My wife isn't a mother, nor me a father, but we did have a new arrival
for mother's day. It was a 1970 TR6.
=== The Story ===
Saturday morning brought sunshine and a beautiful day to the Denver
area. Fellow soler Lawrence Buja, his three kids, and I headed down
to check out a '70 TR6 which had been advertised on the net. Upon
arrival, I could see the car hidden under a tarp, with its tail
peeking out at the edge of the garage. Potentially, a classic find.
Upon arrival, we sent the kids to investigate a strategically located
playground across the street while we did the same to a different set
of toys. We checked the car over, and it was solid and straight, and
practically rust free. It needs some body work and paint (original
color is Damson), but ALL the running gear (engine, trans, OD, diff,
joints, etc had been renewed in 1983 by a local British shop, long out
of business. (So much for guarantees!) It has wires, along with a
set of steel rims, an extra set of fiberglass fenders, and the
original steel ones as well. Along with the deal came a hardtop,
non-factory, but nice looking and functional. After running it for a
bit, we checked the compression, and then started to deal. I think we
both reached our limits, his bottom, my top, and agreed on a price.
Me and the seller were _BOTH_ thinking "Ohmygawd, what have i
done???"). The bank was open, so the title was notarized, and we had
a new addition to the family. *gulp*
It was now time to get the tow-jeep and borrow a trailer from another
British enthusiast. I told him it was his fault I bought the car, for
without the trailer, the deal wouldn't have been near as sweet. It
would have been difficult to drive the TR-6 20 miles home without tail
lights, and I really didn't want to be smacked from the backside. We
arrived back at the purchase site, started the car, drove it up, and
strapped the car down to the trailer. We saddled up, and the seller's
father came to say goodbye. He continually shook our hands thanking us
for getting his garage back. I then realized that my garage just got
fuller. Doh!
The newly added weight of the TR6 revealed that one of the 4 tires on
the trailer was flat. It was a dual axle, so a stop at the next gas
station to fill with air wouldn't be a problem. Lawrence followed,
with a full load of kids and tr-6 wheels in the back of the warwagon.
At the gas station (5 miles from the start) Lawrence mentioned to me
that an occasional puff of smoke came from the right side of the
trailer. That fender was HOT! The flat tire in the rear allowed the
front tire to rub in the fender when hitting bumps. I think we got to
the station just in time. We filled the tire and headed on our way.
The return trip was uneventful except for a large double decker
British tour bus which passed us on the way home. This must be a sign
of good Karma. I'll be sure to tell the wife this when explained why
the car was painted multiple colors. (primer, fiberglass fenders, etc)
The car fit nicely into the garage bay, and was happy with the idea of
pleasing a new owner. It seems content to sit across from it's
younger sibling, a 1975 TR6. I did manage to get "the look" from my
wife when she saw the new addition on the trailer... I guess she
didn't realize the appreciation of what we've come to refer to as an
"engineer's car"; i.e. one that may not yet sport pretty paint job,
but is in perfect mechanical shape below the surface (named in honor
of Jean Hertzberg's swiss-cheese mgb which runs like a swiss-watch).
I guess I should have explained to her how straight and solid the car
is before bringing it home. First looks can be deceiving...
We returned the trailer along with a six pack of homebrew. Pleased
with the homebrew, the trailer owner asked if i would please borrow
his trailer more often. My wife firmly answered for me...
"I don't think so..." :-)
=== Specifics and questions ===
==Carbs==
Although the car had many things rebuilt, one problem is that the car
doesn't like to run with the choke off. This can be a number of
problems, and I plan on pulling the carbs and setting them up before
getting too excited about it. I think that they need to have the
floats set properly. The plugs all looks nice and tan, not sooty
black, what I'd expect for a car running on the choke. This tells me
the car is running at a fairly reasonalbe mixture.
These carbs appear to not have the mixture adjustment like other ZS
carbs. It that something specific to 1970??? Can I add an adjustable
needle?
==Color==
As mentioned above, the car is Damson, and has never been repainted.
I think that this color is somewhat rare on the TR6. Yes? Would I be
a fool to paint it BRG? That's the color I've always wanted, but I
would hate wreck something that was truely rare. (Some have said
there's a reason why Damson was rare... :-)
==Rear Deck==
There's a funky hole on the rear deck (near the rear window outside)
on the drivers side. It's square and looks like something was mounted
there originally, like an antenna. Is this stock? What was there?
What should I put in it's place?
I'm sure I'll have more questions as they come, but that's it for now.
Cheers,
-Scotty
'70 TR6 (A project yet to come)
'75 TR6 (getting ready for summer)
|