RENOWN AT THE HOUSE OF COMMONS - trocltd.com Dec Globe Extracts.pdf · RENOWN AT THE HOUSE OF COMMONS! Roger ... also thought I’d better get the lubrication chart out, ... the grille

RENOWN AT THE HOUSE OF COMMONS! Roger Stone

Two weeks ago, at the school in Margate where I work, our receptionist (sounding very impressed) put through to me a call from Roger Gale, MP for Thanet North. He’s visited the school on a number of occasions, and has good ties with the school; but I knew him in another context: it was from him that I had bought my Renown, four years ago now. It was the car that he wanted to talk about. It had been in their family for many years, having originally been owned by his grandfather in the fifties, and then passed to his aunt Violet until 1990, when he had inherited it and stored it. In 2004, he and his son forced themselves to admit that their dreams of having time to restore it were never going to happen; I was lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time, and I acquired it from them. Now, Roger’s daughter was about to be married, and he wondered if the car might be available to drive her to the wedding? It would be a surprise for her. This was a rather alarming prospect. As those of you who have seen my car at TROC rallies will know, it is completely unrestored; some of the paintwork is excellent, with the full deep lustre of high-quality 1950s bodywork; but in other places it is faded, chipped, scarred, and all across the roof rust has cratered it like the surface of the moon. The chrome around the windows is as new; but on the rear bumper it’s peeling away in great jagged shards. Inside, the head-lining in particular is mottled and holey, and around the back window has rotted and crumbled to nothing. The dashboard is good in the middle, but the ply has un-laminated itself at both ends, where rain leaking through the windscreen has destroyed the glue. The original horsehair stuffing of the seats is fine, but normally you wouldn’t want to be able to examine it through splits in the Rexine. It’s the sort of thing I’m sure you’ve all seen at the ‘before’ stage – but would a bride on her wedding day appreciate such authenticity in a wedding car? A surprise is all very well, but if surprise became shock... However, Roger assured me she’d love it. It would involve driving to London, he said – would the car make it? The actual drive would not be far, he added. From the RAC Club in Pall Mall, through St James’ Park, down the Mall and across Horseguard’s, through Parliament Square and thus to the House. Misty was to be married in the Undercroft Chapel at the House of Commons. I took a very deep breath. Fortunately I was already sitting down. How could anyone say no to that? I assured him that mechanically she was running well, and London would not be a problem. I did insist that he had a good look at the car, to be aware of what she really looked like – fearing that he might be remembering her from her glory days before the rain and damp had wreaked their worst, or assuming that I’d carried through a restoration – but he was not at all put off. I had to go along with his judgement, because the lure of the pictures in Westminster was irresistible.

Scenes at Westminster [above] and outside the RAC Club in Pall Mall.

I had two weeks to spruce her up, and it was only just sufficient. Polish covers a multitude of woes, but it has to be kept up; I’d been neglecting the dear old lady. I also thought I’d better get the lubrication chart out, and have the garage check the tracking, because I’d noticed a tendency to wallow from side to side after hitting a bump at any speed. Not tracking, they said. The idlers were very worn (which I knew, but had been trying to ignore) and the idler mounting was flexing back and forth on the chassis member because it was nearly rusted through. Oh. At this point can I pay tribute to the TROC spares team? I’m completely non-mechanical myself; I know my limitations, and I just don’t trust myself to work on the car. But between our very good local garage and the three TROC parts experts, I have never been let down or stumped. This time, Chris Hewitt came up trumps. Previously, it’s been Irving or Bob. We had the chassis member welded up, and new (reconditioned) idler joints fitted on Tuesday and Wednesday; and today, Saturday, my dear old Lady sailed up the M2, did the business, and roared home again, without so much as a single splutter, wobble, or... Well, OK, just a drop or two of oil outside the Speaker’s Entrance. I’ll get round to that later. But my relief is palpable; my debt of gratitude to TROC incalculable . But what of the wedding, I hear you ask? It was glorious. The sun shone (rather too warmly for being stuck in London traffic, but we managed); I found the RAC club and the House of Commons without insurmountable problems; and when Misty saw the car – she burst into tears. For the right reasons, I hasten to add. There cannot be many brides who are driven to their weddings in their great-grandfather’s car, and she fully appreciated the unique family heritage it represented. And I have my pictures!

MY MODIFIED RENOWN …AN UPDATE Bob Pike

As is usual with any project, things did not go exactly as planned. I have read my previous article and can see things changed, not done yet or done sooner than expected. The main aim was to be passed MoT and roadworthy for Friday July 25th to go to the National Street Rod Association main annual event for the weekend, at Old Warden in Bedfordshire. First drive was late Thursday evening and all seemed OK. Next morning a group of us in assorted old cars (a V8 1936 Morris 8, a V8 1932 Ford coupe and a twin turbo, Rolls Royce engined, 1936 Morris 14) had a pleasant trip the 100-ish miles down. This is a major show with top quality custom cars and hot rods from all over the UK so I was stunned, but very pleased to be awarded a ‘Top Ten’ award, especially as it is nowhere near finished. I had to leave the show early as I was feeling unwell, so Mark Stacey who had done the majority of the work and put in many late nights collected the trophy. Mechanically things are pretty much as planned with the V6 running fine, although a manual choke will improve the rather erratic running. Other bits discovered on the weekend trip are slightly warped rear drums and the need for a ride height that is just a bit more speed hump capable.

The bonnet that came with the car was a dreadful fit and as the grille was going to be painted anyway, a complete new bonnet was made, the grille mascot plated over and the grille top reshaped to look more like a Triumph Roadster.

The fuel filler flap is in, but the bonnet side vents are on hold as I like the look without them. The rear wings and valance have been extended to make the car look lower and the rear lights are set in.

As I had bought all new rubber trim from the club, I went for a re-spray at this stage rather than have to remove them all again later. The colour is a non metallic commercial colour which will be easier to ‘blow in’ during the winter as we have a bit of body flex near the rear door and there are bound to be a few stone chips.

The interior is very basic as yet, with just the front seats, but I have found some leather to match to seats, on a sofa in a skip, so I can make matching door trims. The Volvo rear seat will be cut to fit and the wood for the doors and roof sides is started. Hopefully it will be much nearer to finished for next summer, but I am very pleased with progress so far. Thanks again to Mark of Power & Performance for all his work and to the Razoredge club for supplying many missing parts.

HOW TO GET THE BEST FROM YOUR BATTERIES

This useful article appeared in the magazine of the Daimler and Lanchester Owners’ Club many years ago and is reproduced here with their kind permission.

Alex Stewart Registrar DLOC Batteries have been around, in something like their present form, since the earliest days of the automobile. They are essential both to the car's performance and the driver's comfort yet they are an accessory in which many motorists—including some of the most experienced—seem to take surprisingly little interest. The subject is of course particularly important during the winter months. For all too many people a new battery is a "panic buy", usually on a cold morning with a train to catch or the family to take to school. The following practical points are based on information supplied by Chloride Automotive Batteries, makers of the Exide and Dagenite brands. If your battery is of reasonable age, the danger signs are when it seems to take a few turns longer to start the car, or the lights do not look quite so bright. To check the state of the battery, test each cell with a hydrometer. If one or more cells show more than 0.040 lower than the others, then the battery needs replacement. Most hydrometers have coloured areas marked

• 'fully charged' (over 1.250) • ‘half charged’ (1.170 to 1.250) • 'flat' (1.170 or below)

If the external charging cannot get the battery up to the fully charged area (over 1,250), then the battery is for all purposes dead. The most accurate hydrometer readings are obtained when the battery had been topped up and when the car has had a period of normal driving. For modern 'Sealed for Life’ types where it is not possible to insert the hydrometer take readings with an accurate voltmeter. Unless you already possess one, it is probably better and cheaper to ask your local battery dealer to do this for you. When you buy a replacement battery, make sure that it is properly installed in the first place—with leads securely connected to the terminals, terminals coated with a little petroleum jelly to avoid corrosion and the battery held-down tight enough to prevent corrosion but not so tight as to risk causing damage to the case.

There are some very common fallacies about battery usage in general — the most common being that you can somehow prolong a battery's life by ‘saving' it. In practice the opposite is true. A battery is an active electro-chemical system that requires regular usage. In any case, if the car's electrics are in good condition, once the engine is running most, or the entire load is supplied directly by the generator. In these days, thousands of home chargers are in use by motorists of all kinds, many of whom believe that the best way to preserve their battery is to put it on charge every night and all night during the winter months. In fact, the opposite is true; over-charging can be as damaging as under-charging and, with normal healthy running, the need to charge should only be occasional. If however you do not run much in daylight and prefer to use the charger, it is again wise to check up with the hydrometer. If all the cells read 1.250 or above, the car's own system should soon bring them up to an acceptable 1.270 or 1.280 without outside aid. If any readings are below 1.250, than an overnight charge should be enough for most batteries. Be sure to read the instructions issued by the makers of both the charger and of the battery. Then disconnect the battery from the earth. Remove the battery completely from the car and stand it on a flat surface. Connect 'like to like'—the positive lead from the charger to the positive terminal of the battery. Do not switch on the charger or plug into the mains until this has been firmly done. Never use naked lights or smoke near the battery area. Whilst modern batteries are intrinsically safe, they can give off a mixture of oxygen and hydrogen gas —particularly when charging — which is potentially explosive. If you are not likely to use the car after the overnight charge, remember to switch the charger off in the morning. Remember too that when your car is laid up for the winter, even standing in the garage the electrics will make a small but steady drain on the battery.

• As little as three weeks can discharge the battery by half.

• A session on the charger is therefore desirable at regular intervals.