244GL 1981 getting back on the road

[Laird Scooby]

Originally Posted by dmw244gl

thanks for the info

here is a picture of the carb i have, sorry for slow replies, in the middle of packing up my house for a house move.

Yes, that's the screw in the dizzy baseplate that commonly strips the thread. All too easily cross-threaded sadly. Usually the points gap closes fairly quickly as a result.

I see you have the anti-diesel solenoid, worth unscrewing that and checking the plunger is clean (especially on the coned end) and free to move in and out of the solenoid body.

Have you checked the oil in the dashpot? It should be up to ~1/4" or 6mm from the top of the inside of the tube inside, if not top it up with Dexron II-D ATF and replace the plunger slowly but surely - the top unscrews conventionally. Don't cross thread it when you refit it! Push it in until the threads make contact then while holding slight downward pressure, turn it anticlockwise until you feel the threads drop into place then turn it clockwise the 3-4 turns to tighten.

[dmw244gl]

Originally Posted by Laird Scooby

If some muppet has cross-threaded the contact breaker screws in the dizzy base-plate, you need new screws minimum. Then remove the base-plate and re-tap the holes (correct size) and hope that cures it, if not, you need a new base-plate.

That said, your better option for the long term would be to obtain a dizzy from a later 240 with electronic ignition (Hall Effect) with the sensor in the dizzy, the ignition amp module and convert it, no need to worry about contact breakers then or a varying dwell angle. This is a fairly common upgrade/modification (i believe Alan has it on his RB) so there should be information somewhere on the forum exactly how to do it.
Failing that, a reconditioned dizzy.d/adjusted while cranking the engine, not with it running.

so had no luck in fixing the screw, been asked to source a base plate, i rang lakes and they dont have one.

what this method you talked about above ? how easy is this to do ?
where do i find the guide ?
cheers
dennis

[Laird Scooby]

Originally Posted by dmw244gl

so had no luck in fixing the screw, been asked to source a base plate, i rang lakes and they dont have one.

what this method you talked about above ? how easy is this to do ?
where do i find the guide ?
cheers
dennis

Guide for what?

You've quote on two things there, me suggesting adding electronic ignition from a later car and also dwell angle adjustment.

If it's adding electronic ignition from a later 240, just do a search on here and you should find anything there is about it.

[dmw244gl]

Originally Posted by dmw244gl

thanks for the info

here is a picture of the carb i have, sorry for slow replies, in the middle of packing up my house for a house move.

Sorry i didnt look at my own pictures this is the
Stromberg 175 CDSU carb, on my car,

is this much better?

[dmw244gl]

sourced a second hand DISTRIBUTOR,
so that will fix one issue.

got new rocker cover gasket and cambelts yesterday as well.

[Othen]

Originally Posted by dmw244gl

Just an update so far,

given the car a service.
cambelt, waterpump , plugs and oil, sorted timing out,

and replaced the faulty water pump and got it taxed and on the road.

just need to find a carb repair kit for it now and one adapter to get a headlight wiper blade back on the car, got 3 spare wipers just no adapter to attach it on.

Originally Posted by dmw244gl

sourced a second hand DISTRIBUTOR,
so that will fix one issue.

got new rocker cover gasket and cambelts yesterday as well.

... hang on, you changed the cam belt a month ago... or did you?

No matter, a new distributor should sort out the wavering points problem, so well done there.

The cam cover gaskets are sometimes a bit tricky to get to seal up properly, I think depending on how many times the cover has been on and off - and how much previous owners have distorted it. When I got the RB I found the PO had fitted two gaskets - I think in an attempt to stop an oil leak. In practice that was more part of the problem rather than the solution - returning the motor to its standard set-up solved the issue completely.

Good fortune,

Alan

[Othen]

Originally Posted by dmw244gl

Sorry i didnt look at my own pictures this is the
Stromberg 175 CDSU carb, on my car,

is this much better?

The carburettors (Pierburg and Stromberg) are pretty similar. The green book I sent you a link to a while ago covers both of them, and most of the set-up procedure is the same. Just be methodical and you will get it sorted out.

I think it is sensible to fix one problem at a time - so I'd say it would be best to change the cam belt (if indeed you have not done that) first because that will affect the ignition timing, then change the distributor and get the timing correct, then go through the set-up procedure for your type of carburettor.

It is up to you though... :-)

Good fortune,

Alan

[dmw244gl]

hi
it would seem the belts i got before where not for the cambelt, im sure i asked for cambelt ones lol,
my heads more with it these last week or so after finally moving house.

so once they arrive will give them all to mechanic to fix

thanks for the advice. always appreciated

what do you think would be a fair and realistic value of this, i see silly prices on ebay and comments on your thread on here.

[Othen]

Originally Posted by dmw244gl

hi
it would seem the belts i got before where not for the cambelt, im sure i asked for cambelt ones lol,
my heads more with it these last week or so after finally moving house.

so once they arrive will give them all to mechanic to fix

thanks for the advice. always appreciated

what do you think would be a fair and realistic value of this, i see silly prices on ebay and comments on your thread on here.

No problem, I'm guessing you changed the alternator and PAS belts previously - they probably needed changing anyway.

The cam belt is a pretty easy thing to change yourself - you could probably do it in an afternoon; mechanics get quite expensive.

It is hard to guess at a fair price without having seen the car - but I'd have thought a 1981 244 running and with a MoT, but still in need of some recommissioning would be worth something like £2000. Once it has the historic registration (next April) it would fetch 50% more.

Good fortune,

Alan

[loki_the_glt]

Doing the timing belt on a B21, which your car should have, is easier than doing it on a B230.

If it's a manual car, then drain the coolant and remove the grille and radiator before starting, as this makes it a lot easier to see the various timing marks.

Line up the crankshaft pulley mark with the timing belt cover mark and then remove the belt cover. The camshaft sprocket should be lined up with the notch in the cambox lid and the auxiliary shaft mark with its corresponding mark on the block. Turn the crankshaft until they do line up.

Get a 3mm drill and a big pair of waterpump pliers and follow the instructions in the manual.