should run more smoothly.
It's a good idea to save the old points, condensor, and coil wire. Put
them in the trunk or the glove box. If the Ignitor ever fails you can always revert back
to points in a few minutes.
The Ignitor can also be used to trigger an advance timing computer.
We'll cover that next month. In the meantime you can more information from
http://www.pertronix.com. One of the
vehicles featured on their splash page is a green GT-6.
By Erik "Iceman" Quackenbush - March 2001
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Cooling the Tractor Engine Triumphs
Over the years I've been involved with ISOA I've heard many owners complain about overheating problems with these cars. (TR2 thru TR4A) I'll start with the basics and go on from there.
First thing, what does your coolant look like? Is it nice and fresh looking or is it kind of brown? If it is the latter, go buy two flush kits and install one as per instructions. Flush the system. When the water runs clear, stop running water thru the system. Drain a little water out to lower the level in the radiator. Now add a small box of baking soda to the radiator and fill with water back to the top. Now drive the car for an hour. Do not let it idle. Take a nice drive, country roads would be best. When you get back, flush the system with water. You will be amazed at what comes out of your system. This is a tip given to me by an old radiator man when he boiled out my radiator. Now use the second flush kit to flush the radiator again. This will have your cooling system as clean as you can get it doing it yourself.
The next step is to change your thermostat. Originals had a slide valve that opened and closed the bypass. These are no longer available. You can buy the replacement at any auto parts store. It measures 2-1/8" OD. And is 160 degrees. I got mine at auto zone. It's a Robert Shaw generation 2 with a life-time warranty. It's all brass and it did cost a little more. You will have to drill a 1/8" hole in the brass flange. The hole is mounted at the top when installed. This provides some bypass and vents the system when you are filling the system with coolant. For the bypass port, you must plug it at the thermostat housing. Look at the pictures. Drill out the elongated hole in the bypass port for a 1/4" pipe tap and screw in a 1/4" pipe plug. If you don't plug this port, coolant will flow thru it and circulate thru the block, but not the radiator. You will overheat. Now it's time to mix your coolant. Use any good quality antifreeze, mix it in a 50/50 mix with
distilled water. You want to use distilled water because it has no minerals in it. Well that looks like we've got it, but no, there's one more item. The lowly radiator cap. Not important you say. Not so. Your radiator cap determines how much pressure you can have in your system. This in turn governs at what point your coolant boils. Get a new TR4 radiator cap. This will be an upgrade for the TR2 thru TR3B. It raises the pressure rating from 4 to 7 lbs.
With the above mentioned work completed, you might think things should be nice and cool on the engine front, but they probably are not. The reason is the inadequate cooling fan. It has only four blades and they have almost no pitch. There are two ways to cure the problem. One is to replace the stock engine-driven fan with another such as the yellow eight-bladed fan found on TR250's and early TR6's. You must shorten the extension the fan mounts on. You have to take off at least 3/8" of stock overall from both ends. Any machine shop can do it. I machined a new one out of aluminum, but it could be made from any material. The second and easier way is to mount an electric fan on the front side of the radiator. This allows the stock fan to be retained. Just make sure the fan you buy is a pusher or can be converted to that configuration. The fan must blow air thru the radiator. If not, you will be the second case of dueling fanjos-a news item sure to make headlines in Snic
Braaapp and a sure boomer award. I would suggest using a temperature controlled switch with an override toggle switch on the dash, so you can turn the fan on at your command.
OK, now we're cooking. We've got a good clean cooling system and a good fan. You should not overheat but for the most severe conditions, such as going 70 m.p.h. on the freeway and then coming to a stop or in stop and go traffic for over thirty minutes. This is a real test. Here you are speeding down the freeway at 3000 to 3500 rpm building up a lot of heat in your engine and then you suddenly take away all that 70 m.p.h. cooling air. Now you must cool down all that hot cast iron in your engine with only your cooling fan and your radiator. See what i mean? If after all this you are still boiling over, the next step is the new radiator core. Come on guys, bite the bullet, buy that new core. I know of two available cores. The Modine core #120315PL (or L core) and the GDI core #260524. I have the latter in my TR4. It has ended all overheating problems. At Glen Park Radiator in Gary, Indiana, where I got mine it cost $261. I have been very happy with this core.
TR2 thru TR3B owners can get more efficiency by leaving out the handcrank hole in the core (note good for concours). It will cost less as well. These new core are more efficient than the old ones they replace. Bob Schaller claims 37% more cooling capacity and increased flow rate for the modine core. This seems a bit optimistic to me. My gdi core is supposed to be equivalent to the modine core. I would rate is as maybe 10 or 15% more efficient than the original.
At this point you might want to do something for the environment. Like adding a catch tank. This upgrade has two advantages; you won't lose your coolant if you do boil over, plus no one will have to call the EPA. This can be very embarrassing. Once again the TR6 can provide both the tank, tube, and the bracket.
Well I guess that's it but remember - Tractor motors rule!
By Pat "Power Bulge" Lobdell - April 2001
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J-Type Overdrive Blues
My trip out to this year's Potato Fest was marvelous. My TR6 was running smoothly, the weather was perfect, and the spuds were flying. As I left the Jaquet estate and turned onto Route 2 I accelerated to cruising speed, turned on the stereo, and engaged the overdrive.
I suddenly had visions of Captain Kirk demanding warp speed and instead hearing Mr. Scott's profuse apology for the temporary lack of power. My J-type overdrive was dead. Not to worry! I pulled to the side of the road, and put on my Scotty hat. From past experience I knew that most overdrive failures were caused by low transmission oil or by a fault in the solenoid electrics.
The J-type overdrive provides a 0.8:1 gear reduction, was built by the (British) Laycock De Normanville Company, and can be found on any overdrive equipped TR6 built after 1972 as well as many Volvos built during the seventies and early eighties. Much like a modern automatic transmission the J-type overdrive uses an internal hydraulic clutch (controlled by a solenoid valve) to engage a set of planetary gears which provide the speed reduction. The overdrive solenoid on a TR6 is controlled via a stalk on the steering column. The complete circuit is illustrated in figure 1. Because the J-type solenoid coil only draws 2 amps it does not require a relay like the earlier A-type solenoid.
The solenoid circuit consists of the solenoid, the overdrive switch, and the transmission interlock switch. One lead of the overdrive switch goes to a switched +12V supply and the other goes to the interlock switch through a grommet in the front right side of the transmission tunnel cover. The two wires for the reverse light switch go through the same grommet.
There are three interlock switches that screw into the top cover of the TR6 transmission housing. The switch on the left controls the reverse lights, the one on the right is used for A-type overdrives, and the one on top is for the J-type overdrive. This normally open switch gets closed whenever the transmission is put into 3rd or 4th gear. It is a bad idea to bypass this switch. The high torque of 1st and 2nd gear will quickly wear out the overdrive and you can destroy a J-type in a few seconds by running it in reverse.
The first thing to do when your overdrive fails is to trace the solenoid circuit using your voltmeter or test light. Turn the engine off, put the ignition key back in the "on" position, and put the car into 3rd gear. Find the three wires that come out of the grommet on the right side of the transmission tunnel cover near the firewall. The yellow wire with a green stripe is the power lead for the overdrive solenoid. With the overdrive switch down you should measure roughly 12 volts here. Flipping the switch up should yield zero volts. If you have no voltage here you can trace the yellow/green wire back until it connects to a blue wire. If there is voltage on the blue wire then you have a bad connection between the two- clean the contacts. No voltage yet? The overdrive switch has blue and yellow/green yellow. Find the yellow/green lead coming out of the switch and check for voltage. If voltage goes into the switch but refuses to come out then you need to repair or replace the
switch. Tracing back further the yellow/green wire connects to a solid green wire. If there is no voltage on the solid green wire then you probably have a blown fuse. We could have checked the fuse at the beginning of this paragraph but then we wouldn't have learned how to trace out the whole circuit.
If the switch seems to pass voltage down through transmission cover you can listen for the 'click' of the solenoid. Wait until there's a lull in traffic (we're still by the side of the road, remember?), put your ear to the ground and reach up to flip the switch. If you hear a 'click' then you know that the overdrive and interlock switches are both working (we're still in 3rd gear) and that the ground wire is still connected to the solenoid.
Satisfied that the solenoid circuit was OK I started the engine and headed home, but I still had no overdrive. After a few miles on I-90 I got tired of the 4500 RPM hum and I took the first exit I saw that advertised a truck stop. Among the trucker travel coolers and diesel oil in the gift shop I spotted what I was looking for- genuine GL-4 90 weight gear oil. I bought a quart and, after making a mess of my shirt, one knuckle, and a previously oil-free section of the parking lot, I managed to get some of it into my transmission. I knew that low gear oil would starve the overdrive's internal hydraulic pump and make it very slow to engage. I assumed (incorrectly) that since my solenoid was OK I must be low on gear oil. After topping up the transmission and doing my best to clean up the mess I hit the road. I still had no overdrive.
Just because you hear a click does not mean the solenoid is working properly. The solenoid valve has five O-rings in it that will wear out over time. If one of these O-rings fails to provide a good seal then the overdrive will be unable to build up enough hydraulic pressure to engage the internal clutch. A rebuilt overdrive solenoid costs about $200 but replacement O-Rings only cost $1-$2.
To remove the solenoid for inspection you will need a 1" thin tappet wrench with a stubby handle. Craftsman does not list such a wrench in their catalog but a suitable substitute can be made (see photo 1) by grinding a larger opening into their 7/8" tappet wrench and then cutting the handle down so you can swing the wrench without hitting the chassis. If your transmission is out of the car then a long handle will work.
Once you have the solenoid off the car (see photo 2) you can rebuild it by replacing the O-rings. There are two O-rings on the outside of the solenoid plunger. If you remove the internal snap ring from the nose of the plunger you can disassemble the valve and reach the other three O-rings. Tell your supplier you want two National O-Ring size 007, one size 010, and two size 013 in BUNA-N.
Once you have replaced the O-Rings and reinstalled the solenoid (don't forget to replace the snap ring!) you'll have to top up the transmission fluid again before taking a test drive.
If, like me, your overdrive still fails to engage after rebuilding the solenoid the next step does NOT involve removing the transmission. According to the service manual I could attach a factory special tool (Churchill tool #L.188A) to perform a pressure check and then use a different factory tool (#L.354A) to remove the internal plugs. Unfortunately these tools have been unavailable for a long time.
Each overdrive has a pressure test port near the solenoid. This port is normally plugged with what I believe to be a Whitworth coarse thread bolt. The shop manual says to remove this plug and attach the pressure tester to this port. So I ordered a replacement plug/bolt from the Roadster Factory (it was in stock) along with a spare sump gasket and a new O-ring for the pressure relief valve. I then drilled a hole down the center of the original plug (see photo 4), cut off a short piece of 1/8" NPT pipe, and welded the two together. I then used a 1/8" NPT adapter to connect the hollow plug to short piece of high pressure air hose with a 0-400 PSI gauge at the other end. Presto! I now had one Churchill special tool #L.188A (see photo 5).
I attached the pressure tester to the overdrive, routed the hose into the passenger compartment so I could read the gauge, and went for a test drive. The pressure climbed from zero to about 20 PSI as soon as I started moving. I attempted to engage the overdrive but the pressure stayed the same instead of pegging the needle with 430-460 PSI like it was supposed to.
Removing the overdrive sump cover (photo 3) revealed three plugs which can be removed using Churchill special tool #L.354A. To fabricated a suitable replacement (see photo 6) I cut off a short piece of aircraft aluminum bar stock, drilled two carefully spaced holes in it, and tapped the holes to accept #10-32 machine screws. Not visible in the photo are two #10-32 nuts which serve as depth stops and prevent the machine screws from working loose.
I used the new tool to remove the pressure filter. I washed it out in petrol (it needed it) and replaced it. I then removed the relief valve plug. Sproing! I was rewarded with a loose handful of springs and valve parts. I had found the problem. According to the factory diagram the lower part of the relief valve assembly is supposed to be fastened together with a machine screw and a metal lock nut (see photo 6). After 27 years of abuse the lock nut had worked its way off the machine screw. This took the pre-load off the main spring and prevented the pressure build-up required to engage the overdrive. I cleaned the oil from the screw and nut and used a tiny amount of thread locker during reassembly as preventive maintenance. I also replaced the O-ring on the relief valve plug.
I installed the sump cover using the new gasket and screwed the new plug into the pressure test port. After a couple of quick snic-braaaps to get up to speed I crossed my fingers and flipped the overdrive switch.
Mr. Scott, is the overdrive back on line? "Aye Captain" came the familiar voice from the intercom. After a tense moment the bridge crew felt the RPMs drop as the ship entered overdrive.
"Churchill special tools L.188A and L.354A" as well as a custom "Craftsman" solenoid wrench are available to any ISOA member upon request.
Erik "Iceman" Quackenbush - November 2001
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Ode to Ground
We have all heard numerous times about the importance of grounds (earth) in our Triumphs. This tale is a reinforcement of that point.
On the way to Colorado the 250 ran perfectly for the 1289 miles out there and for the entire time there. Never any problems while we were there either, even up to over 14,000 feet. All of this good luck seemed to disappear on the way back.
I convoyed back with Pete Conover and Joe Kaplon. We had not gone 3 miles out of Breckenridge when my car started to sputter and then died. I thought it might be a fuel problem. Everything checked out and the car started immediately so off we went. The next 30 minutes were carefree through the highland valley but once we started up the mountain I started loosing power and eventually the car died again.
This time I decided to check the electrical system. The coil wire was pulled and an extra plug attached (thanks Joe) and there was spark from the coil to the distributor. Then pulled spark plug wire #1 and found no spark from distributor to plug. Inspection of the distributor cap found that the carbon center part was sticking so Peter lent me his spare cap and everything checked out. So off we went again with more happy motoring up the mountains over the pass and then the same problem again. This time our thought was that it must be the rotor. We changed that, did the diagnostics again and there was spark! So off we went again down the mountain, through Colorado Springs and off towards northern Kansas and again the same problem! This time it HAD to be a faulty Lucas rotor, so Peter lent me his extra aftermarket one. It was a little bigger but just barely rubbed the Igniter piece under the cap. Off we went again and had no problems the rest of the day (3 hours). Fixed at last!
The next morning we got up ready to roll and I barely got out of the parking lot when it happened again. A friendly police office stopped and told me there was a parts store just down the street. While waiting for it to open, I decided to run down every wire in the ignition/running system to make sure that all the wires were connected properly. When I went to wiggle the female connector on the coil for the wire coming from the distributor, the coil moved! I then noticed that the front bolt on the coil clamp was loose. Also on this bolt was the ground from the alternator (see photo). I tightened this bolt and off we went. For the rest of the trip (2 days) the car ran flawlessly.
The day after I got back while driving around after washing the car (all of the 3" grasshoppers in Nebraska and Kansas committed suicide on my front) I noticed that the ammeter was showing an unusual discharge when using turn signals as well as the little red ignition light was on at anything less than 3000 rpm. The next day I pulled the alternator and took it to the Starter Shop in Aurora for testing. His comment was that had I been using a lot of current because two of the three diodes were melted! When I told him about the loose bolt that held the ground he smiled. I went home, sanded the ground and used dielectric grease on the connection. When I got the alternator back and installed, the system had an amazing amount of spark and the ammeter never moves when I use the turn signals or lights-for the first time! Needless to say I have been going thru the car and cleaning up all the remaining grounds. This adventure really brought me down to earth and has helped me keep both feet firmly on the ground.
by Tim "Yacker" Smith
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