Diana and Jackie

Corsa's have a similar type of fault which makes no sense at all with extremely wierd symptoms, Its simply the instrument conector behind the dash, remove the instrument pod and pack out the connector with double sided tape forcing it towards the instrument pod. The idiot designer attached the connector to the dash fascia so it moves as the plastic expands/contracts and generally moves about. People have paid hundreds to dubious garages to have this fault fixed - worth checking out. Also belive Vauxhall Meriva's have the problem too. D&J

Hi, After spending all aftenoon removing the offside mudguard and suspension spring we're now stuck at getting the spring seat out. The pin holding the seat is seized solid, and we cannot get the control link pins out either. If the suspension is jacked up (with the suspenson spring removed) it stays there! so we had to put the wheel on and jump on it till it drops. Thoughts are using a grease gun inject diesel oil into the suspenson spring pin, but we suspect the pin is seized to the spacer that runs through the shock absorber base. Also using an air hammer to knock the pin out maybe Any ideas on how to get the pin out are very welcome. D&J

Strongly suggest you strip and clean the carburettor, as well as fitting new diaphrams. The work will not be wasted since you will at least know it wont need looking at for a while. It would appear you are using electronic ignition - normally the series resistor for the coil is kept in circuit permanently or at least that's what Mr Jolley reccomends. Just wonder if there maybe an issue with that resistor going inter dis? D&j

The latest thought here is Hilti studs - Know they are fired into girders but will it work on armour? D&J

HSS hire out a stud welder - its a capacitor discharge stud welder so not sure if it's up to the job. But if it works you may have to use metric studs and not unf We have the same problem - a lot of missing studs. Cobalt drills are available as are other drills for this job on e-bay, but you may also need a magdrill to stick on the hull since as Richard says a lot of pressure will be needed, and even then can is there enogh room for the drilling machine as these drilling machines are not small . D&J

Hi, Followed through on Richards advice and here is the info from Belzona : Hello Diana Thank you for your email. The best product for you to use would be Belzona 1111 Supermetal, this is a paste grade two part epoxy resin that has excellent heat and chemical resistance, heat resistance is 200C. The surface should be prepared as thoroughly as possible with a wire brush, the rougher the profile of the substrate the stronger the bond will be. I would suggest terminating the crack by drilling a small hole, the supermetal will repair the crack and bond the substrate together. Please ensure the surface is clean and dry we would suggest using a cleaner degreaser prior to using the supermetal. Once the supermetal has cured it us fully machinable. Prices start at £56.00 for £400g. I have attached the information for the product and should you require any further assistance I am happy to help. Since welding rods cost £36 a pack plus carriage plus labour of a welder (who may not quite know how to go about this) it works out at a comparable price. Thanks again Richard! Diana and Jackie

Hi, Thanks to everyone who has replied. We'll check out Belzona and I have located the appropriate welding rods.. Will let you know how it goes as the same company is repairing the mudguards - if the cost is right of course! Diana and Jackie

Hi. Shortly we will be taking our ferret to get the hole where the exhaust passes through the body welded, there's not just a small split there but the surface is badly corroded making sealing the exhaust fumes difficult. Can anyone advise what process to follow or welding rods/materials to use to repair the small split, build up the corroded metal and grind it flat D&J

Makes no sense at all to spend money on electronic ignition and botch the spak plug wiring. If you do have electronic ignition its more than likely that the spark is flashing over to chassis through the poor connections as Richard suggests. You can also check inside the distributor cap for burning as well as on the rotor arm. Our Ferret was botched in may places, we've spent a lot of time and money unbotching it and still have some to go. Diana and Jackie

Hi, Do you have a good spark? Check points, condenser. If you can afford it replace the lot with electronic ignition and then forget about it! :-D Looks like someone has lost spark plug lead bits as well The accelerator pump diaphrams and economy device diaphram are suspects as is the carburettor. Clean and check - there are two filters in the carb jets. Champ Spares have all the carb bits - what they will not supply as part of the carb kit are the three seals - at each end of the butterfly spindle and the cold start device spindle which will also need checking. Diana and Jackie

Marcus Glen has the correct oil for the fluid flywheel - The Diagram Off Andy's website and the service manual are quite clear as to what lubricants go where. DOT 5 is a synthetic brake fluid - not to be used under any circumstance unless you change ALL the seals on the braking system. So use DOT4. Carlube do an EP90 for the wheel gearboxes, the transverse box (normally) and the other 4 boxes. and SAE 30 byMorris lubricants is Ok for the gearbox and engine. Check local motor factors for all the oils, and the correct grease, You may have to ring around a few, apart from the fluid flywheel oil which as said can be got from Marus Glen who is prompt with his service. Diana and Jackie

Hi - a page is missing, will add it tomorrow and make the picture bigger so easier to read. Page added - Note after undoing the domed nut undo the cone nut first before loosening the sleeve nut ----If you do not you will break the pin that stops the armature turning The tone disc is aluminium and likely to suffer corrosion as may the outer rim of the horn which is also aluminium. Paper gaskets need to be coated in petroleum jelly - NOT gasket compound under any circumstance. D&J

Very helpful as ours are leaking both sides and will have to be done sooner or later D&J

For those that want info on the Ferret Horn (maybe fitted on other vehicles) WARNING on this horn DO NOT attempt to remove the centre nuts on this horn unless you read these instructions. Diana And Jackie

Did you check the master cylinder? Slide the rubber boot back if possible and see if there's liquid inside. If so master cylinder is likely to be gone as well. Use cable ties to hold the boot in place if the steel rings are shot D&J

Hi, if one wheel cylinder is suspect then it is likely they all are, as in the master cylindern all probability. Master Cylinders are freely available on ebay if you do need one and not at the price one organisation who deal in military spares is charging either. If you intend useing synthetic (DOT5) brake fluid then you must change all the seals and flush the system. In hindsight I think we would have had, when we had similar problems, all the cylinders relined in stainless steel, as after shopping around for quotes to do that it would have been cheaper. Diana & Jackie

Hi, Have you removed and examined the cylinder - not hard to do. It may be that you will need a complete cylinder, since they are made of an aluminium alloy they are prone to corrosion of the cylinder bore. The alternative is to get the cylinder resleeved in stainless steel. which is about the same cost or less than a complete cylinder with cable. Champ spares in the UK hold the seals - quite quick service as well as cylinders. The cylinder and the cable can be split and exchanged to save downtime if cable is sound. Be sure it is the cylinder since an overfilled hub can appear to be a leaking seal on initial examination. Another problem can be the steel bleed screws seizing in the clylinder. Stainless steel bleed screws are available from http://ccsfasteners.co.uk/index.php. Diana and Jackie

Isnt it the responsibility of the provider of the service to tell the user? and not the user having to search the internet to find a service they bought and paid for has been discontinued Adrian Flux provide a full isnurance with Breakdown AND it covers commuting unlike Cherished Vehicles D&J

Our insurance is due up at the end of the month. We were stunned to discover that since May 2011 there has been no breakdown recovery with Cherished Vehicle insurance on our HMV. Good thing we didnt breakdown but they didnt tell us of the change until our policy was due for renewal. D & J

Hi, At last found my Dad's service book! He was discharged on the 10/04/1948 and enlisted on the 3/12/45 under national Service with The Royal Armoured Corps where he served as a driver mechanic - it says 'C' 68 in his paybook. He served in the middle east, where he got injured and I have a photograph of the other soldiers he served with. I also have a photo of a Daimler armoured car with its front end blown off after it had just had its fluid flywheel repaired and engine refitted and travelled 10 miles. My Dad says on the photo that it was a new vehicle he had just repaired. Diana (and Jackie) PS....The quote below is absolutely correct.

Imperial copper washers are not hard to find on ebay, including kits. some of the metric sizes will also fit (depends on the bolt size). As a temporary fix use ptfe tape, wrap ir around the washer lengthwise, 5 or 6 turns usually does it. Heating up copper washers usually softens them enough so that they re-seal - Dont like aluminium washers. You could also try any company that sells hydraulic lines and piping/fittings. D & J D&J

Hi, I am looking for information on a Daimler Armoured Car which my father drove in Palestine. It was blown up with, and one of the soldiers, my fathers mate, was killed. My father survived, but was permanently deaf in one year. The vehicle registration was E 20204 and written on its front was the slogan Ally Sloper. If anyone can shed any light I would be grateful. Diana

We - that is Jackie and I are amazed a garage with all their technical know how cannot get the tyres off ferret rims! We can do it in 20 minutes with two 39 inch tyre levers, gallons of washing up liquid and a lot of prodding. The trick is, working on the outer rim to to work the washing up liquid under the rim bit by bit then once the outer rim pops off (assuming of course that the rim nuts have been removed), work the washing up liquid between the inner rim and run flat insert, or if there is no run flat insert under the remaining rim. Make sure they put a rim band(tyre flap) around the rim if the runflat insert isnt being used. Wash all the washing up liquid off with clean water as it is highly corrosive (contains a lot of salt) D & J

Hi, We'll have six smoke launcher covers (if the price is right of course). D&J

Hi .. Direct from Michelin :- we would suggest pressures for normal road use. Front Axle = 2006 kgs front tyres 40psi Rear Axle = 2387 kgs and rear tyres 46psi These pressures are based on the use of Michelin tyres in the size 255/100 R 16 XZL 126K TL with vehiclle fully loaded. D & J