Parks writes:
>
>What should i do to the engine before trying to start it. I am told that
>it ran well when it was put into storage five years ago. When I say
>storage, it was simply parked and forgotten.
>
>I also have a TR6 engine in the same condition, out of the car, and in
>a year when I put it in the restored body I will be dealing with the same
>"storage" condition.
>
I just fired up my TR6 after six years of storage. Of course, I knew what
it's condition was when I stored it to begin with, but nevertheless, here's
my advice. After you've changed all the perishable hoses and such, and
you've drained the oil, refilled with new, and replaced the filter, you
need to find a way to pressurize the oil. What I did was remove the plugs
and the coil wire and spin the motor with the starter for a while. It
spins pretty fast without any compression, so the pump should circulate the
oil well enough. Then when you're satisfied with that, put it back
together and go for it. Another technique that I used when I started the
motor after its rebuild, is to use a plant sprayer: Adapt the nozzle to,
for instance, the oil pressure warning switch opening in the block. Fill
the sprayer reservoir with oil and start pumping. Theoretically this
pressurized (albeit with low pressure) the whole oiling system...and in
fact I remember the pressure registering on the guage, too. To me the main
thing is to get the oil where it belongs before you actually run the
engine. The starter trick (with plugs out) turns the engine, but there are
no explosions occurring in the chambers to impact the
pistons/rods/bearings. If it's been outside it would sure be worth it to
check for rust in the fuel tank... anyone know the "shelf life" of
gasoline?
Good luck!
Pete Chadwell
1973 TR6
|