TVR Griffith Re-routing the Heater pipes
I decided to change the rocker cover gaskets due to oil leaks and thought that the near side would be the most trouble as the plenum chamber and the accelerator linkage need to be removed . The offside (OS) was however a real pain and much more of a hassle.
The two steel heater pipes running the length of the rocker cover have to be removed completely to gain access to remove the OS rocker. Also the main fuel supply and various vacuum connections to the plenum need to be disconnected.
To make future work on the OS rocker rather easier I decided to re-route the heater pipes away from the rocker. One heater feed exits from the front of the block just below the plenum the other is routed from a T-connection off the main engine water outlet to the radiator. Several owners have executed elegant solutions to the problem by forming new water outlets to allow the feeds to the heater to be practically hidden from view by passing under the plenum etc. As this would be a major job I decided to use the existing water feeds and just modify the routes back to the heater.
The first route is straightforward and runs along the plenum side and simply bypasses the steel pipe by connecting directly to the black silicon tube feeding the heater. seen below:
The two steel heater pipes running the length of the rocker cover have to be removed completely to gain access to remove the OS rocker. Also the main fuel supply and various vacuum connections to the plenum need to be disconnected.
To make future work on the OS rocker rather easier I decided to re-route the heater pipes away from the rocker. One heater feed exits from the front of the block just below the plenum the other is routed from a T-connection off the main engine water outlet to the radiator. Several owners have executed elegant solutions to the problem by forming new water outlets to allow the feeds to the heater to be practically hidden from view by passing under the plenum etc. As this would be a major job I decided to use the existing water feeds and just modify the routes back to the heater.
The first route is straightforward and runs along the plenum side and simply bypasses the steel pipe by connecting directly to the black silicon tube feeding the heater. seen below:
The tap has been a long term fixture and ensures that no heat can get to the heater when switched off. Previously the dash controlled water valve would not shut the water flow completely as many owners have found annoying in the summer when the ventilation blows hot air. The second route from the T connection off the main radiator feed required a new tube to be made. Originally 16mm steel tubing was used for both pipes but having a ready stock of 15mm copper tube decided to try that as it could also be easily bent to shape. Having said that unless one is very skilled at pipe bending (e.g. a plumber) getting the bends spot on would be difficult first time. By forming three separate bends and joining them with Yorkshire fittings a pattern could be made to ensure an accurate fit. Then by duplicating the soldered pattern carefully while bending a jointless pipe could be fabricated.
To ensure a snug fit to the silicon heater pipes, olives and Yorkshire fittings were soldered to each end, this increased the diameter to a little over 16mm but was easily inserted in the flexible tubes. A simple bracket was soldered to support the tube.
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A further bracket was made from mild steel and the tube was sprayed with heat resistant paint. One of the bolts securing the pedal assembly served as a handy mounting point and a tapped hole on the alternator bracket secured the other.
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Hopefully any more work on the OS rocker will be less troublesome and there is enough room to remove the exhaust manifold if this is necessary in the future.