TR2/3/3A TR3A Cowl Vent Spring

[nealm]

I was wondering if anyone could tell me how the cowl vent spring attaches on a 1960 TR3A? That's the spring that holds the cowl vent door open. Better yet does anyone have any pictures?

Thanks
NealM

 

[martx-5]

That's a real head scratcher when you first look at it. Basically, the closed horseshoe shaped end hooks into between the the tabs of the front assembly, and the body. The rear of the spring with the two ends sticking out hook into the lid.

See the attachments below, and it will be a little more clear. I just did a quick assembly of the parts, and left out the rod that actuates the lid.

Hope this helps.

Edit: You will also notice that I did not attach the front assembly fulcrum piece (the part laying down in the vent cavity) to the lid itself. IIRC, that attaches with a fat cotter pin. At least that is what was in there when I took it apart.

 

[Geo Hahn]

...IIRC, that attaches with a fat cotter pin. At least that is what was in there when I took it apart.

On mine that is held with a pin (sort of a bolt w/o threads) and speednut. No idea if that is original.

My lid will not lift as far as the one pictured, the springs are too tight for that. Also, I had to oval out the holes where the hinge attaches to the body to get the lid back far enough to clear the rear edge of the bonnet.

Of course the one pictured lacks the rubber seal, that needs to be in place before you hook up the springs.

 

[martx-5]

Like I mentioned in my post, I just put together things quickly in order to show how the spring was situated. Yes, I left out the gasket/seal, and didn't even attach the lid to the body, or the actuator to the lid. That alone would have brought the lid down. If everything was hooked up, the lid would only be up about half of what it shows in the pics. The original poster was concerned about how the spring went on. I tried to show that, and wasn't concerned about the rest of the installation.

 

[WillE]

Here's a pic I took before dismantling my 2 - hope it helps!

Note that the spring is 180deg from the one shown by martx-5

 

[martx-5]

That's interesting...about the 180 deg difference. When I first tried to assemble the pieces with the way they are shown in WillE's photo, the lid would not close easily for me. I flipped the spring, and then it closed with a nice snap, and opened without a problem.

Try it both ways, and see which works best. I'd like to know, as I will be confronted with putting all of this together soon enough.

 

[nealm]

Thanks all. This was exactly what I was looking for.

 

[Don Elliott]

If you find that it's hard to close, just reach over the top of the windscreen and pop it closed. Takes only one finger and only a second, but keep you eyes on the road, especially if you're talking on your cell phone as well.