12/08/2026
Driving Miss Daisy…
Well, they would be, but as is often the case, the MOT flagged up “just one more thing”, Columbo style.
OK, more than one… but I digress. There was more work to do before the MOT too, so let’s wind back to that first. 🙂
We replaced the coil wiring mess, fitted a new ballast resistor, a new coil and an electronic distributor.
Yay! Now the coil isn't boiling, the distributor advance isn't sticking, and the previous electronic points aren't melting from the 12V-on-a-6V-coil situation.
As mentioned, the MOT had expired, so, having been instructed to remew this, we checked it over a bit before putting it through the MOT.
The first thing we discovered that would likely fail the MOT were three areas of rust: a hole in the B-post sill and two crusty patches on the strut tops.
These needed fixing first. Rust treatment, stabilisation and sealing (no, not underseal!!) was the most time- and cost-effective solution, so that's what was agreed.
We also noticed that the exhaust was blowing slightly, so plenty of investigation took place. The conclusion? It is around the exhaust manifold area.
Interestingly, this had already been flagged as an advisory at a previous MOT, so it was left for now. The work involved in fixing it properly is lengthy, the customer wants the beasty back, and, quite frankly, we need the space too. 😉
All done. MOT next…
And it failed. 😔
Fortunately, not on anything we had completed. The main issues were the rear brakes and the horn.
The horn
The horn is the dreaded earth-to-the-steering-column issue.
It works OK if the key is out, as the steering lock makes the connection. A wire link is required to repair it!
The rear brakes
Ahhh, yes… imbalance and binding.
A simple test: jack up the rear axle, start the engine, put it into first gear and look at the wheels.
Sure enough, the driver's-side rear wheel wasn't turning, while the passenger-side one was.
So, there was the binding brake detected.
Next test: apply the foot brake and see how the two wheels behave.
Sure enough, with a mild push of the pedal, one wheel remained stationary while the other stopped.
Hmmmm… an imbalance detected, albeit crudely.
Now, what *should* happen if you push the pedal harder is that both wheels should slow down and eventually stall the engine.
If they don't, there is a problem.
**There is a problem.** 😕
No matter how hard the pedal was pushed, both rear wheels would not stop or stall the engine at tickover.
Shucks!
**Just one more thing…**
The confirmation that this was a hydraulic issue came when we raised the handbrake.
Sure enough, with each click of the handbrake, the engine struggled and then stopped abruptly.
The rear brakes work well via the cable.
The suspect here is the **DSP valve** — a spring-loaded, ball-bearing inertia valve designed to prevent a lightly loaded pickup truck or van from locking the rear brakes before the front brakes during hard, sudden braking.
After removing the device, it became clear that it was the problem.
The internal ball bearing rattled back and forth with just light tilting, and the spring had long since disintegrated.
We suspect this was due to years without the brake fluid being changed.
**When did anybody last flush through their brake fluid and replace it with fresh fluid?**
It is a service item. 🙂
Brake fluid is **hygroscopic**, which means it absorbs moisture. It is also corrosive, and as moisture accumulates, the fluid becomes increasingly damaging to the components of the braking system.
It also reduces braking performance because the moisture boils under heavy braking.
Steam compresses.
You get the picture…
All the parts of the brake system that can corrode internally will do so over time.
So, we are now going to replace the DSP valve with a new bias valve. This will serve the purpose for an always-laden vehicle such as this one.
and.. flush through new brake fluid.
# # # And finally…
One of the pictures shows the petrol tank and the breather vent pipe.
As can be seen, it had been fitted incorrectly and was as tight as a guitar string, as well as being somewhat crushed.
So, we rerouted that too. 👍
to be continued.
