My restoration (to date !)

Clutch (non)operation

Talking of clutches, mine didn't work. That grating sound of a working gearbox that I was initially so relieved to hear became the bane of my life when trying to engage the clutch. I tried rocking the car, starting it in first and then thought that maybe I would have to drop the engine to get to the clutch. A few messages out into the electronic world yielded a few more ideas, none of which worked, but at least I learned that it was a common problem - it wasn't just me. Then my brother in law told me how he'd freed up his Triumph TR7 : stick the car in a higher gear (I used 3rd), chock the wheels, jam the brakes on, pull up the hand brake, depress the clutch and try turning the engine over. There was the noise of a starter motor straining and then a very loud "clunk". Either something like the diff. had sheared or the clutch was working. I chose to believe the former and tried another gear, revved the engine and....reversed straight into my house wall. It appeared that I'd fixed the gear change problem.