PVC valve connector

[AnkerB-S]

Started for serious on updating, cleaning and checking the 1700 Supersprint.

Item 1 was putting it on jack stands and removing the wheels so I can get at suspension and brakes. Learned the hard way that you can't put jack stands on one side and then the other side. Has to be one end at a time. was careful, so I saw what was going to happen. 

The whole suspension is going to need a good cleaning. Oily grime covers everything. Bearings and bushings seem to be in good shape. Cleaning, flushing brakes and checking pads and shes can wait.

Then I moved to the engine. I am going to reroute the crank case blow by using the routing through the valve cover and then a catch can. The Caterham catch can is a bit of junk, so I'll get a good one instead and use the hoses and PVC valve connector from the Caterham kit.

QUESTION: The original rubber PVC valve connector is a really lose fit, but doesn't want to come out of the valve. It is held by a disk that appears to be brazed on to the valve. Do I just use brute force to pull the old connector out? Seems to be the only option

The carb was a real chore to remove. Especially the nuts on the bottom of the carb that holds it on to the manifold. I was able to get a socket on them with a universal joint on the outer nuts and an extension on the inner nuts. The butterfly valve for cylinder 4 was quite a bit dirtier than the others. I suspect that's the one with a leaking valve seal. The spitting caused by the bad ignition timing must have blown oil on to the butterfly valve.

The last thing I did today was to trial fit the 8" cooling fan that I'll replace the original with, The shield will need a bit of trimming to get a good fit, but it will work a lot better than the original fan when fitted properly. No wonder the original fan is inefficient. There's no funnel to prevent sucking from the sides and there;s a huge hap between the fan and the radiator, so most of the ait sucked by the feeble fan must have come from around the radiator.

Must have taken over an hour to complete the job, but now I can get at the distributor. I am going to replace the original with one from Burton Power with an Ignitor.

Cleaned up all the tools and called it a day.

[AnkerB-S]

I guess its not a PVC valve, but simply a crankcase breather.

[elie boone]

Why not go to Aldon for the dizzy they know Caterhams quite well and have a better advance curve.

[AnkerB-S]

I did and installed it today! To get it off the carbs have to be removed, which is a pain because the bottom manifold nuts are hard to get to. Now I have to do the wiring, which will be a breeze. I'll leave the control box for the original Lucas electronic ignition for some day where I completely redo the wiring loom.

I answered my own question by using brute force and a screw driver to get the breather connector out and the new one in. Much better fit. The new catch can also came from Amazon today. Nice, shine aluminum one but no baffles, so I will stuff a couple of steel pads into the can to help catch the remaining droplets. There's room to install it on the left hand side of engine compartment. I'll have to make sure there's plenty of space between the exhaust manifold and the tube going to the catch can so it won't melt.

I also got the cooling fan and its relay mounted. The mounting hardware for the fan is cr.p. Two of the four broke under hand pressure and I had to use tie wraps to replace them. I am going to leave the original fan in and let it pull air through the oil cooler. The plus wire for the original cooling fan will be used to trigger the relay for the radiator fan, so they will both engage at the same temperature.

 

[AnkerB-S]

While working on the engine I noticed a bit of leakage from the coolant thermostat housing. Unbolted it and the gasket is complete toast, fell apart as soon as I tried to pry it off the housing. Some of it on the head and some of it on the housing. Will have to clean the surfaces and replace the gasket. Assume it is standard gasket that I can purchase at any auto parts store.

Precious owner clearly wasn't a DIY mechanic. Finding lots of issues like this..

[elie boone]

I guess that your new radiator fan sits in front of the radiator, i would not use both fans ( front and back ) at the same time as they might disturb airflow trough the radiator. Using ty wraps to secure a rad fan is not a good idea if it would be a permanent fix. but a picture say more than a thousand words and for the gasket : just buy a sheet of gasket paper and make your own gasket.

[AnkerB-S]

The tie wraps are only temporary. I will get replacement sprung mounts from the seller and install them when I receive them.