82 Ford Capri 1.6L [05/06/2022 Dash & Choke]

New day, level head back on

So rechecked the carbs from yesterday. First of all - a lot of moody I’m-not-talking-to-anyone-as-the-car-is-annoying-me time researching first of all made me realise that the port between carbs 1-2 & 3-4 are not supposed to be capped off:



They are a reference for atmospheric pressure for the float bowls...who knew..

Next, I’m sure how I’d measured the float levels, but that was wrong, so started over.While I was at it I noticed that one of the needle valves was not springing back..so that needs to be replaced.



So progress...hopefully.

I fitted the new needle jets and reconnected everything backup, but I was still getting very odd behaviour...one day it would run, the next it wouldn’t... I had also been having an issue with the throttle cable. Originally I had cut the end off the stock one and somehow fitted the solder-less nipple to it. However the connection on the carb end is a pain to get to on the car, so after a few times of removing and reinstalling my cable looked like this:



(Btw a tip I have since found out is to dip them in superglue to stop them from fraying)

On the last refit, I used a bike brake cable and used a dremel to trim the end to size for the carb and and used a pear type nipple at the pedal end



One of the days it was refusing to start I took the advice here of splashing a bit of fuel down the carbs. It would run until the vapours ran out..so it did seem to be a fuelling issue, even though I’ve got a clear filter fitted at the carb end and can see it filling up when the pump is running. I bought a complete bike pump/filter off eBay a few weeks back so was all set to fit that. However, when i was preparing to fit it, I noticed the pipe from the pump was kinked cause of how I’d run it....surely it couldn’t be that simple....oh YES...YES IT COULD!

It’s running nicely and starts pretty much consistently on the button



joem83 - I think there are good vibes about

So...we have a spanking new MOT...yeah boi

I always find emissions the most concerning...especially when you’ve changed fuelling setups, but we we’re all good:



I took it the long way round beforehand (as I’ve only taken it for a quick spin round the block since fitting the carbs), to give it a bit of a clearout. First time I’ve had it over 20mph since fitting the bike carbs, and wow does it beg to be revved...it’s fantastic!! Everything is forgiven and the past is the past



Sat greeting me with a fresh ticket:



Taken on the way back...I was being a bit of an attention whore...and loving the looks... haha

Anyone familiar with Capri’s will be used to having to carry one of these around:



As the boot worn boot struts have a habit of giving way and whacking you over the head when your directly underneath

Old one removed, and the ends of the one ones swapped into the new struts. I also pressed a bit of nylon tubing over the metal bush to take up some of the slop.



After



Which now means I can finally bin the old pole I’ve been carrying around in the boot



I didn’t take any pics, but I also sorted the drivers door lock which wouldn’t lock when you pressed it down...so nice being able to fix things with a squirt of WD40 substitute innit

haha, it's a combination of factors...mainly because it doesn't get driven a lot, and the easiest way to stop me coming back to a dead battery is to disconnect the battery. Also i've never bought a specific battery for it..i just seem to end up using batteries scavenged from other cars (it's got a pukka Ford branded one at the moment taken from my diesel Fusion from when it started getting weak last winter). Finally, security - as lets face it, the locks are rubbish on our cars!!

I dunno if it's a Capri thing, but I have stripped out meters of old, curse word and just plain weird wiring from mine over the years. It also seems to be a mix of automotive and domestic stuff looking at what came out from behind the dash. Mind you...my top tip...if your washing machine ever breaks down...strip it for parts! Sell the drum as a 'fire pit' and hang onto the wiring loom as it's great for car stuff (decent quality, nice mix of colours, etc...)

Basically a relay is just an electrical switch that lets you turn on a higher powered circuit from a lower power one.
Often you don't want to put a switch inline with the circuit you are controlling. If you did that, a lot of the wiring throughout a car would have to be a lot thicker to cope! A good site is: 12voltplanet.co.uk They've also got some common real world examples, and some handy guides like how to size wire for your needs..

For what i've done, this is the simplified diagram (the real thing looks slightly different as I’m using a 3 pin switch with an LED indicator)



Also, dunno if you were ever on capripower or Capri World fb group (think you are, as pretty sure i've seen you post)...but this is pretty much your Capri wiring bible

I haven’t had the Capri out since we took it to one of the drive in movies at one worth about a month ago. Plus July/August are normally rubbish and wet anyway...

I really need to get the carbs set up properly at some point - the trouble is finding somewhere to do it. It’s ok, but there are some symptoms of them running a bit lean...Revs tend to hang, and especially in the eve when it’s colder it gets a bit hesitant at light throttle.

Funds aren’t great at the moment so I thought I’d have ago with shimming the needle main needle jets as I’d read somewhere that this can often overcome issues of running lean. Mine don’t have the adjustable grooves, so it’s a case of putting one or more 0.5mm washers:



Plus it was an excuse to replace the soft easily wrecked cross head screws with allen head ones.





Like most people from a non-bike background, I didn’t even know they are a different standard (JIS) which is why they often get wrecked by non JIS screwdrivers! Unfortunately it didn’t have the effect I’d hoped for. The revs didn’t hang but it put a serious dent in responsiveness and felt very bogged down. Oh well, it was worth a go. I need to have a bit more of a read up on tuning bike carbs...and probably give balancing them a go. I was chatting to the guy who rents the lockup next to me who’s into his scooters and he was saying that the jets all overlap a lot more than on the original Webber, so it’s probably worth playing with the air screw. Whereas I think on the old Webber all that did was set the idle mixture setting.

I also had a go at fitting the sound deadening material I bought a while back which didn’t get wrecked when the lockup got minorly flooded 😡



That turned out to be a satisfying job and one step closer to getting the interior sorted. Btw has anyone got any recommendation for a replacement for the moisture barrier? I’ve seen you can get something like this from screwfix www.screwfix.com/p/capital-valley-plastics-ltd-vapour-barrier-green-300ga-20-x-2-5m/12869 but I was also wondering if cutting up an old rubble sack would be just as good?

Only a minor update and no pictures (not much to see!). I adjusted the mixture screw on carb no.3 as that was the one that would sometimes spit back. 1/4 turn at a time until the spitting was gone. Took it for a little drive and it felt a bit smoother - so that was a nice improvement for 15 mins work.
With the filter removed and revving it up I can see some disparity in how much the vacuum slides move. Roll on payday so I can give balancing the carbs a proper go.

Some self adhesive closed cell foam is a good addition over the silent coat. Depends how quiet you want the cabin.

Nothing earth shattering in terms of updates. I did start cleaning the 2.0 block up:













I did have a mate helping me out but COVID restrictions means that progress has stalled a bit.

I had a fail fitting the oil seal and ended up cracking the casing - clearly I was doing something wrong! So I bought another casing with oil seal already fitted from ebay...



Other than that - I’ve got a few bits at the powdercoaters waiting to come back (headlight surrounds, few brackets, etc...)

I also replaced the starter motor with a high torque one, as especially after not being used for a while - every little helps to make it easier to get going again.