What have you done today with your Austin Seven

[David Stepney]

Whilst fettling my car the other day (see my previous post and photos), I decided to have a go at sorting out the radiator filler cap, which has leaked since I have had the car, blowing bubbles and leaving brown water stains all down the sides of the radiator.  The previous owner made a home-made clip from some stainless steel to secure it which actually works very well. So I dismantled it, turned the sealing washer upside down and found two suitable self-locking nuts to fit it all back together. During this operation, I found that it matters which way round the clip should be fitted, as the securing holes are not quite symmetrical. Once that was sorted, the cap now fits quite snugly.

So today, I took the little car to Wrexham, a round trip of some 60 miles, to see if the problem was cured. Happy to report that it is.

Somehow, doing these silly ten minute jobs to cure a minor annoyance are just as satisfying as sorting the major items.

I have now travelled almost 15000 miles in my Seven since buying it almost three years ago. I have no idea where the miles have come from, but I like to run it at least once a week just to keep it in trim. It is now due for a major service, which I shall do shortly. To this end I have purchased some Champion D21 plugs ( as recommended by  Ruaridh) but, unfortunately, when they arrived today, one of them was chipped. I have emailed the supplier, but will speak to them on Monday and hopefully they will send a replacement. The car is already going very well, but I shall see if a change of plug will make any difference.