Recognise This?

Hugo Myatt

Well Known and Active Forum User
VOC Member
2cv

Peter,
You are right about chassis corrosion. Hence my five in succession, four bought new. The fifth one that I had built for me had a stainless steel chassis but unfortunately blew up the engine rather spectacularly. Oh well, back to Vincents.
 

Tnecniv Edipar

Well Known and Active Forum User
Non-VOC Member
The 2CV engine - very tough. An oil cooler and an oilway up the conrods for small end/piston lubrication and cooling. Surely one of few vehicles which is going to be run at full throttle for any length of time.

There was no synchromesh on first gear. You became good at double declutching from second to first, a once much known skill I suspect.

A trouble was that the chassis came with a corrosion guarantee - it was guaranteed to corrode.

That was one of the design parameters , an engine to run at max throttle with full load in the vehicle , indefinitely !
 

Tnecniv Edipar

Well Known and Active Forum User
Non-VOC Member
Peter,
You are right about chassis corrosion. Hence my five in succession, four bought new. The fifth one that I had built for me had a stainless steel chassis but unfortunately blew up the engine rather spectacularly. Oh well, back to Vincents.

A new engine could be installed in a morning !! Do you still have it ?
 

Peter Stokes

Well Known and Active Forum User
VOC Member
2cv

I haven't got my 2CV any more. I bought it new in 1988 and did about 39000m in two years (I remember that it wasn't quite 40000) but I needed something with a bit more go on long runs and discovered diesel cars in 1990 in the days when the fuel was cheap and you filled up at lorry pumps.

A marathon Birmingham to Thurso trip in one go in the 2CV with a headwind for most of the Highlands might have had something to do with the decision. Great fun driving them though, and I wish my present car had such good ventilation.
 

Tnecniv Edipar

Well Known and Active Forum User
Non-VOC Member
There are solutions to that problem !! I can't remember when , perhaps the early 90's , a guy from Car magazine turbo'd a 2CV !! He had great fun bating XR3i's and the like , then just blowing them away !! Unfortunately , the first attempt caught fire due to inadequate heat shielding but he just prevented it from completely burning out. Then he built version 2 improved which was even quicker !! I also remember reading somewhere of at least a couple of GS engined conversions.

The standard 2CV would keep me happy , as long as I had something faster for the longer journeys.
 

Hugo Myatt

Well Known and Active Forum User
VOC Member
Sorry T E, I actually gave it away. I was running a Morgan 4/4 and two solo Vincents and a Honda plus the mississ's Kwaker at the time. With that lot stuffed in the Garage there was no room to work on anything.
 

Peter Stokes

Well Known and Active Forum User
VOC Member
Hello T. E.

While we are discussing exotic machinery, I see on your list you have a Vincent powered lawn mower. Could you post a photo of it, please, if you can get at it easily?

I've got one of the little two stroke industrial engines (photos on the forum under industrial products) which would be suitable for a mower I think.

I lived in Moseley in Birmingham in the seventies, and it was rumoured that there was a Vincent lawnmower used at the village churchyard but I never got round to investigating.

Pete
 
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Tnecniv Edipar

Well Known and Active Forum User
Non-VOC Member
Hi Peter,

Click on my user name and you find an album of pix of my mower.
I also have a spare engine and brand new carburettor for it :) I'll add pix of that when I dig it out shortly.
The mower is quite restorable but I will have to fabricate a new handle / fuel tank as the original is too rusted to recover. Also blade tips , height adjuster knob and one or two special bolts and spindles will need to be made. If anyone has any mower spares they want to dispose of I would very grateful :)
 

Peter Stokes

Well Known and Active Forum User
VOC Member
Vincent mower

Got it. Thanks. Very interesting. My engine is the same type but with a slightly different inlet fitting.

My engine was obviously intended to be fitted that way up - ie the driving end of the crank pointing downwards. I did have a fuel tank but lost it in a house move - it was a crescent shape to fit around the crankcase which would be at the top of the engine.
 
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