Category Archives: BT7 Restoration Assembly Phase

Chapter 81 Week Fifty-One December 3, 2007

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Finishing up the cruise control was accomplished next. I designed a bracket for the throttle connection that permitted locating the throttle cable without having to drill any holes in the vehicle. The cruise control throttle cable bracket is mounted to on the top of the firewall diagonal brace and takes advantage of the two vertical mounting bolts for the pedal box. I painted the bracket red making it virtually undetected by the casual observer.

Cruise control bracket 6

Cruise control bracket 3

Cruise control bracket painted

Cruise control bracket 5

Using what I learned on the installation of the RH rear wing, I attached the LH wing in about half the time. I fixed the turnbuckle to the wing before putting the wing on the superstructure.

Turnbuckle installed

It is a good feeling to have both installed. The Beast is actually beginning to look like a car.

RH Rear Wing 1

LH rear wing 2

LH Rear Wing 1

I had my local auto paint store make two body paint spay cans as well as two small bottles for touch up work. I then spray painted the stow-it tube I had made from fiberglass back in the summer along with a sheet metal top I made with the top of the scotch bottle box fastened to the lid. It will be very unobtrusive, and will provide some nice under shroud storage for parts or tools. I borrowed the idea from Tracy Drummond – thanks Tracy.

Stow it tube painted and with gasket and top

Stow it tube 2

My carpenter finished the transformation of my shoe box model for a console to the real thing in wood. He did a beautiful job. I inserted the wood lid into the underside of the padded arm rest from Heritage and then covered the box in black carpet. Now I have something that almost looks as original, and it also is comfortably  functional! The top is hinged and it has a lower tray to stow small items.

Console 1

Console 3

Console 7

Console Installed

The final job for this week was the installation of the aluminum cockpit moulding on the rear shroud. I had my moulding cleaned, buffed and anodized by Ano-Brite in California. They did a fantastic job. I highly recommend them. I used some 3M strip caulk under the moulding to seal out water from the exterior.

Cockpit trim 1

Cockpit trim 3

Chapter 80 Week Fifty November, 26 2007

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I had a little fun today, on the first day of December, 2007! I was able to drive the car, sans most of its bodywork, in the driveway and on our tennis court. Not far, but enough to enjoy the thrill of the progress to this point. I think the grin on my face says it all!

Pushed out of the garage

Almost a shame to cover it up with the body

Missing some body parts

Happy Day!

To the race track

Exhilarating!!

 

 

Chapter 79 Week Forty-Nine November, 19 2007

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I am now waiting on Jack Harper to get free from his shop duties at Coachworks to come by the house and help me with starting and tuning the engine. While waiting, I took a few moments to check on  sealing the firewall from fumes and heat emitted from the engine bay. I turned off the the lights in the garage and put a shop light in the engine bay and then inspected the firewall for any light coming through the firewall. As expected, I did find a few places, so I used a little 3M body caulk to seal the holes.

Another variance from originality on my project is the “personalized” arm rest. Its standard location makes it virtually useless as a functioning arm rest while driving. I am going to make a wooden box to fit the arm rest pad sourced from Heritage Upholstery and Trim to serve as a storage console and to lift the height of the pad to make it work as an arm rest while driving. I will cover the box with matching black carpet and hinge it at the rear of the pad. To begin my little project, I made a mock-up of the box from a cardboard shoebox. For me, 2 3/4” appeared to be the proper height of the box, with the cushion on top of the box.

Arm Rest Prototype

Jack Harper came over to the house and we readied the engine for starting. First, we connected the cables for the throttle and choke. While the previous injection of oil through the engine should have sufficiently lubricated everything, I still pulled the spark plugs and turned the engine with the starter until the gauge showed oil pressure. I put 5 gallons of fuel in the tank and we turned on the ignition to try out the fuel pump. The carb float chambersfilled and we were then ready to try firing up the Bloody Beast.

We reinstalled the spark plugs, turned on the ignition and hit the starter button. After about 10 seconds we had the engine running! Jack ran the engine up between 2,000 and 2,500 rpms and then we adjusted the carbs to bring the idle down to about 700. After 30 years another Healey is saved and running. It was an exciting moment.

I did have two problems to be fixed. I had taken apart the hot water valve, cleaned it, reassembled and installed it on the engine. It leaked! So I ordered a new one to replace the original. The second problem was my own stupidity! I did not replace the  Toyota gearbox real oil seal and I quickly discovered that I should have as a pool of MT-90 formed under the car. New seal ordered also. Cannot wait to get both pieces, install them, and get her running again!

Chapter 78 Week Forty-Eight November, 12 2007

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I ordered some 6mm black rubber tubing from British Wiring to sheath the choke cables. It gave a slightly loose fit, but I think it will be fine. I installed it on both cables. I painted and installed the propshaft made for me by Dale Engineering.

I purchased the cruise control unit, made by Audiovox, from J. C. Whitney.

Audiovox cruise control

It was fairly inexpensive and appeared to be a high quality kit. A complete set of installation instructions is available from the Cruise Control pdf document I created. Not much helpful information was available from other Healey owners who had done the install, although I did find one well done article that is in the October, 2002 edition of the Healey Marque Magazine. Alan Teague and Carl Brown from North Carolina did provide some useful tips and photos and I am grateful to both of them. Installing the Audiovox CCS

(This is a large file that takes a while to open, be patient)

The key components included installing the magnet and sensor at the propshaft, the location of the servo canister, the vacuum line and throttle connections, the control module, and the wiring.

I installed the servo above the dash panel support bracket to the right of the steering column with two 11” plastic ties, rather than using the supplied metal bracket. I know from other’s accounts that the unit makes some noise when it is operating, but not knowing if it is an offensive level or not, I wanted to mount the servo temporarily. If the unit turns out to be noisy, I will move it into the engine bay later.

Servo installed

Wiring the magnet to the propshaft should really be done with the shaft removed from the car if you want to do a nice installation. I located the magnet while the propshaft was in the car, aligned the sensor and mounted it on the right side of the gearbox tunnel, removed the propshaft and safety wired the magnet and then reinstalled the propshaft. If you want to do a nice job, I highly recommend using safety wire twisting pliers. They make the job much easier and result in higher quality work. I got my pliers from Aircraft Spruce.

Cruise control propshaft 6

Cruise control driveshaft sensor 2

Installing the supplied rubber vacuum line required taking the line through a firewall rubber grommet that was not previously used, and then modifying the larger nut on the intake manifold with a fitting to permit connecting the hose for vacuum at the manifold.

Homemade vacuum fitting

Cruise vacuum fitting 1

Cruise Vacuum Line grommet

After setting up the magnet, sensor and vacuum servo the next task was to complete the installation of the cruise control panel. I followed the course of others, taking advantage of the panel’s small size and installing it in the ash tray. This provides a convenient location for controls and also “hides” the panel when desired. I simply drilled a 1/2” hole in the bottom of the ash tray and in the gearbox tunnel bracket for the ash tray to permit the routing of the wiring.

Modified ash tray for cruise 1

Modified ash tray for cruise 2

Cruise control panel

The cruise control wiring appears daunting at first, but with patience it can be accomplished by a novice. Since on the BT7 the speedometer cable runs behind the gearbox extension, I decided to run the cruise control wires down the same path to get all of my wiring “under” the gearbox cover. Again, details are provided in the Cruise Control pdf file. Black, twin tailed wire to the magnet sensor, black single wire to ground, grey wire to headlamp switch for illumination of the control panel in the ash tray, red wire to the light green wire on the brake switch that is hot whether the brake pedal is depressed or not, the purple wire to the green/purple wire on the brake switch (the one that is hot when the pedal is depressed), blue wire to (-) terminal on the coil, yellow, green and purple and red wire to the 4-pin connector, the orange fused wire to a power source when the ignition is switched on.

Cruise witring along gearbox

With the wiring complete, the only remaining task is locating and connecting the throttle control. That job will have to wait for next week’s work.

Chapter 77 Week Forty-Seven November, 5 2007

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In final preparation for starting the Bloody Beast, I installed the propshaft and filled the Toyota gearbox with just shy of 3 quarts of MT-90 oil using the side filler hole and filling until oil started to dribble out of the filler opening.

Propshaft installed

I had been waffling on whether or not I would install the ash tray in the gearbox cover, but I decided to go ahead and do it. If I equip the car with cruise control, it will serve as a great location for the control module. I cut a hole in the fiberglass cover an JB welded the bracket to the cover. The next step was to cover both sides of the gearbox cover with Dynamat Extreme.

shift ring JB Weld

Gearbox cover with Dynamat 1

Gearbox cover with Dynamat 2

Fitting the carpet and padding to the gearbox cover was not a job that I had been looking forward to doing. Not so much hard as awkward. I installed two carpet snaps through the padding provided by Heritage Upholstery and Trim on each side of the fiberglass gearbox cover. I installed these with #6 machine screws with large washers and nuts, rather than with self-tapping screws since I was fastening to fiberglass instead of metal.

Gearbox padding

I also cut some padding to go over the end of the gearbox tunnel and I fit it with velcro. The carpet was carefully cut to fit through trial and error with the help of some chalk. Holes were drilled in the gearbox cover flange and the assembly was mounted to the car. Everything seemed to be nice and tight, although I will do some seam sealing to the underside of the assembly before completing the job. I was satisfied with the final product!

Carpet installed 3

LH carpet installed 2

Chapter 76 Week Forty-Six October 29, 2007

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I am not quite ready to start the engine because I am waiting on my custom made propshaft, currently being fabricated by Dale Engineering. However, there were some close to final matters that needed attention as the day to fire up the engine approached. Jack Harper from Coachworks, Ltd. who assembled my rebuilt engine, came to the house to assist with readying the engine.

Our first step was to “pump” some engine oil into the engine to ensure that everything was coated. Jack attached a compressed air canister with two quarts of oil to the oil pressure pipe union and then forced the oil into the engine with air pressure. As we neared the end of the oil transfer one could see the oil emerging from the top of the rockers and then the end of the transfer was signaled by a large “burp” that one could easily hear.

Jack Harper engine oil

We made sure the pointer and timing mark were aligned and then went about checking the valve gap for the assembly. I used the starter to turn over the crank as we checked each rocker/valve. We then secured the Capesport Alloy rocker cover and added another 5 quarts of oil. The rocker cover was sourced from Cape International.

Capesport Rocker Cover & Ignition Wiring

The oil I chose to use is Valvoline racing oil, 20-50 with ZDDP.

Valvoline 20-50 Oil

I had taken the NGK spark plugs out to rotate the engine. We put a little anti-seize on each plug, checked the gap and re-installed each one.

In recent months the 123 distributormanufactured by a Dutch company, 123 Ignition, has received some very good press. I had originally planned to use a Mallory Unilite distributor, but I decided to give the 123 unit a try.  One appealing aspect of the 123 is that the advance curve is determined by simply adjusting the settings by turning an adjustment on the outside of the distributor and “clicking” it into place. For initial set-up, I chose the recommended “B” setting. While the distributor is a “drop-in” in for the BJ8 with an electronic tach, a kit is supplied to adapt it for the mechanical tach drive of the BT7. The shaft did need to be drilled and the drive dog from the original Lucas unit installed with a few spacing washers. My unit was supplied by a German vendor Brits’N’Pieces. Jack installed the distributor and I installed the Pertronix igntion wiring to the plugs and to the Pertronix “Flamethrower” coil. The coil was previously mounted vertically on the shroud brace. Several of the wiring leads on the original wiring harness for the ignition were no longer needed so I simply used plastic ties to fold them down and secure them, in case they might be needed at some point in the future.

123 Distributor

123 Distributor drive dog

123 Distributor.  Purchase Information and instructions.

My next step was to add coolant to the radiator. I used Prestone 50/50 premixed formula. Fortunately no leaks!

I had been using an old battery for checking out electrical function throughout the restoration process, but it was now time to buy the battery I would be using in the vehicle when it was a road car and not a garage car! I decided on the Optima. I purchased it at the local Batteries Plus store. They are not cheap at about $160 dollars, but I like the idea of the no-leak gel in the boot of a car. The model number I purchased was: Part Number: 34 (8002-002) RedTop®; Battery; Group 34; Cold Crank Amps 800; Crank Amps 1000; Reserve Capacity 110; Ampere Hour 50; Top Terminal; L-10 in.; W-6 7/8 in.; H-7 13/16 in.; UNBOXED. The battery was secured in place with the battery fixing bar and rods.

Optima Battery

Because the Smitty Bell housing fit a little high in my car????, I custom fabricated a gearbox cover extension to provide a little more room for the housing. This also required custom fitting carpet. I had ordered a couple of extra yards of carpet when I ordered my interior from Heritage Upholstery and Trim for this purpose. I first covered both sides of the cover with Dynamat Extreme and then cut and glued the carpet to the cover.

Gearbox cover extension 1

To assist with interior cooling and weight, I ordered a fiberglass gearbox and propshaft cover from British Car Specialist. The original cover was metal and mine was too far gone from rust. Using a fiberglass cover also made it easy to fill the original hole for the side shifter and cut a new hole in the center for the Toyota gear shift. I used an MGB trim ring and rubber seal for the gear shift lever sourced from Moss Motors. Using a helpful hint from Doug Reid, “Mr. Finspanner,” some JB Weld was used to glue four “T” nuts to the bottom of the fiberglass cover so that machine screws could be used to mount the ring, rather than sheet metal screws that overtime would fail to secure tightly in the fiberglass. 

Chapter 75 Week Forty-Five October 22, 2007

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I continued with the assembly of various engine components in the forty-fifth week of restoration. I learned the hard way that the vacuum line from the intake manifold to the distributor needs to be one of the first items to install on the engine, not one of the last! However, after a number of trial fittings I did manage to get the pipe installed with only having to disconnect a few hoses. The copper pipe slips into rubber connector fittings at the manifold and distributor.

Vacuum Pipe RH side to distributor

Vacuum Pipe LH side to rear carb

The capillary tube running from the water temperature/oil pressure gauge to the fitting on the LH front of the cylinder head was the next item to install. Two small mounting clips and brackets were first mounted to head bolts securing the intake manifold and the tube was slipped under the clips, and the temperature sensing bulb inserted into the head and screwed home.

Capillary tube mounting

Given all of the typical concerns about overheating with the Healey engine, I decided to use a six blade aluminum fan sourced from British Car Specialists, The fan comes with an aluminum spacer to fit between the water pump pulley and the fan.

Stainless Flex Fan

The aluminum radiator and custom made air deflectors were the next pieces to go on.  The radiator was ordered from Cape International and I must say that the craftsmanship is superb. The aluminum deflectors I had made caused the radiator to be a tight fit, but with patience all components were secured into place. I put a light coat of black radiator paint on the front surface of the radiator to give a standard appearance when looking through the front grille. I am using a 7 lb radiator cap as was standard with the original radiator. I then attached the overflow tank hose as well as the lower and upper hoses to the head and the water pump.

Aluminum Radiator and Baffles

Aluminum Radiator and Baffles

Radiator Hose Top

I replaced the original copper hot water pipe with a polished aluminum pipe simply for aesthetic reasons. I like the look.

Aluminum Heater Pipe

Denis Welch makes a high quality (read, as expensive) throttle cable mounting bracket for a conversion from the original mechanical linkage. I did not use the complete Welch kit but I did use the piece located on the intake manifold. It is a well engineered design and looks like it belongs there. I incorporated a stainless steel sheathed throttle cable from Lokar. Fellow enthusiast Jack Brashear gave me some help on the optimal design for the accelerator pedal lever to which the cable is attached. I lengthened an original BJ8 lever to get the desired result. I previously installed the firewall bracket for the cable assembly.

Throttle Cable Bracket

Lokar Throttle cable

In my restoration, I converted to a BJ8 intake manifold and HD8 2” carburetters. This, of course, meant adding a dual choke mechanism as used on the BJ8s. The parts were sourced from Moss Motors. The choke bracket that converts the single cable from the dashboard fascia to the dual cables running to each of the carbs was mounted to the firewall and choke cables were connected. A small block provides the linkage for the single to dual cable. I drilled and tapped the ends of the remote control choke block for #6 set screws to ensure the proper return of the cables in the bracket since this is a common problem with HD8 carbs.

Choke assembly

Choke Assembly 2

Although Jack at Coachworks had installed the alternator with the engine rebuild, I had to remove it for the engine installation. I then put it back on the engine and wired it. Hendrix Wire Wheel provided photos and a wiring diagram to make this an easy job. The red wire on the alternator plug serves as a jumper to the screw terminal on the back of the alternator. The white wire on the plug was connected to the large yellow wire emerging from the wiring harness, originally intended for the large spade connection on the dynamo. The yellow/green wire originally connected to the dynamo was no longer required. Because the alternator output is more substantial than the dynamo, I elected to use a much heavier wire from British Wiring to run from the battery side of the starter solenoid to the screw post on the back of the alternator.

Alternator wiring

The final job of the week was installing the bonnet latch assembly to the car. I waited until the engine was in the car so that it would not impede the path of the engine as it was seated in the vehicle.

Bonnet Latch Assembly

Chapter 74 Week Forty-Four October 15, 2007

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With the engine in place, it was now time to complete the assembly of the various engine components, but first I installed the clutch slave cylinder with the push rod provided in the Smitty conversion kit. It went in without any problem and lined up perfectly. The clutch pedal seemed to work smoothly. The bleeder extension pipe was attached to the bracket I made to support the pipe. Bleeding the slave cylinder will now be a much easier job. Thanks again to Mr. Finespanner – Doug Reid.

Slave cylinder bleeder extension 2

Just to fill the holes and to prevent anything from dropping in unexpectedly I went ahead and loosely fit the NGK Spark Plugs BP6ES, stock number 7333.

To make installation a little easier I attached the gear reduction starter to the engine prior to installation in the car, and it was now time to hook up the wiring. I shortened the heavy duty starter cable that connects the solenoid and the starter and secured it to the starter with rubber insulation boots attached. Since my intention is to still rely on the original starting configuration, that is, using the external solenoid, I connected the small wire on the starter to the terminal post also used to connect the cable from the solenoid.

Starter

The installation of the breather pipe and hoses was next on my list. Since I will be taking off the rocker cover for valve gap adjustment once the engine is started, I left the clamp to the “T” connection on the cover loose. The inlet heater hose from the heater to the heater control tap on the motor. While in that location I went ahead and connected the tachometer cable to the tach drive housing.

Breather Pipe 2

Tach Cable to Drive Gear

Others have suggested the addition of a PCV valve connecting the breather “T” to the intake manifold to assist in minimizing oil pressure leaks. I bought a little kit from the British Car Specialists that included the valve, rubber piping and a connector for the intake manifold. It will be interesting to see if it does aid in respiration.

The oil gauge flexible hose was connected next. It connects to a fitting on the block and to the steel oil line that connects to the back of the oil pressure/water temperature gauge.

Oil Pressure Line

 

The exhaust headers were next to be installed. These are Phoenix headers and the full big bore exhaust system was sourced from AH Spares. The headers fit perfectly without any adjustments. I had them Jet-Hot coated in the sterling finish to keep them looking nice and to improve thermal qualities. Stainless steel flexible pipe (1 7/8”) was used to connect the headers to the stainless steel silencer and the big bore tail pipes. The front hanger bracket is in the wrong place for a BT7, so I made a custom spacer for that hanger. The rear hanger worked just fine. I was pleased with the final installation of the system.

Headers 1

Headers 3

Rear Hanger 2

Middle Hanger

 

Tail Pipes 2

I assembled the intake manifold, heat shield and carbs to the Bloody Beast. Those lower mounting nuts are not easy to access! The stainless steel flexible fuel lines were connected to the steel fuel line and to the two SUs. I had to pull everything off the engine when I realized that I had not yet attached the manifold fuel drain pipes!! As it turned out they are very close to the header pipes, but after checking with a few people who are more informed about such matters than me, I think I am comfortable leaving them as they are. They should have been installed along with the vacuum line BEFORE the rest of the engine components!!!!

Front fuel drain line

Engine from above

Engine from right

Engine LH view

Engine front view

Chapter 73 Week Forty-Three October 8, 2007

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I returned from Europe with a renewed commitment to get the Healey completely finished by Christmas. With help from my wife, I pulled the engine. The Smitty bell housing was removed from the backplate and refitted to the Toyota gearbox. I used Copaslip on the fulcrum pin and arm as well as the shaft on which the throw out bearing rides. The assembled bell housing and gearbox was then bolted to the rear of the engine. Dowel bolts at 11:00 and 5:00 o’clock.

Again with help, the engine/gearbox was installed in the car.

Engine going in

Engine Installers

Engine Installers 2

Engine installed

Engine installed 2

Just as a change of pace, I installed some small trim pieces to body components. The striker pin assembly was put together and then mounted on the inside of the bonnet.

Striker Pin Assembly 1

Striker Pin Assembly 2

The stainless steel screens were fixed to the custom brackets made for the oil cooler vents. I purchased the steel mesh screen from Pegasus Racing.

Oil Cooler Vent Screens 1

Oil Cooler Vent Measurements

Next was the bonnet grill. The key with this grill is to not overtighten and dimple the brow. I used some leather padding from British Car Specialist between the components. This was followed by the installation of the chrome flashes or spears on the front wings.

Bonnet Grill

I decided to finish the two striker bonnet safety catches in clear zinc rather than paint them since the paint is scratched off of just about every car I have seen. I installed both of these with a loose fit so that they could be adjusted later.

Striker Hood Safety Catch

Next was the bonnet prop rod andrubber catch. As with the boot lid prop rod, I elected to use a stainless steel version custom made by Wicker’s Body and Paint Shop, Inc. (Unfortunately, no longer in business)

Bonnet prop Rod 1

Bonnet prop Rod 3