What have you done today with your Austin Seven

[Bob Culver]

Hi Pjk
I was often intrigued by the action of bugs, thistle downs etc with my Seven. Would sometimes head for centre of vertical widscreen, stop inches from the glass, oscillate wildly, then escape one side or other. My car had been fitted eith a small lip at the top which probably worsend. On all other cars with sloped screens bugs lift and go over or around long before contact.Oldies might remeber fashionable radiator bug deflectors of the 1950s. Some came with an air speed indicator and were fascinating, esp to Seven owners.

[bob46320]

Noticed a dribble of water around Nos 1 and 2 spark plug recesses, looked like the top water outlet itself was leaking, but may have been the gasket. Having removed the top hose, saw that the water had leaked through the aluminium casting!! On removal, it fell apart in my hands (Honest govner, I didn't break it ! ). The stud which had been welded to the head as that bit of the casting had rusted away is not in good health. Its a 5/16" stud rusted away to just under a 1/4, so I think it will do for a few more years yet.
My question, do you think that steel stud, Al alloy branch and brass nut increased the corrosion rate, and was it the brass nut that is the culprit. Its been like that for 25 years or more, or was that good going anyway ? Ps, I don't use antifreeze, just drain down if its going to freeze and re-fill with the original water.

[Bruce Nicholls]

The aluminium acts as a sacrificial anode to the iron and steel of the block studs etc. I use aluminium anodes to protect the steel bits of my wooden boat and they corrode away at a fairly rapid rate in sea water. Its all about the periodic Table. If I were you and you are reusing the water I would put fernox or similar corrosion inhibitor in it.

[Barry Townsend]

Hi
I’ve been using blue anti freeze for some time after experiencing similar problems, all has been ok since.
I’m sure the ‘purists’ won’t agree but anything to make life easier and protect our cherished cars.

[Steve Jones]

Why on earth would 'purists' not agree with putting anti-freeze in your engine?

Steve

[Bruce Nicholls]

I should have said I use anti-freeze in the 7 engine (and the boat).

[David Stepney]

I use blue antifreeze in all three of my vehicles. Antifreeze contains corrosion inhibitors, so any problems with the aluminium water hose connection is likely to be caused by sacrificial anode activity, as stated. Much of the corrosion may have set in during years gone by when putting antifreeze into cars was not so common and people simply drained the system ro used those little paraffin heaters that you used to be able to get from Gamages to keep the chill off.

And in answer to the question posed by this thread, I washed my Seven. It has spent the last few days being the daily driver whilst i serviced the Polo and gave it a new cambelt. As a result, mostly due to the mixed weather we have been having here in the welsh fastnesses, it was quite travel-stained and the blanket tat covers the rear seat was beginning to smell of wet dog. I had also heard from my insurers who wanted up to date photos of the car for agreed valuation purposes, so it needed to be be presentable for its photo shoot and not in its more usual urchin-like state.

   

(Photo taken with my best digital camera and not the ancient Kodak DC20!)

[Ivor Hawkins]

Good little camera the dc20...I still use a Ricoh R1, it’s not digital though, I like the fun of waiting to see how the pictures turn out when they come back from the chemist!

[Reckless Rat]

David, looking good!
I've just been helping a pal who can't speak French prepare a dossier for the FFVE ( Fédération Française de Véhicules d'Époque) concerning a Jag E-Type he's bought from a bloke in Spain. He wants to get it registered over here but first he needs an " attestation" as to its originality, similar to what you're doing for insurance purposes. There's no need for an inspector to see the car, but they do need a series of photos so they can make a proper assessment. They include:
Photo of vehicle from front n/s corner
Photo of vehicle from rear o/s corner
Photo of interior
Photo of chassis (VIN) plate on car
Photo of engine compartment
Photo of engine number.
The are other documents to go with the photos but armed with the paperwork from the FFVE he can get the car tested and then registered as a " Vehicule de Collection"

The French are good at bureaucracy.

[David Stepney]

Ivor,

I love my DC20, although its software wont run with anything newer than Windows XP. It lives in the Seven's glovebox and is used for all my casual photography. I too have a couple of film cameras that get an occasional outing. My favourite is my 1934 Leica III. It is worth all the faffing about setting all the controls just to hear the whisper of the shutter when you press the release.

Bruce,

Thank you for the compliment! At least it doesn't look like 'un gavroche'.
I took nine photos in all, four of the exterior from all points, two of the interior, two of the engine and one of the speedometer to show its current reading.