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Author Topic: BBC TV Top Gear programme on Lancia!  (Read 57583 times)
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fay66
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« Reply #135 on: 09 December, 2009, 09:53:20 PM »

Yes it was common for cars of that period to rust, HA Viva's practically dissolved the moment they left the factory, and Volkswagen were a by word for it, however, I think there was a poitical element to the lancia problem and it's to do with the UK or more specifically the uk's Murdoch run press.
During the eighties there was a lot of shall we say 'Jingoism' around, particularly during the Falklands war, where, when the press realised that there are a lot of people of Italian extraction in Argentina, the link was quickly made with all things Italian, Musollini tanks going backwards etc., and this fitted in nicely with a bit of EU bashing. So it was good copy to show an Italian product in a bad light.Poor old FIAT evenj tried to launch a car called the 'Argenta' !!! I bet they were falling over themselves at the SUN when they saw that. Funny thing is German cars never seem to be subjected to the same treatment even though going way back they have had major problems with there product. BMW's Nicasil engine problems for one. I know Jag & Ferrari used it too, but BM's are so often hailed as the bench mark of motoring perfection, Nice cars, I've owned two of them, but definately not without, sometimes serious flaws.
My wife purchased one of the first of the new Mini's. It was returned three times with faults, plus at least once for a manufacturers recall. On one occasion, when she mentioned this frequency to a salesman from Snows, he replied, 'Well Madam with Minis what do you expect!' Of course this is when Beemer folk say 'Well of course it's not a real BMW etc etc.
It rather appears to me, as I enter my twilight years, that as a country we will accept any old yarn that the Germans spin us. How could those those slovenly,workshy,effeminate etc etc. Italians build a decent car??. then he gets in his new five series that doesn't even have the wipers converted for right hand drive. I rest my case.

Without trying to get on my high horse as I agree with a lot of your posting, but as an ex employee of 24 years at Vauxhall, your comments regarding the HA Viva are a load of C---P, they were no better or no worse than any other major manufacturer of the time, and after the fiasco with rust in the original F type, better than most, in fact everything Vauxhall built in that period was wax treated and undersealed, something you certainly couldn't say about my Fathers Ford Capri, that was sold after the first year due to extensive corrosion, when we looked underneath it there was nothing other than the paint, no protection that we could see not even a clear wax !.
We built the HA vans for the post office and BT until the mid 1980's so they couldn't have been that bad.
Rant over.
But it's comments like that which are unjustified that the press picked up on, and used against Lancia.


Brian
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Own 1966 Fulvia 2C Berlina since 1997, back on road 11-1999.Known as "Fay"
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Scarpia
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« Reply #136 on: 10 December, 2009, 03:31:22 PM »

our viva didn't dissolve in the rain, it simply stopped .Water always seemed to go straight into the electrics (I think from road splash).It rusted about the same as our maxi, escort et al. The minis (actually riley elfs ) were head and shoulders above the others in rust susceptibility.Floors just fell out .....We liked most of our cars but I don't think we ever had a good one......
 
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fay66
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« Reply #137 on: 11 December, 2009, 02:32:14 AM »

our viva didn't dissolve in the rain, it simply stopped .Water always seemed to go straight into the electrics (I think from road splash).It rusted about the same as our maxi, escort et al. The minis (actually riley elfs ) were head and shoulders above the others in rust susceptibility.Floors just fell out .....We liked most of our cars but I don't think we ever had a good one......
 
Hi William,
Never really had to much problem with Viva's in the rain, the bit I always found disconcerting on a HC 1256 cc that I owned was at about 36 K, was getting someone to push the clutch down with the engine running, and watch the crankshaft pulley move in and out in time with the pedal due to thrust washer wear, the thrust washers were only fitted to either side of the centre main bearing.
I also remember being stranded on the M1 for hours in 1958/1959 in a hired Mini, and missing a 21st birthday party due to drowned electrics, it was in the times before Mini owners realised that a rubber glove with the finger tips cut off, worked perfectly in keeping the wet off of the distributor and leads. Grin

Brian
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Own 1966 Fulvia 2C Berlina since 1997, back on road 11-1999.Known as "Fay"
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fensaddler
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« Reply #138 on: 11 December, 2009, 12:58:23 PM »

our viva didn't dissolve in the rain, it simply stopped .Water always seemed to go straight into the electrics (I think from road splash).It rusted about the same as our maxi, escort et al. The minis (actually riley elfs ) were head and shoulders above the others in rust susceptibility.Floors just fell out .....We liked most of our cars but I don't think we ever had a good one......
 
Hi William,
Never really had to much problem with Viva's in the rain, the bit I always found disconcerting on a HC 1256 cc that I owned was at about 36 K, was getting someone to push the clutch down with the engine running, and watch the crankshaft pulley move in and out in time with the pedal due to thrust washer wear, the thrust washers were only fitted to either side of the centre main bearing.
I also remember being stranded on the M1 for hours in 1958/1959 in a hired Mini, and missing a 21st birthday party due to drowned electrics, it was in the times before Mini owners realised that a rubber glove with the finger tips cut off, worked perfectly in keeping the wet off of the distributor and leads. Grin

Brian
8227 Cool

Pedants corner, but as the Mini wasn't launched until 1959, it definitely wasn't 1958.  But I gather the early ones were a little susceptible in that regard...
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Chris Owen
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sllim1946
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« Reply #139 on: 12 December, 2009, 09:46:59 PM »

Brian,
Are you sure that they cut off the finger tips? - if so to what purpose? to give good ventilation perhaps? My 1959 (yes, the first year of production), ex BMC press fleet and ex John Cooper's demo car needed all fingers intact to keep out the H2O!!!
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1961 Appia Berlina S3
Neil Lewis
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« Reply #140 on: 12 December, 2009, 11:42:25 PM »

Brian,
Are you sure that they cut off the finger tips? - if so to what purpose? to give good ventilation perhaps? My 1959 (yes, the first year of production), ex BMC press fleet and ex John Cooper's demo car needed all fingers intact to keep out the H2O!!!

Conveniently rubber gloves have four fingers and a thumb.  You cut off all the tips then pass the plug leads out of the fingers and the coil lead out of the thumb.  An elastic band around each finger keeps teh wet out.  The wrist of the glove is elastic banded around teh base of teh distributor so the whol dizzy cap area is waterproofed.

You could just push a needle through the fingers and force the leads through the rubber but they soon tear/perish letting water in, exactly the opposite of what you need.

Best done using the pink variety of glove since it stands out well, lol!

Neil
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fay66
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« Reply #141 on: 13 December, 2009, 12:15:31 AM »

Brian,
Are you sure that they cut off the finger tips? - if so to what purpose? to give good ventilation perhaps? My 1959 (yes, the first year of production), ex BMC press fleet and ex John Cooper's demo car needed all fingers intact to keep out the H2O!!!

Not for ventilation, but you had to have holes for the 4 plug leads and the high tension lead, note, only a small piece off of the end of the finger tips, not all the fingers Grin otherwise where did the leads go?

Just Googled 'distributor Mini Rubber Glove' and came up with this.
CAR reader Mini memories

CAR reader John Wood remembers tuning his Mini with a rubber glove
 
By John Wood

Spyshots

30 September 2009 09:30


I learned to drive in my Mum’s red Mini – 1963 vintage – and having stoved in the front end whilst 'practising' for my test (sorry Mum) I passed. Just. We all drove Minis in the late 1960s, and those that didn’t had Anglias. Tuning was rife: CCC magazine was our bible. You started out with an old Minivan (was the tax cheaper?) and the first thing to do was to get someone to insert some windows in the side. So then you had a Countryman, sort of.

We learnt about rear subframe rot, lowering the steering wheel and fitting a Motalita. Cool! The exhaust pipe connection to the manifold would come undone under hard acceleration which was fixed with a Speedwell 'brace' from the rocker box to the bulkhead. Only trouble then was serious vibration. Never mind.

But the ultimate 'mod' involved Mum again. Pinch one of her rubber gloves, snip off the ends of the fingers, and slide it over the distributor. The four plug leads came out of the fingers, and the lead to the coil came out of the thumb. Then you could drive it in the rain, and it would keep going!

I ended up with a 1966 Cooper 'S'. A proper one with the 12-stud head. We shaved the head, fitted a hot cam, twin 11/2” SUs, a revcounter and wide wheels. Green with a white roof. Marvellous. I wonder what happened to it...


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Brian
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« Last Edit: 13 December, 2009, 12:24:37 AM by fay66 » Logged

Own 1966 Fulvia 2C Berlina since 1997, back on road 11-1999.Known as "Fay"
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frankxhv773t
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« Reply #142 on: 13 December, 2009, 10:29:53 PM »

Back at Stratos replicas; I followed the link and was intrigued by the reference to the one "featured in Penthouse Magazine, pale blue model." I wonder, was that because it was an outdoors photo-shoot in winter or were they referring to the car?

Still, a number of posts from people saying the show has made up their minds to buy a Stratos replica. No publicity is....etc.
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ColinMarr
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« Reply #143 on: 15 December, 2009, 09:37:16 AM »

All fans of Jeremy Clarkson and his gang of loveable buddies will enjoy this article from today’s Guardian:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2009/dec/15/jeremy-clarkson-digested-read

PS I should have added – it’s also a fine piece of writing that will please many readers, not only fans of the man!


Colin
« Last Edit: 15 December, 2009, 01:26:31 PM by ColinMarr » Logged
Sliding Pillar
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« Reply #144 on: 15 December, 2009, 07:44:29 PM »

I took a Flaminia Touring GTL for a MOT today, the blokes there know me and my liking for things Lancia, but they all made favorable comments about the Top Gear programme and its portrayal of the Marque. The GTL passed by the way, they were making all the right noises about its mechanical engineering.
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sparehead3
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« Reply #145 on: 30 December, 2009, 04:13:02 PM »

FYI : Interesting footnote on series 4 from Andy Wilman (whom I'm guessing is the producer) :

http://transmission.blogs.topgear.com/2009/12/20/series-14-where-were-at/
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Regards,
Steve Pilgrim
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« Reply #146 on: 30 December, 2009, 08:25:07 PM »

Brian, that's my point !!!!
A lot of what is handed down as 'The truth' about cars and, for that matter, a lot of other things we read in the press, is just regurgitated heresay, made up by 'not very good journalists who can't be bothered to check their facts or, worse, just to please their editor and political master. The trouble with Clarkson and his kind, is he tries to pass off his eccentric raving right wing ramblings, as a bit of a joke, and when it all goes tit's up in the press, puts on his naughty schoolboy caught 'scrumping' routine, to get out of it. Like you I've done a job for a very long time, fourty two years in the media, and I would say to anyone who laughingly thinks that 'Good old Jezza' doesn't have an 'Agenda', believe me, I know .....HE DOES.
Apologies if this is a little 'off theme' but I feel it's worth mentioning, for the sake of those who think that we still haver fair and unbiased reporting in this country
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Peter W
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« Reply #147 on: 23 January, 2010, 10:05:44 PM »

Received my copy of Auto Italia today and was surprised to read a write up by J-P stating that he had received an email from Auto Italia asking for cars for the show and that within 48 hrs he had ensured that the BBC had a suitable range.  The inference being that they had all been supplied through Club LanciaSport.  Funny thing, it was Colin Marr who contacted me to arrange for my car to be on standby should a more local Fulvia prove not to be available for the filming of the opening shots.  I was however pleased to read the editor's note at the end of the article thanking members of the Lancia Motor Club for providing their cars & information.

Peter
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« Reply #148 on: 23 January, 2010, 11:20:09 PM »

Worth going back and re reading opening post on this thread.
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ColinMarr
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« Reply #149 on: 24 January, 2010, 01:42:48 PM »

Posts under the heading "Two clubs is one too many" are also relevant!

Colin
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