Dependability tips, please...

[Colin Morgan]

Hi,

Now that oils are so much better, what are the current best tips to maintain the Dependability of our Sevens?

Two that spring to mind for me, are filling the gearbox and the rear axle to the appropriate (slightly lower) levels to avoid a slipping clutch and oily brakes.

Colin

[Reckless Rat]

Without a doubt, silicone gaskets.

[Colin Morgan]

Yes, I have one on the sump - a big improvement.

[Peter Clayton]

Don't introduce problems, if it ain't broke don't mend it.

[Chris KC]

Drive it.

Look at reports of long-distance runs and you will invariably find the majority of those who 'drop out' have issues they would have known about if they ran their cars regularly, or they have fitted new and unproven parts before departure. Once you can do 20 miles a day, day after day, you can take on more or less anything with confidence.

Other than that, tune only modestly and resist the urge to add bells and whistles - keep it simple.

[Bob Culver]

Liquid silicon gaskets for the sump incur a high risk of globules. Sevens have no filter on the pump inlet and the oil jets are crucial.
Whilst it will not strand hubs greased as the handbook will ruin brake linings. Only the races need to be packed.
When it had original parts the only strandings of my car at about 70,000 miles was a distrubotor drive gear stripping. And the steering arm.. A broken main leaf can strand but cracks are usually visible long before failure. And broken kingpins detectable by a quick shake of the wheel. And regulat tightening of the axle nuts reduces problems there (Greatly simplified by ommitting the split pin or placing outside of the castellations)

[Colin Cooke]

Regarding Bob's last comment about omitting the split pins from the halfshaft ends....I torque the nut up to 120lbft, then mark the nut/halfshaft end with a paint pen. I have no centres on my wheels, so it is easy to look and see if the nuts have moved.

[John Mason]

Bob mentions the fact that Sevens have no real oil filter system. I change my oil very frequently using 10-40 or 20+50 multi grade. Nothing special cheap and cheerful. My theory is as it is cheap it may breakdown quicker than more expensive oils but then it’s not in long enough for that to happen and I keep getting clean fresh oil. I do however put a more expensive multi grade in the gear box as that is not regularly changed.

John Mason.

[John Cornforth]

My only issues with dependability have had nothing to do with oil.

On 3 occasions in the last 15 years I have "failed to proceed".  Once when the HT king lead shook itself out of the distributor cap, once when the contact breaker point faces corroded during layup and once when a modern condenser failed when it got hot.

Something of a pattern emerging here !

[Barry Townsend]

My best three 'mods' for reliability were fitting electronic ignition, installing a fuel filter and also a Dynamator alternator, they rectified constant ongoing problems for me.
Probably won't be appreciated by the purists but in my case I can jump in my RN and go pretty much wherever I want with a certain amount of confidence and it is outwardly standard in appearance under the bonnet.
I agree that the preformed silicone gaskets are also a must have and since careful installation of new half shafts and hubs the back axle has not had any problems.