Hi guys, having issues getting the pics off the camera, and remembering what we did, and generally having a Monday like a tool. Ill just post up what I have typed up so far and the pics I have actually managed to get. Will sort the rest later.... I'm very tired!
Ok, so I guess I should update this from 2009 (Ill try and do the best my memory can do.... expect patchyness!)
I can’t remember what caused it to cut out that day on my last post, but I remember spending a lot of time hunting down ignition gremlins before realising that my dizzy had worn its bearing and was causing me lots of ‘mystery’ problems like random misfires and the like. I also replaced the carb diaphram which perked her up a little bit but she was still as fast as a glacier.
Sad times. She also killed the heater matrix, so I put her in the garage and dismantled the dash to get the matrix out (the hardest part to get to on these it would seem!). In the process of dismantling the dash the wiper switch disintegrated into a million pieces (ALMOST literally haha) and I left her in the garage while I parts hunted. Sadly I got distracted with other odds and sods, and the poor girl got left in the garage :-(
Fastforward *some* time....
Then I moved! Huzzah! To the new barnium with Hardcore. This meant daylight for the first time in ages. Whilst discussing how I didnt really have much to take to the gathering, it was decided that the Viva was so close to the road (didnt need much for an MOT) that it would be stupid not to. So out with the tools, some booking with the MOT man, some welding, recommissioning, some legal tyres, and a general faff she was ready to run to the MOT. The engine was STILL making the mad tapping noise it has always made, and despite the best efforts of Mantaphil (who has owned 1256s in the past) and Hardcore (much better versed in the way of the old skool valve assembly than myself) it still wouldnt shut up.
Still, it was ready for test, off she went, gobbed out all her coolant on the way (I assumed it was over-advanced so knocked the timing back at the side of the road), gobbed out all her coolant AGAIN (hmmmmmm maybe the rad cap is knackered?) and then made it to the station. I stood there nervously as the tester went over ever little detail (most thorough MOT tester Ive had in a while!) and.......
FAIL. :-(
Advisory list a page long (oops) and one fail point. Emissions! Sadly one year to late to be “just” a smoke test. Amusingly Id of classed all the advisories as more dangerous than the fail by a country mile but I don't make the rules! (Corroded brake lines, that sort of thing)
Thinking about it, there was a thread about this here...
retrorides.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=techni&action=display&thread=109896There is all you need to know!
So basically.... after all that, MOT Pass and all, the old girl decided the water pump didn’t want to hold water any more. Fail
Whilst seeing how much a water pump was, Sleeperviva (LEGEND) offered me his old engine for a price I couldn’t refuse! Considering it had just been freshened up, has some trick bits on it, had been run in, Dyno-tested and proven to be “a good’un”!
A deal was struck, and whilst on a Stealthcamp mission with Andy we loaded the engine into his new purchase! :-)
SOOOOOOOOOOO. Onto the weekends shenanigans. We thought to ourselves “lets put the engine in the Viva.... shouldn’t take too long, simple small engine, lots of room in the bay. yeah”
So we set off! Disconnecting and removing didn’t take long, excellent!
Then, spanner in hand...
*CLICK*
We were plunged into darkness!
“Oh balls. Can you see anything?” Says HC
“Nope!” Says I “Wheres the torch?”
“No idea!”
We managed to navigate the minefield of viva parts, HC found a torch and we trudged up to the sites fuse board to find someone trying to get the key meter onto emergency with no joy. They went off to try and get some more money on it, but returned pronouncing it broken, so we went back to HC’s place and had beer instead. Mmmmmm beer.
Next morning up bright and early! To watch the rugby! The way England played we probably should of just headed to the barn lol. Anyhoo, slightly saddened by the sport, we set of to the Barnium for some more Viva loving. Throw the engine in, get her running and then do some other projects
First up we needed to move the engine, and HC’s back wasnt keen on lifting the not-insignificant weight of the new 1256. We thought it best to build a generic “heavy-stuff” moving trolley out of bits laying around the Barnium and so set forth!
Some time later we haz trolley.... so I tested its strength
Moved the engine.....
Had some munch.....
Then put the new engine in. Yellow engines have moar power. FACT.
Whilst dangling the engine in the hole, we noticed the exhaust manifold was a different design and wouldn’t mate with the downpipe. No problem we’ll whip it off now. Oh hang on... we are dangling the engine BY the manifold. Instead of the engine lifting eyes. Because the old engine didn’t have them and we didn’t even notice the new one did! DOH!
We continued fitting the engine regardless, and it all went fairly smoothly. I decided to fit the prop would be easier to just unbolt at the diff (4 bolts) and slide it in, as the rear wheels were on the floor and the splines only go in one way.
..... TBC......
end that low would involve removing the springs altogether! 
DOH!
biscuits! 
but Ill be there! not missing that! 
RETRO VAUXHALLS OF THE VIVA KIND
