New Rover 12 owner

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JohnG
Posts: 41
Joined: Thu Jul 02, 2020 5:44 pm

New Rover 12 owner

Post by JohnG » Fri Jul 03, 2020 12:50 pm

Hello,

I'm John from London. I have just become the new owner of a 1946 Rover 12, with an interesting (although as-yet unverified) history. I bought the car from the widow of the previous owner and she told me that it's believed the car (possibly just the chassis and engine) was on the assembly line in Coventry when the factory was bombed and that it was subsequently put into storage and completed in 1946 when production restarted.

Before I bought it, the car had been standing in the street unused for about a year. It seems to be structurally quite solid although the bodywork is a little bit rough around the edges. The engine starts and runs well, though it is a bit smoky. There seems seems to be a problem with the clutch (nasty metallic clanking when letting it out, which persists when the car is in motion) and there is also a coolant leak, which seems to be from somewhere around the water pump. There is also a bit of free play in the fan (maybe about an eighth of an inch), which someone suggested means it's time to replace the water pump bearing.

I'd like to get the car roadworthy again and drive it rather than doing a major restoration for the time being. I've done simple bolt-off, bolt-on repairs on a classic car before but never undertaken anything very complex. If anyone can offer any advice on the clutch and water-pump issues I'd be very grateful. Also, I read that asbestos was used in sound-proofing in doors and notice that there are the remains of some sort of fibre-containing coasting in the boot, so I wanted to ask whether anyone knows whether material containing asbestos was still being used in post-war cars (I think one account said it was only used on pre-war cars).

I hope this isn't too much information for a first post but of course I'm very excited to have the car and keen to learn as much as I can.

GOY189
Posts: 557
Joined: Sun Oct 19, 2008 5:08 pm

Re: New Rover 12 owner

Post by GOY189 » Fri Jul 03, 2020 6:48 pm

Hello John,
Welcome to the forum. It does sound as though the fan bearings may be in need of replacement, a relatively easy task as described in the RSR's workshop manual (available along with the parts list from the RSR, see the website). I should check the gearbox oil level, but I'm not sure what would give rise to the clanking you describe.

Mike

JohnG
Posts: 41
Joined: Thu Jul 02, 2020 5:44 pm

Re: New Rover 12 owner

Post by JohnG » Fri Jul 03, 2020 9:08 pm

Hello Mike,

Thank you very much. I inherited a manual from the previous owner so will take a look at the procedure for replacing the bearings and get started on that as soon as possible. And I will check the gearbox oil level as you advise.

Regards,

John

TonyG
Posts: 288
Joined: Mon Sep 07, 2015 4:38 pm

Re: New Rover 12 owner

Post by TonyG » Sun Jul 05, 2020 9:34 am

John,

As Mike said the water pumps are easy enough to strip down. You will find two bearings and a bronze/carbon seal. The bearings are fed with oil from the autolube or a grease nipple on top of the pump. If the bearings are worn the pump is usually noisy. If the seal is worn then water can get past and exits from a hole in the bottom of the pump behind the pully. You may find that the brass bellows can be gently stretched so as to provide sufficient pressure for the seal to become effective. If not it’s a matter of getting it reconditioned. I’ve no experience of that. Packing the bearings with grease may resolve any noise. Worth a go. The bearings are standard size I believe and can be sourced from a bearing supplier if you can read the numbers on them. The same applies to wheel bearings on your car.

Regarding the gearbox noise, could be to do with the clutch release bearing or even the cover. Certainly sounds like something is adrift in there if it’s making clanking noises. Does the clutch work smoothly or does it judder? Meteor spares stocks clutch parts. Probably only solution will be to take the gearbox out and look! No point doing that and not renewing the clutch. The box can be removed from inside the car. Quite a job but easier than pulling the engine out. Before doing that it might be worth taking the tunnel carpet and cover off the box and listening to check that the noise is from within the bellhousing area and that nothing external is loose.

Old cars do smoke more than modern ones. Is it oil or petrol that is making the smoke? Once the ignition and carb are adjusted correctly there should be little visible smoke once hot and choke pushed in. Blue smoke would be oil and suggests rings. Worth doing a compression test.

I had asbestos sound deadening within doors of my 37 Saloon. Suitably suited etc, I soaked it with petrol to dissolve the adhesive and scraped it off while it was all mushy and sealed it in bin bags. Fortunately I knew someone who was disposing of asbestos guttering and got rid of it that way but local authorities can probably advise. I didn’t find any elsewhere on the car but that may have been removed before I got it.

Hope that helps.

Tony.
Tony Gilbert

P1 12 Tourer
P2 12 6 Light Saloon
Discovery 3
Discovery Sport

JohnG
Posts: 41
Joined: Thu Jul 02, 2020 5:44 pm

Re: New Rover 12 owner

Post by JohnG » Sun Jul 05, 2020 7:25 pm

Hello Tony,

Many thanks for your message. This is really helpful information for a novice like me and makes me feel more confident about investigating the problems I described.

The water pump is not too noisy but there is a leak somewhere and it sounds like it might be the worn seal scenario you describe. The clutch actually seems to work reasonably smoothly. I will follow your advice and try to ascertain where exactly the noise is coming from.

I think the smoke is oil, so will try doing a compression test as you suggest.

Thanks again.
Regards,

John

TonyG
Posts: 288
Joined: Mon Sep 07, 2015 4:38 pm

Re: New Rover 12 owner

Post by TonyG » Mon Jul 06, 2020 8:40 am

John,

I’ve just re-read your original post and see that your car was registered post war, but may be pre war in some respects. If it has the later type water pump then my description may not be completely accurate, although I believe the construction was similar. The workshop manual will detail the differences. When removing it’s a good idea to fix a piece of cardboard or similar to the inside face of the radiator so the fan blades don’t damage the rad as you pull the pump away.

Great to hear about ‘novice’ owners getting to grips with their classics. The great thing about these Rovers is the quality of their construction and, relatively, advanced design. As such, there is little difference with some cars made 40 years later and offer up the most straight forward of mechanical architecture, so no confusing surprises.

Keep us posted on progress.

Tony.
Tony Gilbert

P1 12 Tourer
P2 12 6 Light Saloon
Discovery 3
Discovery Sport

JohnG
Posts: 41
Joined: Thu Jul 02, 2020 5:44 pm

Re: New Rover 12 owner

Post by JohnG » Mon Jul 06, 2020 4:37 pm

Hello Tony,

Thanks for the additional info and encouragement. Well keep you informed about how things go.

Regards,

John

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