01:00am Sunday:
Bl**dy cars. Finally put the car back together excepting the bumper/lights/radiator assembly, attempted to bleed the brakes - major 4-pot calipers with two bleed nipples each side. Still haven't filled up the cooling system. Put the oil in and tried to turn over the engine but the battery could hardly manage - we had been using it to power the lead light all evening. Peter took the decision to tow the car home so he could finish off the job at a more civilised time the next day - and also to save on the 80 mile round trip to my parents' place. This didn't work too well - just pushing the car out of the garage created the most awful rubbing noise - traced the following week to the right front wheel fouling on the (oversized) calipers.
The car remained at my parents' house for another week until Peter came back with his father to finish things off. They ended up solving the brake/wheel interface problem and towed the car home. Eventually she started - the engine has been sat around for quite a few months - and immediately an oil leak appeared. This was from the pipe that feeds oil to the turbo from the bottom of the block. By now this should be cured and I look forward to seeing the car in action at the Lancia Motor Club meet at Goodwood circuit on March 6th 1999. Hurry up Peter, only two weeks left to get her sorted!
Footnote: Peter took the car down to Goodwood, ran like a dream on the trip down there. Into scruntineering for a noise check (duly passed) when Peter noticed smoke coming from under the bonnet. Turns out the wiring had burned out all the way from the ignition switch to under the bonnet, all the wires melted together. Never did get out on the track that day, and returned home courtesy of the RAC. But it will be back - look out for it at Auto Italia day at Brooklands in the summer, and the next Lancia Motor Club track day in September at Castle Combe.
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