The Camaro Club (UK)

Had to take a few stabs at the MOT to get EvilZee through.

First fail was imbalance on rear brakes for weak nearside; the piston cylinder had went.
Second fail was me making a balls up putting the park brake assembly back together - still not really sure what I did wrong, think the tension bar was in wrong.
I then missed a retest through a power failure and had to return.
Third fail was an imbalance on rear brakes for weak offside; I like to think it was due to my excellent work on the other-side surpassed that on the offside causing it lol. I replaced the cylinder, cleaned and sanded the shoes and drums before bedding them in again.

All in the car covered 80 miles to and from test centers [essentially without MOT or TAX]

Fourth time and a full retest and it finally passed last night. 74% service brake efficiency which I'm chuffed with, considering it was as low as 40 something % on one of the fails. The higher imbalance was on the front at 3%. I'm fairly confident I could strip and rebuild a Camaro brake drum blind folded now too

Car is running a bit fuel rich for emissions, but since its 1969 it didn't cause a fail. The engine has run less than 100 miles yet so its a few more to do yet before being checked over again and some more tuning.

Car is now taxed (actually did it online on my phone going out the gate) Roll on the sun

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Hey StuntmanLee Good to hear that you have an MOT now
Running a bit rich emission wise is ok as long as it's not way out !
Running rich keeps combustion temps down lessening the chances of burning up valves which nobody wants
Any shows lined up this summer be good to finally see EvilZee in person

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Some days it just isn't worth chewing through the restraints !!!!

They should not be roller brake testing that car, it has an LSD.
30% imbalance is the fail criteria.
When I used to test that car I always got excellent brake numbers. Maybe it's gone downhill since I saw it last. Good to hear it's all going well now though, good solid car which I owned for a brief time - had to rescue it from the local custom/drag crowd who would have cut it to ribbons.
Original 396 car IIRC.
Cheers, Martin

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The car is now in Northern Ireland so likely won't be over for many shows. Although; my Dad is interested in taking his Cobra kit to the Great Dorset Steam Show, Goodwood Revival and Brandshatch Speed weekend at some point in future so I might tag along then. There is a few shows in Ireland I'll get to, mainly charity and fund raiser things.

The car sat unmoved (bar the odd nudge in and out of the garage) for approx 14 months (on old jag wheels whilst the engine was rebuilt - ta for the pistons!), so I wasn't massively surprised they had seized up a bit. In hindsight I should have replaced the lot in one go as matter of course, rather than just chancing my luck. Truth be told, whilst I'd obviously liked to have been out in the car, I've thoroughly enjoyed the engine removal/rebuild/install process, and resolving a few other issues to suit my own personal preference. I've really got to know the car, and really feel the car is becoming "mine". I've a few other projects lined up for after the summer; replacing clutch cable with rod linkage, and I'd like to put in a braided wiring loom this winter or next (I'm also looking at converting an old cattle byre at my parents for storage so time and money will be the decider as always lol).

MOT here is done in Government Test Centers. I had spoken to them (and other people) about testing a LSD on rollers and using a tapley brake meter. Seemingly the wheels are spun individually and shouldn't effect a LSD. I still made them aware of my objections (they even showed me insurance cover for improper testing) but went through OK.

I'm a bit of a car geek, so have tried looking into the history of the car. Going by the chassis numbers it was originally a straight 6 (123379N), and likely to be the more common 250 rather than 230. There is a cowl plate but the detail on it doesn't match the chassis number, so I can only assume it came from another car (It came from a Cortez Silver V8). It was registered in the UK in April 1970 and at one point was a drag car called Heatseeker in the 90's.

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EvilZee's very own Facebook page
NI Banger racing Spectator - My other hobby; Banger Racing!

Aha

this is not Nigel's Evil Zee - but another!

the penny has now dropped!
sounds like you are having fun getting it all fixed
ps don't like the sound of mismatching VIN and Data cowl plates!

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Kind Regards
TopCat
Secretary
Classic Camaro Club
Member of The Association of American Car Clubs UK
Email :tboles@strathnoon.co.uk Websites: http://www.classiccamaroclubuk.com and:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IdhLJtR_ZY4

Wrong, it is the ex-Nigel car.
Cheers, Martin

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I bought it from Nigel last February. I actually think it was a steal to be honest, given the cost to locate and import a similar spec car in the same condition, never mind the stress and hassle of it these days for a first timer. I've forever wanted a Manual 69 Camaro in Red with Black stripes, even the steering wheel is what I envisaged; it was like Nigel picked up a drawing from my 15 year old self and built it . The build thread was also something that few people ever get when buying "a classic" and given that I was able to go and see it in person before purchase rather than hoping what was in pictures would turn up at the dock was a massive plus.

The Cowl plate was just in a folder Nigel passed on with the car which had invoices, old MOT certs, some correspondence and some heat-seeker photos.

_________________
EvilZee's very own Facebook page
NI Banger racing Spectator - My other hobby; Banger Racing!