Wedge new to me TR7, need some basic info. thanks.

i have had MGs for 12 years...have completely restored....from junkyard salvage....my daily driver '72 MGB GT, so i am not new to the old car game or the British car game. i am new to Triumphs, however. i almost had a TR7 as a teenager, before my mom put her foot down, so its not like i just discovered them. i have a great love for the MG, but am willing to try out this Triumph thing...no hate here for the "flying doorstop."

i have done most of my MG web stuff on the "MG Experience," but i am not sure the Triumph part of that site has enough traffic to give me what i need....so i have come over here to the BCF to check y'all out.

anyway, i have been negotiating for this thing for a week and actually have it as of yesterday. i drove it home. first time behind the wheel of a TR. anyway, thats me. a couple of pictures here and i will add some more. anyway, mucho questions coming.

(it seems to be fairly stock...)

lets start with....

1. accelerator hangs up. it feels like the cable. i am ok with ordering and installing a new cable...any other Triumph secrets i should know? it has twin ZS, i assume they are original.

2. it has an aftermarket manual choke installed. the guy i bought it from say that it replaced the water choke. i know what all that means, i just want to tell y'all to make sure there isn't anything you feel i should know....

3. it has the a'c installed and the prior owner says it works...except that he took the belt off because the idler bearing on the compessor made an unpleasant noise. wisdom to give me here? i will look on VB and Moss, but i haven't yet....

4. it still has the original rad fan set up. should i pull that and go with a Hayden design or leave it be?

5. I know that the TR7 had assembly issues (no hate here) and a couple touchy places in the design. my research says that since mine is an '80, i should be past most of that....stuff i should be aware of?

6. while i am ok with stock or mostly, are there common upgrades that i should consider?

7. my idle wanders quite a bit. what is up with that?

8. is there a "best" oil brand and type? for an MG, i would never use anything other Castrol GTX 20/50, what about my wedge?

(i am sure that there will be more.)

I'm not sure if this is relevant or not; but my first Stag had accelerator cable problems and the replacement (ordered from the UK) started doing the same thing within a few months. So I went to a bicycle shop and asked for the "longest teflon-lined heavy duty brake cable" they had. The cost was much less, and obviously I got it the same day. Plus the extra length let me re-route it just a bit to reduce the sharp bends, and the result worked great.

The TR7 motor (like the Stag) has a relatively soft aluminum alloy head clamped to a cast iron block. So keeping the coolant up to date is essential. If the anti-corrosion additive wears out, the galvanic corrosion between the head and block can ruin the head in a hurry. I'm sure you've seen the horror stories of what happens next.

If it's the same as the Stag, the bearing inside the idler pulley is readily available from bearing suppliers, and easily changed.

Sorry, no help on the other items. I prefer Valvoline VR1 to GTX, but that's just a personal preference. Had some bad experiences with Castrol years ago, but I doubt it's still the same today.

It's been a while since I worked on a TR7 at the dealership. For your wandering idle the diaphragm in the bypass valve on those carbs were prone to leaking, you may want to check it. And EGR valve. Beyond that check for any vacuum leaks before going into the carbs. The manual choke is better than the water/heater type choke. They tend to leak and crust up. Definitely change out the accelerator cable. With the a/c, throw a belt on it and give it a listen to make sure it's not the compressor clutch making the noise and that is not something more ominous. It's been a while for me, so I'm not sure about an idler bearing. I do recall the handling from brand new off the trailer was a bit spongy. If you haven't already done it, you may want to check out this link: https://www.mossmotoring.com/triumph-tr7-and-tr8-wedges-polarize-enthusiasts/ for any other fixes and upgrades. Hope this helps.