6 weeks on

It has been six weeks since the Midget hit the road but unfortunately it was off the road a bit during that time.  After the first week the alternator started to screech badly so a new one was ordered. When it arrived I realised that the used on fitted had the rear housing turned 90 degrees and the wiring wouldn’t reach. Rather than strip open a brand new unit I ended up  removing the exhaust manifold and remaking the wiring.  When completed I went to fire it up and there was a buzz of the fuel pump then a bang. The pump fuse was blown and further testing revealed a dead fuel pump.

I was never happy with the swirl pot in the fuel tank so this was an opportunity to fit an external swirl pot and a Facet lift pump. One week later (and having missed MG90 at Silverstone) and I was back on the road.

Over the weeks there was much fettling of the fuel and ignition map and now it is running quite well but more power must still be there for the taking.  One area that I’ve thought was poor was the brakes due to their lack of effect and even heavy brake pedal effort seemed to make no difference. The pads fitted were some stock Mintex pads ( not the M1144) so it was time to try something else. The EBC Greenstuff is much maligned on the forums but the EBC products seem to be constantly evolving so I thought I’d give them a try. Initial impressions after a few miles is that they are very effective and they have a nice pedal feel. I’m hopeful that they’ll stand up to spirited driving in what is only a 700Kg car.