1983 Maestro 1.6L ELD

[Doctordiesel77]

Finally got around to making a start on this, I could see why there had been a bit of head scratching in the past, the vacuum pipes were either disconnected, or attached to connectors that they shouldn't be. This seemed to have been caused by the tiny stub for the auto advance pipe on the carb having gone missing, it was not immediately obvious until I checked on the parts list. Luckily I had a spare carb to rob! Seems to run a lot better now anyway. The fuel pump was working ok, but had a slight leak from the crimp on the outlet, so I put a new one on, new fuel lines next..

[Jeff Turbo]

Nicely done, when's that roadworthy John?

[Doctordiesel77]

Nicely done, when's that roadworthy John?

Very soon, there's not much wrong with it, hardly been used since its last MOT. I wasn't sure how thorough the last test had been, but seems pretty much accurate, it being exempt now I've taxed it, so I can test drive it and make sure all is well.

[Jeff Turbo]

Very soon, there's not much wrong with it, hardly been used since its last MOT. I wasn't sure how thorough the last test had been, but seems pretty much accurate, it being exempt now I've taxed it, so I can test drive it and make sure all is well.

An easy fix then and makes a change eh

[Doctordiesel77]

An easy fix then and makes a change eh

Yes, it makes up for those ten minute fixes that end up taking months!

[Jeff Turbo]

Yes, it makes up for those ten minute fixes that end up taking months!

Been there many times

[Doctordiesel77]

New fuel hoses on, new choke and throttle cables on. A short test drive revealed loose bolts on the os driveshaft (and one snapped bolt!). I was going to replace the bolts 'just in case', but they don't seem to be easy to find, VW ones are the same thread size, but longer and with a smaller head. I used second hand ones & soon worked out why they had loosened, they are not easy to get at with normal tools, also the locking caps were missing (same as they are on every other 1600 that I've got!). I pruned one of my 8mm hex bits and used a decent ring key to tighten them, the Rover tool for the job is a ball ended hex adaptor, I may well be buying one of those before I touch another of these driveshafts. Seemed to go pretty well on the next test drive, was a bit rough when cold, no doubt due to the manual choke conversion & my keenness to get the choke off....

[Jeff Turbo]

Did you need some caps John. I may have some lying about somewhere?
Large allen key with a tube on the end should remove the bolts surely?

[Doctordiesel77]

Did you need some caps John. I may have some lying about somewhere?
Large allen key with a tube on the end should remove the bolts surely?

I got one set of caps from XJ Rover on ebay, I see he has listed another set, so have messaged to see how many sets he has. I'm in no rush for them, but some spares would be handy, it seems as though there are a lot of people that are better at removing them than they are at refitting them. The bolts seem to be the most elusive part, I'd like to find some new ones, if they come out/snap it would be more than a litte bit exciting! The allen key/tube method works too, but you have to cut a bit off the end to get it into the hole, the actual joint is in the way. I do have a 'pre-butchered' allen key somewhere, but it is so long since I needed it that it seems to have gone into hiding. I went the other way as I've got quite a few long adaptors, but not so many allen keys. The vw box as fitted to a vw has a different shaft, one that you can get past onto the bolt heads, no idea why the Maestro one was made differently.....

[Jeff Turbo]

I got one set of caps from XJ Rover on ebay, I see he has listed another set, so have messaged to see how many sets he has. I'm in no rush for them, but some spares would be handy, it seems as though there are a lot of people that are better at removing them than they are at refitting them. The bolts seem to be the most elusive part, I'd like to find some new ones, if they come out/snap it would be more than a litte bit exciting! The allen key/tube method works too, but you have to cut a bit off the end to get it into the hole, the actual joint is in the way. I do have a 'pre-butchered' allen key somewhere, but it is so long since I needed it that it seems to have gone into hiding. I went the other way as I've got quite a few long adaptors, but not so many allen keys. The vw box as fitted to a vw has a different shaft, one that you can get past onto the bolt heads, no idea why the Maestro one was made differently.....

Do you know the size of the bolts John ? I'm not sure if they're the same as used on my zt 260 driveshaft bolts

[Doctordiesel77]

Do you know the size of the bolts John ? I'm not sure if they're the same as used on my zt 260 driveshaft bolts

They are M8 x 25mm, but take an 8mm allen key, as the heads are oversized, the VW ones I got to try were a lot longer & had a standard 6mm head, luckily they were cheap as well as being no use! Adrian had more of the caps, so I've ordered enough for what I need, plus two spare sets, if anyone else needs a set he has at least one set left now.