my Pi off for resto

[dallliiisss]

Hello to All.
I'm very pleased to say that my Pi has passed it's MOT today
I had to do a fair bit of work on it though, as it failed the first test on quite a few problems.
One of which was the front springs. As they were a bit low, and too close to the bump stops. This has raised the front about 3/4 of an inch, and makes a big difference to look at.

Here's a photo of the new spring in place:




I also fitted a non-return valve to the fuel line. This is supposed to prevent un-filtered fuel from going back to the pump when the ignition is off. And also to keep a good fuel line pressure for re-starting the engine.

Here's a photo of it to the right of the fuel pump:



I have managed to source a company that specialises in filters. They're 'In-line filters' based in Cornwall, and they do a very good web service, and deliver the next day.
I specified a filter that I could see into(to see if it needs changing), and of a high flow nylon type.
Here's some photos of the filter fitted to Pi:


And one loaded with rust from Pi tank:


You can see how small and useless the original Billet filter was compared to the bigger nylon type that is more suited to a big fuel injection system:

The lower filter is a longer higher capacity filter for longer service. So far i'm very impressed with these filters which have saved me from a load more problems with suspect fuel.
As I have to change the filters frequently(at the moment) I have made a bowl to catch the bit of fuel from the used filter, and put into a can in the boot. This works quite well when you have to change the filter on the road somewere, some times in busy towns for example:


I've taken a few shots of my Pi back home after the MOT today:
















I'm now looking forward to the Triumph day at Duxford. I shall travel up with a few filters in the boot I think

[Alan Chatterton]

Looking really good Lee... well done. Worth all of the hard work was'nt it???!

Coming to the National?

I feel an entrant in Best Restoration coming on.....?

[dallliiisss]

Looking really good Lee... well done. Worth all of the hard work was'nt it???!

Coming to the National?

I feel an entrant in Best Restoration coming on.....?

Cheers Alan.
I have to say it was worth all the hard work. Although I feel I've aged another ten years during the resto. It's been an interesting few months putting it back together, and seeing it come to life again. It's quite a gulf from how it was to now, I keep forgetting.

Thanks for the invite to the National, but I only do a few day shows during the year and like my own bed too much

[Jonathan Lewis]

Lovely-looking car, Lee - congratulations on a job well done!

Interested to note how you have progressed upwards in terms of the size of PI pre-filters fitted. IMHO, you really do need a high-capacity pre-filter with either Bosch or Lucas pumps in order to sift out any debris before it reaches the pump without introducing excess drag on the pump itself. I believe that Bosch state (or used to state) that their roller-cell pumps were not intended to be pre-filtered but, if you've ever had a pump written-off through the presence of water or other foreign matter in the fuel, you may take a different point of view...

In fairness, the original Lucas/CAV filter assembly does a pretty good job in this regard, though you obviously can't get it as low from the bottom of the tank as with an aftermarket pre-filter, and I have come to suspect that as many PI vapour locks emanate from fuel boiling in the filter as in the pump itself... Given the amount of fuel being pumped in this installation, Triumph should really have fitted a rather bigger-bore feed from the tank outlet to the filter, though a low-pressure high-volume 'helper' pump does offer a workable alternative!

Regards,

[Glenn]

What a lovely car.

You must be delighted with yourself and rightly so.

Nice work!

[dallliiisss]

Lovely-looking car, Lee - congratulations on a job well done!

Interested to note how you have progressed upwards in terms of the size of PI pre-filters fitted. IMHO, you really do need a high-capacity pre-filter with either Bosch or Lucas pumps in order to sift out any debris before it reaches the pump without introducing excess drag on the pump itself. I believe that Bosch state (or used to state) that their roller-cell pumps were not intended to be pre-filtered but, if you've ever had a pump written-off through the presence of water or other foreign matter in the fuel, you may take a different point of view...

Regards,

Hi Jonathan,
Thanks for kind words.
To be honest I started work on the Bosch pump conversion without doing any homework on the subject. And I quickly realised that I was going about it the wrong way. So upon looking at the various web pages on Bosch pumps I realised were I was going wrong. For the Bosch pump the standard flow feed of fuel from the Pi tank is only just adequate, with the slightest of restriction causing the Bosch pump to overheat. I really needed a different, bigger outlet(as you say), or a bespoke fuel tank.

But it can work reliably with the standard tank, albeit with constant maintenance(checking filters etc..). Once I found the tiny Billet filter was useless, I looked at what was in other cars fitted with Bosch pumps IE: Rover SD1 EFi, BMW EFi, Mercedes etc..Looking at the fuel tank outlet there were nylon mesh filters just inside the tank outlet pre-pump. So this was the obvious choice for my Pi. A Nylon high-flow filter was needed.

It's also very interesting to see the fuel flow through the filter, and gives a good guide to any faults IE: slow or no flow (blockage in tank), or flowing (no blockage) etc.. And see signs of debris in the filter.
It's all been an education for me really.

[dallliiisss]

What a lovely car.

You must be delighted with yourself and rightly so.

Nice work!

Cheers Glenn.
I've been that busy working on Pi up to now, the results are only just sinking in:lol: