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Wedge Looking at a TR7

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waltesefalcon

waltesefalcon

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I'm looking at a TR7 spider. I'm not terribly familiar with the TR7 so what are some of the things I should look for with this car?
 
first thing to look for is rust. slide the seats forward and lift the carpet inspecting the seams below the seat where the rear axle control arms mount, look under the spare tire, and look down the sides of the trunk just behind the wheel wells. If the seller will let you, bring a compression tester with you (you can pick up a cheap 'universal' kit for like 30$ at harbor freight) and do a quick compression test on the motor. All the cylinders should be within 10% or so of eachother, and this should tell you if the head gasket is in ok shape.

Depending on how much of a stickler you are for originality, the spider edition should have the same alloy wheels as the TR8s but they are silver painted, and the part number stamped in each wheel has an S at the end of them.
 
So the alloy wheels are painted silver? That's a gas, although not terribly surprising; I know Mercedes used to do the same thing. I'm not a huge stickler for originality, but I'll go ahead and check the wheels, where are the part numbers stamped? Don't worry, I always take my compression tester when I check out a car.
 
Buy it! You know you wanna become a wedgehead.
 
Also look for rust on the tops of the strut towers. If drivable check for a shimmy in the front end at 55mph. look for coolant on top of he block. Post some pics and that will help us. A lot of Spider owners are very proud of the cars and they did have some upgraded features like the black paint, interior, wheels and maybe fuel injection. they reflect it in there price but remember it's still a TR7. I don't remember for sure that spiders had the gray striped mohair seats or the red plaid. If the plaid TRF has a OEM set for sale.
 
Got_All_4 said:
I don't remember for sure that spiders had the gray striped mohair seats or the red plaid.
Click to expand...

They had a black and gray striped material, apparently not very durable because few originals seem to have survived. The TWOA is looking at getting the material made again. The carpet was also a much thicker gray shag carpet than standard.
 
If you're not sure whether it's a true Spider, check the ID plate on the driver's door. It should read "PMA" for paint code and "RAF" for interior. Also, I think the dash was black rather than the charcoal for all the other Wedges.
 
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