Topic

Well what a day it’s been,off took child to school in the mg.Then gave my a wash polish and hoover ready for today’s trip. All levels checked and tyre pressures set correct. Off we go to the Lake District for lunch.

The drive from Thirsk through Layburn, Hawes and Wensleydale to the lakes is fabulous (a684). If you haven’t done it then do it.

We had lunch and a pint of San Miguel in Ambleside very nice. Followed by a nice stroll around and an ice cream perfect. The day was going well.

On the way home we stopped off for some mg pictures along the side of ullswater

Then disaster struck.

What ! ! ! ? ? ?

tune in again tomorrow for the next exciting episode...?

Tease !

Rain?....hgf?....speed camera? Pub out of beer?

Next episode.
After taking some pictures,some seconds later the problem occurred. After many swear words and a Basil faulty moment beating my TF with a branch, we still had about 70 miles to get home.

Tonight the investigation began and this is what I found.



This is what created all the steam and tantrums on the way home. I always carry 5 litres of coolant so I had some breathing space.

After letting everything cool down I managed to wrap a load of heat shrink tape around the pipe and set off again. By this time the wife was not happy.

We stopped off at the first service station and bought 8 litres of water. After many stops to check levels along the A66 we were able to travel 12 miles or so between stops.

The pipe finally gave up 3miles from home after putting the last litre of water in we made it back home just. Talk about pushing your luck but mine was certainly in.

As it happens I have the hose in my spares box. It looks like the hose had been touching the exhaust down pipe and burned through. Just now need to buy some coolant and get the Tf back together. Hopefully there’s no other damage done. We’ll see tomorrow.


Steve

Was it you who limped home like this before Steve. ...or am I thinking of someone else?

It could've been me Mark. It wasn't long after I got my TF and we had a trip to Whitby. On the way their we got a smell of coolant whenever I pushed the engine. In the end it was the header tank cap. Once that was replaced the next weak spot to be found was the underfloor pipes. Changed them for stainless steel.

Original pipes again luckily gave up on my drive.

Hopefully that's going to be it for a while as in the moment yesterday the TF was going to be repaired and sold. But after all the time and money I've spent on it, I would get nowhere near what I've put into it. So I'll soldier on.

Steve