I set out this weekend to accomplish two main tasks on Roxy. First, I wanted to replace the bushings in the gearshift assembly to eliminate the slop. Second, I wanted to fix the exhaust leak that is causing so much noise and fumes. In the end, I achieved neither. I did get closer though.
On the gearshift side, it turns out that though the bushings may be worn, the true cause of the problem is that one of the two major retaining bolts is missing. That’s right, totally gone. And of course it isn’t your normal bolt. It is a 10 millimeter socket head bolt. So I went out to try to find one. Many shops and questions later I came up empty handed. So I will continue the search on Monday when there are a couple of likely places open and I can also order one from the dealer. Worse case is that I will have it in hand by the end of the week. In the meantime I put in a similarly sized regular hex head bolt. I could only tighten it with my fingers since there is no room for a wrench, hence the use of a socket head for use with an allen wrench, but at least it should hold until I can get the correct bolt later in the week.
As for the exhaust, I tracked it down to most probably being the joint between the manifold and the down pipe. Not much I can do about that without a new gasket, so I ordered one and it too should be here by the end of the week. Just in case, I ordered a full manifold gasket too. I also order spark plugs, radiator hoses, some extra fuses, and few other items. All of this coming from Bavarian Auto.
I did have some new spark plug wires that came with Roxy when I bought her, so I put those on. I also added a vent hose between the valve cover and the carburetor. This was missing since I got her and blow-by was getting all over the engine compartment.
Finally, it seems I am going to have to do some adjusting to the Weber carburetor. First, she is just idling way too high. Once warmed up she seems to idle steadily at about 1500 to 1600 RPM. Optimally that should be around 950. Secondly, she is gulping gas. As close as I can figure so far, she is getting about 17 miles per gallon. I would say this is about 7 miles per gallon short of where she should be. I think she is running far too rich for one thing.
Anyway, that just means that I will have somethings to do to keep me busy while I am off work for Christmas. The main question will be whether or not my family lets me do that. And, of course, whether the weather cooperates.
