Potential Nebwie

[Mark Rs]

Hi everyone, I am currently looking to get into the Kit car scene and am looking at Westfield's, i am looking for a project to do with my family and therefore been looking at the complete kits available, any advice or help would be very much appreciated. something with throttle bodies/webbers would be a must 

i am mechanically minded and have built my current rally car so feel a kit would be more than achievable, has anyone got one for sale? either brand new or not started

 

Thanks

Mark

[Stuart]

Welcome Mark. There's a potentially big bargain in the For Sale section if it's within your budget 

 

[Mark Rs]

Stuart 

 

Yes this is within my budget, i have messaged the seller, would all the parts and engine etc still be ok after being sat for 11 years ?

[Stuart]

Mark if it's all been stored carefully then everything should be OK I reckon. There's some good comments in that thread. 

 

I don't have any experience of starting/running an 11 year old crate engine though. Anyone else have any advice/experience on this? 

[Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman)]

1 hour ago, Mark Rs said:

would all the parts and engine etc still be ok after being sat for 11 years ?

 

Bit of a tricky one to answer; but looking at the photos of how everything was stored and looked after, I'd say the omens are really good! You'll have two most likely enemies to watch out for, after eleven years. Surface rust/oxidisation on parts, and rubber seals/pipes possibly hardening.

 

The more engine and brake parts were left in their original storage/shipping grease/coatings, the less chance of issues with rust, and the better the chance oil seals etc have. As far as rubber fuel hoses go, to be honest, given how the petrol situation has changed and the difference ethanol has made. Personally, I'd just replace the fuel hoses with new Gates Barricade injection hose, regardless.

 

Before doing much turning over of the engine and gearbox, I'd be tempted just to squirt a little penetrating oil between the various output shafts and the external oil seals, just to make sure they've got a bit of lubrication from the get go and don't drag/rip etc. I'd also whip out the spark plugs drop a thimble full of oil down each bore, before doing to much, again, just to get a bit of lubrication for the rings when you try to turn it over.

 

One other old trick used to be to also drain out the engine oil, and if it's ok, pour it back in at the top! (It'll flow down it's normal paths through the engine giving a bit more protection, before turning it over.)

 

Turn over by hand first, with the plugs out. You should feel any unexpected tightness or roughness. However, I'd be surprised if you did have an issue.

 

The other thing that you'll need to keep in mind is tyres. They will harden with age, somewhat. If stored well, (kept out of sunlight/UV, and kept at a stable frost free temperature, they won't degrade quite so badly. They should be fine to get through the build, IVA and get on the road, though.

[Gary Taylor]

Welcome and happy hunting

[Mark Rs]

Thanks everyone i will bear this in mind