Big Jim

Whichever way you decide to hold it up, strengthen the boot floor to hold it, make a frame or something, 4 - 5 gallons of fuel will some deform the boot floor over time, it just isn't strong enough.

http://nw.rhocar.org/lsd.htm please note any prices quoted in this article are now years out of date. I can no longer get into the site to make any alterations.

check the front calipers have been fitted the correct way up, bleed nipples on the top, if they're at the bottom then swap over LH to RH. As Smiffy says, first thing to do is bleed the system until you have a nice hard pedal, (Manually adjust the rear drum brakes first) If the servo has been removed and the standard sierra master cylinder has still been used, then it's not the best without a servo, but we'll come to that after more information from you.

First things first, have you checked the thermostat? put it in a cup, pour boiling water over it and it should open up fairly quickly. Next, is it fitted into the housing the right way round? They will fit either way. The bulb should be in the water of the engine side, not the hose side. Now we can look at hoses and tanks. Start with you rad cap, is it a 13lb cap? is it a double acting cap and does it have a seal under the large fitting face? Now there are a couple of ways of doing the next bit. The leak off pipe from the radiator needs to go either to the bottom of an overflow bottle (1/3 full of water) the cap of the overflow bottle will just vent to air. Or to the bottom of a header tank (so that it can return back to the rad) the overflow pipe from the header tank should just vent to air. If you have a pressure cap on the header tank, then change it for the lowest pressure that you can find. (I use this system with a 5lb cap on the header tank, it helps to push the water back into the rad when it cools) If your stat & plumbing are correct, then you've either got: A) air lock . Head gasket problems. C) blocked pipe / radiator.

http://nw.rhocar.org/SVA%20lights.htm i can't swear by the sketch, but it allegedly came from an SVA tester. My repeater is on the side of the scuttle, but my car is pre SVA.

you'll usually find the small ones are denso alternators, often found on the smaller Japanese vehicles, but there are various types of mounts and wire connections, check these out before buying. you may have to make / modify the mountings. I think that this is the one that I have fitted. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Alternator-Suzuki-/142141439686?fits=Car+Make%3ASuzuki%7CModel%3ASwift&hash=item21184a3ec6:g:CqEAAOSwYIxX965z

Engine oil will normally run at a very similar temp to the water temp, if you do a bit of thrashing the car, your water temp will rise slightly above it's normal running temp and the oil temp will follow it but lags behind, once you start to drive normally again, your water temp should drop back to it's normal running temp after about 10 - 15 mins, but the oil temp will again lag behind and take longer to return to normal. You can get an electronic oil temp gauge, then with the sender fitted to a sump plug made to take it, you get correct reading of the oil temp being pumped from the sump. (not sure if this is the correct one for you but you see what I'm talking about) http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Mini-Sump-Plug-Adapter-4-Smiths-Oil-Temp-Sender-Capilliary-Race-Rally-/152471835279?hash=item238007928f:g:DJcAAOSwYGFUx56O Or one of these; http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Sump-Plug-Sensor-Adaptor-Oil-Temperature-Temp-Gauge-Sender-Defi-Prosport-M14-/271998661648?hash=item3f54623410:g:OQkAAOSwVL1WB8rg http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Sump-Plug-Sensor-Adaptor-Oil-Temperature-Temp-Gauge-Sender-Defi-Prosport-M14-/271998661648?hash=item3f54623410:g:OQkAAOSwVL1WB8rg

If it was mine, that header tank would have to go and something different and less obstructive, it's blocking half the radiator! i also think that is the old 'Cortina' type radiator, it's definitely only single cored. The oil around the dizzy may not be coming from there, but from the rocker cover and running down, there may be a problem with the engine breathing, especially as it's been overheating. You need someone to have a look at it that knows what they're talking about.

Glad that you've sorted it, whilst we're an about ignition switch problems, the ignition switch comes with a short length of 'loom' attached, this connects to the main wiring loom at a multiplug, the connections on the wires in this multiplug can give similar problems to what you've had, so much so that they melt part of the multiplug, I did away with it completly by solder & heat shrinking the wires.

Basic stuff first before you start spending any money. 1) Check that the fan is either pushing aire through the rad (If it's mounted in front of the rad) or pulling aire through the rad (if mounted behind it.) The fan needs to be as close as possible to the radiator core, big gaps make it do it's job very poorly. 2) Remove the thermostat as is suggested, (Only for trail purposes) but as you take it out, check how it's been put in see http://nw.rhocar.org/thermostats.htm the 'spring' bit needs to be towards the engine, NOT into the thermostat elbow. 3) block the gaps around the radiator so that the air coming through the nosecone HAS to go through the rad, not around it. [/url]"> [/url]"> Without being able to see which radiator you have fitted, i can say that in the early monocoque cars, RH gave a single cored Cortina radiator, this was just about adequate for normal driving with a standard engine if everything else was correct, for the 2B, they gave out a Coleman radiator, this was slightly better, again, standard engine and if everything else was sorted out correctly. But if you decided to press the pedal hard and 'give it some' neither rad could keep it cool without letting it have regular rests. yours is an upgraded engine, so would suggest that a radiator upgrade from 'normal' may need to be done if not already done.

i can't get into it anymore

The bottom 4 'prongs' move with the mechanical advance as engine revs increase, to alter the amount they move or how quickly they do, you need to strip the dizzy see this link. http://nw.rhocar.org/tuningdizzy.htm

To check if you are 180º out, see this. http://nw.rhocar.org/Ford%20ignition%20systems.htm

Be carefull as there is an unseen film covering the actual stainless steel itself once you've removed the white plastic stuff (It's what give it it's shine), You do not want to scratch that film or there is no way of getting rid of the scratches once done, don't go daft with the heat gun. Hair dryer, or hot water as previously said.

The problem is, the stainless has a fine film layer over the metal, and when scratched it's this that gets damaged, so you cannot remove the scratches without doing major damage. As has been said, vinyl wrap may be the answer.As an asside, the best way to clean the stainless is with a clean cloth and using the cheapest spray "glass cleaner" you can get, not Windowlene (smears like hell)

Well it's certainly not a Cortina set-up, Tricky did use Triumph metalastic bushes in some suspension set-ups, maybe worth looking at Dolomite bushes if you can get one to compare.

Think of the system as a large canal fed from a small lake with two distinct arteries and a couple of branches along each one. If you start at the last branch and drain that until clean water shows, it can still drag in dirty water from the branches further up, but if you start with the nearest branch to the lake, drain that until clean water shows, it can't drag anything from other branches because they are further away. So as you clear each one in turn, you're sure of getting fresh fluid to each branch. This is the "better" way of doing the job, but whichever way you do it, you're certain of getting most of it out. Clearing the master cylinder reservoir with a clean syphon tube is a great way to start, but make sure that you clear it from both front & rear feed areas. If you don't have a syphon tube, then you need to bleed fluid from both the front & rear of the vehicle until both sides of the reservoir have emptied before you put clean fluid into the reservoir.

Actually Alan you should start with the nearest wheel first, ie F/O/S, then F/N/S before going to the rears. With the rears, sometimes it's just one line and it goes "through" one side to get to the other, yours may be 2 separate lines, so either "shared" side first, or O/S first for twin lines. (Don't forget to have H/Brake on) You need to empty the reservoir of old fluid before putting new stuff in, So start by bleeding enough out of both a front & rear wheel to just empty the reservoir (Most reservoirs have separate halves for front & rear) This is to stop old fluid mixing with the new stuff. Now fill up the reservoir with new fluid and bleed them in the order as above until the fluid coming out of each caliper etc. Is nice and clean, so obviously new stuff. job done.

Lets see some photo's of your switches. This is the problem, Ford changed things all the time, also RH used what-ever he could get hold of, so different cars might have different stalks. you could even have Escort ones.

You could use an early Transit stalk, there are 2 problems with it though, physically it will bolt straight on, but the stalk is quiet a bit longer than the Sierra one. Also the electrical connection has flat pins instead of round ones, so you'd need to acquire that plug with a few inches of loom from a scrap transit to patch into your own loom.I was just about to go this way when mine went knackered, but I managed to get the sierra one just in time. I think this is the genuine one that you're needing http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BNIB-Early-Ford-Sierra-Indicator-Switch-arm-very-rare-/322385229446?hash=item4b0fa83686:g:-z4AAOSw4GVYHf3M this one has the horn button as well. Or is it this one of these ? http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/FORD-SIERRA-MK1-XR4i-XR4X4-3-DOOR-COSWORTH-INDICATOR-STALK-SWITCH-KIT-CAR-/182419423257?hash=item2a790b8019:g:jzUAAOSw5cNYd6LC This one doesn't have the horn button http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/SIERRA-SAPPHIRE-INDICATOR-SWITCH-/272522967381?hash=item3f73a27955:g:US8AAOSw2xRYe6~k Light switch stalks. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/SIERRA-SAPPHIRE-WIPER-AND-LIGHT-SWITCH-STALK-GENUINE-FREE-POSTAGE-1989-/171324563352?hash=item27e3bd5f98:g:l4YAAOxy3NBSeSS6 And another set. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/FORD-SIERRA-MK1-XR4i-XR4X4-3-DOOR-COSWORTH-LIGHT-WIPER-STALK-SWITCH-KIT-CAR-/302190314647?hash=item465bf24497:g:USMAAOSwo4pYcYUR And another (cheaper at moment) http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/FORD-SIERRA-WIPER-LIGHT-SWITCH-/391677843615?hash=item5b31d1989f:g:GKcAAOSwhdRYWZm~ And just to show you, The early Ford Transit indicator switch. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/FORD-TRANSIT-1991-2000-STEERING-COLUMN-INDICATOR-STALK-SWITCH-91VB13B302AG-NEW-/162186730670?fits=Car+Make%3AFord%7CModel%3ATransit&hash=item25c3151cae:g:JLwAAOSwAuZX19x-

Don't cut off the cowl, that's how they should be, and with the cowl fixed to the back of the radiator. I also suggest that you wire up you fan like this. http://nw.rhocar.org/fan%20wiring.htm

New to him maybe, but certainly not from Robin Hood. Was his name Daley? Arthur Daley?

I think he meant 2002, as that is a sliding pillar 2B

As above. ^^ Let's say that you have the engineering skills to alter the tunnel, you would then need to let your insurance know, as it's a major alteration to "standard" ie. the standard excepted RH tub, they would then probably ask for an independent engineer's report on the vehicle & your work . If you didn't inform them and were unlucky enough to be in an RTC, then an engineer would certainly be looking at it.