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Driving in rain, another question

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Hi David! et al

If I water spray mist my engine while it is running,
what do I look for? Sparks, lights, what?

thanks,

d
 
Hi Dale:

I don't write much but do follow all the various posts, somehow they always get answered by someone with a better solutions.
I too live in a similar climate to yours, Miami and have had my car since 1973, dont worry so much about falling rain, but rather worry about driving thru it, as the fan on our cars are made of plastic and water has a much higher density than air which will make it deflect forward and into the radiator...a disaster!.

I have always used dielectric grease on the distributor and have never lost power from just rain, I would maybe weld a flat mesh on the radiator side facing the engine to deflect the fan if you accidentally drive across deep standing water, that was my solution about 30 years ago and it is still there, same radiator and fan. best of luck in your trip, I will be rooting for you.
 
Dale,

The water spray will cause the engine to start to miss fire. Do one area at a time, rather than soaking everything at once to see what happens.
 
Thanks Paul, I am
actually just about at that point
in rebuilding my ignition system.

A little cleanup yet to perform.

thanks,

d
 
Dale;

As Paul says, it will start to misfire when you find the leak point.
I f you do this at night, you actually can see the sparks, but I don't necessarily recommend that.

Dave :savewave:
 
like Dave says but the sparking will pinpoint the leak and really won't do any harm :crazyeyes:
 
Dale: Gee man! You don't have enough to do! I have heard this about retired people.
You may find a coating to apply to the cap, wires and coil but consider this. The wires are modern silicone rubber which already has excellent dielectric strength. This type of insulation also has the ability to prevent tracking, which is the breakdown of the surface of the insulation. However, in order to maintain this characteristic the wires need to be kept clean and dry. Theoretically, ultra clean water has great dielectric strength. This deteriorates quickly as minerals dissolve in the water and rain has all kinds of junk in it. The same goes for the coil top insulator and the distributor cap. Any deposits on them will cause tracking and a severe reduction of voltage at the plug gaps. In fact there may not be enough voltage to fire the gap. That's why your engine will stall. So, even if you found some magical stuff to spray on the wires, etc. the effect is temporary. What would I do? Nothing but keep the wires, cap and coil clean and dry. if you run through a deep puddle and the engine stumbles, pull over, shut down, dry the wires, cap and coil and Bob's your uncle. My 2 cents.
 
I wash our TR6 nearly every time before we go for a drive. I also wash the engine bay and everything in it at least once a week. When I wash it I first spray it all down, including the dizy and wires, and then spray soap on, Then I wash it with a wool mitt before spraying it down to rinse the soap off. I also use gunk from time to time take any oil film off. I have never had any problem from doing this.
 
angelfj said:
Dale: Gee man! You don't have enough to do! I have heard this about retired people. if you run through a deep puddle and the engine stumbles, pull over, shut down, dry the wires, cap and coil and Bob's your uncle. My 2 cents.
Click to expand...

<span style="color: #990000">Frank you old buzzard. I think ya best come on down
and show me what you are talkin about. I won't mention your very
Triumph Expert, hands on, help with installing my new water pump-
that for some reason, leaked about one gallon every 10 seconds!!

d :lol: :shocked: :shocked:
</span>

wrench2.jpg
 
Speaking (typing) as an ex-aircraft maintenance troubleshooter, my vote is to chase the cause not the symptom. As others have suggested, get that hose pipe out and localize a light spray to pin point the troublesome area.
 
Dale,

That wrench is ingeniously tucked in there to perfectly align the front lifting point of the engine. Far more important than a tiny drip of coolant every now and then.
 
Brosky said:
Dale,

That wrench is ingeniously tucked in there to perfectly align the front lifting point of the engine. Far more important than a tiny drip of coolant every now and then.
Click to expand...

<span style="color: #990000">Hey Paul ,

I'm sure Frank will never live this one down. But
in hindsight, the wrench in the housing was truly one
of the funnniest screw ups in all the repairs and restorations
made to the Crypt Car. I still can picture Frank and I staring
at the front of the engine, garden hose in the radiator, and
watching water gushing out.

d</span>
 
I've never had any trouble driving the 250 in the rain. In fact, when I bought the Green Machine, the weather had been perfect. I bought the car, and then drove it to a bed and breakfast near where the previous owner lived. The weather had been perfect all week. The next morning, I awoke a sunny sky but with looming clouds. After the first ten miles, a furious downpour started, and it didn't end until the moment I drove into my driveway. I mean *driving* heavy downpour. The only problem I had was that some of the seals on the firewall let water drip on my feet from time to time. Heck, even my Clear Hooters wiper switches held up. :smile:
 
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