Track Record: The Push for Abingdon Carnival

After the last rally, where we had to limp round with overheating issues and no brakes to get a finish, we had some work to do. With just two weeks to go, I had to get stuck in and get it done.

With a two-day bank holiday for the Queens Jubilee, I had to plan the ordering of parts early to make sure they arrived with time to fit them. A bigger radiator from the 1.8 MG ZR, Mtech C hook discs, Mintex 1166 pads, and a head gasket set from our friends at MAR Motorsport were all purchased.

Starting with the biggest job, I drained the oil and coolant and stripped everything back. Removing the cylinder head and inspecting the gasket revealed it was due a replacement and was probably the cause of the airlock. The head was dropped off at Head Technique in Telford for skimming, and was collected two days later. Excellent service, and a good hour chatting about rallying too!

Once I’d fitted everything back together, attention turned to the new brakes and radiator. The brakes are pretty straight forward and need no further commentary, but the radiator needed a bracket making to secure it. The Rover 200’s lower radiator mount will need to be moved towards the O/S later, but as I can’t weld a bracket was a quicker option to get us rallying. I then used a Stoney Racing 14” curved blade cooling fan and stainless-steel fitting kit to secure it.

After I’d filled the car with oil and coolant, I gave it one last check over before starting it up and bleeding the air from the coolant system. Everything was working well, so a test drive was done while bedding in the brakes. After 75 miles, the car was feeling good and no leaks were found.

With just one day spare before leaving for the rally, some excess weight was removed from the car before loading the van. The rear wiper and motor are both useless and heavy.

The next morning, we made the two-hour trip to Dalton Barracks near Abingdon. On arrival we pitched up for the two-day social with friends, before the rally on Sunday. After all the time and effort I’d put in, and as Pete was celebrating his 70^th birthday, it would have been rude not to enjoy a couple of whisky’s on Friday night.

Sunday soon arrived and we were into the service area to set up by 7am. Breakfast was on, and the weather was promising to stay hot and dry all day.

SS1 and SS2 were drama free and we were going well, managing to catch the previous car, and by SS3 we had managed to pass it.

There were 17 starters in the 1400 class, and after SS4 we were 7^th in class so we were happy with how things were going.

The last three stages were also uneventful, all being good clean runs, and finishing the rally 6^th in class. This meant that we finished 3^rd in class Heart of England Rally Championship crew, giving us some much-needed points, and retaining our class lead in the championship.

We now have a four month gap until our next rally, so my attention must now turn to the Escort and ensuring the car is ready for next season. More on that next time!