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Most Advanced Gadget You Fitted Way Back When


Hoovie
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I was reading a copy of Practical Classics and a readers question reminded me of a mod I did, must be oh, nearly 30 years ago.....

Fitted a nice little kit to add a variable intermittent wiper feature to the single-speed windscreen wipers :)

Also fitted an sexy after-market heated rear window element kit to the hardtop of my 1966 Spitfire (probably the first 'modified mod' as I had to add a plug connector to allow the roof to be removable ;)

I bet new drivers just starting out would not believe anyone would have needed to add these!What features have you guys added in the past which nowadays are totally standard features?

PS - could a mod correct the title! Should say "Most Advanced Gadget You Fitted Way Back When" (doh!)

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Dont you mean.......PS - could a mod correct the title! Should say "Most Advanced Gadget You Fitted Way Back When" (doh!) TO A RAV4....................

Im far to young to remember fitting such mods David... But Kev will be able to help ....

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Remember Lumenition electronic ignition kits ? I had both a MK1 and Mk2 RS2000 Escort in my youth, Lumenition replaced troublesome contact breakers, from memory you could advance the ignition timing by 2 degrees once it was fitted, it certainly made a difference eliminating points bounce and worn Ford distributor shafts.

Keeping the powers that be happy, I then bought my first Toyota, a GT Corolla FWD, 0-60 in 7.7 seconds in 1986 ! A brilliant little car.

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Clarion radio cassette with power amp and equaliser, along with rear Speakers fitted in series with standard front Speakers.

Must admit........it sounded down right average, with some of the effects on the equaliser making me feel as if I was being strangled, but it was the in thing. Without Dolby noise reduction, it hissed like a bag of snakes, with THD figure approaching 30% probably.

All got nicked.......by a guy who subsequently died of 73 brain tumours......

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Ah David, you roll the years back! SAH conversion to the rear springs on the Spitfire, banks of added instruments, including the vacuum gauge, ammeter, volt meter, and a strange thing called a "rev counter". Wonder what happened to them! :clap:

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Dont you mean.......PS - could a mod correct the title! Should say "Most Advanced Gadget You Fitted Way Back When" (doh!) TO A RAV4....................Im far to young to remember fitting such mods David... But Kev will be able to help ....

Reckon his would be to try feeding the horse refined petroleum after an article in "The Automobile" periodical ;)

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Ah David, you roll the years back! SAH conversion to the rear springs on the Spitfire, banks of added instruments, including the vacuum gauge, ammeter, volt meter, and a strange thing called a "rev counter". Wonder what happened to them! :clap:

Smiths instruments ! Rev counters that 'bounced' beyond 5.000 rpm, good times !

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Ah David, you roll the years back! SAH conversion to the rear springs on the Spitfire, banks of added instruments, including the vacuum gauge, ammeter, volt meter, and a strange thing called a "rev counter". Wonder what happened to them! :clap:

Hard to get out the habit of some stuff .. I have to admit to be actively looking on eBay in the last few days for Ammeters, Voltmeters and Boost Gauges :) .

What became of your Spitfire? I recall looking at the "Hurricane" kit car that used all the Spitfire machanicals (mine had a rotten floor and body not to hot either), but the task would have been way above my ability then (and likely now for tha matter)

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God that takes me back ! Must have been about thirty years ago also when I fitted a Gasfax fuel consumption computer to a 1970 Sunbeam Stiletto ! It was bril !

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A Harry Moss tape destroyer and electric aerial fitted to the anglebox..

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Ah David, you roll the years back! SAH conversion to the rear springs on the Spitfire, banks of added instruments, including the vacuum gauge, ammeter, volt meter, and a strange thing called a "rev counter". Wonder what happened to them! :clap:

Hard to get out the habit of some stuff .. I have to admit to be actively looking on eBay in the last few days for Ammeters, Voltmeters and Boost Gauges :) .

What became of your Spitfire? I recall looking at the "Hurricane" kit car that used all the Spitfire machanicals (mine had a rotten floor and body not to hot either), but the task would have been way above my ability then (and likely now for tha matter)

Sadly, I wrote it off after too many beers when I was a car salesman in 1967. Oh the stupidity of youth. I used to rally it as well, and fondly remember getting stuck on a ridged road following an old TR3. :drunk:

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Spitfires......? Hurricanes.......? 1967.........? Zat the end of war mins........?

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Spitfires......? Hurricanes.......? 1967.........? Zat the end of war mins........?

Nah, 2013 I think?

Watched a bit of an interview with Adrian Newey and Christian Horner of Red Bull Racing after winnig this years F1 championships and Newey was asked if he has learned any German yet (RBR being an Austrian team officially).

His reply was "Achtung Messerschmitt"!

Don't think the Brits are really cut out to be Europeans in all honesty :)

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Hand operated windscreen washer pump to a Ford Popular 100E 1961. Very effective as long as the vacuum operated wipers were working at the same time.

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My first car was a Dutton Phaeton escort-based kit. Had it for 4 years.

Swapped the rear drum brakes for disc brakes that I brought home from the breakers in a rucksack on my push bike. Took my back a year to recover. Ouch they were pointy.

Swapped the engine when I melted a piston trying to go too fast into a headwind down the M3.

Had to get a Battery from CCC in Twickenham as the ones from Halfords kept dying. It turned out they were Mini batteries (I only had a small space for it) and the Ford Kent needed big CCA to turn over. The specialists got me a Mighty Mouse to the right spec and I didn't have a problem since.

Swapped the rubbish Escort Mk1 dash for one I designed myself from two main VDO clocks and four little Smiths dials from a Mk2 Jag. Forgot how i linked the Ford block with the Jag oil sender, some sort of adapter with different threads. Lots of shiny toggle switches in a row, including one that went up for reversing lights or down for hazards :). A little Pioneer tune-up tweeter on each edge, to complement the big guys behind me. Sounded great. I spent so much time with my head in the footwell with all the mock ups making sure it was all right, a few well positioned multi plugs and it would be out and back in in a jiffy.

We did get twin webers from a Alfa, but for some reason they never made it on.

Wow. And at the time it was great fun. Now I get irritated if I have to put air in the tyres :D

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I believe I have been born again.............

It used to take about 6 weeks prep for a trip down south and I had enough tools and spares to sink a ship.

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Back in the day,fitted a heated rear windscreen on a Morris 1100.

Seemed like a massive upgrade at the time?

Consisted of strips of what looked like tin foil,wired to a dash switch,but it worked.

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The one just before that Paul was a piece of vinyl like a big oblong license holder. Trouble is I remember them both.

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Does having a Tigers,s tail, as in the Esso , put a Tiger in your tank, count as an advanced Gadget?.

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Front and rear fog lights with ........wait for it .........an illuminated RED toggle switch .... And a spark rite electronic ignition unit that clipped to the side of the coil pack with big springy clippy things to a MK 2 escort and a vauxhall Viva 1256 HD ....... Oh the memories

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Got a vague recollection of the Sparkrite thingy - and I think fitted to Viva HB 1159cc? What was the benefit of that again?

Talking about the Viva, lucky to be here still (others may disagree about that :lol:) after deciding to refurbish its brake calipers at the roadside parking bay when living in London, cleaning the pitting with sandpaper and drying in the over before refitting, all while having no idea how the brake mechanics actually worked).

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Does having a Tigers,s tail, as in the Esso , put a Tiger in your tank, count as an advanced Gadget?.

The way cars are going, soon that will be about all you can do before the ECU comes up with a fault for unauthorised changes :(

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